The Sarah Jane Adventures: The Last Sontaran (Series Two)

After a disappointing Torchwood (that being series one, not two) The Sarah Jane Adventures made me very happy, and I think the thing that made it better was that it wasn't trying too hard. It embraced it's relationship with Doctor Who and it wasn't scared to acknowledge where it came from. As a result, with series two of TSJA now on our screens, it's great to see that the first episode (or episodes more accurately) are actually a sequel to the Doctor Who story The Sontaran Strategem - and given that the Sontarans were the first aliens that Sarah Jane ever encountered, and were one of the few she met twice, it's nice to have them on TSJA because it gives Sarah that wonderful fearful reaction when she sees them. You know that a villain is scary if the heroes are scared.

All the usual line up are back for this little two-parter - Clyde and Luke clearly best friends, while Mr Smith has become something of a joker, extremely dubious at Sarah's suggestion that the lights in the sky are aliens. Maria and her family are also back, but it's a one off as Alan gets a job in America and leaves. I have to say that it's great that Maria gets a proper leaving story; it would have been devastating if she'd just not been on screen for this season with a passing reference as to why she left.

Speaking of passing references, there were some great continuity references to, not only the Doctor Who series we are watching, but also to the past; notice that Kaargh had gren blood? Huh, did ya? You didn't? Oh, you didn't care. I get it...

Anyway, what a wonderful little two part episode to kick off the new series, and aside from a rather interesting Sontaran in the form of Kaargh, who gets to grumble and shout "Sontar-ha!" a lot, we also get two great performances from Professor Skinner and his daughter Lucy. Ronan Vibert (Skinner) bears a startling resemblance to Alan Rickman - except he's a lot younger - but Clare Thomas, aside from being quite hot, gives a great performance as Lucy. I have to admit that I was hankering for Lucy to become a series regular at the end, even though I knew she wouldn't.

I'm desperately looking forward to the rest of this season, and can't help but think that in some ways TSJA is a little more like the classic series than even new Who is.

"A"