Warriors of Kudlak

"Just bring me children."

Writer: Phil Gladwin

Format: TV

Broadcast: 15th-22nd October 2007

Series: SJA 1.04

Featuring: Sarah Jane, Luke, Maria, Clyde 

Synopsis 

Children have been going missing, but how? Will Luke and Clyde win Combat 3000? And who is the mysterious Mr Kudlak?

Verdict 

Warriors of Kudlak was yet another consistently good episode in this first series of the Sarah Jane Adventures. The spinoff from Doctor Who has remained very consistent throughout this debut run and that's a very positive thing from a brand new show that carries with it the immense pedigree of its parent show. This isn't Doctor Who, but it still has an impact on it and it's testament to the writers that whilst accommodating a much younger television audience, the quality of story is still there and everything is still recognisable as being a part of the Doctor Who universe. I like how Sarah Jane keeps reminding us that aliens have been coming to Earth for years in what I hope is a little nod to the Classic era of Doctor Who but she was also quick to remind Maria that not everything she did involved aliens. However, it's certainly seeming that way! Ever since Maria moved in across the road from Sarah Jane she's battled Bane, Slitheen, Gorgon and now Kudlak! That was not the species name of course but rather the General in an ongoing war. Or so he thought. The Uvodni were an interesting race but they seemed so out of touch with Earth as they were recruiting children for the front line in an intergalactic war just because they liked war games. I don't mind a little violence in a game at all but I'm certainly no killer! The Uvodni really didn't understand culture on Earth, particularly amongst British children. Mr Grantham was a very good character and I liked his reaction Sarah Jane and Maria going through his office. I was surprised he bought into the fake journalistic ID that Sarah presented him but he soon saw through it once she wapped out the sonic lipstick and had him threatening her in her house. The idea of a laser tag game for a story in the Doctor Who universe is actually terrific and I think it was absolutely the right choice to have that take place in the Sarah Jane Adventures. A lot of children watching will have experienced playing laser tag so to have alien involvement across the country with Combat 3000 was terrific. The rain phenomena that temporarily occurred when the children went missing was good and that allowed Mr Smith some crucial details in discovering just what was going on. Luke and Clyde playing Combat 3000 and reaching level 2 was good and I thought the cliffhanger was quite strong which was very good. The Mistress that Kudlak was serving was interesting and I just loved the revelation that Luke discovered with the war they were fighting having been over for a decade. Kudlak's Mistress was merely a programmed computer and peace did not compute with the systems. She wanted children for the war but the war was over. Kudlak wasn't very evil at all which was a nice ending and I liked how he vowed to try and return the other children back to Earth. Sarah Jane let him keep his life and forgave him which was a really nice touch. The scenes that led up to that were good and I liked how despite Luke and Clyde being in space, Sarah Jane had no worries about rescuing them. Clyde and Maria's reaction to seeing Earth from space was magnificent and I also really liked how Sarah Jane saw an incredible sight once again. She knew how much of a privilege that was. Luke hooking Clyde's phone up to the Uvodni ship was excellent and their hunt for a shuttlecraft was really good. Luke getting a kiss back on Earth for all he did was marvellous and Clyde and Sarah Jane's reactions were really good. Overall, another very good adventure!

Rating: 8/10