I know nobody is reading these besides me, and possibly sometimes my wife, but even so I have to say how much I appreciate you, my dear Imaginary Readers, for keeping me on track. I had another day of great forward progress today. This past year has been a bit of a wash, with a tiny bit of backsliding, but I really feel like I am back on the right track. I dunno, maybe it's just holiday cheer creeping in, but I am really enjoying my treadmill time these days. Of course, it helps that I am also thoroughly enjoying The Sarah Jane Adventures, especially after the dreary mediocrity of Torchwood: Miracle Day.

Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? - Parts 1 & 2

(TARDIS Data Core recap)

I'll tell you right now, I will gladly wade through middle-of-the-road stories like Warriors of Kudlak if they are consistently followed by excellent stories like Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? The basic premise is common enough - Sarah Jane disappears, completely forgotten by everyone in the world except Maria -- but the flourishes are top notch. In addition to the standard "why won't anyone believe me?" tension for Maria, there is the addition of a ticking time bomb in the form of a killer asteroid headed for the Earth that only Sarah Jane can stop.

This story introduces the villain The Trickster, whose "Trickster Brigade" features heavily across Doctor Who and Torchwood as well as The Sarah Jane Adventures. Dude is creepy, is all I'm saying. As we slowly discover that the woman who has replaced Sarah Jane is someone who originally died as a teenager and who has made a Faustian bargain with The Trickster, we also get a peek at Sarah Jane's childhood and the events that helped forge her into such a stalwart hero.

Unfortunately for Maria, the story also ends with her father discovering just what kind of crazy dangerous things Sarah Jane has been up to with the kids. So... that's gonna be some new conflict going forward.

I just can't say enough how much I am enjoying this series, and I am so happy that Elisabeth Sladen got to have this resurgence in popularity. The fact that it ended prematurely, and for such an awful reason, is beyond tragic. But I am surely treasuring it while it is here.

STATS:

Featuring: Sarah Jane Smith, Luke Smith, Maria Jackson, Clyde Langer
Episode(s): Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane?
Steps Walked: 7,546 today, 4,059,547 total
Distance Walked: 4.05 miles today, 2,126.01 miles total
Push-ups Completed: 0 today, 8,458 total
Sit-ups Completed: 0 today, 1,421 total
Weight: 258.02 lbs (five day moving average), net change -49.28 lbs