The Sarah Jane Adventures 4x07 & 4x08 "The Empty Planet"
Added 2021-06-14 07:04:34 +0000 UTCComments
Definitely a fun little story! It's been great rewatching these stories with you, as I've not rewatched them since they first came out (well, except for the stories with the Doctors -- LOL) and so it's been nice rediscovering them all over again. <3 I especially loved the return of the biodamper -- last seen in 'The Runaway Bride' ('With this ring, I thee biodamp!' -- Ten). And the robots were lots of fun -- just scary enough to not be too much for a kids show, but also still a bit scary nonetheless. P.S. Speaking of SJA, I follow Anjli Mohindra on social media and she just posted a new pic of her outside 'Sarah Jane's house' on her Instagram a day ago and IT GAVE ME ALL THE NOSTALGIC FEELS: https://www.instagram.com/p/CQHLPAShjXa/ She's just so cool. Plus, I think I mentioned before that she's been dating Sacha Dhawan for a few years, so it's all so Whovian. <3
Nicole Mazza
2021-06-16 04:23:29 +0000 UTCThis is such a great episode. A brilliant exploration and development for Clyde and Rani. I love how it's purely focused on them. The (Leftovers) concept of a limited amount of individuals being the only people left in the world is fascinating and they perfectly capture the silent and scary atmosphere of it in this episode with all the shots and camera work showing empty buildings, opened houses and locations while just featuring the main two characters. They did such an effective and creative job with this. I just love how Clyde and Rani's doubts, insecurities, worries and thoughts spur out naturally with reasonable fear and panic yet at the same time, they're still trying to figure things out which shows their growth and development as characters. They even doubt themselves in not being in the same league as Sarah Jane, Luke and K9 yet they prove themselves to be a great team by the end of the episode. Like you said, it provided a very intriguing mystery and the dynamic between Clyde and Rani didn't drastically change. They were still comfortable around each other while also having some natural conflict mixed with the romance developing tension between them and I really liked how they both reflected how their lives have changed because of meeting Sarah Jane. The acting was great too. Danny Anthony and Anjli Mohindra were on top form and this episodes gives them the perfect chance to flex their acting skills. I love it. I agree with you that Clyde and Rani's individual reactions to them being romantically linked was funny. The Adam and Eve moment always makes me laugh and when Clyde jokes about them starting the human race again. Clyde kissing Rani on the cheek is genuinely sweet though. It's a nice parallel to Rani kissing Clyde on the cheek in The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith. They did a good job at showcasing Gavin's alien like behaviour in not feeling comfortable at home and running away from others as Clyde cleverly pointed out. Another huge standout scene for me is when the robots send Gavin the message and we see a visual of his homeworld. That purple planet visual with the grass and a ringed planet dominating the sky along with a city of spires in the distance looks amazing. I'd love to travel there too. I believe this story was originally going to be a Doctor Who Christmas special but they managed to transform it into a great SJA episode instead. Very engaging script with smart writing and a polished direction. I knew you would celebrate when you saw Clyde's mother. It's been a while since we last saw her. I absolutely agree that she deserves more screen time in this show. Although I recently found out from one of the writers (Joe Lister) that they couldn't always afford to have the parents together in every episode which explains why we usually see just one parent in most episodes and then the two of them together (with it mostly being Rani's parents in this case). But you're absolutely right that we need more Carla. She's so underrated. Such a great character. The Robots looked really good too. I knew you'd appreciate the alien, time travelling and interplanetary discussion that Rani and Clyde had with Gavin. I believe in the draft scripts, they actually do mention The Daleks, planets in the sky and Prisoner Zero to Gavin but they didn't make it into the episode unfortunately haha. :D
JY
2021-06-15 03:57:26 +0000 UTC
