Media Roundup
*takes a deep breath* I caught up on a lot of things recently. Random, hastily-scribbled thoughts are blow the cuts. Spoilers, of course.
Torchwood
I just finished (finally) watching Torchwood 1x13, End of Days, and I'm not sure what to say about it. I was expecting it to pick directly where it left off at the end of Captain Jack Harkness, so I was a little thrown when it didn't.
What I liked: The ongoing series theme of "consequences" - as Ianto warned, opening the rift, even if it was to save Jack and Toshiko in the previous episode, was a grave mistake on Owen's part, as now all kinds of people are coming through the rift from the future and the past and bringing all kinds of problems with them. I loved Gwen staying with Jack for days after his "death." I loved her broken-hearted scene over Rhys' body, and I love that Jack is with her and he is also crying. I loved Toshiko. I love Ianto. They all did a great job. I also loved Owen breaking down in Jack's arms at the end. And hard and information stingy as he was/is, I still love Jack. And I adored his answer to Gwen when she asks what would have convinced him: "A special kind of doctor." The end, with the sound of the TARDIS, etc., was also wonderful and gleeful, and I can't wait to see Jack and Doctor No. 10 together. Two such strong characters will surely ignite my screen.
What I didn't like: and perhaps this will be a bit longer because as I think about it more, there was more that I didn't like, I suppose. I didn't like how rushed it felt - Opening the rift in 1x12 brought with it a host of problems, which they could not adequately solve, so they were coerced into opening the rift again by Bilis (sp) who serves Abbadon. Of course Jack's mysterious ability to defeat death would come to the fore, but it all seemed very rushed. I would have liked more time with Abbadon, I suppose, and to understand why he was buried/imprisoned beneath the rift, etc. Just to learn more. Perhaps it was explained and I just missed it, which is entirely possible. I didn't like the tirade at the hospital in which the doctor berates Owen for not being able to fix the problems coming through their door (bubonic plague, etc.) - I was just astounded that a person of science would just imagine that Torchwood could wave a magic wand and make the Black Death disappear. They know what the plague is - it's a known, if horrifying, thing, and there are procedures to contain and treat it. That's science, not supernatural. The tirade just seemed forced and bizarre. I hated that Owen left, but I suppose that makes sense considering his stubborn and inflexible character and the resentments he has been brewing all series long. I completely understand, however, that Jack needs to have loyal and dependable people around in a crisis (no matter how desperately they needed Owen's skills) - loose cannons are just likely to do more damage than good, and Owen was going to pieces long before that point.
Erm...that's all I can think of now.
One thing that I have decided: I enjoy most television best when I binge. When I watch a show that is doing really well on a weekly basis, then it's awesome to have a week between viewings to anticipate, analyze, discuss, etc. But for anything weaker than "excellent," binging is a must. This allows me to follow the plot points, soak in the character development, and gloss over everything I don't like or what doesn't grab me. That week in between viewings hurts too much with weaker programming as it lets me dwell too much on everything I dislike. All this to say that I'm awfully glad that I watched the following four Veronica Mars episodes in one block. I don't think I would have enjoyed them nearly as much.
Veronica Mars 3x12-3x15
What I liked: The mystery of who killed the Dean got solved! And YES, I was right - I always suspected the T.A., and sure enough, the weasel did the deed. Still, I'm sorry that the professor is gone from the picture because he was interesting, but I'm not sorry that we won't have to see Mindy any more. I LOVE Veronica and her father. Those scenes were among my most favorite.
I loved Logan hanging out with the little sister. That was awesome. I also love that things look rosy for Mac - girl deserves some happiness after what happened with Beaver, which is enough to scare a girl off men for a good long time. I also loved Wallace and Weevil (with the aborted car crushing, eee!).
What a surprise! Lamb is dead! I didn't see that coming. Now Keith is back as the Sheriff, but something tells me that he won't be happy staying there, but it would be awesome if someone less idiotic were elected as the new sheriff.
What I didn't like: Dick (although I shouldn't hate him because he's so bad he's good). Mindy. Gosh, other stuff that I'm sure I thought of before but I can't think of now. Maybe I'll come back to this with more thoughts...
To sum up: these eps weren't bad. They weren't stellar, but they weren't bad, and they certainly held my attention for 3+ hours, so I'm not complaining.
I spent last week watching Orange Days (jdorama), and I finished on Friday.
Orange Days
I'm not going to write up any kind of long comprehensive meta for the drama, sorry. I liked it, at times quite a lot, but I never got to the "love" stage. I enjoyed it, but not passionately like I have with a few other dramas. The drama follows a group of young people in university who are on the edge of the rest of their lives, and trying to figure out what their paths will be. While there are two love stories in the drama, and the drama does center around one couple in particular, I felt strongly that drama's overwhelming feeling was of youth, or the idea of seishun that nihongofrancais has discussed before.
The young man at the center of the drama is Kai (Tsumabuki Satoshi), a social welfare psychology major, who is in his final year of university. We begin with Kai and his hunt for a post-college job, which he is already stressing over, even though he still has a year of school to finish. His friends are not quite as stressed, particularly Shohei (Narimiya Hiroki) who is a directionless playboy with seemingly no prospects save his pretty face. Kai's other close friend, Keita (Eita), thinks that he will probably take over his family's business when he finishes school. Through a variety of circumstances, these three young men become friends with Sae (Shibasaki Kou) and her best friend, Akane (Shiraishi Miho). [incidentally, both Eita and Shiaraishi starred in last year's Sapuri while Shibasaki stole my heart with her role as Kimura Takuya's motorcycle-riding aircraft mechanic sweetheart, Ogawa in Good Luck!]
Sae is a former rising-star violinist who lost most of her hearing four years ago due to some illness, and has adapted to her deafness with a fair amount of difficulty. Her handicap comes up again and again throughout the drama as she deals with all sorts of issues stemming from it, including the fact that she is just as lost for her career prospects as everyone else since she spent her whole life preparing for a life as a musician, by studying both the violin and the piano, and with the loss of her hearing, she feels she can no longer pursue the only thing that has ever mattered to her: music. Sae's friend Akane, is like the others, also not really set onto a path, and so these five friends forge a friendship and a bond of youth and hope that colors their final year together of university.
I liked a lot of things about the drama. I loved the rocky uncertainty of the romance that develops between Kai and Sae. Even while I wanted to kick them for being idiotic, I still loved how realistic their relationship and its problems felt. Both Keita and Akane were very likeable, and while Shohei started out as a bit of an ass, he improves remarkably throughout. (I thought Shohei's costuming was hilarious, btw, with all the low scoop-necked shirts. Ah, Japanese fashion always makes me smile. In one episode, a nurse even comments on his flowered shirt.)
One thing I particularly loved was the way that Sae spoke with sign language - it was so beautiful and mesmerizing to watch her - she's a passionate creature who signs with great emphasis and also at times, sensuality. It was a a pleasure to watch her. I loved how Keita and Shohei learned sign language so they could speak to her and understand her better (Akane and Kai already knew how to sign), and that they didn't do it out of pity, but because they liked her, which is something that took her a while to get her head around.
I loved that no matter how deep the drama went into the relationship aspects, it always came back to character development and to the five young people as a group of friends. The drama begins with Kai and his three friends, and it ends with the five of them about to embark on the rest of their lives, parting as fast friends that you imagine they will remain for the rest of their lives. It's a joyous and heartwarming end after everything they go through together, all the changes, all the choices, the partings, the heartache, the triumphs and happiness.
I can see why and how this drama has made a big impression with audiences, and why some of my flist loves the drama - it's a story that could be about many people who are beginning their lives at a fragile period, and entering the world. None of the characters (excepting Sae) are extraordinary - they are "normal" people and the difficulties they go through are ones that are highly relatable for many people.
As I said in the beginning, I liked this drama well enough, but I didn't love it. It gave me many heartwarming moments, however, and I'm glad that I took the time to watch it.
Also, I started watching Long Love letter (jdorama) yesterday, and I LOVE it! I must thank nihongofrancais for encouraging me to push this to the top of my list. As always, it's great to see familiar faces like Takako Tokiwa who played Kyoko in Beautiful Life opposite Kimura Takuya and Tsumabuki Satoshi who I just got done watching in Orange Days. And of course, there is a younger Yamashita Tomohisa playing one of the students. I almost hate to give away the premise of this drama, because it's so interesting and so completely different from any other dorama I've yet seen, and by the end of episode 2 I'm thoroughly hooked. I only wish this was hardsubbed so I could mainline it on my iPod during my commute instead of having to wait until I get home.
Oh, and one last thing, N and I saw Breach recently with Chris Cooper and Ryan Phillippe and we LOVED it. Cooper is fantastic as the infamous worst traitor in U.S. history, Robert Hanssen, who sold enormous amounts of secrets to the Soviets. He was ultimately caught in February 2001 and this film does a brilliant job of portraying Hanssen near the end of his spy career.
Ok, this is really the last thing. The "Hoshi wo Mezashite" PV is soooo pretty. It really makes me wish I could be more passionate about NEWs. :)
Torchwood
I just finished (finally) watching Torchwood 1x13, End of Days, and I'm not sure what to say about it. I was expecting it to pick directly where it left off at the end of Captain Jack Harkness, so I was a little thrown when it didn't.
What I liked: The ongoing series theme of "consequences" - as Ianto warned, opening the rift, even if it was to save Jack and Toshiko in the previous episode, was a grave mistake on Owen's part, as now all kinds of people are coming through the rift from the future and the past and bringing all kinds of problems with them. I loved Gwen staying with Jack for days after his "death." I loved her broken-hearted scene over Rhys' body, and I love that Jack is with her and he is also crying. I loved Toshiko. I love Ianto. They all did a great job. I also loved Owen breaking down in Jack's arms at the end. And hard and information stingy as he was/is, I still love Jack. And I adored his answer to Gwen when she asks what would have convinced him: "A special kind of doctor." The end, with the sound of the TARDIS, etc., was also wonderful and gleeful, and I can't wait to see Jack and Doctor No. 10 together. Two such strong characters will surely ignite my screen.
What I didn't like: and perhaps this will be a bit longer because as I think about it more, there was more that I didn't like, I suppose. I didn't like how rushed it felt - Opening the rift in 1x12 brought with it a host of problems, which they could not adequately solve, so they were coerced into opening the rift again by Bilis (sp) who serves Abbadon. Of course Jack's mysterious ability to defeat death would come to the fore, but it all seemed very rushed. I would have liked more time with Abbadon, I suppose, and to understand why he was buried/imprisoned beneath the rift, etc. Just to learn more. Perhaps it was explained and I just missed it, which is entirely possible. I didn't like the tirade at the hospital in which the doctor berates Owen for not being able to fix the problems coming through their door (bubonic plague, etc.) - I was just astounded that a person of science would just imagine that Torchwood could wave a magic wand and make the Black Death disappear. They know what the plague is - it's a known, if horrifying, thing, and there are procedures to contain and treat it. That's science, not supernatural. The tirade just seemed forced and bizarre. I hated that Owen left, but I suppose that makes sense considering his stubborn and inflexible character and the resentments he has been brewing all series long. I completely understand, however, that Jack needs to have loyal and dependable people around in a crisis (no matter how desperately they needed Owen's skills) - loose cannons are just likely to do more damage than good, and Owen was going to pieces long before that point.
Erm...that's all I can think of now.
One thing that I have decided: I enjoy most television best when I binge. When I watch a show that is doing really well on a weekly basis, then it's awesome to have a week between viewings to anticipate, analyze, discuss, etc. But for anything weaker than "excellent," binging is a must. This allows me to follow the plot points, soak in the character development, and gloss over everything I don't like or what doesn't grab me. That week in between viewings hurts too much with weaker programming as it lets me dwell too much on everything I dislike. All this to say that I'm awfully glad that I watched the following four Veronica Mars episodes in one block. I don't think I would have enjoyed them nearly as much.
Veronica Mars 3x12-3x15
What I liked: The mystery of who killed the Dean got solved! And YES, I was right - I always suspected the T.A., and sure enough, the weasel did the deed. Still, I'm sorry that the professor is gone from the picture because he was interesting, but I'm not sorry that we won't have to see Mindy any more. I LOVE Veronica and her father. Those scenes were among my most favorite.
I loved Logan hanging out with the little sister. That was awesome. I also love that things look rosy for Mac - girl deserves some happiness after what happened with Beaver, which is enough to scare a girl off men for a good long time. I also loved Wallace and Weevil (with the aborted car crushing, eee!).
What a surprise! Lamb is dead! I didn't see that coming. Now Keith is back as the Sheriff, but something tells me that he won't be happy staying there, but it would be awesome if someone less idiotic were elected as the new sheriff.
What I didn't like: Dick (although I shouldn't hate him because he's so bad he's good). Mindy. Gosh, other stuff that I'm sure I thought of before but I can't think of now. Maybe I'll come back to this with more thoughts...
To sum up: these eps weren't bad. They weren't stellar, but they weren't bad, and they certainly held my attention for 3+ hours, so I'm not complaining.
I spent last week watching Orange Days (jdorama), and I finished on Friday.
Orange Days
I'm not going to write up any kind of long comprehensive meta for the drama, sorry. I liked it, at times quite a lot, but I never got to the "love" stage. I enjoyed it, but not passionately like I have with a few other dramas. The drama follows a group of young people in university who are on the edge of the rest of their lives, and trying to figure out what their paths will be. While there are two love stories in the drama, and the drama does center around one couple in particular, I felt strongly that drama's overwhelming feeling was of youth, or the idea of seishun that nihongofrancais has discussed before.
The young man at the center of the drama is Kai (Tsumabuki Satoshi), a social welfare psychology major, who is in his final year of university. We begin with Kai and his hunt for a post-college job, which he is already stressing over, even though he still has a year of school to finish. His friends are not quite as stressed, particularly Shohei (Narimiya Hiroki) who is a directionless playboy with seemingly no prospects save his pretty face. Kai's other close friend, Keita (Eita), thinks that he will probably take over his family's business when he finishes school. Through a variety of circumstances, these three young men become friends with Sae (Shibasaki Kou) and her best friend, Akane (Shiraishi Miho). [incidentally, both Eita and Shiaraishi starred in last year's Sapuri while Shibasaki stole my heart with her role as Kimura Takuya's motorcycle-riding aircraft mechanic sweetheart, Ogawa in Good Luck!]
Sae is a former rising-star violinist who lost most of her hearing four years ago due to some illness, and has adapted to her deafness with a fair amount of difficulty. Her handicap comes up again and again throughout the drama as she deals with all sorts of issues stemming from it, including the fact that she is just as lost for her career prospects as everyone else since she spent her whole life preparing for a life as a musician, by studying both the violin and the piano, and with the loss of her hearing, she feels she can no longer pursue the only thing that has ever mattered to her: music. Sae's friend Akane, is like the others, also not really set onto a path, and so these five friends forge a friendship and a bond of youth and hope that colors their final year together of university.
I liked a lot of things about the drama. I loved the rocky uncertainty of the romance that develops between Kai and Sae. Even while I wanted to kick them for being idiotic, I still loved how realistic their relationship and its problems felt. Both Keita and Akane were very likeable, and while Shohei started out as a bit of an ass, he improves remarkably throughout. (I thought Shohei's costuming was hilarious, btw, with all the low scoop-necked shirts. Ah, Japanese fashion always makes me smile. In one episode, a nurse even comments on his flowered shirt.)
One thing I particularly loved was the way that Sae spoke with sign language - it was so beautiful and mesmerizing to watch her - she's a passionate creature who signs with great emphasis and also at times, sensuality. It was a a pleasure to watch her. I loved how Keita and Shohei learned sign language so they could speak to her and understand her better (Akane and Kai already knew how to sign), and that they didn't do it out of pity, but because they liked her, which is something that took her a while to get her head around.
I loved that no matter how deep the drama went into the relationship aspects, it always came back to character development and to the five young people as a group of friends. The drama begins with Kai and his three friends, and it ends with the five of them about to embark on the rest of their lives, parting as fast friends that you imagine they will remain for the rest of their lives. It's a joyous and heartwarming end after everything they go through together, all the changes, all the choices, the partings, the heartache, the triumphs and happiness.
I can see why and how this drama has made a big impression with audiences, and why some of my flist loves the drama - it's a story that could be about many people who are beginning their lives at a fragile period, and entering the world. None of the characters (excepting Sae) are extraordinary - they are "normal" people and the difficulties they go through are ones that are highly relatable for many people.
As I said in the beginning, I liked this drama well enough, but I didn't love it. It gave me many heartwarming moments, however, and I'm glad that I took the time to watch it.
Also, I started watching Long Love letter (jdorama) yesterday, and I LOVE it! I must thank nihongofrancais for encouraging me to push this to the top of my list. As always, it's great to see familiar faces like Takako Tokiwa who played Kyoko in Beautiful Life opposite Kimura Takuya and Tsumabuki Satoshi who I just got done watching in Orange Days. And of course, there is a younger Yamashita Tomohisa playing one of the students. I almost hate to give away the premise of this drama, because it's so interesting and so completely different from any other dorama I've yet seen, and by the end of episode 2 I'm thoroughly hooked. I only wish this was hardsubbed so I could mainline it on my iPod during my commute instead of having to wait until I get home.
Oh, and one last thing, N and I saw Breach recently with Chris Cooper and Ryan Phillippe and we LOVED it. Cooper is fantastic as the infamous worst traitor in U.S. history, Robert Hanssen, who sold enormous amounts of secrets to the Soviets. He was ultimately caught in February 2001 and this film does a brilliant job of portraying Hanssen near the end of his spy career.
Ok, this is really the last thing. The "Hoshi wo Mezashite" PV is soooo pretty. It really makes me wish I could be more passionate about NEWs. :)