Recently, I finally sat down for two weeks and hammered out the story of my life - all the trials and tribulations, the scrapes and the dangers and the countries I've been to along the way, and of course, the people I have met. It never really struck me until writing it all down how many good friends I have had over the years and places I have lived. I wonder where they are now...

The Doctor must feel like this at times. He is a man with a very, very long life who has befriended and parted with many friends along the way and he too - in between adventures - must wonder where his beloved confidantes are from time to time.

So, one day, Sarah-Jane Smith and K9 appear from out of the blue. The sheer sense of pathos between the Doctor and Sarah was overwhelming to the point at which I was biting back the tears. Here were two friends who had shared something so special to each other, barely a thing had surpassed it ever since. Of course, in times like this, difficult questions are asked like - Why didn't you come back for me? The answer was our first proper glimpse into the soul of the Tenth Doctor, in that he lives virtually forever and to watch someone you love (like a human with a short life span) grow old and die would be too much to bare. So you move on. Forever moving on.

Rose, in this episode, gets a sense of mortality too. Sure, she's stared death in the face every time the TARDIS has landed, but the sense of mortality that the time of her life will one day end... and what will happen then? Will she wait on like Sarah and she herself couldn't bare to do in Parting of the Ways? Will she move on and put that poor boy Mickey out of his misery by finally having respect for him? Or will she fall to pieces? I think some interesting questions are raised here about as and when Rose will leave the TARDIS. Russel, I can tell you're gonna make me cry when it comes.

The sense of closure that Sarah Jane gets at the end with her insisting that this time the Doctor really did say Goodbye and the surprise of K9 being lovingly restored (his self - sacrifice was wonderful) really did make me blub for real. It's a shame that Sarah never had a family, and yes, the Doctor would be a hard act to follow...

Oh, I forgot - the plot. Well realised CGI aliens that made me think that that was what the Tetraps should have looked like. An all-too-side-lined wonderful performance from Anthony Head which was delightfully creepy in the teaser. Chilling. Oh who cares! The wonderful thing about Doctor Who nowadays is that a whole episode can go by and you couldn't give a flying Krillitane about the latest alien invasion when something in the foreground is making you cry or whoop with joy. The spectacle is there, the alien threat is there, the pathos and the humour and the nostalgia - check, check, check. My only complaint is that it was too damn short. Make it an hour next time, please.

And so Mickey realises he is the Tin Dog and decides to join the TARDIS crew. Mickey you ARE the Tin Dog. But we love Tin Dogs so that's OK.

School Reunion is the episode every fan has been waiting for. The fans have sat back patiently (well, as patiently as any fan can sit) while the story of the Doctor has slowly unfolded for the new viewers, and now we have an episode which very much indulges the old school in a slice of nostalgia. If you thought the Daleks were a whiff of Doctor WhoВ’s past glory, then prepare for a full blown taste of retro sensations!

Sarah Jane Smith, the fan favourite companion of yesterday returns along with possibly the oddest TARDIS traveller the Doctor has ever had: K-9. Yes the robot dog is back and this time, heВ’s actually rather good.

They story premise is fairly simple: While investigating one of MickeyВ’s UFO sightings at a nearby school, the Doctor and Rose encounter a malevolent Headteacher, bats aplenty and a lady who will bring emotional turmoil to the Doctor and his current companion.

The episode starts with a child being eaten. Even on modern television, this is a rare sight and makes for a good opener. The story is a little reminiscent of VirginВ’s New Adventures; in so far as we are dropped right into the centre of the story - in this case, with the Doctor already at the school and teaching a class. This certainly makes for a refreshing and intriguing opener.

Anthony Steward Head is wonderful as the Headmaster, Mr Finch. Fondly remembered for his slightly eccentric school Librarian in В“Buffy The Vampire SlayerВ”, Head returns to education with an entirely wicked persona. If anyone should play The Master in Doctor Who, it should be Head. His presence is commanding and an asset to the story, particularly a tale already dominated by the showВ’s guest stars.

This story works in everyoneВ’s favour, especially Tennant. Both В“New EarthВ” and В“Tooth And ClawВ” demanded the DoctorВ’s role to be slightly less central, simple for the requirements of both stories. This is very much the DoctorВ’s tale, both in the emotive drama and the action based plot. Tennant rolls off a wonderful performance as a school teacher, moving onto a spellbinding reunion with Sarah Jane and then an implosive encounter with the Head. The scene with Head and Tennant working a stand-off at the school swimming pool is a gravity-well of tension. The two actors play off each other so well in this scene.

The script has some lovely touches and to know surprise, much of the strength of episode comes from itВ’s script. The reunion with Sarah Jane is written with the perfect balance of word to action, indeed the very essence of any great scene. The writer knows when to insert dialogue and when to simply let the actions speak for themselves. The scene is written with just enough bite that the moment becomes touching rather than saccharine.

Where School Reunion truly excels is in itВ’s examination of the Doctor and his companions. Just how do these exciting journeys in time affect the TARDIS crew and more importantly, whatВ’s left when they part company?

It seems fitting Sarah Jane is the companion to ask these question since she was indeed kicked out of the TARDIS and back into reality. Where do you go when you come back from a trip of a lifetime? This is a theme never explored in Doctor Who although it was briefly touched upon by Rose in В“Parting Of The WaysВ”.

This inability to reintegrate into society has always been a problem for those who have lived in unusual and often deadly circumstances. Those who return from war suffer similar disassociation; no one else can understand or appreciate the journey one has taken and with no real connection to that life, one is left feeling stranded. How many companions of the Doctor may suffer from such disassociation? ItВ’s a chilling thought.

The other question posed is why the Doctor doesnВ’t go back to his old companions? His answer is a rationale one and delivered by Tennant with such conviction. What man wants to watch his friends die?

The tension and jealousy between Sarah Jane and Rose is an interesting one. Certainly В“School ReunionВ” brings out a side of Sarah Jane weВ’ve not seen before. Again it makes one wonder how many other companions are caught so firmly by the DoctorВ’s charisma? How many have been so overwhelmed by his character and actions that no one else dare compare? There is an interesting beat between Rose and the Doctor in В“School ReunionВ” which does show how RoseВ’s feelings are very entrenched in human love while the DoctorВ’s are not. She thinks there is В“somethingВ” there which he doesnВ’t seem to connect with. The question of how Rose views her relationship with the Doctor still isnВ’t really clear, or if Sarah JaneВ’s was or is the same. This ambiguity seems to suit the dynamic. The Doctor is literally out of this world, so perhaps that means any close friendship with the Doctor takes on a dynamic different to any other male/female bond.

Piper and Sladen have some excellent chemistry, in fact the whole cast shines. MickeyВ’s request to join the crew in the last moments is very welcome, which if we compare the reaction to his existence in В“Aliens Of LondonВ” last year, we can see the character and audienceВ’s empathy for Mickey has come away.

So that leaves us with our and every manВ’s best friend: K-9. His role was a little less intrusive than I expected - especially as Doctor Who has a very child orientated mandate. I - for the first time since I myself was a child - loved his presence here. ItВ’s not overstated, he isnВ’t silly and his role plays relevance to the plot and the emotional drama. Mickey and RoseВ’s reaction to this odd machine serves as a perfect bridge for new viewers and I wouldnВ’t mind seeing the mutt again.

With a lovely musical score, some very solid cast direction and a great pace, this is an awesome episode.

Down points? All episodes have them. Mr FinchВ’s Krillitane hoard were rather too reminiscent of the Reapers from В“FatherВ’s DayВ” and that did take a lot away from their presence. Their head shape was a little too comic caricature and seemed more fitting in comic book than a TV show - certainly didnВ’t make them feel very real or scary. Nevertheless, the actual animation and fusion between film and CG was good enough not to really question their existence. The only other dodgy effect in the whole show was the open TARDIS at the end. The interior console backdrop, looked like just that, a backdrop. You could even see the floor space before the hanging image. Perhaps this patchy bit of prop work was intended to add to the nostalgia factor.

Other than that, the story worked, the characters worked and the show.. worked. I can honestly say this is one school reunion all the fans will want to be a part of.

Episode 4? Come on, I challenge you to top this.

Thoughtful. Intelligent. Touching. Fun.

I must admit I wasn't sure what I'd make of an episode with a 'Demon Headmaster'-type scenario that was to reintroduce two iconic characters from the programme's past. Well, thanks to an excellent script and cast and crew on top form, I think we were treated to another superb piece of television.

We start with the Headmaster, Mr Finch (an absolutely *barnstorming* performance fro the great Anthony Head) getting, um, tucked into the part immediately and then we cut to the new supply teacher. Yep, the Doctor's on the case and smilingly addresses the children with the wonderfully apt "Are we sitting comfortably?" Cue credits; and we begin...

And I'll begin with the Doctor. Ever since his casting was announced, I thought David Tennant had the potential to be one of the great Doctors, and nothing I have seen so far has disuaded me. I thought he was quite brilliant throughout this episode, showing a wide range of characteristics, including the funny (his supply teacher routine; "Correctamundo!") the dramatic (eyeball to eyeball with Mr Finch) the joyous ("K9!!!") the touching (pretty much every scene with Sarah-Jane) and the positively heart-rending (the chance to resurrect the timelords dangled before him; the sublime "...wither and then die" speech where he is unable to use the word "love") I could go on, but'll engage 'understatement' mode;

I was rather impressed by Mr Tennant.

How good was Elisabeth Sladen? Sarah-Jane pretty much exactly how I'd imagined her to be...I'd expect nothing less from this actress, but it was still a lovely performance; and her relationship with Rose was very believable and played so well. I've sensed a bit of a Billie Piper backlash brewing in certain circles; not here. Rose is still learning and these 45-minutes saw quite a steep learning curve. Jealousy, bitchiness, vulnerability, sulkiness...we're seeing some of Roses less attractive traits, yeah, but they're pulled off with aplomb by Ms Piper. The danger that the Doctor and Rose's relationship was gonna start to grate in its potential smugness? Blown out of the water! (especially now Mickey is aboard) Intriguing, and further proof that this programme is being produced by very smart cookies.

Noel Clarke gave a fine comic performance, nailing some plum lines/ moments...the line "Oh my god...I'm the tin dog!" being a laugh out loud moment. He might scream occasionally (causing another bit of "rude" from the Doctor) but the character is brave when required and fully deserves his place on board as a bona fide companian.

The 'tin dog' himself? Very well utillised and and another nostalgaic treat for us more, er, 'chronologically challenged'! Mind, I think he'll be a hit with the kids this time around too.

So...a success. Enough plot to keep one interested, whilst really being at heart a fantastic 'character' piece.

The last scene was *glorious*, and I really liked Murray Gold's score throughout; using motifs from 'Song for Ten' (the song from Christmas that I thought was the Beach Boys! Still, that's a compliment coming from me) to great effect. And some of the lead guitar lines took me back to 'Mawdryn Undead'; another story set in a school with sinister staff, a male companian joining at the end and a be-trainered (Sic!) , young looking and marvellous Doctor!!

How I 'mark' a story can change once I've seen a whole season, but today this gets a resounding 9 from me.

So...next up an episode from the writer of last year's masterpiece, then here come the Cybermen. Happy days.

I’m not an emotional person but watching this certainly brought a tear to my eye. There were so many moments in the episode when you found yourself wanting to laugh or cry. Sarah Jane Smith represented the older fans of the series when she said that she thought he was dead and complained that he had left her behind without saying goodbye.

The episode has all the issues that surround a 45 minute format namely not enough time to get everything across, Sarah Jane, K9, Torchwood, the doctor's relationship with his companions and oh we need to fit a story in as well but I still enjoyed it hugely. Younger fans of the series had plenty of bangs and flashes to keep them happy along with a biting the carpet performance from Anthony Stewart Head as the demon headmaster.

There were plenty of gags to keep us going to, "ignore the shooty dog thing", "you bad dog", "Oh no I'm the tin dog!" etc but the general tone of things had an air of bathos. The doctor's mixed reaction to Sarah and K9 mirrored our own. We loved the old series and it was a big part of our lives but the new series is better. Yes I said it was better. I have had bitter arguments with people my age about this but if you look at the old eps (apart from a few) they seem two dimensional in comparison.

Anyway the doctor embraces his past at the end of it, "My Sarah Jane" and moves on and even rebuilds K9 or "that bloody dog" as Tom Baker called him. And Mickey has finally decided to join the crew, much to Rose's disgust! As far as the story itself went it introduced a new species of monster in the Krilitane who looked a bit like the reapers from father's day. There was the usual techno babble about what they were up to and Mickey saves the day by pulling a plug out. K9 sacrifices himself near the end and this certailnly brought a lump to my throat but not as much as when Sarah Jane finds the Tardis and then realises that the physics teacher is the Doctor.

Rose and Sarah Jane sniping at each other was brilliant, "every man's worse nightmare the Mrs and the ex", as Mickey put it. But the Doctor's explanation of why he doesn't hang around with companions for too long made sense of things. Finally I couldn't help laughing at Sarah Jane complaining that the Doctor had left her in Aberdeen instead of Croydon.

Anyway roll on the spin offs. The K9 cartoon, Torchwood and, at this rate, the thirteen part series on insane shouting with Sharaz Jek.

So, after a patchy start and a much better number two, how was part three? Mixed. We get an alien plot and some emotive companion stuff. Taking those aspects apart from each other. . . . . . .

Nice alien set up in a sinister school. Lovely touch to have the Doctor and Rose already installed and investigating, the sight of Mr Tennant as a physics teacher made that pre-credits teaser for me. The Krillitanes are a well thought out race- here's hoping we see them again sometime. I loved the idea that they absorbed physical attributes from conquered races. They were also further supplemented by Anthony Head's superb star villain turn- if ever RTD or (if things go on) his successor ever bring back the Master, give Mr Head the role- that or the eleventh Doctor. . . . This said, I wasn't altogether convinced by the theoretical algorithm that the Krillitanes were using children to crack. This may be because, unlike LOGOPOLIS, there wasn't time for the concept to breathe, or it may be because there seemed to be a lack of technology to bring the theory into the physical realm. The use of children's imagination for evil is always strong horror material because abuse of children always is, but it was more impacting in REMEMBRANCE OF THE DALEKS. However, the scene at the culmination of this where the Doctor is given the chance to remake history was powerful given all that we learned last season.

The opening scene with Head's headmaster inviting a child into his office to be eaten was a bit silly, despited Head's restrained performance. This was more than compensated for, however, by the impact of later scenes. The bats swarming the corridors, and hanging upside down in the office, were supremely effective. I loved K9's battle with them, and his little farewell scene with the Doctor, but of his self sacrifice I would say this: these 45 minute one parters are getting far too handy at using self sacrifices to advance or resolve the plots. Jabe in END OF THE WORLD, Gwyneth in UNQUIET DEAD, Roses' Dad in FATHER'S DAY (admittedly more in context) half the cast in TOOTH AND CLAW. And now K9. Ok, K9 was remade, but even so, mark III was sacrificed, and sacrifice gets formulaic if we see it too often.

Moving on, the plot generally wound up well. The role played by a small plump boy who then becomes a hero by blowing up the school was nice, a typical touch of RTD's influence- bringing in incidental charcter into a central place where they grow, and making the kind of kid who usually gets picked on a hero. And there wasn't too much running around in the middle taking the place of explanation this time- unlike episode two, everything set-up wise did make full sense and was explained as much as it needed to be. I would just have liked the algorithm bit to be a bit more plausible by having a bit more science given to give it life.

And onto Sarah Jane. Great to see her again - unless I missed something, this flies in the face of books like BULLET TIME which feature her by making this her first adventure since HAND OF FEAR barring the timescooped FIVE DOCTORS. This proves only the TV series is canon- maybe one day the TV show might tell us what happened to Ace so the dreadful Virgin books version of her can be blown out. Understandable that she might resent him never coming back for her, understandable she might resent Rose. Rose's position was kind of understandable too though it isn't really very plausible that neither of knew that there had been, and would be after them, other companions. With this in mind Sarah's crack about the Doctor's assistants getting younger as he gets older didn't work, and their missus-and-ex bitch fighting was tedious. Yes, I can accept that each of them found it hard to relinquish their special place with the Doctor to others, but as I've said they must have known there were others, especially Sarah. Understandable tension didn't have to manifest itself as sexual jealousy and it really didn't work. It could have been dealt with quicker and the time used elsewhere. This said, the Doctor's "curse of the time lords" reason as to why he leaves people behind was magical (though most companions left him , not the other way round!) and the way Sarah was used to demonstrate the aftermath of travelling in the TARDIS and then having to find normality again was deeply poignant.

Altogether, though, a fun and enjoyable story- as I've said, some of the companion stuff rankled and the code that the children were cracking needed more meat on its bones to be plausible, but overall the episode had a good effect. When stories turn on things like the use of the children however, aspects like the said algorithm do need to be allowed to make sense. No amount of emotional realism injected into things replaces solid plots.

And I thought I loved Sarah Jane already…

I need to get something of my chest, something I have been meaning to say for a long time. Elisabeth Sladen, I love you! It isn’t just her beautiful, definitive portrayal of Sarah Jane Smith but it is the woman herself. Have you heard her in interviews, she has a genuine love for the programme, a need to see her character treated with respect, someone who has a lot of time for the fans and their weird obsessions. Frankly, the only ever convention I went to was with Lis Sladen because I wanted to give her a hug. She deserved a place in the new series, just because of who she is and what she means to the fans of the programme. And by golly she’s beautiful, even after all these years.

School Reunion was another brilliantly packed episode of the series full of scenes of tension and menace, some great laughs and real emotional depth. Doctor Who had better watch out, it is giving most other television programmes a bad name! It was gorgeously put together by James Hawkes and featured another excellent score by the ever improving and dynamic Murray Gold.

Lets face it the Krillanite plot didn’t have a chance. And it’s good, its real good but (as usual) deserving of extra screen time but compared to the love story between the Doctor, Rose and Sarah it pales in comparison. I loved the idea of the Krillanites invading other worlds and taking the best of the people they conquer and absorbing it into their genetic make up, that’s a really nasty yet entirely original idea. And their plans for universal dominance is the sort of grandiose scheme we haven’t seen since the good old days of Doctor Who. Using kids’ souls as a part of a universal code breaker is obscene and yet hugely imaginative and the domestic setting sells the horror of the situation magnificently. Scenes of endless rows of kids staring at funky graphics on a screen should be utterly monotonous but thanks to some quick editing and inventive camerawork it is some of the scariest scenes we have seen from the new series yet, especially when you think of the implications. And you’ve got to love Anthony Stewart Head’s silky portrayal of the headmaster; so spooky with his softly spoken threats but turning on the scares in the last third when he bares his teeth.

As usual though there is an awful lot that we didn’t see which I guess is just a fault of comparing new with old. Investigate the aliens, discover their plan, stop them. That’s about all you can fit in 45 minutes but I would have loved to see more of these very interesting and well thought through monsters.

The Krillanites were another gloriously well designed monster and so convincing scratching their away along the school halls to feast upon the students.

Sarah’s entrance was no where near as dramatic and as exciting as I imagined it would be, a rather mundane scene with her chatting to the Head but suddenly she bumps into the Doctor in the faculty and my arm was attacked goosebumps. Was there a single Sarah scene that I didn’t like in School Reunion…not that I can think of. I think her story was handled sensitively and with just enough emotional depth to really hit home much we have all missed her. When the Doctor dropped her off (in Aberdeen!) I pretty much thought she had accepted the situation but it only hits home here when we realise how hurt she felt that he never came back for her. I thought the episode was going to descend into soap operatic but instead it is used to exquisitely explore the Doctor’s curse, living and living and living whilst his friends grow old and die around him. When the Doctor admits that to Rose you realise just how lonely the Doctor really is in the universe, even when he is surrounded by friends. It adds a delicious touch of sadness to Tennant’s jolly portrayal of the Doctor that I liked a lot. I loved how embarrassed that the Doctor was that he has never mentioned Sarah before, how they effortlessly fell back into their old relationship, how she was offered another chance to travel with him and how she demanded a proper goodbye this time, the pair of them closing their relationship and a warm and heartfelt cuddle. I was weeping my eyes off at that point, I never considered the new series an opportunity to tidy up loose ends from the classic series but when it can be done this effectively and satisfyingly I am not complaining at all.

But no matter how good the scenes between the Doctor and Sarah were, the scenes between Sarah and Rose were pivotal. Rose’s reaction frustrated me (I always hate jealousy plots…its just so clichéd and boring…I went of Red Dwarf when Kryten got jealous of Kochanski, I went of Voyager when Neelix got jealous of Tom Paris…) until the episode probed a bit deeper. Rose is terrified of being treated like Sarah was, being dropped off and forgotten and left craving the excitement and warmth he can offer. Also special is when we realise Rose thought she was the first person to travel with the Doctor, what they had was special but discovering the man you love has had these feeling before, possibly over and over and over, is heartbreaking. Sarah tries to appease Rose but her jealousy gets ahead of her and she starts to insult Sarah, and gobbing off about all the wonders they have seen together, climaxing in a hilarious bitch off about the monsters the pair have come up against. I adored the TARDIS scene with every fibre of my being because Rose clearly wants to offer Sarah what she once had but rather than taking the simple route and having Sarah accept she hugs Rose and tells her that if she ever needs her when her travels with the Doctor are over she knows where to find her. Beautifully done, and I love the image of Sarah and Rose investigating together with K.9!

Oh yes what about K.9? What is it about the series bringing back old robots in a state of disrepair (almost as if to say they look tatty before!) before sprucing them up and giving them some spanking CG effects. I have always enjoyed K.9 and was devastated when he heroically sacrificed himself at the climax, I was screaming “No! No! NOOOOO!” at the telly! It is ridiculous to feel such affection for a metal box but my reaction mirrored Sarah Jane’s, absolute horror that one of our series icons has been destroyed for good. So the last scene was doubly tear jerking for me…that last shot of Sarah and K.9 walking off together is just about the most perfect ending either of them could have had.

The performances were all fantastic but special mention must go to Sladen and Tennant who light up the screen with their chemistry. Sladen gets to go much further emotionally than she ever did before and her performance hits all the right notes for anybody who is terrified of getting old and forgotten. Tennant continues to impress, he gets another scene here where he gives a single warning before threatening to bring down his wrath on the enemy and I think this may be leading to something, some kind of retribution for being judge, jury and executioner of the entire universe. Piper and Clarke work superbly together as always and I expect some marvellous stuff next week, especially after Rose’s less than enthusiastic response to Mickey joining the TARDIS.

School Reunion is another favourite, series two rollicking along in fantastic style. I didn’t think anything could top last weeks spook-fest but School Reunion was every bit as good and (thanks to the longing to see Sarah again) possibly even better. The standard of this show just gets better. Lets hope the ratings reflect its excellence.