Doctor Who [7]

IL just take the man   

 

The fan remake of lost who story Power of the Daleks is now available in HD on youtube- I really enjoyed it-

Still waiting on the Doctor Who Fan Orchetra 50th suite (due this month sometime   )
but a reminder of their fine work- I love the whole concept of these- people from all over the world and across a range of ages coming together to create something good- dont get much more in the spirit of Who that that!

Heres their last one- Amy's Suite- I particularly love their arrangement of Together or Not At All which starts at 05:22

I dont normally care much what former Who actors do after they leave Who unless they happen to wander into a role in something I am already interested in, but I thought this piece, by the BBC of all people, on Matt Smith's current bit of work- a musical version of American Psycho, to have an oddly unfair headline given the actual piece.

The headline is-

"Critics in two minds over Matt Smith's American Psycho musical"

Now its strictly true- the show has got 2 stars in some and 5 out of 5 in others- but the one thing that doesnt seem to have split reviewers is Smith, who is roundly praised. But for me the headline implies one of the things they are divided over is Matt.

But the actual quotes about his performance from the reviews in the piece are-

'The Guardian's four star review said the show "works superbly".
Critic Michael Billington praised director Rupert Goold's "stylish production, Duncan Sheik's music and lyrics and Matt Smith's beautifully defined performance as the deluded hero".

"the Mirror newspaper called the show "a stylish feast" while a glowing review in the Independent praised a "diabolically slick production".
Referring to the movie adaptation of the book in 2000, it added Smith's "compelling Patrick is more opaque and much less manic than Christian Bale in Mary Harron's excellent movie".

"The Arts Desk praised Smith's performance as "a marvel, proffering an increasingly anxious and self-loathing narcissist who, far from meeting his comeuppance, represents just the sort of unknowable charmer who may walk among us still, attracting both sexes along the way".



So shame BBC for your headline- are the Beeb pissed he left Who?

I've been listening to a Big Finish Who spin off- I, Davros- unsurprisingly its the life story of Davros as told by him whilst he is being tried by the Daleks.

And I cant recommend it highly enough- its thoughtful, chilling, intriguing and disturbing in equal measure. Just great drama.

Its in four episodes- Innocence, Purity, Corruption, and Guilt.

Heres the trailers for them combined into one -

That was good ! Very chilling, that "heartbeat" sound at the beginging of each clip gives you the Fffffts as soon as you hear it ! I dont know of any other "monster" or villain thats SO creepy, scarey & unnerving as the Daleks ! They always feel to me to be indestructible, never ending, relentless. I mean, with a vampire (who is also meant to be so frighting) you can at least stick him in the heart, & just stay indoors covered in garlic at night !

Daleks have always terrified me.   


I am sure I have mentioned it before but when I was a kid my parents took me to the Doctor Who Exhibition in Blackpool (or tried to anyway).
We got as far as turning the corner onto the street where it was located and there was a fecking Dalek going up and down outside on the street- I thought my parents had lost their minds and we were all for extermination!
We never got any closer, there was no way I was being dragged to a Dalek!   


I think its a mixture of things that is so terrifying about them, its not just they kill everything its that you cant reason with something that doesn't think you deserve to even exist, there is no hope f appealing to some better side, or some sense of pity or mercy as they dont have any and the more you understand them the worse and more horrible it gets.

And that voice, they always seem to be on the edge of screaming no matter what they say, as if they cling to sanity by a very narrow thread indeed- the Doctor once commented that was because of their isolation- encased in a shell from birth to death, no direct contact with anything ever.

Horrible and sad at the same time. Loathsome and yet pitiable.

I watched that Science of Doctor Who tv programme last night, and I have to say I was slightly disappointed. ok Cox was relatively good at explaining popular science, and he has nice hair and is Mancunian, but I dont get the hanging on his every word thing. The audience were looking at him as if he a rock star, he isnt, and sometimes he is fairly wooden.

I watched that as well Mrs Figg, I was surprised by the way the audience revered him like a God ? TV company must have "trained" them up ? or there were a lot of "extras" sitting there    placards dotted about saying......"think of your loan....dont fall for Wonga.co.uk.....get paid now"....promising re-numeration for acting compelled.

yeah he is defo over-rated. The audience virtually had their tongues hanging out. I mean its just your bog standard physics for dummies, nothing revolutionary. ok I am a dummy when it comes to physics and its nice to have it explained in a way I can understand, but serious academics of the subject must really get irritated by all the hero worship, they do all the hard work and this glamour boy waltzes in and makes a ton of cash out of beng cute.

Its tactics to make the sciences more interesting to kids at school who'd rather be playing "Call of Duty" on Xbox. Get the girls to go gooey at a dishy guy going on about Einsteins this or that, the lads pick up on it, let it sink into the macho minds of pubescent males, they get into it, girls in turn notice the boys & Bingo ! TV ratings go up, so does "dishy guys" wages, schools ask for more science teachers, Education board is happy & Government have something smug to crow about, how we are leading the field in astro physics etc, when all it often is, is a bloody fecking CRUSH

I don't think I have any very strong opninions on Brian Cox.  

He's certainly very much in fashion, which means he'll be out of fashion sooner or later I guess

yes its good to make subjects like physics cool, if it gets them interested in what seems like a dry subject. At school I hated it because it was taught boringly. I got interested as an adult through Discovery channel so I suppose popular science on tv does have a good role to play, although it can quickly get taken over by the alien conspirators. I think Cox is a good thing really, but i just didnt get the level of hero worship thats all.

I loved Biology when I was at school, but, ALL my lessons were so incredibly BORING it was only elevated by the bullying I got, thats all there was for me, bullying or boredom. Im all for finding ANYTHING that will get kids to learn ! Kids today are luckier. They have not just field trips but, computers, hands on etc, all sorts. As long as the teacher/tutor enthuses about a subject, kids attention span wanes. I enjoy learning better now as an adult & internet/TV has really helped me in that.

Pettytyrant101 wrote:"Critics in two minds over Matt Smith's American Psycho musical"

My first thought was that this headline was a joke over the theory that Patrick Bateman has dissociative identity disorder (a split personality), but that might just be me.

Well I suppose it could be some wag at the BBC having fun with the headline (I dont know the book at all or the plot) it just seemed an odd headline for the BBC given the actual reviews were full of praise for Smith's performance.

Tom Bakers first apperance on Have I got news for you:



A highly recomended watch.   I think Angus Deyton, the original host, called Tom his favourite ever guest after his first appearance on the show.

So...will we see Capaldi obtain his 12th Doctor Costume in the Xmas special? I'm not dumping on Matt Smith (I've really come to like the guy) but I'm curious whether they will leave it as a cliffhanger (given how the 8th season might be late autumn in airing) or show him with his new costume at the end of the episode.

In any case (I'm avoiding spoilers for the Xmas ep) does anyone have any thoughts on his costume?

Since Capaldi generally plays rather cranky/scary/wise/crazy sweary bastard characters, I'm inclined to think his doctor might be leaning towards this way, so I'd like for him to have a costume reflecting the darker doctors (Eccles, Hartnell, Colin Baker IMO) and his age and voice-i.e perhaps a dark suit with reds or gold?-The darkness reflecting his demenour, the reds/gold reflecting his arrogance/high standing as the 13th incarnation of a Timelord, sorta a combination between Hartnell and Mcgann-the old and new.

A cane and a beard could be cool as well-it reflects the end of an era (as the 13th time lord incarnation-perhaps symbolizing bad luck?) but also something new for the doctor', just for the giggles it would be nice to see the ?'s return again (after all Moffat has hinted Capaldi looking for Gallifrey/sharing the face of 2 prior characters in the series will be ongoing mysteries in the series).

If he is a darker more freaky Doctor he wont be a good match for Clara, she is far too bland.

Frankly all of the companions I've watched have been bland or annoying IMO (loathed the Susan-boring and badly written)-either spouting plot points, falling in love or being the action man if required. I've liked many of the actors/actress's portraying the roles but very few of the characters-Donna Noble being my fave. Clara has underwhelmed me thus far- a empty mystery tying together plot points whilst attempting to be cheeky.

Maybe Capaldi could poke her in the eye with is cane 'F*cking mystery girl my Arse!!' (I really hope parents haven't decided to watch in the Thick of It with their kids to get a flavour of Capaldi...).

I am not so sure Capaldi will play a dark Doctor just because some of his previous roles have been dark.
He is a very good comedy actor too and his early film roles he tended to play charming or wistful characters. He is a very versatile actor.
That and he has been a Who fan all his life, I mean a proper, fanzine writing one, so its unlikely his overall impression or love of the character is base din the darker aspects as the Doctor is light way more than dark.


I too am still n the fence with Clara- I like the actress and I dont dislike the character, but I dont feel yet like I have a clue about her either as a person.
Donna is also probably my favourite NuWho companion, with Amy and Rory next (as love em or hate them you at least have characters and story to argue over and love and hate whereas -meh- probably still sums up Clara as a character, although she was better from Cold War onwards I would say and Im hoping she gets fleshed out more in the xmas episode when we

Spoiler:

Smith and Tennant chatting about saying goodbye-

Moffat talks xmas episode- and promises to pay off all the mysteries that have been bubbling under the surface since 11th Hour-