Sarah Jane Adventures: Sky – Dork Review

Back for one more series, it’s The Sarah Jane Adventures. Of course, it’s in less than ideal circumstances after the death of Elisabeth Sladen in April, but I’m pleased to see the completed episodes are still being shown, both as a tribute to her talent and because, well, I really like this show.

So, here we go, then. Hopefully I won’t start blubbing until the last week.

Sky From The Sky

In the first two-part story, after the semi-departure of Sarah Jane’s adopted son in last year’s premiere, the show finally introduces a direct replacement. Much as I was attached to Luke, bringing in a new kid was a wise decision if he couldn’t be enticed back full-time; the series felt a little empty with only Clyde and Rani representing yoof.

The newcomer Sky is noticably younger than the others, which gives her an angle, but also means dealing with a proper child actress. Fortunately Sinead Michael seems decent enough, and the blank confusion of the character would make it tolerable even if she wasn’t.

The plot itself is tied up in a rush of pseudo-science babble, but this is primarily a story to get the new character established quickly, so it’s not surprising that we can clearly see levers being pulled. Since Sky is sticking around, it seems likely that a more substantial ending to her arc was being saved for a later episode.

The Bad News

Alas, because the series has been cut short, that’s a resolution we may never see. I considered not reviewing any of it for this very reason – it’s not as if the BBC are putting this out there as a complete work of art, more because it would’ve been a shame if they hadn’t.

But I’m going to cover it anyway, mostly because I think the show and Elisabeth Sladen’s work still deserve the exposure. We did get a tip of the hat to Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart (played by recently deceased Nicholas Courtney) in the Doctor Who finale at the weekend, so perhaps there will be some kind of Sarah Jane revisitation in the future too.

In the meantime, though, this is another decent story in a fun spin-off series, and hopefully we’ll get a couple more like that before we finally say goodbye for good. You can catch the first episode on iPlayer and let us know if you too have been enjoying Sarah Jane Adventures.

More Sarah Jane Adventures on Dork Adore | The Sarah Jane Adventures – It’s Not Just For Kids

Nick Bryan

Nick learned to read and write at an early age. This has developed into an unhealthy need to either write stories or consume them for later dissection. He reviews film and TV on Dork Adore and The Digital Fix, lives in London and enjoys a nice white beer.

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