TV Show of the Week: Class

The long running British science fiction TV show, Doctor Who, has spawned a number of spin-offs. The two most popular ones being the Sarah-Jane Adventures, and Torchwood, which on the opposite ends of the spectrum with its intended demographic. Doctor Who is aimed more for the families so they can all sit down on a Saturday night and enjoy watching the show all the same, whereas Sarah-Jane Adventures is aimed more towards kids alone and aired on the CBBC channel. Torchwood’s target audience is adults only.

Both spin-offs were a hit right from the beginning episode, and gradually increased in popularity and are still watched by thousands across the world. The latest spin-off, Class, which focuses on a group of sixth-form students and their respective teachers, within the famous Coal Hill Academy, a fictional Academy that has been featured in Doctor Who since the very first episode way back in 1963, and was where Clara Oswald previously worked before facing the raven in the Series 9.

During the development, I couldn’t find any information concerning the intended age group the show would be aimed at, but I knew it wouldn’t bother me whatever it was as I did watch all of Torchwood and Sarah-Jane Adventures, and I was glad I did when their respective stories all came together at the end of Doctor Who series 4. However, I eventually discovered that it was aimed more towards teenagers and adults when I loaded up BBC iplayer and saw that the first episode would include “some violence and some upsetting scenes”, and there were two swear words dropped within the show as well, which means that the show would automatically be behind the parental lock if enabled. Torchwood has some strong adult themes running throughout, and so Class, which is aimed at younger audiences, was probably something I can handle, but I was quite surprised when I read that warning, to be honest, because of who appears in the show.

The Doctor makes a guest appearance in the first episode "For Tonight We Might Die". Peter Capaldi plays his part as well as he always does so there’s no complaints there. I thought it was good, strong, and I will be watching more. It’s just, The Doctor never appeared in Torchwood, but appeared in Sarah-Jane Adventures, which is perfectly understandable because the creators didn’t want the Doctor to be featured in a show primarily aimed at adults and therefore has strong adult themes, so why was did he appear in a show where one of the characters gets his leg cut off, and swear words? It was just a peculiar sight to see, that’s all. He only appears in the one episode, and so they can ramp it all up to the next level over the coming few episodes, and it’s clear that Class is a show that doesn’t shy away from not-so-kid-friendly-content.

Anyway, that was just a question I had about one particular decision. The show itself, I enjoyed. The characters – Greg Austin as Charlie, Fady Elsayed as Ram Singh, Sophie Hopkins as April MacClean, Vivian Oparah as Tanya, and Katherine Kelly as Miss Quill – were well-thought out and the dialogue and chemistry between them proved that whilst there might be a few fights breaking out within the group, they would always have each other’s back when needed. Whilst I did think that it was a little disorganised in a couple of places, but the actors take up the challenge and ultimately nail every scene. It was engaging from the beginning and I will be watching more episodes in the future – but it must be noted that it is certainly not for kids. It’s nowhere near Torchwood’s level, but it shouldn’t be watched by the audience Doctor Who is aimed at, and so I will be surprised if The Doctor does make another appearance during the series, but what I will be interested in is if they will connect Class and Doctor Who together in the same way Sarah-Jane Adventures and Torchwood was connected. The team getting together during one episode of Doctor Who – that might be an interesting watch, but Class has to grow before that can happen, if it ever does. I wouldn’t be disappointed if it doesn’t, because Class has the makings of a strong independent show.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)