The Sarah Jane Adventures

Pretty good. Certainly very enjoyable, although featuring any number of typical pilot-episodisms that were only one notch down from Chief Wiggum and Principal Skinner setting up a PI agency in New Orleans.

All the usual New Who flaws of illogical plotting (did that mobile phone thing actually make any sense?), over-reliance on gadgets and mawkish bursts of emotion were still present, but they were all much more forgiveable thanks to the generally likeable tone and a subdued central performance. Most of the acting was very good (barring the superkid who wasn’t given much to work with) and even the OTT villains were just about acceptable.

I still can’t quite believe they gave Sarah Jane the sonic screwdriver lipstick and a Dick Tracy wristwatch and a supercomputer and a genius child and a collection of alien artifacts to rival Torchwood’s. Quite why Captain Jack hasn’t stormed the building and shot her in the head is anyone’s guess. At least they’ve sidelined K-9 in a silly but somehow perfectly judged cameo role.