The Sarah Jane Adventures: The Complete Third Season (2010)

The Sarah Jane Adventures:

The Complete Third Season (2010)

Dirs: Various | Episodes: 12 episodes, approx 27 mins each.

Bannerman Road's most famous resident continues the good fight. With the aid of an extraterrestrial super-computer housed in the attic, Sarah Jane Smith and her three young companions hold the line against all kinds of alien nasties that want to inhabit earth for various nefarious or profitable reasons.

The term 'alien' has negative connotations, so while it can be prudent to keep in mind Virgil's 'Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes,' saying, it's unwise to judge on appearances, and the idiom 'don't tar all with the same brush,' is an equally relevant one.

Events in season three go back as far as 1665 and forward to 2059, with the immediate present playing a crucial role in one of the more notable two-parters, The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith (Dir. Joss Agnew), which has a very special guest star.

Sarah Jane's (Elisabeth Sladen) travels with the Doctor(s) and much of her life since then has been filled with the unknown, but something she never thought she'd have to deal with is motherhood. It's a challenge at any age, but having a son that's an artificial human created by the Bane makes it a little more difficult still. Luckily, Luke (Tommy Knight) is learning to stand alone against the odds, which he proves more than once.

While all of the stories would classify as 'Adventures', some of them do a much better job with important themes than others do. Some of the better ones include, but are not limited to, the destructive affects of jealousy; being careful what you wish for, especially in anger; the pangs of regret; the desire to feel appreciated and fit in; and the healing power of second chances. Yes, it's still a children's TV show, but that doesn't mean it has to compromise on subtextual depth.

Threats include nanotechnology and a not-too-bright but thoroughly determined Judoon police officer, but what I think I'd run from most readily are Rani's (Anjli Mohindra) parents, well-meaning adults who are somewhere between sitcom and soap opera; it's a useful combination when the script calls for an adult annoyance, but it's a damned aggravating one when it doesn't.