Compare and contrast:

( Read more...(Spoiler warning) )

One of a crop of terrific vids celebrating That Speech in Rings of Akhenatan. I love the use of Nine and Ten to add richness to the memory pool in this:

http://youtu.be/irpmtTbvXwM

(not embedded, to avoid spoilers)

For some time, Eleven has been the Doctor for me, but it wasn't until I ( Read more... )

The artistic challenge that this series has faced, more than any other in New Who, is the tension between producing strong stand-alone narratives and building on the themes that will feed into the narrative arc as a whole.

( Read more... )

Now that my ladder's gone,
I must lie down where all ladders start
In the foul rag-and-bone shop of the heart.

(WB Yeats, The Circus Animals' Desertion) - see link for a brilliant analysis of the poem.

My initial response to TDW - very enjoyable. Written by a hardcore fan with a really deep respect for the spirit of the characters and the show, and ( Read more... )

Over on elisi 's journal, there have been some fascinating discussions about Ten’s character arc recently, particularly some of his darker aspects like his behaviour at the end of FoB. This sparked off a train of thought rather too lengthy for a comment. It includes quotations and discussion of School Reunion and Family of Blood, among others, but no ( Read more... )

We have reached the zenith. Appropriately, here in the Northern Hemisphere it’s the Summer Solstice - we glory in the light and pick ripe fruit and fire up the barbecue, and relax because exams are nearly over - and it’s lovely, and you’d have to be pretty churlish to point out that it’s all downhill from here, back to shorter daylight hours until ( Read more... )

I loved Vincent and the Doctor. For the first time since the opening minutes of TEH, we seemed to be looking at real people rather than two-dimensional stereotypes. What a difference some decent writing makes. Amy’s question, “Why are you being so nice to me?” said more about her emotionally barren childhood than the nine preceding episodes. The ( Read more... )

I’ve not been posting much lately, mostly because I’ve been frustrated and disappointed with DW S5 for the reasons expressed by many others - flat characterisation and an inability to care about the Doctor himself. It seemed pointless to add to the discussion when I’d little of interest to say.

Though Amy’s Choice briefly rekindled my interest ( Read more... )

“I’ve just picked up a very special signal,” the Doctor explained. He twirled his sonic screwdriver in his hand. “And what it confirms is that there’s a restaurant here that will one day be the most famous in all of the galaxy. In the 208th Century, people are so obsessed with it they travel back through time from all over the galaxy to eat there. ( Read more... )

Sam got Frodo up Mount Doom by reminding him that back home in the Shire the first strawberries would be ripening. And I bawled, unashamedly, hearing the voice of who knows how many Tommies in the trenches trying to get their comrades through hell on earth.

( Read more... )