Fantastic!
I had a good weekend--left the laptop at work where it belongs, cleared away a lot of Life Stuff backlog like laundry and cleaning, went shopping for the kind of groceries that actually require preparation, made some soup. I also finally got to hang out with thedeadlyhook again and meet toysdream, something we'd been trying to coordinate for a long time. They've only seen bits and pieces of Farscape, so I loaned them my box sets so that they can experience the full ride and am hoping they'll post some reactions as they watch (toysdream started here). I had a lovely time with them and their friends; even though I don't know much about comic books, it's a kind of storytelling, and it's always interesting to hear people pick apart storytelling, and to be passionate and knowledgeable about the things they love.
And then I had following conversation with a coworker on Monday:
Him: I had the geekiest weekend ever!
Me: Oh yeah? I hung out with a professional giant cartoon robot expert and a bunch of comic books geeks and we watched zombie movies and Farscape.
Him: I played World of Warcraft all weekend long, pausing only briefly to eat and sleep.
Me: ... Okay, you win.
And I got to see the first two episodes of Doctor Who!
I have a bit of background with this show. As an adolescent, I watched the Fourth Doctor episodes religiously on my local PBS station, and read quite a few novelizations; in fact, my parents still have a box full of my old videotapes. So it's both thrilling and a bit disorienting to find the TARDIS and the sonic screwdriver and the old theme music in a setting facilitated by an actual effects budget.
It's been a while since I saw the old shows--and I didn't see much of the Fifth Doctor, almost none of the Sixth, definitely not any of the Seventh or Eighth--but this strikes me as a very modern reimagining of the franchise, one that recognizes the way science fiction television has become much more character-centric. I remember the Doctors of old being not much more than a combination of personal quirks and the odd flash of righteous wrath at injustice that hinted at terrible experiences lived and absorbed. This Doctor's demons seem much closer to the surface.
And what happened to Gallifrey and the other Time Lords? Was this something that was covered in the show at some point, or is what happened in this terrible war a new mystery to be revealed? And is the Master still around? And did the TARDIS get fixed at some point, since the Doctor seems to be able to make it go where and when he actually wants it to go?
"Rose" has a sort of absurdly James Bond-y feel to it, but it works with the over-the-top treatment of the plastic monsters, the living mannequins and the garbage bins that eat people, the oddly hilarious behavior of plasticized boyfriend, the diplomatic maneuvering with the big pit of blob. And Rose herself is an engaging character, someone from a small background who connects with the Doctor in her sense of adventure and her inability to stand by when someone needs help. The mother and the boyfriend are funny but also a terrific illustration of what a constricted and ordinary life Rose is headed for until she meets up with the Doctor.
"The End of the World" had more of a Restaurant at the End of the Universe feel, and the absurd biting humor added to the Douglas Adams feel, but it's a great counterpoint to Rose's shellshock and isolation. I really liked the scene where she found the plumber, something she could understand amidst all the strangeness. The last "human" was hilarious and at the same time an excellent villain with understandable motivations, and having the traditional ballad be "Toxic" made me laugh for about five minutes. (And also got the song stuck in my head again--I hope this isn't another two-month ordeal like it was after M.'s wedding.) My notes for the episode include the sentence, "The meme is up to something," and I love that this sentence makes sense in context, that the meme was indeed up to no good. And it struck me again how much more character emphasis there is in this new incarnation of the show, how something is very broken in the Doctor, how much I want to find out what happened to him.
So I'm really enjoying the show so far. I'm way late jumping on the Doctor Who bandwagon and I know a lot of you who've seen the show have already posted your episode reactions; I avoided them to remain unspoiled, but if you'd point those posts out to me, I'd love to read them as I see the episodes for myself.
Urg. I was out of the house while the moon was still high and bright in the dark sky this morning. Stupid conference call to India. That's going to be a weekly thing for the foreseeable future, unfortunately. But I baked last night and brought pear pecan bread in to share with my coworkers and they seemed to like it, so that was nice, and I'm picking Mom up at the airport tonight and it will be good to see her. And I can sleep again this weekend.
And then I had following conversation with a coworker on Monday:
Him: I had the geekiest weekend ever!
Me: Oh yeah? I hung out with a professional giant cartoon robot expert and a bunch of comic books geeks and we watched zombie movies and Farscape.
Him: I played World of Warcraft all weekend long, pausing only briefly to eat and sleep.
Me: ... Okay, you win.
And I got to see the first two episodes of Doctor Who!
I have a bit of background with this show. As an adolescent, I watched the Fourth Doctor episodes religiously on my local PBS station, and read quite a few novelizations; in fact, my parents still have a box full of my old videotapes. So it's both thrilling and a bit disorienting to find the TARDIS and the sonic screwdriver and the old theme music in a setting facilitated by an actual effects budget.
It's been a while since I saw the old shows--and I didn't see much of the Fifth Doctor, almost none of the Sixth, definitely not any of the Seventh or Eighth--but this strikes me as a very modern reimagining of the franchise, one that recognizes the way science fiction television has become much more character-centric. I remember the Doctors of old being not much more than a combination of personal quirks and the odd flash of righteous wrath at injustice that hinted at terrible experiences lived and absorbed. This Doctor's demons seem much closer to the surface.
And what happened to Gallifrey and the other Time Lords? Was this something that was covered in the show at some point, or is what happened in this terrible war a new mystery to be revealed? And is the Master still around? And did the TARDIS get fixed at some point, since the Doctor seems to be able to make it go where and when he actually wants it to go?
"Rose" has a sort of absurdly James Bond-y feel to it, but it works with the over-the-top treatment of the plastic monsters, the living mannequins and the garbage bins that eat people, the oddly hilarious behavior of plasticized boyfriend, the diplomatic maneuvering with the big pit of blob. And Rose herself is an engaging character, someone from a small background who connects with the Doctor in her sense of adventure and her inability to stand by when someone needs help. The mother and the boyfriend are funny but also a terrific illustration of what a constricted and ordinary life Rose is headed for until she meets up with the Doctor.
"The End of the World" had more of a Restaurant at the End of the Universe feel, and the absurd biting humor added to the Douglas Adams feel, but it's a great counterpoint to Rose's shellshock and isolation. I really liked the scene where she found the plumber, something she could understand amidst all the strangeness. The last "human" was hilarious and at the same time an excellent villain with understandable motivations, and having the traditional ballad be "Toxic" made me laugh for about five minutes. (And also got the song stuck in my head again--I hope this isn't another two-month ordeal like it was after M.'s wedding.) My notes for the episode include the sentence, "The meme is up to something," and I love that this sentence makes sense in context, that the meme was indeed up to no good. And it struck me again how much more character emphasis there is in this new incarnation of the show, how something is very broken in the Doctor, how much I want to find out what happened to him.
So I'm really enjoying the show so far. I'm way late jumping on the Doctor Who bandwagon and I know a lot of you who've seen the show have already posted your episode reactions; I avoided them to remain unspoiled, but if you'd point those posts out to me, I'd love to read them as I see the episodes for myself.
Urg. I was out of the house while the moon was still high and bright in the dark sky this morning. Stupid conference call to India. That's going to be a weekly thing for the foreseeable future, unfortunately. But I baked last night and brought pear pecan bread in to share with my coworkers and they seemed to like it, so that was nice, and I'm picking Mom up at the airport tonight and it will be good to see her. And I can sleep again this weekend.