Start dates

Doctor Who Season 6.5 actually is starting in late August (the 27^th), not September as I'd thought. That means there'll be a few weeks of overlap with the last few eps of Torchwood: Miracle Day.

Also, the final 3 episodes of The Sarah Jane Adventures is set to air in "October", so there may be overlap with Doctor Who there too. These are the first block of filming that was completed before Lis Sladen's death - so it will be only a half "season". The last bits of material filmed before her death, aired posthumously - I expect it will be a depressing viewing.

And I'm trying to think - do I even watch any non-Doctor Who sci fi? Everything else (SGU, V, Caprica) seems to have gotten itself canceled. And there's no First-Cylon-War era BSG spinoff to replace it, as was promised...

Tags: doctor who, sci-fi
Mood: tired

Torchwood Season 4, Episode 5

Well, I'm certainly sorry to see that Dr. Vera Juarez might be dead/written off (although it was a cliffhanger, so who knows). She was probably my favorite of the American cast. And they certainly mananged to make the Malony character just about as creepy and unsympathetic as possible.

Still not getting the whole Oswald Danes as messiah/pariah. Surely there were slightly more inspiring demagogues than an unrepentant child rapist/killer. And the people wearing "Dead Is Dead" shirts, yet cheering Oswald? Are they confused, or are they hipsters wearing T-shirts "ironically?

Tags: doctor who
Mood: productive

Torchwood Season 4, Episode 4

Mini review of 'Escape to L.A.' :

Chalk it up to bad timing, but given the events over the last few weeks, I really didn't want to have any more mention of the Tea Party to invade my TV-time. Even if said Tea Partier ends up crushed by a car compactor to live out eternal life as a twisted and broken mass of goo.

Tags: doctor who
Mood: frustrated

Torchwood Season 4, episode 3

Ep #3 gets a little deeper into the main mystery of the "miracle", and why it might be happening and who might be involved. Seems the modern-day sci-fi boogeyman has morphed from terrorism (2000's) to health care (2010's). Anyway, I'll hold off an opinion until I know the full outcome, but I've been getting the hunch that we may be in store for a weak payoff with respect to the Evil Big Pharma and post-miracle palliative care.

But we'll see! I'll give RTD a chance to surprise me.

The other bit of confusion occurred during the (OMG seriously close to soft core) sex scenes. Huh? Rex is dating/sleeping with the hospital doctor who treated him? Did this happen during the course of on screen events, or before?

If before, she certainly can keep a cool head in a crisis (Rex being wheeled into the ER impaled by a metal spike). If after, well, she must like the bad boys because Rex is kind of a dick.

Torchwood: Miracle Day (#2)

Mini review #2: "...Newman!

So I wasn't aware Seinfeld actor Wayne Night was in Miracle Day, because I didn't actually recognize his name. Oops. Just one of those holes in memory/knowledge that I'm just now getting around to plug.

On the other hand, I was well aware Dichen Lachman (Sierra from Dollhouse) was going to be making an appearance. A good role for her, although I would've prefered BBC/Starz/whatever had shelled out for the big-league CGI artists. I mean really - I don't think their aim was to have the audiences laughing in the walking-with-a-broken-neck scene, huh?

Also - I was holding off on saying this until I had a chance to see another ep, but: did Bill Pullman have a stroke or something? Or has he just turned into a really bad actor? Not to mention he's aged really badly since the last time I've seen him in anything - as opposed to Wayne Knight, who apparently has been kept in cryostasis since Seinfeld, only being thawed out for acting gigs.

Torchwood: Miracle Day (#1)

Seeing as Season 4 of Torchwood is a 10-episode miniseries, I think I'll just do mini-reviews of each installment until the end, when I can give a longer overall summary.

Written by Russell T. Davies, it was a solid setup of what'll be happening in the series. Basically - no one on Earth dies, no matter what happens to them. Including a gruesome example of the worst case (a suicide bomber).

It's a good concept, although I'll say the chemistry of the show isn't quite as wickedly-tight as with TW: Children of Earth. The pacing/mood seemed a bit weird, like the show couldn't figure out if it were British or American.

Anyway, can't find anything bad to say other than that - hoping "Miracle Day" will find its groove in the next 9 eps.

Tags: doctor who
Mood: cheerful

Probably not a surprise to anyone, but...

...Doctor Who has been renewed for a 7th season (half-season in advance)

Doctor Who, Season 6, Episode 7 (mid season cliffhanger)

Without a doubt, this was the best episode Season 6 had to offer thus far. It had a pretty epic plot (to be continued, obviously) with interesting new* characters. I particularly liked the Madame Vasta + squire. Sort of a lizard/lesbian version of Captain Jack and Ianto? Those two should totally find their way onto Torchwood at some point. Also, I like how in S6 Moffat hasn't been shying away from Teh Gay as much as in S5. In fact, there were a couple of pages torn from RTD's book in this ep. I wish the rest of the season had been like this.

Then of course there's the big reveal, which I got blindsided by, since I was distracted by continuity and other things. Yes, Amy Pond is River Song's mother - which I am to presume means she's the Doctor's MIL? Creepy. The "baby exposed to the time stream makes it part Time Lord" explanation was a little thin, but it opens the door for a few things. River will eventually regnerate (or since she'ss backwards, someone will regenerate into River), so don't get too attached to actor Alex Kingston. Also, now that the big payload has been dropped, I wouldn't expect Amy and Rory are going to be on the show much longer. There's been no announce of a companion change in the near future, but I wouldn't be surprised if they did it on the down-low, even as soon as in the 2^nd half of the season.

But we will have to wait until September to find out. Enjoy your summer, and don't forget to watch Torchwood: Miracle Day, starting July 8^th!

* - but implied older. The Sontaran and Silurian actors were repeats, as those races reproduce as clones and clutch-sisters, respectively.

Tags: doctor who
Mood: and *now* I'm on hiatus

Doctor Who Season 6, episodes 5 & 6 (Late, I know!)

Although Chris wasn't a fan of this episode at all, I was at least OK with it. Well, despite the fact that I saw the ep 5 "cliffhanger" coming from the moment the vat of flesh-goo made its appearance. And there were a number of other questions and issues* that weighed on my mind or otherwise made me laugh.

I guess I was just relieved that it wasn't a story about people trying to kiss one another. Sheesh.

It wasn't even the re-tread sci-fi concept of personal identity I got on board with - like I said, that's been done. I suppose I'm a sucker for continuity, and this ep hinted at setting up future developments. Rarely does a "mind fuck" or a "societal lesson" ep get under my skin anymore, but I do love my sci-fi universes to have a well-fleshed-out (pardon the pun) ensemble of villains, aliens, and independent agents. There was foreshadowing of later involvement both with The Flesh as a new player (I hestitate to say "adversary"), and of course the longer Amy/pregnancy arc.

So Amy was never really there this whole half season? Interesting. It's about time to tune in to the mid-season cliffhanger, so let's find out where this is going, shall we...?

* - Listed:

• With the monster/door scene, why did anyone have to be sacrificed at all? Bad-CGI monster Ganger-Jennifer didn't seem quick enough to outrun the humans in a 15-foot sprint to the TARDIS, and in any case, she seemed to be in no hurry to break down the door (a whole conversation about the Doctor's true identity took place in between two "thunks" against the door).
  
• TARDIS energy supposedly stabilizing The Flesh, yet the Doctor is able to "melt" flesh-Amy with the sonic?
  
• I suppose I should just suspend disbelief and not ask why humanity went to the trouble of genetically and/or chemically engineering the flesh, instead of constructing remote control robots for the dangerous acid-mining work?

P.S.! - After reviewing tonight's Who, I'm going on a sci-fi moratorium until Torchwood: Miracle Day. That's right - no sci-fi watching or reviewing, new or old. I'm a bit burnt out on the genre right now, and I'd like to reboot my brain for Miracle Day.

Tags: doctor who
Mood: procrastinated!

Doctor Who Season 4, episode 4

Despite the title and spoilers, "The Doctor's Wife" had nothing to do with the Doctor having a wife (or a mother, as carefully edited previews seemed to imply). But that is not a surprise, as I've gotten accustomed to the way new Who rolls.

I was sort of hoping that the Gaiman episode would be a little darker and less hyperactive than typical Moffat-era Doctor Who fare. I got the first half of that wish.

While the idea of transferring the TARDIS "consciousness" into an organic body is a pretty novel one (at least for Dr. Who continuity), with tremendous potential. I'm just not sure I got into the implementation. I really didn't like the casting or portrayal of Idris. Suranne Jones was the same actor who played the trash-talking Mona Lisa on one of the worst Sarah Jane Adventures ever penned. She was just as annoying here. Also, I would've found it immensely more interesting if she had played it more like a confused alien computer rather than a quixotic and lusty bar wench.

But everything's about sex in the new Dr. Who, so I shouldn't be surprised (it was Moffat's idea in particular to make this a love story).

Re: hyperactive - so the Doctor fashioned a partial working TARDIS in 13 minutes or so. With force fields, it seems, as he didn't get around to actually installing walls all the way 'round. Adventures in ADHD.

So basically the story felt like it had a hint of Gaiman, but heavily moderated/edited by Moffat et al. I'm afraid that my distaste for the Idris/TARDIS character prevents me from being more objective about the rest of the episode.


Also - I'd been holding off on saying this until now, but does anyone else feel like Matt Smith has visibly aged since the last series?

Tags: doctor who
Mood: tired

V has been cancelled

As of a few days ago, V has been cancelled.

Not a surprise, but overall a disappointment. The show had potential, it just wasn't able (or allowed) to live up to it. Oh well.

Tags: sci-fi
Mood: disappointed

Stargate Universe, Season 2, Episodes 19 & 20

So, for the last two eps - hey, it could've been worse! Ending on indefinite cryo-stasis is a bit like an ending in some ways, and it suggests maybe there was some anticipation of cancellation amongst the SGU creative team. And hey, they're in there for 3 years, so that gives some breathing room for resurrecting SGU in miniseries/TV movie form. Hmm?

I'm just happy it wasn't a finale ending on a giant throw-the-kitchen-sink-at-you firefight. I believe the other season and half-season finales took something of this form. The hunted-to-desperation theme was a nice change of pace.

Bummer that Dr. Park was left blind - of the relationshippy arcs, hers (+ Greer and occasional competitive streak w/Volker) was the most interesting at the present time. Personally, I'm rooting for her to stay with Greer, since although he's kind of from a different world, they've bridged that to the point where they respect and "get" one another. Volker seems more like he's putting her on a pedestel, and even though they're (professional) peers, I don't see how that can really compete.

And since the series is cancelled, there's no one in authority to tell me otherwise! Volker will slowly come to the realization that he's gay, and that all his banter and arguing with Brody was only masking his true feelings. Brody and Volker pair off to become the quintessential bickering married couple, whose arguments fuel their passion for one another. Of course, all that can be had off camera, as those two don't have quite the quarter-bouncing potential of Park & Greer.

The rest of the fan-/slash fic, I leave to you. The series is over, so your voice is equally valid with anyone else's. Go nuts! ;-)

Tags: sci-fi
Mood: bouncy

Doctor Who Season 6, Episode 3

Eh, not much to say about "Curse of the Black Spot". It wasn't a very complex story, especially compared to the season opener. The twist where the "siren" is actually a healer is something I saw coming about 5 miles away. The story also appeared to be a bit "sanitized" (won't someone please think of the children!). The pirates didn't appear to be particularly potent or believable (Hugh Bonneville is way too "modern" of a dad for pirate times). Speaking of unbelievable, perhaps it's best to not even start to address the "sail off into the sunset" ending.

Also, I don't get the resuccitation scene. Rory chooses Amy to administer CPR to him because she won't give up, and he only regains life after she...gives up? And the Doctor in his wondrous TARDIS can offer no assistance better than heartfelt encouragement?

Spleesh, sometimes the new Dr. Who can get just a bit too emotional/magical for my tastes...

Tags: doctor who
Mood: *eyeroll*

Doctor Who, Season 6, Episodes 1 & 2

The story seemed to be very well thought out, but I must admit the two-part opener of Dr. Who's 6^th season was a bit hard to follow at times. I mean, I "got it" all in the end*, but it was such a fast-paced couple eps that I wonder how whether kids (or adults) were able to understand the full complexity of The Silence, the little girl, the foreshadowing of the Doctor's death, etc., or if it was "just a bunch of stuff that happened".

In other news, the companions have gotten more likeable. They're behaving a lot more like a team (dare I say, friends?) and not just a collection of bickering and/or jealous people thrown together.

In the continuity-I'm-supposed-to-be-ignoring bin are The Silence themselves. So they've been in a parasitic (possibly symbiotic) relationship with humanity until 1969? So in all of his pre-1969 adventures, these guys were in the background during every important event and the Doctor never noticed? It doesn't speak well of humanity, although it might explain a few things.

Interesting bit of trivia - the older/younger versions of Agent Delaware are played by an actual father/son duo, the latter of which of course is Mark Sheppard (Romo Lamkin in Battlestar Galactica).

* - with the exception, obviously, of the things meant to be addressed later in the season (how Amy's pregnancy unfolded, why the child appears to be a Time Lord, etc.).

Tags: doctor who
Mood: busy

Stargate Universe, Season 2, Episodes 17 & 18

Doubling up, since life has gotten "full" again...

"Common Descent": Basically I had the DS9 episode "Children of Time" on my brain for the entire show, for obvious reasons. It's basically the same setup, although SGU takes a different view of temporal dynamics, and it's being incorporated into the larger story.

But the real question is: Who makes babies with whom? That will be answered in the next ep...

"Epilogue": More is learned about the Destiny descendents, including the prurient (with an Amish kind of flair) bedroom details of...
- Lt. Scott and Chloe (duh)
- Park and Greer (almost duh...alt-Volker died a few months in, since he never got the chance for the kidney transplant)
- TJ forsook her budding romance with Varro for the known-quantity in babymaking, Col. Young.
- Eli and Med-Tech Extra #4 Corporal Barnes. Wouldn't Eli's downloadable girlfriend get jealous though??
- "2^nd choice" Varro and Lt. James. Awww, isn't that sweet, there's someone for everyone!
- Except for Brody, who opts to morph into Grampa Simpson.

Also, TJ finds out through the archival footage that she's destined to contract ALS. This is really harsh and not at all something to make fun of. So I'm moving back to bedroom proclivities!

One burning question in my mind. Two actually. OK, so how does Camille Wray have descendents if she was still only dating women? (and half-heartedly at that) Somehow I'm not led to believe that the destiny crew perfected gene-splicing and in-vitro fertilization within one generation on the planet! Also, how did she end up the last one of the original crew alive? I know people of Japanese descent have a higher life-expectancy than average, but isn't she like the 3^rd or 4^th oldest person on the ship?

Just two more episodes left! If you read my earlier post, you know to be prepared to be left hanging...

Tags: sci-fi
Mood: spying in their bedrooms!

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news...

SGU fans, from wikipedia: "The second season (and last) of SGU is planned to end as a cliffhanger. To resolve this a movie was being planned, however; due to timing constraints on April 17, 2011, Stargate writer and executive producer Brad Wright announced that the SGU movie was not going to happen."

Tags: sci-fi
Mood: blah

Stargate Universe, Season 2, episode 16

For the first part of The Hunt, I was half expecting it to be a dream sequence, perhaps a delirium-induced vision of Greer's. I'd thought he was still laid up with an ominous infection setting in? Also, everyone's dialogue seemed a bit disjointed, and the lead up on why/how they were on that planet was nil.

So I was a bit distracted for a while waiting for this to be another Cloverfield. But no, they were actually there, Greer had apparently recovered from his wounds enough to be not only vertical, but on duty. And they're on a planet with super light speed stealth hunting animals. These "monsters" lay waste to the away team's base, and carries off TJ and Ensign Redshirt to its larder, to be eaten later.

Young mounts a rescue operation for those two, and manages to lose four crew in the process! But our flaxen-haired beauty is saved, and with the Redshirt to boot! Seems these animals are super smart, and also have a conscience - i.e., the monster thinks twice of killing its prey when it sees they've created fire, the "universal sign of intelligence". OK, that's nice, although I suppose the plastic explosives used earlier in the episode didn't register as anything derived from a sentient species?

In other news, we have some new romantic intrigue brewing. Poor Volker has a crush on Park, who is otherwise involved with Greer (the man who donated a kidney to Volker several episodes back). This ought to be a lot more interesting story than the current romances on the ship, including:
- Chloe/Matt (stable to the point of tedium)
- TJ/Varro (has been building for too long with too little traction)
- Eli/Ginn and Rush/Perry (on hold for a few eps while they figure out how to DL their girlfriends)

But the real question is - when will Racetrack Lt. James see any action??

Tags: sci-fi
Mood: awake

Review of Space: Above and Beyond

Oooh, lordy. This one was rough, folks.

During the SGU intersession, but before V S2 started up again, I decided to fill some gaps of Space Opera knowledge through the wonders of Netflix. I settled on the 1995-6 series Space: Above and Beyond, created and written by Glen Morgan and James Wong, of The X Files fame. However, despite a cameo by David Duchovny in episode #19, this was no X-Files.

More like, by the time I finished I felt like I'd just witnessed a 24-part Marine Corps circle-jerk.

So - The year is 2063, and the world is at war. Everyone's a tough guy. The men are tough, the women are tougher, even people bred in petri dishes ("In-Vitros") are tough. Everyone talks in deep, husky tones, presumably to appear more manly - but at some point I think the dialog actually dropped off of the human-audible frequency range.

The testosterone, it burns....

The war is against a shadowy unnamed race, dubbed by humans as "Chigs". If ever there was a made-up word to sound like a racial slur, that would be it. These "Chigs" are one-dimensionally evil, vile, and "alien" in every sense. Let there be no mistake, audiences were not meant to trouble their heads with any moral grey area when it comes to the enemy.

The interplanetary hostilities begin following a "Chig" attack on a human settlement, supposedly without provocation. The alien side is initially vastly superior, and so the situation for humans is desperate. The series surrounds the exploits of a handful of new recruits (who pretentiously dub themselves "The Wildcards") thrust into the midst of battle in an under-manned war.

Oh, and so there is no doubt, let there be no doubt everyone on this show loves, LOVES, LOVES being in the Marines. This is driven home in every freaking episode. All the characters volunteer without hesitiation for dangerous missions. They all go around shouting to one another how awesome their squadron is and how honored they are to serve together and how great it would be to die today. They sing themselves to sleep with drill marches, and quietly chant "Semper Fi" in times of stress and anxiety. I only wish I were exaggerating all this.

However, considering most "military sci-fi" shows tend to characterize the command structure closer to the Star Trek archetype*, it was interesting to see things go the other way. Even if all the shouting did tend to result in viewer-migranes by the end of the show.

Morgan Weisser, who plays Nathan West, gets top billing on this show. Which is a little confusing because really early on, the writers run out of stuff for him to do. I guess there's only so much to be done when the main character only joined the Marines to find his girlfriend, and no one will actually let him do that. Based on story focus, I'd say the de facto primary is a 3-way tie between Vansen (Kristen Cloke), Hawkes (Rodney Rowland) and McQueen (the creepy James Morrison).

There were some pretty decent side-storylines of the A.I.s (artificial life that rebelled against humans) and the In-Vitros (an only semi-believeable storyline about a slave race bred for warfare). Behind all the machismo, there was an honest attempt at fleshing out a real and textured world of the future. Space: Above and Beyond was nominated for two Emmys and a Saturn award (is there a category for over-acting?).

The series ends on a rather final, and depressing note. Three out of five "Wildcards" are killed on their final mission, and their commander loses his legs in an explosion. That's certainly one way to give the middle finger to the network that just cancelled you!

* - where the crew spent more time in the Holodeck and attending Klingon Tai Chi classes than they did actually manning their posts. Discipline? Forget it, they couldn't get Troi out of her catsuit and into a regulation uniform for at least 4 seasons, and I'm not sure any more success was had in getting Wesley on the bridge in something other than butt-flap pajamas.

Tags: sci-fi
Custom Friends Groups: DJ Skunque
Mood: fed up

Stargate Universe, Season 2, Episode 15

Whoakay, so I gather this week's A story is drenched in SG-* continuity that I'm not up to speed on. Hence the rushed intro of Robert Picardo and the general political setup. I'll just take it without question that everyone is (or looks like) a human despite everything set in present day earth. The story held up on its own, it's just fairly clear that there's a back story on several of the characters involved.

Moving to the B-story, I saw the Ginn/Amanda "twist" coming a mile away, and I imagine the rest of you did too. And the resolution is a bit weak as well - partioning from the main computer? Well, I guess that means they're off the show...for a whole 2 episodes.

I suppose I should give credit for SGU actually showing Eli actually *doing* math for once (at a blackboard no less), instead of everyone just talking about how he's such a math sooper-dooper-genius. Sheez. Yeah, I just never bought the whole "Eli the genius" thing. I realize math and science aren't really TV-presentable, and that it's hard for actors to sound smart with technobabble. But the right actor can pull it off - witness Henry from Eureka, or, well, Rush! Yeah, for me Eli just never came off as anything other than the everygeek*, the scared D&D nerd.

* - I.e., extension of the "everyman". Everymen/everywomen irritate me - I view it as pandering, sometimes to the point of celebrating mediocrity. I'd much rather hear an interesting story or character sketch than be able to "relate" to or get validation from regular joes/janes.

Tags: sci-fi
Mood: allergies

Stargate Universe, Season 2, Episodes 13 & 14

Playing catch up on sci-fi reviews now that the workload has died down a bit (perhaps only a temporary lull, but I'll take it). Nothing too wordy here, just wanted to weigh in with a few thoughts on the shows that aired the past couple weeks.

Alliances: I'm glad SGU stopped and took the time to do this episode, Wray and Greer had unresolved issues for a while now. However, they didn't need the tearful scene at the end; I'm not buying that Ronald would go that far to open up to her, about his mom no less. But aside from that, definitely a watchable episode, with a guest appearance from one of my favorite Third Rock actors, French Stewart. Although French has definitely aged...his voice is the primary recognition factor.

Hope: Also a watchable episode, this time dealing with the larger SGU arcs. At some point I'm going to have to say something about the whole bit about people's consciousness being trapped in the void, and being saved-to-hard-drive (Destiny), but I'm waiting to see how this plays out. I get the impression the writers have this idea mapped out across future stories*, so although the religious/I.D. teases are slightly annoying, I'm going to wait 'til I know more. The big question is: Will we know more? There are 6 eps til cancellation - given the timing of the cancellation notice, what will be revealed before SGU is interred in the dark and musty catacombs of axed sci-fi?

* - unlike BSG, which set up mystery after mystery, with writers having no clue as to how those setups would later be resolved. Their 11^th hour attempt to tie together a dozen or so mysteries in a neat little bow fell flat, with a real stench of "O HAI GUYZ ARNT WE GR8 4 FIGURNG HOW 2 PUT ALL THAT SH!T 2GETHR?".

Tags: sci-fi
Mood: determined