This story is slightly separate from the first series of Elizabeth Sladen’s second(!) spin off. It informally acts as a pilot for what is to come, introducing several key players from the eventual series. Having not watched this since near transmission I was pleasantly surprised that this out and out children’s TV show from 15 years ago held sincere entertainment value.

My favourite thing about this story is Sarah-Jane’s characterisation. She’s pitched as a 9th Doctor style figure, you could put a lot of her words in Eccleston’s mouth. She’s wounded, she has history, but under her hard shell she is secretly compassionate. She’s closed off and secretive, hiding fascinating rarely understood truths in her attic - you can see why children fell in love with this.

Russell T Davies “gets” drama, show pitches and characters. Here, him and Gareth Roberts flex their muscles and gives the kids intelligent drama that the adults are allowed to watch too.

The side characters are wonderful, Maria’s divorced parents are so funny - the snatches of adult dialogue between them are designed to prick up the ears of all parents watching. I actually think the much maligned Kelsey is pretty well written too - perhaps a little *too* antisocial. Contrary to fan wisdom I think she plays the part okay - a shame the child actor was apparently a bit of a bit of a dick on set!

The story is in some senses a rehash of The Long Game. Replace Max with the Bane and frozen zombies with zombies holding pop. It’s not quite generic though, with the central alien subterfuge being just about intricate enough to keep interest.

I was a bit resigned about watching all of a children’s TV, but this opening story perked me up. It’s wonderful seeing more Sarah-Jane. After everything we’ve been through together (as character and Doctor Who obsessive).