New Who Review #17

School Reunion

This episode was OK I guess. It was very filler but had some good moments. It brought back Sarah Jane Smith which was a nice surprise It also brought back K9. The plot about the Krillitanes using their oil to make the kids clever so they can crack the Skasis Paradigm and become gods is interesting. It makes me wonder if they did manage to become gods would that had made them part of the pantheon 🤔 I'm sure there are better this series but this one didn't quite hit for me. 6/10

Pretty good episode, its really cool to have returning companions from the classic era. I'm currently in Sarah Jane's original run in the classic series so this was cool to watch now that I have seen some of her episodes. The krillitanes are an alright villain but they don't really seem like the focus of the episode, which is fine

Also the music goes unnecessarily hard in this episode

2025 REWATCH

• I genuinely used to find this episode as slog, I would put it down to it being THE episode that always got re-runs on Watch / W / Whatever the channel is called now, but having rewatched it invigorated my love for this story
• Krilliant and Mr Finch are brilliant villains, wonderfully acted and scary. The design is great
• Sarah Jane Smith and K9, the only pair of companions that would have made the perfect reunion episode, and boy do they deliver. It's great material for Rose and Mickey. Bringing genuine closure to Sarah Jane, that last scene now brings tears to my eyes, which didn't before. Maybe I'm getting soft, lol
• It's also one hell of a thrillride, gets straight into the action, and doesn't give in, even if the circumstances are very convenient, like the school blowing up
• Balances the cast beautifully, and I love it. shows that a bigger TARDIS team can work

A touching heartfelt bridge between the two eras. Yes, some foes return in Series 1, and the Doctor and the TARDIS is there. But the moment Sarah Jane appears, that bridge between the eras, to cement that this is the same show, is there. The reunion between the two is brilliant - the acting from all involved made these feel monumental as a child, and then, to revisit having watched all of Classic Who, and dipping into the extended universe, to explore in greater depth the relationship between them, it feels more special. At its heart, that is the story - the reunion between the two best friends.

The regular components of the story also point to just a good Doctor Who story. A well realised and fleshed out villain, with an instantly recogniseable and brilliant design - its ridiculous they haven't been used within the main show since (some extended universe appearances aside). Superbly performed by Anthony Head, the Tenth Doctor really falls into his stride when confronting this villain.

Some tiny issues though, really stop this from being perfect - and as much as I rave around Sarah Jane's reintroduction, this relationship and conflict with Rose has never won me over. It feels forced and almost reductive for both characters. In a story to reintroduce her and show how, with this small exception, brilliant she is, it doesn't quite hit the mark for her strong characterisation. At least, it is nice to see this mostly resolved towards the end, with the olive branch, and offer to join the TARDIS team.

Probably the first truly great Story in the Tennant Era for me.
Admittedly, the competitive nature with Rose and Sarah is a bit ridiculous, but besides that? Yeah, there is a lot to love seeing Lis Sladen in her iconic Role again is just absolutely lovely, she does give an amazing Performance, no wonder why we got SJA!
As somebody who really isn’t big on 10Rose, it’s great we explore some other sides about it, like in that scene where 10 says that humans die, he regenerates, great Scene!

In general this is such a comfort Story for me, it has definitely some major flaws (effects haven't aged so well, the competitive nature is getting a bit much after a certain point), but I really adore this one a lot!