Twitch slipped in an "extra" last night. When Tom Baker's run completed (about 6:50 PM EST), instead of leading into "Castrovalva", Twitch streamed "K-9 & Company"!
I've read a lot of snark about the pilot, particularly its "theme" tune (composed by Ian Levine if I correctly read the credits) and the infamous closing sequence of the tin dog trying to sing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". these elements led me to believe it was going to be, well, less than stellar.
But I was pleasantly surprised! (This was the first time I had seen it.) Barring those two bits (which could easily be skipped without affecting the rest of the narrative), the pilot definitely had something of a Phillip Hinchcliffe/"early" Graham Williams feel to the production. Technically, the only "fantastic" element was the presence of K-9 himself, even the peril, a coven of witches, was "grounded" as there was no induction of actual supernatural events, just the threat of human sacrifice. Over the years, I had gotten the impression it was supposedly even more "kid friendly" than "The Sarah Jane Adventures", but, instead, it had that quasi gothic mid 70s feel as in DW stories like "Terror of the Zygons" or "Image of the Fendahl". Oh, despite the pilot's title, Liz Sladen as Sarah Jane is the real star with the tin dog more of a sidekick.
I'm now rather disappointed this concept was not greenlit for a series. But if I were a BBC executive and had only been shown those credits and the epilogue sequence, I would have "passed" upon it as well.
It's part of that new Blu-Ray package of series 12, Tom Baker's debut year, right? If you own that set, give it a watch. It's certainly better than I had been informed.