(no subject)
Christmas was really low-key and really excellent this year. I'm hoping for a similar repeat in 2008!
I sometimes get so caught up in the fandom and the meta that I get away from the show itself and while this wasn't amazing, it was a pretty decent turn-out and it's nice to touch base with fresh source material again. I'm not sure the "disaster movie" theme wasn't a little over-reaching, the bits in the middle when Davies was killing off passengers bit by bit felt strained and more than a little awkward, but it didn't kill my enjoyment of the script either.
I kind of wanted the Doctor to ask Alonzo along as a companion. Okay, so maybe he was more on the side of archetype rather than full-fledged character, but I liked him well enough and I think I would have enjoyed his stuttering and stammering as he tried to deal with the Doctor's recklessness and disregard for the rules. Maybe it was the fact that he wasn't particularly developed that gives him tremendous potential to grow into something really interesting.
Amusing bits and bobs: mis-representations of the Earth, the first scene in London, "Allons-y, Alonzo!", the giddy grin accompanying "Take me to your leader." and Astrid's use of the med kit to reach the Doctor to kiss him, which was adorable.
"But if you could decide, if you could choose, Doctor, who lives and who dies, that would make you a monster."
Which strikes an interesting note with Donna's comments about right and wrong from the trailer at the end of the episode. And even more eerily, with his reply! The Doctor is generally supposed to be "good", but the Tenth in particular is a getting a bit wrangy sometimes, isn't he? Then again, there's no one but human companions who've been in love with him to keep him in check for some years now. And people do keep calling him 'The Lonely God'. The Doctor really needs someone to be properly accountable to, just like Donna told us in "The Runaway Bride". I wonder if the fourth series will play with that idea beyond that line, which seems fairly easily dismissed by the Doctor.
I've also finished The Sarah Jane Adventures, which was expectedly excellent (especially "Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane" - I think Alan is officially my favourite) and a bunch of First Doctor stories. "The War Machines" wasn't bad (lame character write-out, but Polly and Ben did pretty well for a first go-around and I loved the classic sci-fi theme of 'intelligent computer goes bad', which sounds like a spoiler, but seriously, all you have to do is pay attention and you understand what's coming), "The Daleks" is unexpectedly good, each episode actually being rather satisfying on its own. Susan has delighted and surprised me, all of the companions have. I am pretty much still in love with Barabara and am falling pretty hard for Ian too. "The Keys to Marinus" was a story I'd started some months ago and enjoyed and it didn't let me down all that much on conclusion either. It surprised me in a few pleasant ways.
I sometimes get so caught up in the fandom and the meta that I get away from the show itself and while this wasn't amazing, it was a pretty decent turn-out and it's nice to touch base with fresh source material again. I'm not sure the "disaster movie" theme wasn't a little over-reaching, the bits in the middle when Davies was killing off passengers bit by bit felt strained and more than a little awkward, but it didn't kill my enjoyment of the script either.
I kind of wanted the Doctor to ask Alonzo along as a companion. Okay, so maybe he was more on the side of archetype rather than full-fledged character, but I liked him well enough and I think I would have enjoyed his stuttering and stammering as he tried to deal with the Doctor's recklessness and disregard for the rules. Maybe it was the fact that he wasn't particularly developed that gives him tremendous potential to grow into something really interesting.
Amusing bits and bobs: mis-representations of the Earth, the first scene in London, "Allons-y, Alonzo!", the giddy grin accompanying "Take me to your leader." and Astrid's use of the med kit to reach the Doctor to kiss him, which was adorable.
"But if you could decide, if you could choose, Doctor, who lives and who dies, that would make you a monster."
Which strikes an interesting note with Donna's comments about right and wrong from the trailer at the end of the episode. And even more eerily, with his reply! The Doctor is generally supposed to be "good", but the Tenth in particular is a getting a bit wrangy sometimes, isn't he? Then again, there's no one but human companions who've been in love with him to keep him in check for some years now. And people do keep calling him 'The Lonely God'. The Doctor really needs someone to be properly accountable to, just like Donna told us in "The Runaway Bride". I wonder if the fourth series will play with that idea beyond that line, which seems fairly easily dismissed by the Doctor.
I've also finished The Sarah Jane Adventures, which was expectedly excellent (especially "Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane" - I think Alan is officially my favourite) and a bunch of First Doctor stories. "The War Machines" wasn't bad (lame character write-out, but Polly and Ben did pretty well for a first go-around and I loved the classic sci-fi theme of 'intelligent computer goes bad', which sounds like a spoiler, but seriously, all you have to do is pay attention and you understand what's coming), "The Daleks" is unexpectedly good, each episode actually being rather satisfying on its own. Susan has delighted and surprised me, all of the companions have. I am pretty much still in love with Barabara and am falling pretty hard for Ian too. "The Keys to Marinus" was a story I'd started some months ago and enjoyed and it didn't let me down all that much on conclusion either. It surprised me in a few pleasant ways.