"Goodbye, my Sarah Jane." It wasn't really goodbye, of course, since the character made several subsequent returns - including in the next entry on this list - and went on to helm her very own CBBC spin off, but Series 2's School Reunion will still stand the test of time as the episode that gave this beloved Classic Series companion the closure she well and truly deserved. Because Sarah Jane Smith really was, and still is, beloved. Originally introduced as an ardent investigative journalist in the 1973/74 Third Doctor serial The Time Warrior, she firmly established herself as one of Doctor Who's most popular leading ladies and her eventual departure, at the end of the Fourth Doctor's 1976 adventure The Hand of Fear, is fondly remembered as one of the most emotional exits in the show's history. And here she was, back in the TARDIS where she belonged, 30 years later. She even had K-9 in tow (after their disastrous attempt to launch a spin off series in 1981) and it was like they'd never been away. The honour of reintroducing Sarah Jane to a new generation of fans was awarded to Toby Whithouse who delivered one of the greatest episodes of NuWho to date. It even guest starred Buffy the Vampire Slayer veteran Anthony Head as the villainous Mr Finch, so there's really nothing not to love with this one. The Doctor and Sarah Jane's farewell at the end of the episode is perhaps even more poignant now, following Elisabeth Sladen's passing in 2011. She is gone but not forgotten.
Dan Butler is the Doctor Who Editor at WhatCulture.com. When he isn't writing his own articles or editing other people's, he can be found trawling the internet for gifs of Steven Moffat laughing. Contact him via dan.butler@whatculture.co.uk.
