From Newsgroup: rec.arts.drwho.moderated
From Address: jphalt{at}aol.com
Subject: School Reunion: my review

SCHOOL REUNION

1 episode. Approx. 44 minutes. Written by: Toby Whithouse. Directed
by: James Hawes. Produced by: Phil Collinson.


THE PLOT

Mickey calls the Doctor and Rose in to investigate strange occurrences
at a school. Rose joins the kitchen staff, and discovers that there
was a full staff turnover a few months ago. The Doctor goes undercover
as a physics teacher, and makes an odd discovery of his own: Students
with knowledge not only beyond that of a school kid, but beyond that
of the entire planet!

Somehow, it's all linked to the new headmaster, the mysterious Mr.
Finch (Anthony Head), and to his new policy making school dinners
"absolutely free - but compulsory." But the Doctor and Rose aren't the
only ones investigating Finch and his school. Investigative reporter
Sarah Jane Smith (Elisabeth Sladen), the Doctor's travelling companion
from several lifetimes ago, has also been tipped off about the
school.

For the Doctor and Sarah Jane, it will soon be like old times again.
And for Rose, Sarah Jane may well be a vision of things to come...


CHARACTERS

The Doctor: This episode really hits on the loneliness so fundamental
to the new series' Doctor. He's thrilled to see Sarah Jane again, to
see her still active and investigating. But when asked why he didn't
go back, he tells her that he couldn't. He seems to have only one
direction - forward. Almost as if he's afraid to look back, lest he
see how many of the people he knew and cherished have died along the
way. This is reinforced when Sarah Jane says she thought he must have
died. "I lived. Everyone else died." Tennant is quite good at these
haunted moments, and the series would be well advised to give him more
quiet and reflective scenes, and fewer scenes such as the rather
annoying moment in which he babbles the word "Physics" over and over
again.

Rose: Initially quite hostile to Sarah Jane, though it soon becomes
apparent that some of that is to do with her insecurity. She had
thought her relationship with the Doctor was a particularly special
one, and now she sees that he has been just as close to other women as
he is to her - and has left them. This prompts a very good exchange,
in which she and the Doctor talk around the nature of their
relationship, neither of them wanting to define it, which makes the
Doctor's assurances that he won't leave her less reassuring for her
than might be the case.

Sarah Jane Smith: After the Doctor dropped her off (in the wrong city,
on the wrong island), she returned to her life as an investigative
journalist. She is stunned to meet him again, and hurt that he never
came back for her. She is also hurt to see his new, very young
assistant. "I can tell you're getting older, your assistants are
getting younger," she observes - and Rose is a fair few years younger
than Sarah Jane was when she first met him.

Mickey: Is clearly enjoying Rose's discomfort at being confronted with
Sarah Jane. He teases her that the Doctor's actually just like "any
other bloke," complete with an ex. Sarah Jane prompts him to reflect
on his position within the Doctor/Rose dynamic, leading him to
conclude that he's "the tin dog" - a circumstance he decides he needs
to change.


THOUGHTS

School Reunion is another episode with a rather thin main plot. The
Finch/Krillitane plot is rather weak and often seems perfunctory,
particularly during the all-too-typical rushed climax.

On the other hand, the plot isn't really the point here. The plot is
just an excuse to bring the new Doctor together with Sarah Jane for an
adventure. An exercise in nostalgia for old fans, bringing the Doctor
together with the best-remembered companion of the classic series,
while at the same time making that resonate for new fans by filtering
this reunion through Rose's perspective.

In this area, the episode succeeds quite well. The scenes in which
Rose reflects on what the future may hold for her are effective. A
particularly strong exchange occurs when she confronts the Doctor
about leaving Sarah Jane and never even mentioning her thereafter,
"not even once!" The Doctor's reply, extremely well-played by David
Tennant, gives a hint at the loneliness such a figure would inevitably
experience. "You can spend the rest of your life with me," he says
sadly, "but I can't spend the rest of my life with you."

The episode benefits from James Hawes' highly visual direction. Hawes
uses varying camera angles to good effect. He also shoots through
objects in the foreground to create a sense of depth. Though the main
plot is weak, there is one excellent scene that is entirely to do with
the plot: the Doctor's poolside confrontation with Finch. The use of
color and lighting evokes a certain sterile coldness that reflects
Finch's personality.

The climax feels a bit perfunctory, a lot of running around corridors,
punctuated by a big explosion. I also never really believed that the
Doctor was seriously tempted by Finch's offer, which saps any
emotional urgency from the last Act. Still, School Reunion works a lot
better than other over-rushed, underplotted episodes such as Rose and
New Earth. The directing is strong, and there are some fine character
scenes.


Rating: 6/10.

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