Etc.

[icepixie]

I had a longish, half-finished post on why Rusty's Sue issues and "OMG Rose/Doctor Is The Most Specialist Of All Relationships Ever!!11!!!" thing has irritated me more and more this season, particularly as I get deeper into Old Skool stuff, but decided that a.) it's been done before (often by nostalgia_lj), and b.) it would probably piss off at least half the Who fans on my flist, so screw it. Plus, I'm lazy and don't want to finish trying to explain thoughts I'm finding it very difficult to put into words. Basically, IMO there is OTP and there is OTPForNow when dealing with the Doctor, and the latter is the best I can do. Also, more blah-di-blah on why Rose and Ten don't work as well together as Rose and Nine did, because she puts up with more from Ten than she did with Nine, and this robs the relationship of much of its interesting dynamic.

In conclusion, all problems would go away with judicious application of bugs made out of spray-painted bubblewrap. (Why yes, I did watch "Ark in Space" last week. Green spray-painted bubblewrap is the Bestest Villain Ever.)

*

So I watched "School Reunion" again a couple days ago. Can I just say that I'm glad I hadn't watched any SJS episodes before seeing this for the first time with other people? 'Cause I wouldn't have come out of that screening with any dignity left intact, I can tell you that. *sniffle* Not to mention K-9! I get the impression most people hate him, but I kind of love that little dog. And I was very sad indeed when Mark III sacrificed himself to the burning fires of french fry goo. And I was crying like a little girl at the end, with Sarah and her brand-new robot dog. Awww, Sarah!

Scenes in this episode made me think that Ten would actually work better with a group of companions--two or three, anyway. He's good at the coordinating stuff he does in this episode with Mickey, Sarah, and Rose. He's a bit of an army commander (or Stargate team leader), actually, giving assignments and having his underlings team gang companions do individual jobs like a well-oiled machine. Also, it might not be a bad idea to spread the fact that DT can have UST with a shoe hyperactive puppy energy around a bit.

*

Wishlist for S3

1.) No returning to early 21st-century Earth until at least the second half of the season. At least. Preferably NOT AT ALL.
2.) Martha should be a historical companion! Who's with me? Yeah, yeah?
3.) ROMANA III. Yes, yes, A THOUSAND TIMES YES.
3a.) Martha is Romana III?
4.) Martha gets to blow shit up, like Ace, or is a scientist-type person, or has some other fun and useful skill that is all her own. Not that Rose didn't have her good and interesting qualities--compassion, bravery, etc.--but I think maybe last season she wasn't often written into situations where she could make use of them, and thus came off feeling a bit superfluous at times? Like, "Fear Her" required compassion to make the resolution work, whereas, say, "The Idiot's Lantern" didn't, and so she got sucked into the telly. Yeah.
5.) More of the TARDIS, please.
6.) More than just one or two frustrating hints a season about the bloody Time War, FCOL!

*

Following on from numbers 3 and 3a, I watched part of "Shada" the other day.

Oh, such fun. I've only seen the first two episodes, but oh, the love. PUNTING! Hee. Also, I love that silly old professor. Felt very bad when he died. :( And I kind of want Romana's hat, except I think if I had it I'd hang it on a wall rather than wear it, because it goes just about an inch over the line between "fashion accessory" and "home decor."

Someone over at otp_probably has posted video clips of various Romana episodes, and they're much fun. I fully believe that Four and Romana are involved in, like, the Time Lord equivalent of a common law marriage. There's one scene in...hmmm...maybe "Creature from the Pit"? I forget. Anyway, Romana drags a box of junk into the console room, and is going through it asking the Doctor what all this junk is, and why he hasn't cleaned out the storage areas in the last few centuries, and it's totally the stereotypical neatnik girlfriend moving in and trying to create space for her stuff and make her boyfriend Not A Slob. Then in "Shada," when Professor Chronitis runs out of milk for tea, she's all, "We've got plenty," and is a bit proud of (her and) the Doctor's TARDIS, sort of like one might be of one's house, and it's really quite a couple-y little moment, particularly since the Doctor isn't even there.

Also, the regeneration scene from "Destiny of the Daleks" is so funny I can't even put it into words.

Romana is hilarious and deadpan and knowledgeable and totally awesome. I need Romana II icons, stat.

*

I started reading Bridget Jones today, after about six years of avoiding it. Mostly that was because of my Austen H8 and my general "eh" reaction to the movie, but also because I have pretty much no interest in the Trials of Finding Love After Thirty or whatever it's been billed as. Obviously, I shall eat something laced with crow tonight, because it's pretty funny. Not the best book I've ever read, but entertaining all the same. The Lit!Snob part of my brain is little eyerolly at the fact that every character, with the possible exception of Bridget and, perhaps later, Mark Darcy, is a blatant caricature, but the more easily amused half is busy saying, "It's a farce; get over yourself."

Plus, it does have lines like: "It struck me as pretty ridiculous to be called Mr. Darcy and to stand on your own looking snooty at a party." Although Fielding then immediately takes it a hair too far with, "It's like being called Heathcliff and insisting on spending the entire evening in the garden, shouting 'Cathy' and and banging your head against a tree." Ah, well.

Also, there is brief mocking of postmodernism, which is grand.

I'm wondering who exactly decided that Renee Zellweger fit this role, though, 'cause I'm not picturing her in it at all. I'm not sure who would fit, but it's not her.

(Related to none of the above: in what world is 124 pounds even remotely overweight? Is she really short or something?)

Comments

[rowdycamels.livejournal.com]

the fact that DT can have UST with a shoe

BWAH! So true! He's turning into Jack!


Ah, the Bridget Jones love. Ha, told ya! No, it's not serious literature, but it's hilarious. And, underneath the farce, it rings true. If I were to actually meet Bridget, I'd probably need to punch her in the face, but on paper, I love her to death. Although, yeah, the weight issue is INSANE. I'm hoping she's 4'11" or something.

[elflore.livejournal.com]

Rusty Sue: I know we've gone our rounds...but can I just say I still think, even with all the OMG!angst of Doomsday, it reads beautifully as OTPForNow. That's still how I see the relationship, and it tears me up anyway...

School Reunion: Not only made me blubber, it's STILL making me blubber as I watch some great vids using copious clippage from it. :?P And K-9 is generally beloved in most of the fandom I've encountered, actually. There are corners which think he might've been overused or whatever, but naw, generally we all love him. He's a robot AND a dog! What's not to love?

Wishlist: While I'd love to see less of 21st century Earth, I understand the practical reasoning. Who might have a bigger budget than ever, but it's still fairly small compared to American shows. One of the main reasons the Beeb claimed they were waiting so long to bring back Who was they didn't think they could make it look as good as American SciFi. When they were first bringing RTD in, some of his early pitches involved the Doctor being stranded on Earth again (a la the Third) to save the budget. Then, wisely, he said "screw that, ALL OF TIME AND SPACE is the joy of Who!". But if we still get a lot of Earth stories to save the money a bit...I can live with that. As for making Martha historical or even futuristic...I'm with you, and yet I'm not gonna hold it against her if she doesn't turn out to be. If RTD is one of those producers who feels the audience should have an easily identifiable companion, I may not always agree but I can respect it. And then later they can bring in someone historical. Like you said, Ten rocks with a crew. And the pattern so far each season has mixed up solo and multiple companions...series one had Adam and the Captain Jack eps, series two had Mickey. And we already know Jack's coming back for some eps in series three...

The Time War: As a lifelong Whovian, I figure mysterious hints are the Doctor's stock in trade. Most of us don't really ever *want* to have all the backstory actually spelled out for us. That way lies Lungbarrow! Personally? I think the greatest thing they could do would be to turn to Big Finish and say, "Go ahead: do an 8th Doctor-fights-the-Time War series. We won't necessarily say it's official, but we won't say it's not..." (Also...FCOL?)

Romana III: I have mixed feelings there...I'd love to see a Romana, definitely...but I've fallen in love with Lalla Ward all over again on audio, so I'd almost rather she just come back and be the Romana That Never Dies. *snerk*

Shada: So lovely, yes. I actually named a cat Chronotis...one of our best cats ever, I miss him. And did you know Douglas Adams turned around and halfway adapted it into the novel "Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency"? (Great book--but then, I love all Adams!)

[alto2.livejournal.com]

I'm glad I hadn't watched any SJS episodes before seeing this for the first time with other people? 'Cause I wouldn't have come out of that screening with any dignity left intact,

Now you know why it's still my favorite episode from this year (well, I need to watch GiTF again, but I really doubt it's gonna trump SJS and K-9). It's the last one I felt really came together well, using everyone to their best abilities, and was just *fun* at the same time.

I love K-9, btw, and always have, though he can be a bit of a drag from time to time. Mostly, though, he's fun.

I'm with you on your wish list--and I have to say, the Earth thing is just a cop-out, IMO. It's not like going to another planet necessarily has to require 45 straight minutes of intense CGI. All you need are one or two establishing exterior shots and everything else can be inside, which makes it a whole lot less expensive. Obviously, that varies to some extent depending on the plot, but still... Earth can't be that much cheaper.

I think I have more to say, but I'm insanely tired, so...not right now. Especially not if coherency is among the desiderata!

[astropoet.livejournal.com]

The bestyou can do with shipping with the Doctor is have OTP and a particular incarnation of the Doctor, so Nine/Rose was OTP, but Ten/Rose wasn't.

I think a lot of the new fans were caught out by that.