SJA: The Vault Of Secrets Review (4.5/5)

The Sarah Jane Adventures seems to be having its most confident run yet with the fourth season, a thought evidenced by the second story, The Vault Of Secrets. At first, the return of Androvax seems to simply be in place so that the Trickster doesn't appear in every season and become a stale villain who only makes regular SJA appearances, but Androvax's unexpected plight eventually makes for one of the best stories since the show's debut. The other returnees, the Men in Black from Doctor Who animation Dreamland (now known as the Alliance of Shades) add some much-needed humour to an otherwise emotionally-driven story, along with the sub-plot of Gita Chandra's investigation into the appearance of Judoon on Bannerman Road last year. This mixture of elements from both the show itself and its heritage helps give a layer of depth previously unfound in SJA, and therefore a better story to continue the series with. A lacklustre cliff-hanger (being a regular 'shock' for SJA most weeks) does hold this back from being a television masterpiece, but things surely cannot get any better from here on out. Oh wait, who's that coming onto the show next week...