An Hour of Who a Day

April 7: Children of Earth: "Day Four" (TW)

Man, if you thought the first three episodes were good, that's nothing compared to what "Day Four" brings -- not only do we get the same character drama as before, but we also get some terrible decisions being made as the plot advances. The combination of this sends the audience on one hell of an emotional ride over the course of this hour, as Children of Earth continues to excel.

So the 456 want 10% of the children of the world. That's a lot more than the twelve they wanted 44 years ago (oh, and hey, Rhys specifically mentions 44 years, so therefore this takes place in 2009 -- useful if you're the sort of person who wants to work out the dates of all the franchise shows of this era). The flashbacks we get are interesting; it suggests that the 456 were offering a cure to a new strain of flu in exchange for those twelve kids. That was a deal Britain was willing to make: the lives of twelve in exchange for saving twenty-five million. It's interesting because here we get no such offer: it's "give us ten percent or we will wipe out your entire species." As Gwen points out to Jack, it's essentially a protection racket, and now the 456 are leaning on the human race.

It's also quite disturbing to see what they've done to the children they were given; it's not clear why exactly they were needed, but seeing one of them connected up to the 456, still young and apparently conscious is really creepy. "We do not harm the children. They feel no pain. They live long beyond their years," the 456 state. "Oh well, that's OK then," Gwen replies sarcastically. We know that, at the very least, the children aren't going to be treated well by our standards. Yet, it seems the 456's threat has backed humanity into a corner.

As such, the most disturbing scenes in "Day Four" aren't those of the child hooked up to the 456 inside that tank, or the 456 spewing green bile all over the cameraman, but are instead those of the British government, trying to decide the best way to select 10% of the nation's children to give to the 456. It's rather horrifying to watch them start from suggesting a purely random selection to eventually advocating a form of eugenics based on test scores:

Now look, on the one hand you've got the good schools. And I don't just mean those producing graduates, I mean the pupils who will go on to staff our hospitals, our offices, our factories. The workforce of the future. We need them. Accepted, yes? So, set against that you've got the failing schools, full of the less able, the less socially useful. Those destined to spend a lifetime on benefits, occupying places on the dole queue and, frankly, the prisons. Now look, should we treat them equally? God knows, we've tried, and we've failed. And now the time has come to choose. And if we can't identify the lowest achieving ten percent of this country's children, then what are the school league tables for?

(from The Torchwood Transcripts - Children of Earth, Day Four)

The only upside to this (well, other than a chance to finally see Dalek-and-more voice artist Nicholas Briggs in front of the camera, as Rick Yates) is that Torchwood has been recording all of this (thanks to Lois), and they finally have enough material that they can use as leverage to get inside Thames House and confront the 456. It really is something of a punch-the-air moment, as Lois stands up and slowly but with increasing confidence tells the assembled Cabinet that the meeting has been recorded and that Torchwood must be given access to the 456 or else all these meetings will be made public. It really is a great moment.

Jack kisses Ianto goodbye. (Children of Earth: "Day Four") ©BBC

It's a shame that it goes south so quickly, though. It's really great to see Jack and Ianto make a stand against the 456, to tell them what will happen if the 456 try to take the children -- "When people find out the truth, you will have over six billion angry human beings taking up arms to fight you," Jack tells them. "That might be a fight you think you can win, but at the end of it, the human race in defence of its children will fight to the death. And if I have to lead them into battle, then I will" -- but the consequences of that action are dire, as the 456 seal off Thames House and release a virus that kills everyone inside. Tragically, this means that Ianto dies as well, with a very poignant death scene as he wonders if Jack will even remember him in a thousand years' time. So goodbye to Ianto Jones, who became easily one of the best characters on Torchwood.

But now we see that the 456 have called Jack's bluff -- and it seems the British government has no choice but to comply with their terms. "Two choices," Yates says. "Either we go to war against an enemy we can't beat, or we go to war against our own people for their own good." "An injury to one is not an injury to all," says Denise Riley, the engineer of the "lowest 10%" plan, explicitly refuting what Jack told the 456. "We have to surrender." "Thirty five million children," says the Prime Minister. "Or six point seven billion people," Riley replies. And so the stage is set for the final episode of Children of Earth...

April 6: Children of Earth: "Day Three" (TW)

The 456 descend on Thames House. (Children of Earth: "Day
Three") ©BBC

In terms of plot not much happens. The 456 arrive ostentatiously, and Torchwood now have a person on the inside wearing their special contacts so they can see what's going on. Oh, and Johnson takes Jack's daughter and grandson into custody. That (and the cliffhanger, which I'll get to) about sums it up.

In story terms, however, "Day Three" continues to make Children of Earth required viewing. There's a slight sense of breathing room for the Torchwood team, now that they're not actively trying to get their fellow members away from the government. Johnson is still monitoring their phones and things (that's how they find out that Alice is Jack's daughter), but they do seem to be a bit safer than they were yesterday. This means they can be a bit more proactive, as they spend much of the day stealing the things they need to help figure out what exactly is going on with the children around the world. That gets them set up to get eyes inside the top floor of Thames House (where the 456 has landed), thanks to the help of Lois, who starts wearing the special contacts we saw in "Reset" so that Torchwood can see what's going on. These scenes are by turns fun (as we get a montage of our heroes stealing things like credit cards and laptops and even a car) and tense (the negotiations between the 456 and humanity, as represented by Frobisher), but the common thread is that we're still completely invested in what's going on -- the 456 is as much a mystery to us as it is to the rest of the team.

Well, with the exception of Jack. He didn't make the connection until Gwen mentioned how Clement McDonald -- the old man who was there the last time the 456 visited -- had had his experience in 1965 Scotland, but when the penny drops and he realizes what's going on he becomes far more proactive. It's fascinating, watching him sneaking into Frobisher's home and grabbing Frobisher's wife's phone so that he can talk to Frobisher -- Jack feels like a dangerous man, even though he doesn't actually do anything more than call Frobisher. "Frobisher, tell me, is it them? Have they come back?" Jack asks. After Frobisher affirms it, Jack replies, "I demand to talk to the 456 myself. Think about it. The fact that they've come back proves that they can't be trusted. You need me." But Frobisher won't budge, and Jack's threats to take Frobisher's wife and two daughters (after he learns the government has Alice and his grandson Steven) end up somewhat empty: "Well, how about I go back into that house right now and get your wife? And your children?" Jack says. "Except you won't, because you're a better man than me," Frobisher replies. But while this scene comes to naught in terms of changing anything, it's one of the best moments of the episode, as we see Jack Barrowman and Peter Capaldi lock swords over this. It's great, seeing these two go at it, and even just over a phone you get the sense of powerful men sparring with each other.

But as I said, it comes to naught, and so we're left with just watching what's happening in the special room, as Jack comes back to Torchwood's temporary base, where Clement recognizes him as the man from 1965, and Jack reveals that they had given the 456 twelve children as a "gift" then -- and meanwhile, the 456 have announced that they want 10% of the world's children as another gift...

April 5: Children of Earth: "Day Two" (TW)

After all the crazy stuff going on in "Day One", "Day Two" is in something of a holding pattern. We don't learn too much more about the 456, other than that they sent instructions to have something specific built for them, and that they seemingly only sent these instructions to Britain. Oh, and that "we are coming tomorrow". So it seems we'll have to wait until tomorrow for more on that front.

No, what "Day Two" does is focus squarely on the aftereffects of the Government's attempt to take out Torchwood. So there's a huge smoking hole in Roald Dahl Plass, which is apparently being blamed as a terrorist attack perpetrated by Gwen, Ianto, and Jack. It's an interesting move to put these three on the run, as it increases the tension and paranoia as they try to work out what's going on and why the government wants them dead. And man did they do a great casting job with the main officer, Johnson -- Liz May Brice looks so hard and angry in every scene she's in that you can't help but root against her, and that's exactly what you want.

So we get a bunch of scenes of Gwen and Rhys on the run, just barely outrunning Johnson and her soldiers as they head to London, while Ianto sticks around near Cardiff to work out where they've taken Jack's remains. He's evidently quite good at staying under the radar, as he's able to watch the bomb site while Johnson and her men are excavating it, and he's able to contact his sister and then use her laptop and car to find out where Jack is being held and to head there. He's very resourceful, is what I'm saying. I also like how Gwen and Rhys go through an elaborate scheme to rescue Jack that goes awry, only for Ianto to crash in with a large sort of backhoe that completely removes Jack's cell; it's a nice touch.

John Frobisher, Bridget Spears, and Mr. Dekker regard the
structure the 456 have ordered them to build. (Children of Earth:
"Day Two") ©BBC

It's also interesting how Gwen and Rhys got their information from a woman named Lois Habiba, who just started in Frobisher's office and read up on Torchwood (illicitly) and can't work out why Frobisher wants them killed. She figures that, since they're the alien experts, they should be able to help. (Lois doesn't realize that the government is trying to cover up knowledge of the 456's last visit, and that Jack was apparently involved somehow -- "If he talks, we're in deep, deep shit," Frobisher tells Johnson after he learns that Jack has escaped.) So she's willing to risk her career and possibly her life to help Torchwood. "If you're the bad guys, why doesn't it say that on your file?" Lois asks Gwen. "And if you're the good guys, who am I working for, and why do they want you dead?"

But yes, as I said, this is mainly a staging episode: we've established that the government wants Torchwood dead, and by the end we've seen both how far the government is willing to go and that Torchwood is able to regroup after rescuing Jack. (Jack's slow healing after the bomb blast, from a bag of body parts to half a corpse to a screaming bloody body to his old self, really is quite gruesome, by the way. Is there anything he couldn't ultimately walk away from?) But it's a really well done staging episode; new-to-the-franchise writer John Fay does a good job of balancing all the plotlines while keeping them interesting, and Euros Lyn continues to keep things tense and compelling. By the end of "Day Two", the gang is back together again. And just in time; the 456 are coming tomorrow (presumably to the top of Thames House, the MI5 building), and it seems like Torchwood should maybe be ready -- if they can stay out of the reach of the government, that is...

April 4: Children of Earth: "Day One" (TW)

Now we've moved on to July 2009, and the start of a special Torchwood miniseries, Children of Earth -- a five-day event devoted to a single story. (Why five episodes instead of a full series? Because the BBC is dealing with budget cuts, that's why.) Each episode takes place over the course of a day -- and so that's why we get a second episode of Torchwood called "Day One". Russell T Davies takes the helm of the show he created and delivers a surprisingly tense conspiracy thriller -- surprising because although Torchwood has improved tremendously, "conspiracy thriller" hasn't really been in the mix up to this point. But Davies and director Euros Lyn definitely deliver.

One of the ways this opening installment succeeds at this is by having the British government seeming to know more about this strange occurrence than Torchwood. This puts Jack, Gwen, and Ianto on the back foot somewhat; although they're very good at putting the pieces together, they seem to lack the knowledge that the Home Office, as personified by a man named Frobisher²⁰⁶, already have.

All the children on Earth start screaming. (Children of
Earth: "Day One") ©BBC

And look, it's Peter Capaldi again as Frobisher -- so that's two appearances in the franchise before being cast as the twelfth Doctor. Here he's a civil servant who just happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, and it becomes his responsibility to deal with what they'd previously called the Four Five Six, after the frequency that had been used the last time, in 1965. And while they're trying to deal with the reappearance of the 456 -- working with UNIT, it seems -- Torchwood is also trying to figure out what made every child on Earth suddenly stop, and then stop again and start saying "We are coming" in unison. It's a creepy and effective move from Davies, temporarily possessing all the children, and it really does make you curious as to what's going on.

The other interesting thing is that this affects every child on Earth -- and one elderly man, who Gwen learns was there in Scotland the last time the 456 appeared. "I was a kid," he says. "... They took us out. In the night, in the dark. Isn't it, isn't it? They told us, they said we were going to a new home. ... They drove us away for miles and miles. They were there in the sky. ... Light. The light took them. ... I ran. There was something, there was people, there was. ... But they're coming back. I've been smelling them for months. In the air. Long time coming." So someone else remembers the last time, even if it appears to have traumatized him for life.

And we also get a couple family revelations; not only do we find out that Gwen is pregnant, but we learn that Jack is a father (and a grandfather!), as he goes to visit his daughter Alice -- although he has an ulterior motive, as he wants to examine a child, to see why only children were affected. But still, it's something new that we've learned about Jack.

And then Davies really cranks up the conspiracy aspect in the last few minutes of the show. Frobisher issues a "blank page" regarding the 456, which seems to involve destroying all the evidence of their previous visit -- including the people who were there. And that seems to include one Captain Jack Harkness. So an unidentified female soldier (from UNIT?) lures him into a trap (and good move, making the bait the nice young doctor Torchwood has been considering hiring all episode -- that really ups the paranoia factor), kills him, sticks a bomb in his stomach, and sets it off when he's back in Torchwood. It's only a chance discovery that lets Gwen and Ianto get clear -- but the Hub and Jack both appear to be obliterated in the explosion.

And if that weren't enough, the children are possessed again. "We are coming back," they say this time. So now the whole world knows this isn't the first time that whatever is causing the children to behave this way (aka the 456) have been here...

²⁰⁶ Presumably not the shape-shifting penguin who traveled with various Doctors in the Doctor Who Magazine comic strip.

April 3: Comic Relief Special ["From Raxacoricofallapatorius with Love"] (SJA) / "Planet of the Dead"

Rahnius reveals himself to be a Slitheen. ("From
Raxacoricofallapatorius with Love") ©BBC

In March 2009 the biennial charity telethon Comic Relief (well, strictly speaking, Red Nose Day is the name of the telethon) aired -- as you may recall, Doctor Who had previously been associated with this effort in 1999, with Steven Moffat's Doctor Who and the Curse of Fatal Death spoof. But this time around it's The Sarah Jane Adventures who are helping the cause, with this five-minute short that officially doesn't have a title but everyone calls "From Raxacoricofallapatorius with Love", as that's what co-writer Clayton Hickman said he and Gareth Roberts had called it. (This can be found on disc 3 of the series 2 DVD boxset of The Sarah Jane Adventures -- it's the "special footage prize" mentioned on the back for completing an easy quiz.)

It's a cute little scene, but for British viewers the main impact is that they've gotten cherished National Treasure Ronnie Corbert to appear in this as an alien. As such there are a number of references to his best-known sketch show The Two Ronnies (including, most obviously, Rahnius's declaration, upon learning Rani's name, that they could be called "the two Ranis"), and some of the elements of The Sarah Jane Adventures are gently mocked -- K-9 is put in a wheel clamp and the sonic lipstick is derided ("What's next? The Bionic Blusher?" Rahnius says). As I said, it's a quick, fun sketch and little beyond that -- but it's not trying to be, and it'll bring a smile to your face.

But now we move on to 11 April 2009 and "Planet of the Dead", the second of the five special episodes of Doctor Who that aired instead of a full fifth series (as David Tennant is busy playing Hamlet at the Royal Shakespearean Company). This is ostensibly the Easter special -- how appropriate, given that this is Easter Weekend 2015 -- but other than a quick reference from the Doctor it doesn't come up the way Christmas comes up in all the Christmas specials. But perhaps more importantly, this is the first episode of Doctor Who to be filmed in high definition²⁰⁵ -- as striking a difference in picture quality as the switch from 405-line to 625-line was in 1967.

But beyond that, this is essentially treated as business as usual for Doctor Who. This is both a good and a bad thing. It's good because it means they can just get on with their story, but it's bad because there's not a lot of Who going in 2009, and so a lesser episode is more obvious in this context. And the thing is, they try really hard to make this an event: not only are they promoting this as the 200th episode (which, you'll recall, involves counting "Utopia" as the first of a three-part story and making The Trial of a Time Lord one big story -- see Dragonfire if you're not sure why this is significant), but they've actually sent a film crew out to Dubai to film their desert planet. It should be epic and wonderful and marvelous, and instead it falls a bit flat.

Part of the problem is the character of Lady Christina de Souza. I'm not sure if it's Michelle Ryan's performance or just the way the character is written, but there's a smug edge to everything that makes her desperately unlikable. The production team mentioned Romana as a similar starting point, but the differences are striking: while Romana is initially presented as a supercilious, self-satisfied know-it-all, she quickly learns that that's not going to get her far while working with the Doctor, and by the end of her first story she's noticeably mellowed. Lady Christina, by contrast, never undergoes this character arc -- she remains smug and arrogant the entire time; it never feels like her eyes have been opened to the wonders of the universe but rather that she's decided that there's more that the universe can offer her. It's not at all what you want out of such a character, and yet it becomes very hard to shake the feeling that we're being presented with someone's idea of a perfect companion. It's therefore something of a relief that the Doctor doesn't take her along with him.

The passengers of the Number 200 survey their new surroundings.
("Planet of the Dead") ©BBC

It does look gorgeous, though; heading out to Dubai really paid off, and director James Strong has some really great shots to add to the effect. He's not afraid to give us some lens flare, to try and add to that cinéma vérité feel (although, thankfully, we're not afflicted with lots of shaky handheld shots), and you can sort of tell that everyone's realized that they're going to be shooting in high definition, so everything looks more detailed, and that adds to this feeling. I also really like the design of the Tritovores -- it's a great-looking mask, and I really like the way the mandibles move.

We also get some nice character moments from the other characters. I'm not sure why Lee Evans has decided to put on a Welsh accent for Malcolm Taylor, but he has, and his performance is rather fun (even if it often feels like they're just remaking part of The Dæmons). Captain Magambo makes a reappearance (albeit her first one in the real universe) and continues to be the stalwart UNIT officer, even though it puts her in conflict with Malcolm. Everyone on the bus is great, and I even like the acting from the Tritovores -- no mean feat, given they're essentially just gesturing and moving their heads around.

But ultimately, "Planet of the Dead" feels a bit underwhelming. There's not a lot wrong with it (other than the aforementioned concerns with Lady Christina's characterization), but it does end up feeling rather matter-of-fact instead of impressive. Still, that's hardly a crime, and the fact that "Planet of the Dead" ends up as another one of those pleasantly average Doctor Who stories isn't the worst thing in the world. You just wish they'd done more with this, given the paucity of new televised Doctor Who this year.

²⁰⁵ Though not the first of the franchise -- that would be Torchwood, which has always been filmed in HD.

April 2: "The Next Doctor"

So. After the broadcast of "Journey's End" in July 2008, David Tennant announced in October that he would be leaving Doctor Who at the end of 2009. And so what was the next episode called...?

I know there are some fans out there who are still annoyed by Russell T Davies essentially having a bit of fun -- some because they perhaps actually thought David Morrissey would be the eleventh Doctor, some because they felt they were denied a more interesting story that had an actual future Doctor in it -- but if you can get past that, there's actually a pretty good storyline running through "The Next Doctor". Of course, there's also a rather poor storyline running through "The Next Doctor", so the end result is something of a mixed bag. Where this story succeeds is in the part dealing with the Doctor and this mysterious person also claiming to be the Doctor, while the part with the Cybermen is in general a waste of time.

The half of "The Next Doctor" that's about the Doctor and a different Doctor is really quite charming. I like how our Doctor remains open-minded for a while as to the identity of this other Doctor, willing to believe that this might be a future incarnation of himself that's undergone some sort of memory loss. The interaction between the two is really nice, and David Morrissey is really good as this other Doctor -- he's suitably Doctor-ish, willing to rush into danger to save people, and even when you know that he's not the Doctor, not really, you still root for him. It certainly doesn't hurt that Jackson Lake was a hero while he believed he was the Doctor. "All that bravery," the Doctor tells Lake. "Saving Rosita, defending London town, hmm? And the invention. Building a TARDIS. That's all you." (Oh, and while we're here... the joke about Lake's sonic screwdriver is cute, but I really like his version of a TARDIS: "It stands for Tethered Aerial Release Developed In Style," Lake says proudly as he shows off his hot-air balloon.) And even when Lake's mind starts to reassert itself, he still proves to be heroic as he assists the Doctor along with his erstwhile companion Rosita (who is played very well by Velile Tshabalala). All this and a sequence (finally) showing all ten Doctors, which at least settled the question of whether Paul McGann counted as a Doctor. (Although, where's John Hurt? You'd think an infostamp from the Daleks would have included him...)

So this part of "The Next Doctor" is suitably lovely, but it's the stuff with the Cybermen where things go badly astray. The best thing about this is Dervla Kirwan as Miss Hartigan (nice touch with the "Miss", by the way), who does an outstanding job as the face of the Cybermen. Miss Hartigan is every inch the vengeful woman, striking back against all the men who ignored her as they entered the workhouse to help the people inside (although, judging from Miss Hartigan's remarks, this was more to assuage their consciences rather than about actually helping the poor and thus little more than a token gesture). The Cybermen have given her the chance to lash out and she's taking it -- she didn't even need to be converted to agree. There's also the part when she's strapped into the Cyberking and is able to take it over -- that's also a good moment.

But everything else about this plot is at best odd and at worst stupid. All right, the Cybermen are desperate, having broken out of the Void into Victorian England. But why is their plan to make a giant steampunk version of themselves that will walk around destroying London? The Doctor recognizes it as a Cyberking, a kind of Cyber conversion ship -- but hang on, why do these Cybermen know about Cyberkings in the first place, if the only place they've been is Pete's World and our world (briefly)? (Or, alternatively, if the Cyberking is a Cybus Industries thing, why does the Doctor recognize their Cyberking? There is a get-out clause with the infostamps, but it's not terribly satisfying.) Why do they need children specifically as their workforce -- wouldn't it be better to just get whoever they can? And who on Earth (both in terms of internal continuity and the production team) thought the Cybershades were a good idea? They literally look like guys in black shag rugs running around on all fours. It's not clear what they're supposed to be from a story point of view (is Miss Hartigan taking the piss?), and from a production standpoint they should have been scrapped the minute someone suggested actors running around on their knees.

All this and a climactic battle where the Cyberking shoots up whole sections of London while stomping on other parts, yet ends with the Doctor (in the balloon TARDIS) causing all the Cybermen and Miss Hartigan to literally explode and sending the Cyberking into the Void. It looks nice, I suppose, but from any other standpoint this is a dud. It's not a very satisfying ending (and Miss Hartigan deserved better -- even Russell T Davies agrees on that), and it also suffers from the general problem of, "Why does no one remember this?" They try to turn it into a joke ("...the events of today will be history, spoken of for centuries to come," Lake says; "Yeah. Funny that," the Doctor replies), but it's a large enough problem that it surely occurred to just about everyone watching.²⁰⁴

So "The Next Doctor" ultimately ends up as a game of two halves. When they're focused on the characters, this story really shines, but when they muck around with the Cybermen it falls badly flat. If you can get past that (admittedly major) problem, then there's quite a bit to enjoy here, but it will definitely take some doing.

²⁰⁴ "Flesh and Stone" will eventually explain this away as the result of the Cracks in Time making everyone forget these events.

April 1: Enemy of the Bane Parts One & Two (SJA)

Wow, it's like old home week on The Sarah Jane Adventures, with the return of the show's first villain, Mrs. Wormwood, as well as (in the surprise part one cliffhanger) Kaagh from The Last Sontaran -- and, most excitingly of all, a special guest appearance from Brigadier Sir Alastair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart (ret.). (Apparently it was originally going to be Martha Jones, but the Brigadier is infinitely more thrilling.)

It's fun how quickly they get us involved in the action, with Gita kidnapped and a clue left for Sarah Jane to follow up on. That means that not only do we get to find out that Mrs. Wormwood is apparently now considered an enemy of the Bane, after her failure with the Bubble Shock venture, but we're quickly introduced to the Brigadier, now retired but just as feisty as ever and willing to help Sarah Jane break into UNIT's Black Archive, the high clearance top secret facility where all the alien stuff is stored. Nicholas Courtney is visibly older here than the last time we saw him in Dimensions in Time (or Battlefield, if you've erased Dimensions in Time from your memory), and while he's wielding a cane now, he still seems quite energetic and full of life and ready to charge into danger as needed. It's a genuine pleasure to see him in action again.

But it's not just the Brigadier; we also get some fun with Sarah Jane and Rani infiltrating the Black Archive to find the Tunguska Scroll, as well as Mrs. Wormwood and Kaagh plotting their revenge against Sarah Jane and her friends. The best part of this particular plot is when Mrs. Wormwood coerces Luke to come with her and Kaagh because she apparently has some motherly urges, and at one point she tries to convince Luke to help her rule the galaxy as mother and son (so not quite Darth Vader, but close). Luke seems entranced by the idea, and Mrs. Wormwood has him hold the device that will let them locate some sort of war supercomputer. Luke holds it, captivated... and then bolts with the device. I genuinely laughed out loud at that point; what did Mrs. Wormwood think was going to happen?

This is an action-packed story, with lots of great moments and performances, and it ends with Kaagh redeeming himself by destroying Mrs. Wormwood before she can enslave the galaxy. Enemy of the Bane is a very solid effort, and a great way to send off series 2. (Although I'll be including the Comic Relief short unofficially referred to as "From Raxacoricofallapatorius with Love" as part of series 2 -- but fair enough if you don't.)

The word that probably best describes series 2 of The Sarah Jane Adventures is "even". This has been a very solid season, and even the stories that weren't as good as the others were still entertaining and worthwhile. If there's a problem, it's that this series hasn't gone in for surprises -- the storylines often feel more straightforward than they could have been. But at this point that's not really a major issue. (If series 3 is also like this then we might have cause to be worried about things like predictability and formulas -- but not yet.) Series 2 doesn't give us a heavy, angsty show, and that's just fine. Because as is, The Sarah Jane Adventures is undeniably fun to watch; what more do you need?