Ok, I get that. Sometimes the sarcasm can be a bit grating. I just see it as her way of coping.
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I didn’t see this first time around. I unashamedly love Sarah Jane Smith in the classic era. To my shame I’ve not watched all of the Sarah Jane Adventures, but I did enjoy what I saw of them. I didn’t much like Sarah’s characterisation in School Reunion although I was delighted to see Lis on screen again. I felt that the bitching between her and Rose was misjudged and reflected badly on both characters. I never interpreted the relationship between Sarah and the Doctor as a romantic one and I was always a bit uncomfortable with the romance between Rose and the Doctor. Not because the Doctor couldn’t have romantic connections, but because the age gap and power differential between them made me very uneasy.
Sarah Jane was the first Doctor Who companion I knew. I first saw her with Pertwee. I disagree about her chemistry with Tom Baker being forced. I thought the reverse; that she was good with Pertwee, but much, much better with Tom. She and Harry were a good team and I was sad to see Harry leave as their differing views on feminism provided scope for conflict, which never undercut the characters’ warmth to one another.
I think Lis Sladen was the main reason that Sarah Jane worked so well. She worked hard to make the character sparkle. Occasionally her performance was a little stagey, but that was common of many TV performances at the time. I thought she was inventive and found different ways to make similar scenes seem fresh and new. I genuinely loved her many years before I knew anything about organised fandom or received fan wisdom. I do, however, think that she was overly sentimentalised in fan memory before all her stories were easily available. Now we can all see her for ourselves. I still think she was wonderful, but other opinions are available, or you can form a brand new one if you so wish!
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I think it is saved by the ending of that scene where they burst out laughing and realise they’ve got more in common than they first thought.
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Yes, I think the turning point is “The Loch Ness Monster!” (beat) “Seriously?"
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