⬆️8/10 = ENJOYABLE!

Thworping through time and space, one adventure at a time!

“A CLASH OF COMPANIONS: A COMMENTARY”

New Who clashes with Classic Who in the third episode of Series 2 (what a wonderful rhyme that is!), which takes us back to the present day for a fun adventure featuring shapeshifting bat aliens in a secondary school environment.

• THE STORY

There’s something Seventh Doctorish about the Doctor going undercover as a teacher in this one (and letting Rose be a dinner lady). I quite like the setup, as Ten makes for a fun teacher, allowing David Tennant to further hone the quirky qualities of his incarnation.

The script is so preoccupied with the Doctor/Sarah Jane relationship (and setting up The Sarah Jane Adventures spinoff in the process) that the alien plot is sort of sidelined until a very busy third act. This also means that the otherwise very effective and creepy Anthony Stewart Head performance isn’t given full attention until the second half (he could have done much more if given the opportunity).

The biggest fun comes from the Doctor and Sarah both investigating the same strange events and crossing paths. It’s heartwarming to see them eventually catch up.

The alien plot to use modified school lunches to create superintelligent children to run a supercomputer that could dominate the universe is a bit silly.

• THE PEOPLE

Billie Piper is still unbearable, particularly when pining for the Doctor and trying to convince Mickey that the Doctor is unlike any other man. The look she gives when the Doctor accepts Mickey onboard the TARDIS always makes me cringe. He's your boyfriend, for God's sake; either accept that or dump him!

Tennant is clearly a fan of the show, and you can see the affection and giddiness he emits in every scene he shares with Elizabeth Sladen, who hasn’t lost any of her wits and charm as Sarah Jane Smith. This is the episode that warmed me to Tennant’s Doctor, as he is much less smug and more balanced here. He also takes great charge of the situation at hand.

The ice-cold atmosphere between Sasfrah Jane and Rose is fun to watch, and Rose is finally put in place by a far superior companion. Too bad that even this enjoyment is destroyed once they eventually get along and begin giggling about all the funny things the Doctor does.

Mickey is on fire in this episode and put to good use, especially towards the end. Ten also treats him much better than Nine ever did, even if he still occasionally sweeps the floors with the poor boy.

K9 is fun to see (even in his rusty form), even though he’s clearly just there to be replaced by a new mark in the end, to be used by Sarah Jane in her own show later on.

I quite like the Krillitanes; they look scary and are an effective take on shapeshifting, composite race bat aliens. Sadly, they remain very underused in this episode.

• THE ATMOSPHERE

The episode feels even more rushed than usual, as it focusses immediately on strange and alien things going on at the school.

I also like how the episode briefly explores the emotional aspects of the Doctor travelling with someone and eventually having to leave them behind.

The big action set piece in the classroom with all the Krillitanes is a pretty good moment.

• RANDOM OBSERVATIONS

Anthony Stewart Head, looking all scary and calling on his fellow Krillitanes, looks and sounds to me like Mr. Quill calling on the seaweed in Fury from the Deep.