Forever Sarah Jane…
When a mysterious baby shows up on the doorstep of Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) on Bannerman Road, Sarah Jane finds she has a new ward. Quickly aging to a teenager, Sky (Senead Michael) joins Sarah Jane, Clyde (Daniel Anthony) and Rani (Anjli Mohindra) in exploring the strange and unexplained.
The Sarah Jane Adventures—Season 5 aired from October 3, 2011 to October 18, 2011 and is composed of three “stories”. The series ended with Elisabeth Sladen’s death on April 19, 2011 after a short battle with cancer. The six episode season represents all of the episodes filmed and the DVD collection also has a tribute to the late actress.
You know, I really do like Luke more than you, right?
Season 5 of The Sarah Jane Adventures is a rather unfortunate mix. With the children growing older and characters leaving the show, it became strange for Sarah Jane to hang around Clyde and Rani when her adopted son Luke (Tommy Knight) went to college. The season introduces Sky…who is almost identical to Tommy. She had no childhood, is incredibly intelligent, and no real world experience. It almost feels like a relaunch or a Brady Bunch Cousin Oliver. Unfortunately with Sladen’s death, it doesn’t feel like anything more than that.
The “Sky” series is pretty weak and the final series “The Man Who Never Was” also was rather weak and anti-climactic. With some great series peppered through the whole run of the show, it would have been great if one of the Doctor appearances or a flashback to the original Doctor Who had been in the series. I did rather enjoy “The Curse of Clyde Langer”. It was an interesting twisting story, and I would have loved to have more episodes like that.
Keep watching the skies…but not Sky.
With Sladen’s death, I feel there was never any real resolution to the series. A tacked on ending saying that exploration will continue was a nice tribute to her, but leaves the other characters a bit in the lurch. I wish that a Doctor Who episode would return to some of the characters from this series…The Doctor’s companions always feel rather invincible or that they would die valiantly. I think the Doctor losing one of his favorite companions to something like cancer could be an interesting episode since he always assumes they’ll be there for him when he needs them…I also would like to see how the characters have moved on without Sarah Jane.
The Sarah Jane Adventures never was Doctor Who, but also was never meant to be Doctor Who. It was however a fun companion piece and worth seeking out if you need your “Who” fix and can’t go back to the old Doctor episodes. It is a bit juvenile and underdeveloped, but still a fun ride. I wish Sarah Jane could have kept watching the stars for longer…
The Sarah Jane Adventures—Season 5 Complete Episode Guide:
“Sky: Part 1”
5.1 Sky: Part 1 Airdate: 10/03/11
A mysterious baby shows up on the doorstep of Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen) and seems to emit electrical charges. Pursued by a giant robot and a strange woman named Miss Myers (Christine Stephen-Daily), Rani (Anjli Mohindra) and Clyde (Daniel Anthony) try to protect the baby named Sky from the attackers.
“Sky: Part 1”
5.2 Sky: Part 2 Airdate: 10/04/11
Sarah Jane finds the now older Sky (Senead Michael) is a genetic bomb created by the Fleshkind to destroy the Metalkind. Sarah Jane and her friends must stop the war between the Metalkind and Fleshkind and shut off Sky to save the Earth. Sarah Jane also learns how Sky came to her and discovers an old ally.
“The Curse of Clyde Langer: Part 1”
5.3 The Curse of Clyde Langer: Part 1 Airdate: 10/10/11
Fish rain from the sky and Sarah Jane, Rani, Sky, and Clyde investigate a Native American exhibit at the museum. When Clyde is cut on a totem pole, the totem pole awakens hatred from people when his name is heard.
“The Curse of Clyde Langer: Part 2”
5.4 The Curse of Clyde Langer: Part 2 Airdate: 10/11/11
Clyde finds himself homeless and discovers help in another homeless girl named Ellie (Lily Loveless). As Sky tries to uncover why everyone now hates Clyde, Sarah Jane is called in to investigate the totem pole which seems to be putting off strange energy.
“The Man Who Never Was: Part 1”
5.5 The Man Who Never Was: Part 1 Airdate: 10/17/11
Luke (Tommy Knight) is returning home from college, and both he and Sky are worried about how they’ll get along. When Sarah Jane is asked to report on the hot new computer system called the SerfBoard, she discovers things aren’t all as they seem at Serf Systems. Sky detects a glitch in Serf System’s spokesman Joseph Serf (Mark Aiken), and Sarah Jane realizes that Serf Systems might be using alien technology.
“The Man Who Never Was: Part 2”
5.6 The Man Who Never Was: Part 2 Airdate: 10/18/11
Sky and Luke have been captured by the Skullion aliens at Serf Systems and learn that they are the slaves of Serf Systems’ true owner Harrison (James Dreyfus). Now Luke, Sky, and Sarah Jane must find a way to free the Skullions and bring down Serf Systems forever.
[easyazon-block align=”center” asin=”B007FQXESM” locale=”us”]
Related Links:
K-9 and Company: A Girl’s Best Friend
The Sarah Jane Adventures—Season 1 Review and Complete Episode Guide
The Sarah Jane Adventures—Season 2 Review and Complete Episode Guide
The Sarah Jane Adventures—Season 3 Review and Complete Episode Guide
The Sarah Jane Adventures—Season 4 Review and Complete Episode Guide
