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matt_zimmerAlso reviews for the latest episodes of Teen Titans Go!, The Flash, Arrow, Gotham, Constantine, Marvel's Hulk And The Agents Of S.M.A.S.H., Star Wars Rebels, Mickey Mouse, Galavant, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Simpsons, Grimm, Sleepy Hollow, Bob's Burgers, Family Guy, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and Parks And Recreations, the first 2 episodes of 12 Monkeys, the latest episodes of Stalker and Newsreaders, and the finale of American Horror Story: Freak Show.
Upcoming reviews include Guardians Of The Galaxy (Blu-Ray), The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (Blu-Ray), The Spectacular Spider-Man: The Complete Series, Phineas And Ferb: Star Wars, Tangled, Muppets Most Wanted: Extended Edition, Revolution: Season 2, Almost Human: The Complete Series, Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Season 1, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey: Extended Edition, The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug (Blu-Ray), The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug: Extended Edition, Airplane! / Airplane II: The Sequel: Double Feature, Police Squad: The Complete Series, Power Rangers: Zeo: Volume 1, Power Rangers: Zeo: Volume 2, Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie, Power Rangers Turbo: Volume 1, Power Rangers: Turbo: Volume 2, Power Rangers In Space Volume 1, Power Rangers In Space: Volume 2, Power Rangers Samurai: The Complete Season, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Showdown In Dimension X, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014), Mr. Peabody & Sherman, Under The Dome: Season 2, Samurai Jack: Season 4, Challenge Of The Gobots: The Original Miniseries, The Jetsons Meet The Flintstones, Yogi's First Christmas, Legends Of The SuperHeroes, Hey Good Lookin', The Simpsons: Season 17, Family Guy: Volume 7, Family Guy: Volume 8, and Family Guy: Volume 9.
Teen Titans Go! "Robin Backwards"
"Don't take it personally. We just like the opposite of you better."
I think that burn speaks for itself. ****.
The Flash "Revenge Of The Rogues"
Michael and Lincoln Scofield, partners in crime once again! Great stunt casting. Both Wentworth Miller and Dominic Purcell were great. Purcell plays crazy great and Miller is as intense as always.
Loved the Ghostbusters reference. That movie is surprisingly scientifically accurate.
The moment at the end between Joe and Barry and Barry deciding to move back in was very sweet and the last scene (Sis?) was great too. ****.
Arrow "Left Behind"
No "I am Oliver Queen" narration. That is extra ominous.
The scene with Felicity breaking down in front of Ray and him firmly, yet tactfully, telling her she crossed a line was great. I don't ship them but they are great together.
Laurel sucks and a sexy costume doesn't change that.
Also, Thea can tell Roy is the kid in the hoodie but not that Oliver is Arrow? How dumb is she?
Merlyn has some stones. First showing up in the Arrowcave (twice!) and then unabashedly admitting he used Oliver to get the bounty off his own head. I don't know whether to admire or be appalled at that kind of gall.
I love that Dig still thinks of himself as Oliver's bodyguard. To be absolutely honest, I do too.
I love that it was ultimately Oliver's decency towards Tsatsu that wound up saving his life years later. That's cool.
Can't wait for next week. ****.
Gotham "Welcome Back, Jim Gordon"
Even a few months ago, I would have thought the idea of the police thinking they could get away with ruling the death of a guy with an ice pick in his back as a suicide was ludicrous, but after Mike Brown and Eric Garner? It's plausible. Heck, if anything this episode wasn't cynical enough. Flass actually got arrested at the end. That's more than most real life cops gets. They are literally untouchable.
Jada Pinkett Smith is SO awful I cannot stand it. The show's producers are not her friends. Why on EARTH would they have Fish dress in her hookerwear while she was on the run? I am not so desperate for fanservice that I would have objected to seeing her wear jeans and a sweatshirt to blend in while the entire town is looking for her. This show REALLY doesn't think much of me (or Fish for that matter).
I'm guessing every single mobster in Gotham has an overbearing, crazy mother. Because they REALLY didn't give Penguin a hard time for his, and he wasn't embarrassed by her in the slightest. I'm betting the town is overun with Norma Bateses.
Once Bruce was like "A better place to live" I was like "Dude, stop talking." He deserved everything Selina threw at him after that. Although Alfred is SUCH a weasel for rubbing it in. Butthole.
That kid who plays Ivy is amazing. And yes, she looks like she has mange.
Edward Nygma and I have very different definitions of the word "Hope".
Harvey isn't into Fish, he's into himself. I like that.
If I had seen this episode a few months ago I would have considered it far-fetched. Not so much anymore. Everything but the awful Fish stuff was great. ****.
Constantine "Quid Pro Quo"
Felix Faust is the first DC character I recognize from this show.
Interesting that Chas has a finite number of lives. Because the show has been going through them pretty quickly. They better be careful and not lose count.
His plan at the end to kill Faust was great. It was so unexpected because in every other genre show, whenever the supporting character gets too emotionally involved in a case, it is up to the hero to set things right and teach the companion a lesson about humility. Chas ain't havin' none of that. John tried, he failed, so he gets knocked out and put in a cab for his troubles, while CHAS fixes things. Any time a genre show subverts a well-worn trope is a time when I get extra complimentary. ****1/2.
Marvel's Hulk And The Agents Of S.M.A.S.H. "Homecoming"
A bit of a let-down but I expected it to be. Underwhelming resolutions are this show in a nutshell.
Do you know what I did like? Hulk and Red Hulk letting each other in on their secrets to defeat the others when they were enemies. It shows a level of trust that they are able to basically give up their most valuable info about the other in the name of getting stuff done. That was cool. ****.
Star Wars Rebels "Idiot's Array"
I think was a good episode. Lando is a good thing, although I'm not sure if the logic of why he didn't pay the crew holds together all that well. But the episode was fun. ****.
Mickey Mouse (Minnie Mouse) "Clogged"
Super boring. 0.
Galavant "Death After Brunch"
Anthony Head returns to musicals!...in an episode written by...Aladdin?
Ivan the Mutilator or Keith? Keith.
I like that this show just reminded us that royalty always seems to have other people fight their own duels for them. On some level we think Tyrion Lannister is clever, but if he weren't a dwarf, I would NOT be thinking that. My thoughts would be MUCH less charitable. ****.
Galavant "It's All In The Executions"
I would be MUCH less ticked about the cliffhanger if ABC hadn't billed this as a miniseries rather than just a regular series with eight half hour episodes in the first season. ABC isn't playing fair with the audience.
Loved Rutger Hauer's response to wearing the crown: "Awesome!".
Gare Bear. Best nickname ever?
This is why Richard doesn't have guy friends.
Good for what it was, but ABC wrote a check the "Miniseries'" butt couldn't cash. ****.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles "Eyes Of The Chimera"
Boring. And April doing the chicken dance was embarrassing. **.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles "Vision Quest"
Diverting enough. Although Leo is lame if he can get his butt kicked by a deer.
Those new costumes were toyetic. I totally understood why April and Casey were all "Whoa!" when they came back. ***1/2.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles "Return To New York"
Party Wagon! Yeaugh!
Love the new main title. Leatherhead! And is that Mondo Gecko?
Dr. Cluckenstein and Donnie make Raph sick.
Love crazy, feral Splinter. Hardcore. And of course once he's back to normal he's their biggest gun. As he should be. I'm impressed they returned to Splinter this quickly. Relieved a bit, actually.
Great episode. *****.
The Simpsons "The Musk Who Fell To Earth"
"Squawky." Perfect. Bart put as much thought into that as when he named Maggie (whose reaction to that fact was priceless). He's the first bald thing Bart has ever loved.
Loved Homer's toupee.
White meatballs! Heh. Too bad that was Lisa's stop.
Mr. Burns isn't as cuddly as he looks.
Lenny's the white one.
"Goodbye, Elon! We'll never forgive you!"
Funny episode. ****.
Grimm "Tribunal"
It was great. Five stars. But it wasn't perfect. There was something about it that truly bugged. I'm still giving it the highest grade possible but they totally effed something up. Also I will be discussing NBC's next week promo at the end of the review. It bears mentioning. Here is the thing that bugged:
Now was NOT the episode to have somebody Woge in front of Wu to get the comical effect of seeing that for the first time. And not because being funny is inappropriate. Bud stumbling over his words and completely destroying the scariness credibility of the Tribunal before they could stop him was hilarious and entirely appropriate. It's just that with Wu and the Woge, time was freaking factor. They should NOT have been farting around with that with things as dire for Monroe as they were. Frankly, if Rosalee saw what they were doing she'd probably be furious and she'd be right to be.
Still, you gotta admit Bud is the perfect gateway Wesen. There is absolutely nothing frightening about him and it is particularly cute that he is unaware of that fact.
Loved the "Power Walk" before the act break of the gang getting ready to save Monroe. What a great, iconic shot. If Monroe had been in it they could use it for promos.
I also thought it was interesting that the evil cop was a Bauerschwein. I guess this is one area where they and Blutbaden can set aside their differences and work together. Ick.
Now...the promo. I think the thing that really bothers me about it (aside from the fact that it is b.s.) is that NBC doesn't seem to be tailoring the ads to the fans of the show. Because the juicy (and non-existant) scenario MIGHT just be something interesting enough for someone who doesn't know the show to want to sample it. But I'm a fan of the show. The next week promo should be telling me what's happening next week. Not what's happening in next week's dream sequence or out of context scenes. NBC is truly this show's worst enemy in promising things in promos the show cannot possibly deliver, and since this is one thing I know will NOT ever happen, I feel it's important I point it out now. When Nick finds out Juliet is a Hexenbiest he's not going to try to kill her. It's not even something he'll consider. It will be a non-issue. And the fact that NBC is treating Nick's relationship to Juliet as that fragile REALLY irks me. At least they didn't say "This episode delivers." NBC sucks.
But yeah, that was some great television. *****.
Sleepy Hollow "Kali Yuga"
I hate Hawley. I can't think of a single Sleepy Hollow fan who likes him. So why would we want to see an episode centered around him?
And they are trying to say that Crane and Abbie's relationship has been strained this season? That's a stretch. That isn't the vibe I've been getting at all. As a matter of fact when Jenny was needling the two of them about growing apart, I thought she was just messing with their heads. The writers might have done a better job SHOWING Abbie and Ichabod growing apart, instead of just randomly saying they did in this episode.
If Irving a vampire? Why is Katrina lying for him? Another point in favor of my theory that she's a black hat.
About the only thing I liked was Crane and Abbie's adorkable rendition of "Proud Mary" at the end (Nicole Beharie is an excellent singer). Other than that fun moment, the episode sucked. *.
Bob's Burgers "Late Afternoon In The Garden With Bob And Louise"
Gene: "Please, Hammer, don't hurt 'em." Nice!
Bob was ruining the best thing about the restaraunt: that it was Logan free. Louise got into his head. Because there was so much space. Her recommendation for Logan: Put a paper bag over your head. They are totally going to get married when they reconnect in their 30's.
Loved Bob talking and singing to his beans.
Bob's reaction to Linda grumbling in bed was great: "Well, good night."
Funny episode. ***1/2.
Family Guy "This Little Piggy"
This episode lack credibility. Why would a someone approach Meg to be a foot model without seeing her feet first? And they made the joke about a three-way with a dog and a baby, but why would Brian agree to that in the first place? Because that instantly makes him a child molester. Did that "15 minutes later" title card on Chris informing his parents about Meg doing porn mean what I think it meant?
The Jason Biggs slam was good because he was voiced by Seth Green... who took over voicing Leonardo from him on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It seems ESPECIALLY cruel for Green to be the one to point out that the world doesn't actually need him.
I liked the scene of Peter and Lois dancing. More of that, please.
Weird episode. **1/2.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine "Defense Rests"
Sophia Butt. That's good.
Loved Andre Braugher's reaction to being kissed by Wunch. "What. The."
Terry's fake smile was golden. He was right. Jake did everything right. Sophia was simply a terrible person. As was Gabrielle Solize.
Good one. Chris Parnell makes everything better. ****.
Parks And Recreation "William Henry Harrson"
Someday, Magnus, Ron Swanson will wear you as a coat.
Loved Andy failing at word association (the look on Aubrey Plaza's face was priceless) and then April comforting him for having to hear part of that boring book. Also fun was her getting excited when Andy picked up that dead possum.
"Baby, You Smell Good." Tom Haverford is an idiot.
Ron's reactions to Annabelle's nonsense were priceless.
The vending machine that accepts Harrison bucks is out of order.
If William Henry Harrison had been President The Wire would have swept the Emmys.
I like that as dumb as Andy is he is really insightful about April and her wants and desires.
The Somebody's Daughters Dancers. Best name since Girls With Low Self-Esteem.
"You are not that good at scrap-booking." That. Cut. DEEP. Did you see how scared everybody got? They actually took a step back. S*** just got real.
To be continued... Right now. ****.
Parks And Recreation "Leslie & Ron"
Knew it was Leslie's fault. She took APRIL. Ron's voice almost cracked at that. I was furious at her. April is pretty much the only person on the series who shares Ron's values. Leslie didn't think he'd have a problem with that?
Leslie does stuff like that ALL the time without considering people's feelings. How on EARTH did she think Ron would take her taking the person he thought as the closest thing to a daughter away from him? Anything that benefits Leslie is the important thing, and nothing else needs to be taken into account. Once it was revealed that it started when Leslie took April I kept wondering WHY it took so long for her to figure it out. That should have been her FIRST suspicion. And she STILL has to have it explained to her.
Loved all of the various insane ways Leslie tried to get Ron to talk as well as Ron's original recommendations to hire her.
Ron whittles a key. Brilliant.
Game of Thrones has really gone off the rails. It makes sense if you've read the books. It says something big if Ben was willing to risk missing the series finale for this.
Fabulous episode. *****.
12 Monkeys "Splinter"
That was mind-blowing. That teaser is probably the best genre show Pilot teaser since Lost. Instantly memorable and sets up the stakes of the series perfectly.
And Zeljko Ivanek is Leland Frost because of course he is. There was no-one else it could have been. I'm just shocked they took him out in the first episode. Cool!
Cole loving present day food is a gag that will probably never get old. How did he meet Cassandra? "She bought him a cheeseburger." And that was enough.
Terrific show. I'm on-board immediately. I just hope it has a happier ending than the film did. *****.
12 Monkeys "Mentally Divergent"
That guy with the lavender and jasmine is the stuff of nightmares.
I loved the mental patients watching that insanely creepy kids special. Because there is something you need to know about people in mental hospitals: they get the same TV as the rest of society. And some of them shouldn't be watching things that messed up.
Of course as a second episode, this wasn't as good as the Pilot. But it was still GOOD and that's all that matters. ****.
Stalker "The News"
A weird one.
The single most depressing thing I have seen in years in Kerr Smith with gray hair. I am beyond bummed. Just For Men, dude. Believe in it.
If that opening had been real that would have probably been the single greatest news broadcast in history.
Kudos to the show for finding a plausible way to get Ray out of the asylum. Not TOO plausible, but within the framework of this show it works.
Not bad. ***1/2.
Newsreaders "How The Sausage Is Made / Lottery Winners Lose"
There is nothing defensible about circus animals.
How The Sausage Is Made: Xandra is getting to the point where she isn't funny because she is realistic. As cartoony as she seems, there is an unfortunate reality to her that makes her unlikeable. There are actual media personalties a lot like her. This is the same problem she shares with Arrested Development's Tobias Funke. ***.
Lottery Winners Lose: This is another well worn news trope: the reporter trying to create a narrative and being more and more upset at how wrong he keeps getting proven. This is John Stossel in a nutshell. Creating a b.s. story and telling us our eyes are seeing something different than what they are showing us. Biscayne didn't kill that guy because he was jealous. It was because he was wrong. ****1/2.
Episode Overall: ***1/2.
American Horror Story: Freak Show "Curtain Call"
Needless to say, that was appalling. This is my last season of Horror Story, and this episode made that decision easy. Honestly, I expected it to suck, but I didn't expect it to completely make me wash my hands of the entire franchise. But it was just that bad.
Don't get me wrong, I'm glad Dot ended up with Jimmy, but that massacre at the beginning is pretty much indefensible. I cannot in good conscience continue to watch a show that traffics in things like that. The world is horrible enough as it is. I watch TV to relax and enjoy it. This show lets me do neither.
Goodbye, American Horror Story. You will not be missed. 0.
Doctor Who: The Complete Eighth Series
Elephant in the room: the Twelfth Doctor is a turd.
Steven Moffat and Peter Capaldi have described this Doctor as "not user friendly" and that is putting it mildly. He is even more off-putting than David Tennant at his worst, with none of Ten's many redeeming and lovable qualities. I'd chalk the character up as a complete failure if it weren't for the fact that Capaldi makes him so riveting. You can't take your eyes off him. Colin Baker's Sixth Doctor had an abrasive personality too, but that Doctor was repellent instead of magnetic. I still want to see where they go with Capaldi. I REALLY hope he becomes the Valeyard and that that is why they cast him. He'd be magnificent at it.
So, yeah, Twelve sucks. I'm not TOO upset because the fact that Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant, and Matt Smith were all five star Doctors is pretty much an aberration in the franchise. We are never usually that lucky and most Doctors are hit or miss. The last time we got a three in a row streak that good was Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, and Tom Baker. We usually have to go from decent to poor Doctors from regeneration to regeneration. It's a crapshoot and that's part of what you have to understand about the franchise going in.
Best episodes of the year are the surprising "Listen" and the first part of the two-part season finale (Dark Water). I'd like that last one a lot more if the conclusion didn't suck. Worst episodes are the tonally all wrong "Time Heist", the boring "Mummy On The Orient Express" the underwhelming (if cute) "Flatline" and the season finale which actually angered me a bit (Death In Heaven). Doctor Who has really been doing that to me since Russell T Davies left. Moffat is a good heir to his insufferability. Season overall: **1/2.
Deep Breath:
After seeing the finale, the last five minutes take on a MUCH greater significance. The fact that the woman in the shop was set up all the way back in "The Bells Of St. John" tells me that that throwaway line about the Doctor recognizing his own face is going to be important. The Roman guy AND Frobisher will be a factor at some point during Twelve's run, and if this year's finale was any indication, probably next season. Missy's behavior seems completely bizarre now knowing she is the Master and not an aged version of Clara or Romana. They REALLY took the homoerotic undertones of John Simm's version of the Master and ran with it. Missy might be the first heterosexual Master in Doctor Who history. I still think they shouldn't have made her so crazy. The Master being bananas should have stayed a Simm specialty instead of a new character trait. Oh, well. One of the interesting things about the season to me was that Clara and Twelve each took turns being the villain in their relationship. Clara's behavior towards the Doctor in this episode was appalling, until we slowly start to see later on in the year that she has legitimate reasons for disliking Twelve. He's a turd. And then at the end of the season Clara does the single most horrendous thing a Companion has ever done. This season was hard to find a character to root for. Oooh, can I root for Vastra, Jenny, and Strax? I think a LOT of Strax's incompetence at not recognizing human body parts is a put on. Of COURSE he can tell human lips and eyelids apart. Sontarans have both. Moffat does NOT think much of me if he expects me to believe Strax isn't having a laugh at Clara's expense. As for Vastra, Jenny cheers aside, she pretty much pegged Clara and the vapid reason she resisted the regeneration so much. Twelve can claim the boyfriend mistake was his all along, but Clara was every bit as equally smitten. I think I am so unforgiving of Clara here because as The Impossible Girl she already KNOWS about regeneration. This is NOT the shock this was for Rose Tyler in "The Christmas Invasion". Since Twelve had barely been aware enough to show a proper personality the only thing that could have POSSIBLY put off Clara was his looks. And that sucks. Granted Twelve's personality will eventually be revealed to be that of a total jerk, but Clara didn't know that at the time. I love that Clara seems to be searching for comfort and validation from Vastra and Strax and they keep refusing to give it to her. Jenny is a little more understanding, but considering the nonsense she puts up with from Vastra (posing for a sexy painting that doesn't exist?) I had already pretty much guessed she had the patience of a saint. Twelve calling Clara a control freak and an egomaniac was interesting. Partly to me because Clara doesn't seem particularly pushy for a Companion. On some level, nearly all of the relaunch Companions have been bossy except for Martha Jones and Rory Pond but Clara is somewhere in the middle. You'd think the Doctor would have said this at least ONCE to Rose Tyler, Amy Pond, Jack Harkness, or Donna Noble. I miss the round things too and wish the Doctor hadn't misplaced them. Clara's scene with the half-faced man, trying to deduce out loud if he was bluffing and if he would torture her was riveting. Jenna Coleman was amazing when she told the dude she would put up with a great deal of pain before she gave up the information that was keeping her alive. Because that's precisely what her not talking was doing. I'm betting the Doctor was the one whose programming couldn't be altered. He pushed the Half-Faced Man. Valeyard anyone? The question turning out to be if there were any similar murders was classic Doctor Who. Moffat at his best. I also like the fact that the Doctor understands dinosaur and was directly addressing the horse. That means Matt Smith's "I talk baby / horse" is going to be as permanent a fixture in the canon as "Timey Whimey". Matt Smith cameo: I want to say it was brilliant, and pat Moffat on the back, but then it just makes me even angrier about what Moffat and Russell T. Davies did to David Tennant in "The End Of Time" and "The Eleventh Hour". Moffat practically pretended Ten never existed, and cut off almost all ties to Davies' run on the show, including characters that we still could have revisited with no problems like Captain Jack and Martha. I always thought that was incredibly disrespectful to Tennant. But do know what Smith's cameo made me realize? How unfair the Eleventh Hour was to Matt Smith. Smith pretty much was forced to carry the entire first episode on his own, pretty much replacing the most beloved Doctor of all time, who just went out in the most upsetting manner possible. It is a testament to Smith that he won me over in his second scene anyways. If Capaldi had been the dude in the TARDIS after Tennant I would have hated him unreservedly and never stopped. He would have been the new Six for me. But by giving Smith such a wonderful last episode and that lovely cameo, I feel like the Twelfth Doctor has the Eleventh's blessing so I'm still willing to give his adventures a shot (even if I dislike Twelve as a person). I feel that not only did Moffat not do right by Tennant, but now I realize he treated Smith even worse. He hung the poor guy out on a limb and pretended it wasn't even the same show. Of COURSE fans were gonna be upset. All of these compliments and complaints aside, how is the episode for an introduction to Peter Capaldi? I hate to say this but not that great. We didn't actually get to see Twelve's final personality which was the biggest moment at the end of "The Christmas Invasion" for Tennant and the sole reason The Eleventh Hour was so successful for Smith. It was not quite as bad as Ten being in bed for 5/4ths of the episode but it was the next worse thing. Anything I like about Twelve? I like that he's scary. His eyebrows are genuinely frightening and his knows it. If Twelve ever walked into the same room as me I'd take two steps backward. Even if I don't like Twelve as a person, as a character, he is quite interesting. Capaldi is magnetic and makes Twelve far more interesting than the way he is written. That being said, Twelve is just NOT as good a Doctor as Nine, Ten, and Eleven. The fact that we had three perfect Doctors in a row was practically a miracle and the best streak we had since Two through Four. We are NEVER usually THAT lucky. Twelve is STILL miles better than Six. A decent episode on its own, but I think a poor introduction for Capaldi. ***.
Into The Dalek:
This is one of those episodes that is much more interesting upon a rewatch. After the Dalek looked into the Doctor's heart and saw hatred I kind of feel if Capaldi DOESN'T turn out to be the Valeyard it will be a let-down of epic proportions. The good thing about this season is that it had a LOT more interesting character moments and observations than the show ever did before. Like Clara berating the Doctor for actually looking pleased he was right and they were going to die. He learned the wrong lesson. Or the Dalek's observation that he wasn't a good Dalek but that Twelve was. Or the idea that the TARDIS is more impressive when you see it from the outside first. This started two troubling trends for Twelve. Him making unflattering remarks about Clara's appearance which got less and less funny as the season wore on. I know why he does it: to create distance between him and Clara and to remind both her and himself that "I'm not your boyfriend". But he totally went overboard with it and it is no small wonder Clara was slowly driven off the deep end this season. Equally disturbing is the fact that Twelve will often manipulate a dying person into helping him solve the mystery by pretending he is trying to save him. If it only happened once that would be one thing but this idea is so sickening because it wasn't something Nine, Ten, or Eleven ever did, and yet it is Twelve's opening move. And he does it a lot. Which is really quite appalling. Twelve's "I wish you hadn't been a soldier" line rang false to me. I know it was meant to set up a barrier between him and Danny Pink but what did he think Captain Jack was (or Leela for that matter)? Warriors aboard the TARDIS are NOT unprecedented. I also kind of like that Clara always seems to be unintentionally offending Danny. She thinks she's dealing with the Doctor but the level of snark she is used to spewing would devastate a normal person and she is quite alarmed to realize that. Her casual cruelty to Danny REALY makes the Doctor's casual cruelty to her seem much less horrible. She can dish it out but she can't take it. MUCH better episode the second time around. ****.
Robot Of Sherwood:
That was fun. What I found most interesting is how the episode took great pains to separate Twelve from Ten and Eleven. Ten and Eleven would have been delighted to meet Robin Hood and rolled with it no matter the truth. But Twelve seems personally offended that Robin is a mystery he can't figure out. He takes hair and blood samples and is a genuine nuisance about the subject. It's both endearing and super off-putting. I loved Robin commenting that Twelve looks old and sickly and Twelve telling Robin that it was a good thing Clara didn't witness the key fiasco. I also loved the Doctor bragging to Clara that he'd win in a contest with Robin about who would die last. And of course Clara is the criminal mastermind. She was the only one with power in that conversation so it seemed obvious. Twelve is a dullard if that surprised him. I also really liked the Sheriff pointing out that the Doctor's theory about creating a hero to give hope to the people made no sense. Do you know why I like that? Because that nonsense is EXACTLY the kind of twaddle Russell T Davies and Steven Moffat infamously traffic in. It seemed to be a mea culpa from the show saying "Sometimes we don't do a great job at trying to rationally explain stuff." The multiple arrow splitting gag is classic Doctor Who (as is the spoon duel), at least as far as the relaunch goes. It's ludicrous and awesome and totally the last thing you expect. Best of this show. ***1/2.
Listen:
What an amazing ending. Lots to discuss. Two great reveals here. The man in the spacesuit taking off his helmet and being a future descendant of Danny Pink was one of the most unexpected pleasurable shocks Moffat has ever given us. I bet nobody saw that coming. I also was shocked at the reveal of One as a kid in a barn on Gallifrey. We really don't get too many peeks at One outside of the three years he was on the original series so this was one flashback I appreciated. It also revealed why the War Doctor went to the barn in the first place in "The Day Of The Doctor". I also loved how absolutely offended Clara kept making Danny on their date. When she got offended right back I rolled my eyes because everything he said about her was true. I loved Clara turning the Doctor's "Do as I say" right back on him at the end. The Doctor had some funny moments too. First stealing the coffee after head-screwing with the guard for a minute. Then learning that Wally isn't actually in every book. Then being indignant that after he saves Rupert's life the kid is still complaining about the creature taking his bedspread. Theory: Danny Pink isn't really dead, merely Rorying. How else to explain Orson Pink? Because I'm PRETTY sure after that he became a fixed point in Clara's timestream. The visit to Gallifrey kind of cemented that. If he IS truly dead I'm going to call b.s. on Moffat for doing this episode in the first place. But because of this episode I don't think he is. This episode was excellent and the first great one of the Capaldi era. ****1/2.
Time Heist:
A mess. The logic of this instantly falls apart with even the slightest examination which is a common complaint for the Moffat era. The mind wipe at the beginning makes no sense whatsoever. Yes, it is a good hook and makes things dire and exciting right off the bat, but there is no good explanation behind it. What is the first thing you should have for a bank heist? Preparation. You should have the plan down pat. I might, MIGHT have bought the excuse that they had to wipe their minds to hide their guilt, if it weren't for the fact that they used the worms in the middle of a locked vault! How did they manage to get that far in the bank without triggering the guilt sensors? And would it have truly been more bother to keep their memories so they could efficiently do their mission? Because their non-guilt didn't seem to help. Because they knew they were robbing a bank. Wouldn't they feel LESS guilty if they were aware they were trying to free an enslaved creature rather than break the law? Not to mention wouldn't the other creature have refused to hurt them if he knew that was what they were doing? Moffat gets a LOT of smack talked about him for his episodes falling apart even if you pull even the tiniest of threads and that is absolutely true. He is better than Russell T Davies but that is no high compliment. Besides, Twelve was the wrong Doctor to do a heist episode with. The Doctor doing it should have been able to ENJOY the adventure. Do you know what would have rocked an Ocean's Eleven episode? Eleven! Matt Smith would have had an absolute blast and the tone would be light and fun instead of inexplicably dark. Twelve is having no fun and neither am I. Twelve does better in dark episodes, Eleven in fun ones. This is a big part of the reason David Tennant was so popular and frankly irreplaceable. He is pretty much the only Doctor I can think of who was equally adept at screwball comedy and high drama. You could do ANY kind of episode with Ten which is NOT true for Eleven and Twelve. Was there anything I liked? I liked Twelve admitting that he was now embarrassed by the bow tie but conceding that his own costume wasn't so hot: "I was going for minimalist but I think it comes across more as magician.." I also think that Jenna Coleman does NOT get enough credit as an actress. Yes, Clara is annoying as far as Companions go, but Coleman is legitimately skilled in acting. She is able to convey being terrified with simply a look or a widening of her eyes. She doesn't need to scream her head off to show when she's in trouble. I'd be inclined to write this off as typical actor stuff but Billie Piper didn't have this. Karen Gillan didn't have this. Both Catherine Tate and Freema Agyeman had this a LITTLE but not to this extent. She's good. For real. *.
The Caretaker:
Well, now we know Capaldi can do comedy. But it is only a very specific type comedy. The only time Twelve is funny is when he is being horrible. The funny part comes from people's appalled reactions. The joke where the Doctor believes a proper disguise against Clara involves wearing a different coat was hilarious. I also like how at one point Clara tells the Doctor she IS his teacher and he doesn't argue the point. I cannot tell if it is lovable that Twelve thinks he and Clara look the same age or very offensive. "Last Christmas" hinted it was the former. When Clara was asking Danny at the end of the episode what he thought of the Doctor, I truly believe it was because for the first time she had misgivings about him herself. She wasn't trying to convince Danny of anything. She was trying to convince herself. I think Danny Pink's insightfulness about other people borders on the supernatural. When he immediately called the Time Lords an aristocracy simply based on the name I applauded. Do you know the effed up thing? He was right! That is PRECISELY how the Time Lords have always been portrayed in canon, and he nails them simply because he is smart enough to realize that any species that names themselves "Time Lords" is probably overly full of themselves. They don't call themselves Gallifreyans. They are Time Lords. Which is the mark of a VERY narcissistic species. I also love that Danny isn't going to sit there and let the Doctor belittle him for being a soldier when the Doctor is clearly an officer. They are in the same business. The difference is that the Doctor gets OTHER people to do his dirty work. He is also smart enough to realize the Doctor is only pretending to be so casual about the destruction of the school because he knew he was there and was only testing him. And is brutal enough to point out how hurtful it was for Clara to sit there and talk about how amazing and filled with wonder her adventures were when she kept that secret from him. It's a good point and I think it's interesting that someone felt betrayed for someone keeping something GOOD about themselves from them. For her part Clara's behavior was borderline appalling. They tried to play her "We're rehearsing for a play" bit for laughs, but in reality it was quite insulting! Honestly, Danny should have broken up with her then and there just for that. She obviously doesn't think very much of him. I found it very interesting that the Doctor felt equally betrayed. She wasn't just keeping the Doctor from Danny, she was keeping Danny from him and the Doctor totally called her on it. I would have found the Doctor's relationship with Courtney cute if the next episode hadn't revealed he destroyed her. Because Courtney puking in the TARDIS says something interesting. A person can be brave, and rebellious, and clever, and STILL not be cut out for the Companion thing. I REALLY wish "Kill The Moon" never happened. Because that was a perfect lesson as it was. Am I the only one who thought the alien was shaped like Mojo from X-Men? I also thought it was funny that Twelve thought the nerd in the bow-tie was Clara's boyfriend because he thought she was still fangirling Eleven. Clara is not the ONLY egomaniac in their relationship. I also loved him humiliating her about Jane Austen. And River even got a mention! Clara is starting to have doubts, and frankly so am I. Twelve is a problematic Doctor at best. Moffat seems to believe that the Doctor is the kind of character who can get away with anything, and Twelve pretty much proves on a weekly basis that he can't. ***1/2.
Kill The Moon:
Normally an episode with this underwhelming a plot, premise, and low level of excitement would be worth a grade of a star and a half, but what happened AFTER the adventure is worth two extra stars. When Jenna Coleman tells Peter Capaldi she is going to slap him so hard he is going to regenerate, I sat back a little from my TV screen. Coleman is good. For real. It was SOOOOO refreshing to hear a Companion call out the Doctor on his b.s. To be absolutely fair to every other Doctor before Twelve, this is the very worst thing a Doctor has intentionally done to a Companion. I'm not counting Six trying to kill Peri because he wasn't in his right mind, but what the Doctor just did was SO out of line, you kind of realize that the times Ten or Eleven have pulled similar (if less worse) stunts that they deserved a similar shellacking from Rose and Amy. Instead those saps would be grateful for the "lesson" and meekly decide Doctor Knows Best. What the Doctor did was cruel and intentionally cruel at that. He thought he could impress people by showing off without considering the very real consequences to how much it would hurt the person who trusted him most. It was patronizing. And condescending. And petty. And a way for the Doctor to prove to everybody how absolutely smugly superior he was. The interesting thing to me is that the Doctor IS right on some level. There are certain things in Earth's history he's not interfered with, and that has almost certainly been true for all previous Doctors (although I'm not sure if the War Doctor actually interacted with Earth much). He's never killed Hitler. And it seems VERY unlikely that Hitler's entire lifespan is a fixed point in time. Jack Harkness is the ONLY person that is true of. So, yeah, a LOT of times the Doctor says "None of my business." But do you know why Eleven never would have done that to Clara? Because he would cared. He would have offered his advice, his opinion, and his moral support. Because Eleven was a good person. Heck that's EXACTLY what he did in "The Hungry Earth" / "Cold Blood". Twelve is a bonafide turd (even if he does keep a yo-yo with him at all times, which is quite lovable). And I threw up my hands at the idea that he told Courtney she wasn't special. Granted, THAT one he rehabilitated himself from slightly by making her the first woman to walk on the moon, and putting her on the path to be Earth's President, but still, he sucks. And he tells the astronauts to shoot Courtney first. Sure, it's an ironic bluff and he's trying to shame them but it is still really disturbing. His amusement and excitement to the moon being an egg was funny though. I also like that the entire conflict seems to be a metaphor for a woman's right to choose. It was still a riveting episode (at least for the last five minutes). ***1/2.
Mummy On The Orient Express:
Are you my mummy? I think Clara saying that she "couldn't do this anymore. Not like this" pretty much confirmed that it was the regeneration that turned her off the Doctor. I think her saying that was VERY respectful to Eleven, to be honest. Because Eleven NEVER would have done many of the horrible things Twelve has done, and I think it was good that Clara not only recognized that, but made Twelve aware of that fact too. I loved the Doctor's banter with Perkins. Perkins was so keen he even got an offer to be made a Companion. I also laughed at the jokes of the Doctor carrying jelly babies in a cigarette case and the psychic paper reading him as a mystery visitor. Even HE thought that was a bit ridiculous. But to be perfectly honest, even if this episode held my interest, I didn't really enjoy it, which sums up my relationship to the Twelfth Doctor. He's interesting and magnetic, but he isn't actually somebody I want to spend time with. *.
Flatline:
This one sucked too (I am super angry that buttmunch survived) but so as not to be a downer I'll point out all of the things I liked. The tiny TARDIS was a great visual gimmick and they got some great sight gags from it (like the Doctor using his hand like Thing from Addam's Family). Clara was right. The tiny TARDIS was adorable. I also thought it was funny how annoyed Twelve was that Clara was impersonating him and her commenting that he probably only called himself the Doctor to sound important. It's also interesting that it's not only geniuses like Shakespeare who can beat the psychic paper, but idiots with a lack of imagination can too. I loved Danny calling at the worst possible time, even if the hanging bubble chair seem too convenient for its own good. I wish they had used the idea that the monsters truly didn't mean any harm, as that would have made the scenario more interesting than if they were simply monsters. I wish the episode was more enjoyable. Still, the TARDIS in siege mode was a first. I believe that was the first time we've ever seen a bare TARDIS with the Chameleon Circuit off (it looks like a Borg Cube). They can weasel out of this in the future but that is what it seemed like to me. *.
In The Forest Of The Night:
I still don't exactly like this episode (that whiny girl is still beyond obnoxious) but it is definitely more interesting upon a second viewing. I just realized the significance of the Doctor saying "This is my world too. I walk the Earth. I breathe the air," just from binge-watching the season. And Danny Pink is amazing. He is a grounding influence to the show that it literally never had before. The Doctor's relationship with Maebh was interesting although his take on medications reminded me of a Scientologist. And I love that modern kids are thoroughly unimpressed with the TARDIS. That's sad but probably true. I also liked the Doctor's insight that the human race's superpower is forgetting things. It's why we still make war and have babies. That's kind of deep. **.
Dark Water:
That was still fabulous but I'm knocking off half a star from my initial grade because I know the conclusion sucks. First off: Clara and the keys. That would literally be the worst thing a Companion has ever done if we hadn't once witnessed Captain Jack Harkness murder his own grandson in front of his daughter. This is easily second place. I am VERY surprised (pleasantly so) that Twelve believed the betrayal didn't actually change anything. I can see Eleven seeing things that way, but I know Nine would have parted ways with her then and there, and Ten might have too. It was the most profound betrayal I can think of. I have NEVER heard of the Doctor entrusting so many secrets with a Companion before (River Song excepted) and Clara completely used the trust she engendered against him. To be fair to Clara, if what she did was nuts, I can kind of see Twelve has been slowly driving her so all season. I'm not surprised she snapped. Overkill, of course, but that's what was so shocking about her meltdown. Second good thing: Moffat retconning Davies' boneheaded decision that there was no afterlife in the Whoniverse. Davies may think he's being deep and edgy but in reality he's boxing in the storytelling and deciding something for a entire franchise he has no business deciding. It was the level of hubris of the producers of the Paul McGann TV movie to suddenly state the Doctor was half-human. It shouldn't be up to him. I liked the idea that it wasn't actually an afterlife. It was just more life than you were expecting. That's deep too. Missy being the Master: it's a good twist but I kind of don't love it anymore. Don't get me wrong, I don't have a problem with the Master changing genders. What I have a problem with is the Master being crazy as an on-going character trait. That was the single best thing about John Simm, and if they are going to decide simply that every Master from now is now nuts they are really disrespecting the freshness Simm brought to the role. All complaints aside, this was still an excellent episode. Doctor Who is back. ****1/2.
Death In Heaven:
Worse upon a rewatch. Yeah, this is pretty indefensible. Why on EARTH would Moffat kill off a perfectly good character like Osgood ("Bow ties are cool!") for no reason whatsoever? Yes, her scene with Missy was amazing but she didn't need to actually die for it to be that way. Melissa Gomez was pretty great though. "Happy Birthday Mr. President." Bananas. I am incredibly angered that they gave the Brig that undignified an ending (even if the moment where the Doctor finally saluted him was nice). I really hate the idea that he murdered Missy like that. The Doctor should have been the one to do it. Danny was right. The Doctor always gets to keep his hands clean and that was the one moment that shouldn't have happened. And frankly, the Cybermen thing also effs up all of the characters who died on Torchwood. Because I'm pretty sure this means Tosh, Ianto, and Esther are all Cybermen now. Ugh. And I'd be remiss to point out that these Cybermen are a HUGE step down from Nightmare In Silver. Neil Gainman ruined the Cybermen for all other writers. I liked the Doctor being made President of Earth precisely because he threw it in the Master's face. The human race gave the Doctor willingly what the Master had been trying and failing for decades to take by force. That's tight. The AI fanboying the Doctor before Missy killed him was great too. Squee! I'm not sure HOW they can bring Danny back but I'm pretty sure they will (probably in Jenna Coleman's last episode). How does Clara know about Jenny and the Doctor's family history? Even the audience didn't know some of that stuff (married four times?). I love that they revamped the main titles for one episode for Jenna Coleman's sake. THAT was a Doctor Who first. But still, this was a huge let-down and even more-so the second time. *1/2.
Earth Conquest - The World Tour:
The Doctor Who fan art / animation / short films are amazing. That comedian trying to stuff the cat into the duffle bag was adorable. What a cute kitty. I like that Steven Moffat is a rock star in Mexico. I found it funny how after Jenna Coleman gave a really insightful answer to what Doctor Who means to people Capaldi said "That's really nice. And it sounds rehearsed. Have you been telling people this on the tour before?" I almost died at that. ***1/2.
Tour Of The TARDIS:
Needs more round things. ****.
Doctor Who Exclusive:
Four promotional featurettes. Overall: ***.
Casting Peter: Do you know what would have been nice? Getting an interview with Capaldi about this! **1/2.
Writing The New Season: Moffat tells us that the actor is usually most responsible for the new tone of each Doctor after a regeneration. ****.
What Is Doctor Who?: Talking about regeneration. ****.
Why Watch Series 8?: I don't know if they are tip-toeing around spoilers or what, but most of what Capaldi and Coleman say here is incomprehensible to me. **1/2.
Doctor Who Live Pre-Show:
Two things: I don't know why Wil Wheaton is here or why my Blu-Ray actually contains the Intruders commercial from the TV broadcast. DVD's are there to get RID of commercials. ***1/2.
Doctor Who After Who Live:
I liked Chris Hardiwck taking a gratuitous slam at Wesley Crusher and Wheaton doing the same thing to Phantom Menace. Wheaton's theories about the Twelfth Doctor and the Clockwork droids were very insightful and interesting although his guess that Danny Pink was in UNIT was way off. Hardwick correctly guessed Missy was the Master and I like Dan Starkey describing Strax as well-intentioned. That sums him up for me and why I like him. Wheaton got the best insight in pointing out "skin balloons" would make a terrible hashtag. Seriously, Hardwick? You didn't see that? ****.
London - Post-Premiere Q&A:
This had Capaldi, Coleman, AND Moffat, and pretty much destroyed the Nerdist. Do you know what the worst thing is? The host is SUCH an incredible airhead. Capaldi had a look on his face more than once that said "Can you believe this chick?" It's like both aftershows COULD have been great if they had been merged. I would have loved it if it had been Hardwick asking the questions of the big guns instead of being stuck with Mark Gatiss and Dan Starkey. I LOVED Capaldi getting a bit huffy when telling her that any conversations he had with Matt Smith and David Tennant were private and he wouldn't be discussing them. That's fabulous. I also love that Capaldi didn't just go over the moon about the first four Doctors (which he did) but he also acknowledged David Tennant, Matt Smith, Christopher Eccelston, and Russell T Davies for bringing back the franchise in the first place, and saying that he sort of got in while the show was cresting in popularity, and that they did all the hard work. That was cool. But this could have been MUCH better with a Nerdist at the helm. ***.
The Ultimate Time Lord:
Peter Davison is even balder here than he was in "Time Crash". Of course the best part was him sitting down with Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy, and Pail McGann. Two things immediately struck me: I don't seem to see Paul McGann in very many interviews. He did a commentary for the movie but that's pretty much ALL of I've seen him do on these releases. He didn't even sit down for The Doctors Revisited. I liked hearing Davison and Nicholas Briggs talk a bit about the Doctor's psychology. It was great seeing Davison in the original TARDIS replica too. Steven Moffat had some good insights too. Like how genius regeneration is. If they had simply decided to put another guy in a Hartnell wig and try to pass him off as Hartnell the series would probably only have lasted as long as the replacement did. But by making it a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde situation it can go on indefinitely. I also like that he noted the Doctor is someone who will jump out a window and figure out how to get out of it on the way down. And if he has a sandwich in his hand, he'll eat that before he hits the ground. And I love Davison telling us Moffat probably only cast Capaldi because he couldn't resist the idea of making one single person that happy. That's tight. As for Capaldi, he notes Twelve isn't "User friendly" (boy howdy) and points out something else that I missed but is true. This particular Doctor has to do a bit of work in his head to connect his mind to his intellect ("Do you know how to fly this thing?"). He's not stupid, but compared to the other Doctors, he is. He is not able to access his intelligence as easily as someone like the Tenth Doctor was able to. Which is probably why he's so Asperger's. ****.
The Ultimate Companion:
Great to see Peter Davison reunited with first Sarah Sutton and Susan Fielding, and then Nicola Bryant. They are all right that since the relaunch the Companion has sort of turned into the main character. John Barrowman flirting with Davison was fun too. David Tennant's beard looks fugly. His hair is too dark for his face. Steven Moffat pointed out something about Clara that I hadn't realized until Twelve called her an egomaniac in "Deep Breath": Clara had Eleven wrapped around her finger. He followed her like a puppy dog, and she called the shots in their personal relationship, and Twelve makes her so uncomfortable because his behavior is out of her control, and it REALLY makes her nervous. When she was with Matt Smith she didn't actually SEEM overly bossy. But once you see her with Peter Capaldi you realize she totally was. ****.
Behind The Scenes:
These Extras are like the Doctor Who Confidentials, but 11 minutes instead of an hour. Overall: ****.
Episode 1 - Deep Breath: For a minimalist outfit, NOBODY beats the Ninth Doctor. Yeah, there is NOTHING flashy about Twelve's duds, but they still look out of place on 21st Century Earth. He can definitely blend into the 17 and 1800's better, but he'd get a few stares nowadays. ****.
Episode 2 - Into The Dalek: I love that Moffat originally gave this idea to the videogame before telling them to forget it because he was saving it for the actual show! I would think stars should be a little more careful with the props. Yes, they can fix it with CGI but that stuff is expensive and better used elsewhere. I really hate that this episode kept saying Danny Pink was a ladykiller. Because there was nothing in this episode or any that followed that hinted that was remotely true. Danny seems to be AWKWARD around Clara and is pretty much the furthest thing from a playa ever. I wonder whose bright idea that was. ***1/2.
Episode 3 - Robot Of Sherwood: I cannot believe they actually lucked out with unusually sunny weather in Britain. I had thought that had to have been an effect. I was also impressed to learned the arrow splitting trick was done practically too. It looked great. And only upon seeing the clip of "The Shakespeare Code" do I realize the continuity with Queen Elizabeth in that episode actually holds together decently with "The Day Of The Doctor". I hadn't realized that before. ****.
Episode 4 - Listen: Samuel Anderson has Tom Jones hair. He practices kissing on his hand. He calls it his sock puppet of love. I love that this gave us a brief overview of the very few glimpses of the life of the Doctor we've seen or heard about before the series began. "Listen" was a huge deal. ****1/2.
Episode 5 - Time Heist: I like that Capaldi doesn't like to be spoiled about what's coming because he's afraid it would effect how he played the character. It was funny when the cook said she served the crew memory worms for breakfast. And while Madame Kovorian IS probably the best Doctor Who villainess, they forgot a biggie: Miss Hartigan from "The Next Doctor". She was amazing and still gives me chills. Mrs. Wormwood from The Sarah Jane Adventures is also great but obviously doesn't count because she's not a Who villain. ****.
Episode 6 - The Caretaker: Moffat notes that the Doctor always shows off to women and insults men. I don't think that was always true on The Original Series, but the relaunch? All of 'em did it. All of 'em. That was Nine's opening move, in fact. We see Jimmy Vee out of make-out here. He's a lot older than I thought. I love how "The Day Of The Doctor" essentially said that the Doctor never resigned from UNIT and was still on the payroll! I have no idea why Russell T Davies never did that with Ten. It would have been SO much fun. The creature was a lot more impressive in the actual episode than it was in the featurette. Maybe because it wasn't well-lit there. ****.
Episode 7 - Kill The Moon: Cool that Tony Osobo was on the Original Series twice. Hermione Norris describing her character as an older middle-aged woman was interesting because that is not something I'd usually hear an actress her age says about herself, especially since she's still attractive. Julia Roberts would like everyone to believe she's still 25. I like Capaldi quipping that the only bad thing about using the spacesuits after David Tennant is that there is hair gel in the helmet. I'm a little disappointed the doc didn't discuss Clara and Twelve's blow-up. That was pretty much the center-piece of the entire episode and the Extra acted like the episode ended with things hunky dory. ***.
Episode 8 - Mummy On The Orient Express: Frank Skinner was absolutely right that Perkins was the second smartest person on the train after the Doctor. That's probably why he got an ultra-rare Companion offer. I also laughed at the idea that the guy in the Mummy suit would absent-mindedly try to converse with people on the set while completely forgetting what he looked like and how much he scared them. ***1/2.
Episode 9 - Flatline: Even if Steven Moffat's skills as a showrunner are up for debate, there is no denying it: the man's insights about the character of the Doctor are scary-accurate. His take on the philosophy of the character and the franchise is SO on the nose that I imagine Russell T Davies is seething in envy every time he watches one of these interviews. Moffat is exactly the kind of dedicated Who fan that Davies liked to think he was, but actually wasn't. He had two great insights here: that usually the walls are the things that protect you in Doctor Who, and for this episode they were where the villains resided. And that while the Doctor calls himself the Doctor because he believes he's making people better, by the end of the episode he believes he's making Clara worse. He's not wrong. Boy isn't he ever. The special effects were amazing this episode. I like that the featurette pointed out that Eleven was an art-lover. It was never explicitly stated during Matt Smith's tenure, but there are always arty things going on in the background with Eleven that aren't usually present for other Doctors (save possibly Seven in the TV movie). ****.
Episode 10 - In The Forest Of The Night: When Capaldi is talking about the kids' "crazy hairstyles" I was like "Wow, this guy really IS an older Doctor". Seeing this made me realize why I disliked the episode so much. Nothing actually happens during it. The so-called villain turns out to be on our side and their original plan even occurs. The episode sucks because the Doctor didn't even need to be there at all. ***1/2.
Episode 11 - Dark Water: Another great Moffat quote, this time about Missy: "She's funny, but never at the expense of the scary." I rolled my eyes at Samuel Anderson bemoaning that he didn't actually think people died in Doctor Who. Have you ever actually SEEN this show, Sam? ****.
Episode 12 - Death In Heaven: Storytelling FAIL, Moffat. Killing off Osgood didn't make me think the Master was any more evil. It didn't make me hate her any more either. It just made me annoyed with Moffat. He just killed off a perfectly loveable character to give another character unneeded credibility. That's a genre show cliche. If he truly had faith in Melissa Gomez, he wouldn't have had to try so hard to make the audience hate her. I liked getting a brief history of all of the Masters though. And the Brig twist is even more reprehensible the more you think about it. Moffat DOES realize he just made Amy and Rory Cybermen since they died on Earth, doesn't he? I truly don't think he thought of that. Moffat's biggest weakness as a writer (which is sadly a fault he shares with Russell T Davies) is that he never thinks out his "Big Ideas" to their awful conclusion. Unlike Davies, he has some redeeming qualities. But I wish this sort of sloppy writing would have vanished when Davies did. ***.
Foxes: Don't Stop Me Now:
I believe this is the first Doctor Who music video (at least of the relaunch). It is mediocre. **1/2.
Doctor Who: The Complete Matt Smith Years Trailer: I love me some Eleven. ****.
Blu-Ray Menus: They didn't put in ANY effort into these. **1/2.
Upcoming reviews include Guardians Of The Galaxy (Blu-Ray), The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (Blu-Ray), The Spectacular Spider-Man: The Complete Series, Phineas And Ferb: Star Wars, Tangled, Muppets Most Wanted: Extended Edition, Revolution: Season 2, Almost Human: The Complete Series, Brooklyn Nine-Nine: Season 1, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey: Extended Edition, The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug (Blu-Ray), The Hobbit: The Desolation Of Smaug: Extended Edition, Airplane! / Airplane II: The Sequel: Double Feature, Police Squad: The Complete Series, Power Rangers: Zeo: Volume 1, Power Rangers: Zeo: Volume 2, Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie, Power Rangers Turbo: Volume 1, Power Rangers: Turbo: Volume 2, Power Rangers In Space Volume 1, Power Rangers In Space: Volume 2, Power Rangers Samurai: The Complete Season, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Showdown In Dimension X, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014), Mr. Peabody & Sherman, Under The Dome: Season 2, Samurai Jack: Season 4, Challenge Of The Gobots: The Original Miniseries, The Jetsons Meet The Flintstones, Yogi's First Christmas, Legends Of The SuperHeroes, Hey Good Lookin', The Simpsons: Season 17, Family Guy: Volume 7, Family Guy: Volume 8, and Family Guy: Volume 9.
Teen Titans Go! "Robin Backwards"
"Don't take it personally. We just like the opposite of you better."
I think that burn speaks for itself. ****.
The Flash "Revenge Of The Rogues"
Michael and Lincoln Scofield, partners in crime once again! Great stunt casting. Both Wentworth Miller and Dominic Purcell were great. Purcell plays crazy great and Miller is as intense as always.
Loved the Ghostbusters reference. That movie is surprisingly scientifically accurate.
The moment at the end between Joe and Barry and Barry deciding to move back in was very sweet and the last scene (Sis?) was great too. ****.
Arrow "Left Behind"
No "I am Oliver Queen" narration. That is extra ominous.
The scene with Felicity breaking down in front of Ray and him firmly, yet tactfully, telling her she crossed a line was great. I don't ship them but they are great together.
Laurel sucks and a sexy costume doesn't change that.
Also, Thea can tell Roy is the kid in the hoodie but not that Oliver is Arrow? How dumb is she?
Merlyn has some stones. First showing up in the Arrowcave (twice!) and then unabashedly admitting he used Oliver to get the bounty off his own head. I don't know whether to admire or be appalled at that kind of gall.
I love that Dig still thinks of himself as Oliver's bodyguard. To be absolutely honest, I do too.
I love that it was ultimately Oliver's decency towards Tsatsu that wound up saving his life years later. That's cool.
Can't wait for next week. ****.
Gotham "Welcome Back, Jim Gordon"
Even a few months ago, I would have thought the idea of the police thinking they could get away with ruling the death of a guy with an ice pick in his back as a suicide was ludicrous, but after Mike Brown and Eric Garner? It's plausible. Heck, if anything this episode wasn't cynical enough. Flass actually got arrested at the end. That's more than most real life cops gets. They are literally untouchable.
Jada Pinkett Smith is SO awful I cannot stand it. The show's producers are not her friends. Why on EARTH would they have Fish dress in her hookerwear while she was on the run? I am not so desperate for fanservice that I would have objected to seeing her wear jeans and a sweatshirt to blend in while the entire town is looking for her. This show REALLY doesn't think much of me (or Fish for that matter).
I'm guessing every single mobster in Gotham has an overbearing, crazy mother. Because they REALLY didn't give Penguin a hard time for his, and he wasn't embarrassed by her in the slightest. I'm betting the town is overun with Norma Bateses.
Once Bruce was like "A better place to live" I was like "Dude, stop talking." He deserved everything Selina threw at him after that. Although Alfred is SUCH a weasel for rubbing it in. Butthole.
That kid who plays Ivy is amazing. And yes, she looks like she has mange.
Edward Nygma and I have very different definitions of the word "Hope".
Harvey isn't into Fish, he's into himself. I like that.
If I had seen this episode a few months ago I would have considered it far-fetched. Not so much anymore. Everything but the awful Fish stuff was great. ****.
Constantine "Quid Pro Quo"
Felix Faust is the first DC character I recognize from this show.
Interesting that Chas has a finite number of lives. Because the show has been going through them pretty quickly. They better be careful and not lose count.
His plan at the end to kill Faust was great. It was so unexpected because in every other genre show, whenever the supporting character gets too emotionally involved in a case, it is up to the hero to set things right and teach the companion a lesson about humility. Chas ain't havin' none of that. John tried, he failed, so he gets knocked out and put in a cab for his troubles, while CHAS fixes things. Any time a genre show subverts a well-worn trope is a time when I get extra complimentary. ****1/2.
Marvel's Hulk And The Agents Of S.M.A.S.H. "Homecoming"
A bit of a let-down but I expected it to be. Underwhelming resolutions are this show in a nutshell.
Do you know what I did like? Hulk and Red Hulk letting each other in on their secrets to defeat the others when they were enemies. It shows a level of trust that they are able to basically give up their most valuable info about the other in the name of getting stuff done. That was cool. ****.
Star Wars Rebels "Idiot's Array"
I think was a good episode. Lando is a good thing, although I'm not sure if the logic of why he didn't pay the crew holds together all that well. But the episode was fun. ****.
Mickey Mouse (Minnie Mouse) "Clogged"
Super boring. 0.
Galavant "Death After Brunch"
Anthony Head returns to musicals!...in an episode written by...Aladdin?
Ivan the Mutilator or Keith? Keith.
I like that this show just reminded us that royalty always seems to have other people fight their own duels for them. On some level we think Tyrion Lannister is clever, but if he weren't a dwarf, I would NOT be thinking that. My thoughts would be MUCH less charitable. ****.
Galavant "It's All In The Executions"
I would be MUCH less ticked about the cliffhanger if ABC hadn't billed this as a miniseries rather than just a regular series with eight half hour episodes in the first season. ABC isn't playing fair with the audience.
Loved Rutger Hauer's response to wearing the crown: "Awesome!".
Gare Bear. Best nickname ever?
This is why Richard doesn't have guy friends.
Good for what it was, but ABC wrote a check the "Miniseries'" butt couldn't cash. ****.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles "Eyes Of The Chimera"
Boring. And April doing the chicken dance was embarrassing. **.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles "Vision Quest"
Diverting enough. Although Leo is lame if he can get his butt kicked by a deer.
Those new costumes were toyetic. I totally understood why April and Casey were all "Whoa!" when they came back. ***1/2.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles "Return To New York"
Party Wagon! Yeaugh!
Love the new main title. Leatherhead! And is that Mondo Gecko?
Dr. Cluckenstein and Donnie make Raph sick.
Love crazy, feral Splinter. Hardcore. And of course once he's back to normal he's their biggest gun. As he should be. I'm impressed they returned to Splinter this quickly. Relieved a bit, actually.
Great episode. *****.
The Simpsons "The Musk Who Fell To Earth"
"Squawky." Perfect. Bart put as much thought into that as when he named Maggie (whose reaction to that fact was priceless). He's the first bald thing Bart has ever loved.
Loved Homer's toupee.
White meatballs! Heh. Too bad that was Lisa's stop.
Mr. Burns isn't as cuddly as he looks.
Lenny's the white one.
"Goodbye, Elon! We'll never forgive you!"
Funny episode. ****.
Grimm "Tribunal"
It was great. Five stars. But it wasn't perfect. There was something about it that truly bugged. I'm still giving it the highest grade possible but they totally effed something up. Also I will be discussing NBC's next week promo at the end of the review. It bears mentioning. Here is the thing that bugged:
Now was NOT the episode to have somebody Woge in front of Wu to get the comical effect of seeing that for the first time. And not because being funny is inappropriate. Bud stumbling over his words and completely destroying the scariness credibility of the Tribunal before they could stop him was hilarious and entirely appropriate. It's just that with Wu and the Woge, time was freaking factor. They should NOT have been farting around with that with things as dire for Monroe as they were. Frankly, if Rosalee saw what they were doing she'd probably be furious and she'd be right to be.
Still, you gotta admit Bud is the perfect gateway Wesen. There is absolutely nothing frightening about him and it is particularly cute that he is unaware of that fact.
Loved the "Power Walk" before the act break of the gang getting ready to save Monroe. What a great, iconic shot. If Monroe had been in it they could use it for promos.
I also thought it was interesting that the evil cop was a Bauerschwein. I guess this is one area where they and Blutbaden can set aside their differences and work together. Ick.
Now...the promo. I think the thing that really bothers me about it (aside from the fact that it is b.s.) is that NBC doesn't seem to be tailoring the ads to the fans of the show. Because the juicy (and non-existant) scenario MIGHT just be something interesting enough for someone who doesn't know the show to want to sample it. But I'm a fan of the show. The next week promo should be telling me what's happening next week. Not what's happening in next week's dream sequence or out of context scenes. NBC is truly this show's worst enemy in promising things in promos the show cannot possibly deliver, and since this is one thing I know will NOT ever happen, I feel it's important I point it out now. When Nick finds out Juliet is a Hexenbiest he's not going to try to kill her. It's not even something he'll consider. It will be a non-issue. And the fact that NBC is treating Nick's relationship to Juliet as that fragile REALLY irks me. At least they didn't say "This episode delivers." NBC sucks.
But yeah, that was some great television. *****.
Sleepy Hollow "Kali Yuga"
I hate Hawley. I can't think of a single Sleepy Hollow fan who likes him. So why would we want to see an episode centered around him?
And they are trying to say that Crane and Abbie's relationship has been strained this season? That's a stretch. That isn't the vibe I've been getting at all. As a matter of fact when Jenny was needling the two of them about growing apart, I thought she was just messing with their heads. The writers might have done a better job SHOWING Abbie and Ichabod growing apart, instead of just randomly saying they did in this episode.
If Irving a vampire? Why is Katrina lying for him? Another point in favor of my theory that she's a black hat.
About the only thing I liked was Crane and Abbie's adorkable rendition of "Proud Mary" at the end (Nicole Beharie is an excellent singer). Other than that fun moment, the episode sucked. *.
Bob's Burgers "Late Afternoon In The Garden With Bob And Louise"
Gene: "Please, Hammer, don't hurt 'em." Nice!
Bob was ruining the best thing about the restaraunt: that it was Logan free. Louise got into his head. Because there was so much space. Her recommendation for Logan: Put a paper bag over your head. They are totally going to get married when they reconnect in their 30's.
Loved Bob talking and singing to his beans.
Bob's reaction to Linda grumbling in bed was great: "Well, good night."
Funny episode. ***1/2.
Family Guy "This Little Piggy"
This episode lack credibility. Why would a someone approach Meg to be a foot model without seeing her feet first? And they made the joke about a three-way with a dog and a baby, but why would Brian agree to that in the first place? Because that instantly makes him a child molester. Did that "15 minutes later" title card on Chris informing his parents about Meg doing porn mean what I think it meant?
The Jason Biggs slam was good because he was voiced by Seth Green... who took over voicing Leonardo from him on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. It seems ESPECIALLY cruel for Green to be the one to point out that the world doesn't actually need him.
I liked the scene of Peter and Lois dancing. More of that, please.
Weird episode. **1/2.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine "Defense Rests"
Sophia Butt. That's good.
Loved Andre Braugher's reaction to being kissed by Wunch. "What. The."
Terry's fake smile was golden. He was right. Jake did everything right. Sophia was simply a terrible person. As was Gabrielle Solize.
Good one. Chris Parnell makes everything better. ****.
Parks And Recreation "William Henry Harrson"
Someday, Magnus, Ron Swanson will wear you as a coat.
Loved Andy failing at word association (the look on Aubrey Plaza's face was priceless) and then April comforting him for having to hear part of that boring book. Also fun was her getting excited when Andy picked up that dead possum.
"Baby, You Smell Good." Tom Haverford is an idiot.
Ron's reactions to Annabelle's nonsense were priceless.
The vending machine that accepts Harrison bucks is out of order.
If William Henry Harrison had been President The Wire would have swept the Emmys.
I like that as dumb as Andy is he is really insightful about April and her wants and desires.
The Somebody's Daughters Dancers. Best name since Girls With Low Self-Esteem.
"You are not that good at scrap-booking." That. Cut. DEEP. Did you see how scared everybody got? They actually took a step back. S*** just got real.
To be continued... Right now. ****.
Parks And Recreation "Leslie & Ron"
Knew it was Leslie's fault. She took APRIL. Ron's voice almost cracked at that. I was furious at her. April is pretty much the only person on the series who shares Ron's values. Leslie didn't think he'd have a problem with that?
Leslie does stuff like that ALL the time without considering people's feelings. How on EARTH did she think Ron would take her taking the person he thought as the closest thing to a daughter away from him? Anything that benefits Leslie is the important thing, and nothing else needs to be taken into account. Once it was revealed that it started when Leslie took April I kept wondering WHY it took so long for her to figure it out. That should have been her FIRST suspicion. And she STILL has to have it explained to her.
Loved all of the various insane ways Leslie tried to get Ron to talk as well as Ron's original recommendations to hire her.
Ron whittles a key. Brilliant.
Game of Thrones has really gone off the rails. It makes sense if you've read the books. It says something big if Ben was willing to risk missing the series finale for this.
Fabulous episode. *****.
12 Monkeys "Splinter"
That was mind-blowing. That teaser is probably the best genre show Pilot teaser since Lost. Instantly memorable and sets up the stakes of the series perfectly.
And Zeljko Ivanek is Leland Frost because of course he is. There was no-one else it could have been. I'm just shocked they took him out in the first episode. Cool!
Cole loving present day food is a gag that will probably never get old. How did he meet Cassandra? "She bought him a cheeseburger." And that was enough.
Terrific show. I'm on-board immediately. I just hope it has a happier ending than the film did. *****.
12 Monkeys "Mentally Divergent"
That guy with the lavender and jasmine is the stuff of nightmares.
I loved the mental patients watching that insanely creepy kids special. Because there is something you need to know about people in mental hospitals: they get the same TV as the rest of society. And some of them shouldn't be watching things that messed up.
Of course as a second episode, this wasn't as good as the Pilot. But it was still GOOD and that's all that matters. ****.
Stalker "The News"
A weird one.
The single most depressing thing I have seen in years in Kerr Smith with gray hair. I am beyond bummed. Just For Men, dude. Believe in it.
If that opening had been real that would have probably been the single greatest news broadcast in history.
Kudos to the show for finding a plausible way to get Ray out of the asylum. Not TOO plausible, but within the framework of this show it works.
Not bad. ***1/2.
Newsreaders "How The Sausage Is Made / Lottery Winners Lose"
There is nothing defensible about circus animals.
How The Sausage Is Made: Xandra is getting to the point where she isn't funny because she is realistic. As cartoony as she seems, there is an unfortunate reality to her that makes her unlikeable. There are actual media personalties a lot like her. This is the same problem she shares with Arrested Development's Tobias Funke. ***.
Lottery Winners Lose: This is another well worn news trope: the reporter trying to create a narrative and being more and more upset at how wrong he keeps getting proven. This is John Stossel in a nutshell. Creating a b.s. story and telling us our eyes are seeing something different than what they are showing us. Biscayne didn't kill that guy because he was jealous. It was because he was wrong. ****1/2.
Episode Overall: ***1/2.
American Horror Story: Freak Show "Curtain Call"
Needless to say, that was appalling. This is my last season of Horror Story, and this episode made that decision easy. Honestly, I expected it to suck, but I didn't expect it to completely make me wash my hands of the entire franchise. But it was just that bad.
Don't get me wrong, I'm glad Dot ended up with Jimmy, but that massacre at the beginning is pretty much indefensible. I cannot in good conscience continue to watch a show that traffics in things like that. The world is horrible enough as it is. I watch TV to relax and enjoy it. This show lets me do neither.
Goodbye, American Horror Story. You will not be missed. 0.
Doctor Who: The Complete Eighth Series
Elephant in the room: the Twelfth Doctor is a turd.
Steven Moffat and Peter Capaldi have described this Doctor as "not user friendly" and that is putting it mildly. He is even more off-putting than David Tennant at his worst, with none of Ten's many redeeming and lovable qualities. I'd chalk the character up as a complete failure if it weren't for the fact that Capaldi makes him so riveting. You can't take your eyes off him. Colin Baker's Sixth Doctor had an abrasive personality too, but that Doctor was repellent instead of magnetic. I still want to see where they go with Capaldi. I REALLY hope he becomes the Valeyard and that that is why they cast him. He'd be magnificent at it.
So, yeah, Twelve sucks. I'm not TOO upset because the fact that Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant, and Matt Smith were all five star Doctors is pretty much an aberration in the franchise. We are never usually that lucky and most Doctors are hit or miss. The last time we got a three in a row streak that good was Patrick Troughton, Jon Pertwee, and Tom Baker. We usually have to go from decent to poor Doctors from regeneration to regeneration. It's a crapshoot and that's part of what you have to understand about the franchise going in.
Best episodes of the year are the surprising "Listen" and the first part of the two-part season finale (Dark Water). I'd like that last one a lot more if the conclusion didn't suck. Worst episodes are the tonally all wrong "Time Heist", the boring "Mummy On The Orient Express" the underwhelming (if cute) "Flatline" and the season finale which actually angered me a bit (Death In Heaven). Doctor Who has really been doing that to me since Russell T Davies left. Moffat is a good heir to his insufferability. Season overall: **1/2.
Deep Breath:
After seeing the finale, the last five minutes take on a MUCH greater significance. The fact that the woman in the shop was set up all the way back in "The Bells Of St. John" tells me that that throwaway line about the Doctor recognizing his own face is going to be important. The Roman guy AND Frobisher will be a factor at some point during Twelve's run, and if this year's finale was any indication, probably next season. Missy's behavior seems completely bizarre now knowing she is the Master and not an aged version of Clara or Romana. They REALLY took the homoerotic undertones of John Simm's version of the Master and ran with it. Missy might be the first heterosexual Master in Doctor Who history. I still think they shouldn't have made her so crazy. The Master being bananas should have stayed a Simm specialty instead of a new character trait. Oh, well. One of the interesting things about the season to me was that Clara and Twelve each took turns being the villain in their relationship. Clara's behavior towards the Doctor in this episode was appalling, until we slowly start to see later on in the year that she has legitimate reasons for disliking Twelve. He's a turd. And then at the end of the season Clara does the single most horrendous thing a Companion has ever done. This season was hard to find a character to root for. Oooh, can I root for Vastra, Jenny, and Strax? I think a LOT of Strax's incompetence at not recognizing human body parts is a put on. Of COURSE he can tell human lips and eyelids apart. Sontarans have both. Moffat does NOT think much of me if he expects me to believe Strax isn't having a laugh at Clara's expense. As for Vastra, Jenny cheers aside, she pretty much pegged Clara and the vapid reason she resisted the regeneration so much. Twelve can claim the boyfriend mistake was his all along, but Clara was every bit as equally smitten. I think I am so unforgiving of Clara here because as The Impossible Girl she already KNOWS about regeneration. This is NOT the shock this was for Rose Tyler in "The Christmas Invasion". Since Twelve had barely been aware enough to show a proper personality the only thing that could have POSSIBLY put off Clara was his looks. And that sucks. Granted Twelve's personality will eventually be revealed to be that of a total jerk, but Clara didn't know that at the time. I love that Clara seems to be searching for comfort and validation from Vastra and Strax and they keep refusing to give it to her. Jenny is a little more understanding, but considering the nonsense she puts up with from Vastra (posing for a sexy painting that doesn't exist?) I had already pretty much guessed she had the patience of a saint. Twelve calling Clara a control freak and an egomaniac was interesting. Partly to me because Clara doesn't seem particularly pushy for a Companion. On some level, nearly all of the relaunch Companions have been bossy except for Martha Jones and Rory Pond but Clara is somewhere in the middle. You'd think the Doctor would have said this at least ONCE to Rose Tyler, Amy Pond, Jack Harkness, or Donna Noble. I miss the round things too and wish the Doctor hadn't misplaced them. Clara's scene with the half-faced man, trying to deduce out loud if he was bluffing and if he would torture her was riveting. Jenna Coleman was amazing when she told the dude she would put up with a great deal of pain before she gave up the information that was keeping her alive. Because that's precisely what her not talking was doing. I'm betting the Doctor was the one whose programming couldn't be altered. He pushed the Half-Faced Man. Valeyard anyone? The question turning out to be if there were any similar murders was classic Doctor Who. Moffat at his best. I also like the fact that the Doctor understands dinosaur and was directly addressing the horse. That means Matt Smith's "I talk baby / horse" is going to be as permanent a fixture in the canon as "Timey Whimey". Matt Smith cameo: I want to say it was brilliant, and pat Moffat on the back, but then it just makes me even angrier about what Moffat and Russell T. Davies did to David Tennant in "The End Of Time" and "The Eleventh Hour". Moffat practically pretended Ten never existed, and cut off almost all ties to Davies' run on the show, including characters that we still could have revisited with no problems like Captain Jack and Martha. I always thought that was incredibly disrespectful to Tennant. But do know what Smith's cameo made me realize? How unfair the Eleventh Hour was to Matt Smith. Smith pretty much was forced to carry the entire first episode on his own, pretty much replacing the most beloved Doctor of all time, who just went out in the most upsetting manner possible. It is a testament to Smith that he won me over in his second scene anyways. If Capaldi had been the dude in the TARDIS after Tennant I would have hated him unreservedly and never stopped. He would have been the new Six for me. But by giving Smith such a wonderful last episode and that lovely cameo, I feel like the Twelfth Doctor has the Eleventh's blessing so I'm still willing to give his adventures a shot (even if I dislike Twelve as a person). I feel that not only did Moffat not do right by Tennant, but now I realize he treated Smith even worse. He hung the poor guy out on a limb and pretended it wasn't even the same show. Of COURSE fans were gonna be upset. All of these compliments and complaints aside, how is the episode for an introduction to Peter Capaldi? I hate to say this but not that great. We didn't actually get to see Twelve's final personality which was the biggest moment at the end of "The Christmas Invasion" for Tennant and the sole reason The Eleventh Hour was so successful for Smith. It was not quite as bad as Ten being in bed for 5/4ths of the episode but it was the next worse thing. Anything I like about Twelve? I like that he's scary. His eyebrows are genuinely frightening and his knows it. If Twelve ever walked into the same room as me I'd take two steps backward. Even if I don't like Twelve as a person, as a character, he is quite interesting. Capaldi is magnetic and makes Twelve far more interesting than the way he is written. That being said, Twelve is just NOT as good a Doctor as Nine, Ten, and Eleven. The fact that we had three perfect Doctors in a row was practically a miracle and the best streak we had since Two through Four. We are NEVER usually THAT lucky. Twelve is STILL miles better than Six. A decent episode on its own, but I think a poor introduction for Capaldi. ***.
Into The Dalek:
This is one of those episodes that is much more interesting upon a rewatch. After the Dalek looked into the Doctor's heart and saw hatred I kind of feel if Capaldi DOESN'T turn out to be the Valeyard it will be a let-down of epic proportions. The good thing about this season is that it had a LOT more interesting character moments and observations than the show ever did before. Like Clara berating the Doctor for actually looking pleased he was right and they were going to die. He learned the wrong lesson. Or the Dalek's observation that he wasn't a good Dalek but that Twelve was. Or the idea that the TARDIS is more impressive when you see it from the outside first. This started two troubling trends for Twelve. Him making unflattering remarks about Clara's appearance which got less and less funny as the season wore on. I know why he does it: to create distance between him and Clara and to remind both her and himself that "I'm not your boyfriend". But he totally went overboard with it and it is no small wonder Clara was slowly driven off the deep end this season. Equally disturbing is the fact that Twelve will often manipulate a dying person into helping him solve the mystery by pretending he is trying to save him. If it only happened once that would be one thing but this idea is so sickening because it wasn't something Nine, Ten, or Eleven ever did, and yet it is Twelve's opening move. And he does it a lot. Which is really quite appalling. Twelve's "I wish you hadn't been a soldier" line rang false to me. I know it was meant to set up a barrier between him and Danny Pink but what did he think Captain Jack was (or Leela for that matter)? Warriors aboard the TARDIS are NOT unprecedented. I also kind of like that Clara always seems to be unintentionally offending Danny. She thinks she's dealing with the Doctor but the level of snark she is used to spewing would devastate a normal person and she is quite alarmed to realize that. Her casual cruelty to Danny REALY makes the Doctor's casual cruelty to her seem much less horrible. She can dish it out but she can't take it. MUCH better episode the second time around. ****.
Robot Of Sherwood:
That was fun. What I found most interesting is how the episode took great pains to separate Twelve from Ten and Eleven. Ten and Eleven would have been delighted to meet Robin Hood and rolled with it no matter the truth. But Twelve seems personally offended that Robin is a mystery he can't figure out. He takes hair and blood samples and is a genuine nuisance about the subject. It's both endearing and super off-putting. I loved Robin commenting that Twelve looks old and sickly and Twelve telling Robin that it was a good thing Clara didn't witness the key fiasco. I also loved the Doctor bragging to Clara that he'd win in a contest with Robin about who would die last. And of course Clara is the criminal mastermind. She was the only one with power in that conversation so it seemed obvious. Twelve is a dullard if that surprised him. I also really liked the Sheriff pointing out that the Doctor's theory about creating a hero to give hope to the people made no sense. Do you know why I like that? Because that nonsense is EXACTLY the kind of twaddle Russell T Davies and Steven Moffat infamously traffic in. It seemed to be a mea culpa from the show saying "Sometimes we don't do a great job at trying to rationally explain stuff." The multiple arrow splitting gag is classic Doctor Who (as is the spoon duel), at least as far as the relaunch goes. It's ludicrous and awesome and totally the last thing you expect. Best of this show. ***1/2.
Listen:
What an amazing ending. Lots to discuss. Two great reveals here. The man in the spacesuit taking off his helmet and being a future descendant of Danny Pink was one of the most unexpected pleasurable shocks Moffat has ever given us. I bet nobody saw that coming. I also was shocked at the reveal of One as a kid in a barn on Gallifrey. We really don't get too many peeks at One outside of the three years he was on the original series so this was one flashback I appreciated. It also revealed why the War Doctor went to the barn in the first place in "The Day Of The Doctor". I also loved how absolutely offended Clara kept making Danny on their date. When she got offended right back I rolled my eyes because everything he said about her was true. I loved Clara turning the Doctor's "Do as I say" right back on him at the end. The Doctor had some funny moments too. First stealing the coffee after head-screwing with the guard for a minute. Then learning that Wally isn't actually in every book. Then being indignant that after he saves Rupert's life the kid is still complaining about the creature taking his bedspread. Theory: Danny Pink isn't really dead, merely Rorying. How else to explain Orson Pink? Because I'm PRETTY sure after that he became a fixed point in Clara's timestream. The visit to Gallifrey kind of cemented that. If he IS truly dead I'm going to call b.s. on Moffat for doing this episode in the first place. But because of this episode I don't think he is. This episode was excellent and the first great one of the Capaldi era. ****1/2.
Time Heist:
A mess. The logic of this instantly falls apart with even the slightest examination which is a common complaint for the Moffat era. The mind wipe at the beginning makes no sense whatsoever. Yes, it is a good hook and makes things dire and exciting right off the bat, but there is no good explanation behind it. What is the first thing you should have for a bank heist? Preparation. You should have the plan down pat. I might, MIGHT have bought the excuse that they had to wipe their minds to hide their guilt, if it weren't for the fact that they used the worms in the middle of a locked vault! How did they manage to get that far in the bank without triggering the guilt sensors? And would it have truly been more bother to keep their memories so they could efficiently do their mission? Because their non-guilt didn't seem to help. Because they knew they were robbing a bank. Wouldn't they feel LESS guilty if they were aware they were trying to free an enslaved creature rather than break the law? Not to mention wouldn't the other creature have refused to hurt them if he knew that was what they were doing? Moffat gets a LOT of smack talked about him for his episodes falling apart even if you pull even the tiniest of threads and that is absolutely true. He is better than Russell T Davies but that is no high compliment. Besides, Twelve was the wrong Doctor to do a heist episode with. The Doctor doing it should have been able to ENJOY the adventure. Do you know what would have rocked an Ocean's Eleven episode? Eleven! Matt Smith would have had an absolute blast and the tone would be light and fun instead of inexplicably dark. Twelve is having no fun and neither am I. Twelve does better in dark episodes, Eleven in fun ones. This is a big part of the reason David Tennant was so popular and frankly irreplaceable. He is pretty much the only Doctor I can think of who was equally adept at screwball comedy and high drama. You could do ANY kind of episode with Ten which is NOT true for Eleven and Twelve. Was there anything I liked? I liked Twelve admitting that he was now embarrassed by the bow tie but conceding that his own costume wasn't so hot: "I was going for minimalist but I think it comes across more as magician.." I also think that Jenna Coleman does NOT get enough credit as an actress. Yes, Clara is annoying as far as Companions go, but Coleman is legitimately skilled in acting. She is able to convey being terrified with simply a look or a widening of her eyes. She doesn't need to scream her head off to show when she's in trouble. I'd be inclined to write this off as typical actor stuff but Billie Piper didn't have this. Karen Gillan didn't have this. Both Catherine Tate and Freema Agyeman had this a LITTLE but not to this extent. She's good. For real. *.
The Caretaker:
Well, now we know Capaldi can do comedy. But it is only a very specific type comedy. The only time Twelve is funny is when he is being horrible. The funny part comes from people's appalled reactions. The joke where the Doctor believes a proper disguise against Clara involves wearing a different coat was hilarious. I also like how at one point Clara tells the Doctor she IS his teacher and he doesn't argue the point. I cannot tell if it is lovable that Twelve thinks he and Clara look the same age or very offensive. "Last Christmas" hinted it was the former. When Clara was asking Danny at the end of the episode what he thought of the Doctor, I truly believe it was because for the first time she had misgivings about him herself. She wasn't trying to convince Danny of anything. She was trying to convince herself. I think Danny Pink's insightfulness about other people borders on the supernatural. When he immediately called the Time Lords an aristocracy simply based on the name I applauded. Do you know the effed up thing? He was right! That is PRECISELY how the Time Lords have always been portrayed in canon, and he nails them simply because he is smart enough to realize that any species that names themselves "Time Lords" is probably overly full of themselves. They don't call themselves Gallifreyans. They are Time Lords. Which is the mark of a VERY narcissistic species. I also love that Danny isn't going to sit there and let the Doctor belittle him for being a soldier when the Doctor is clearly an officer. They are in the same business. The difference is that the Doctor gets OTHER people to do his dirty work. He is also smart enough to realize the Doctor is only pretending to be so casual about the destruction of the school because he knew he was there and was only testing him. And is brutal enough to point out how hurtful it was for Clara to sit there and talk about how amazing and filled with wonder her adventures were when she kept that secret from him. It's a good point and I think it's interesting that someone felt betrayed for someone keeping something GOOD about themselves from them. For her part Clara's behavior was borderline appalling. They tried to play her "We're rehearsing for a play" bit for laughs, but in reality it was quite insulting! Honestly, Danny should have broken up with her then and there just for that. She obviously doesn't think very much of him. I found it very interesting that the Doctor felt equally betrayed. She wasn't just keeping the Doctor from Danny, she was keeping Danny from him and the Doctor totally called her on it. I would have found the Doctor's relationship with Courtney cute if the next episode hadn't revealed he destroyed her. Because Courtney puking in the TARDIS says something interesting. A person can be brave, and rebellious, and clever, and STILL not be cut out for the Companion thing. I REALLY wish "Kill The Moon" never happened. Because that was a perfect lesson as it was. Am I the only one who thought the alien was shaped like Mojo from X-Men? I also thought it was funny that Twelve thought the nerd in the bow-tie was Clara's boyfriend because he thought she was still fangirling Eleven. Clara is not the ONLY egomaniac in their relationship. I also loved him humiliating her about Jane Austen. And River even got a mention! Clara is starting to have doubts, and frankly so am I. Twelve is a problematic Doctor at best. Moffat seems to believe that the Doctor is the kind of character who can get away with anything, and Twelve pretty much proves on a weekly basis that he can't. ***1/2.
Kill The Moon:
Normally an episode with this underwhelming a plot, premise, and low level of excitement would be worth a grade of a star and a half, but what happened AFTER the adventure is worth two extra stars. When Jenna Coleman tells Peter Capaldi she is going to slap him so hard he is going to regenerate, I sat back a little from my TV screen. Coleman is good. For real. It was SOOOOO refreshing to hear a Companion call out the Doctor on his b.s. To be absolutely fair to every other Doctor before Twelve, this is the very worst thing a Doctor has intentionally done to a Companion. I'm not counting Six trying to kill Peri because he wasn't in his right mind, but what the Doctor just did was SO out of line, you kind of realize that the times Ten or Eleven have pulled similar (if less worse) stunts that they deserved a similar shellacking from Rose and Amy. Instead those saps would be grateful for the "lesson" and meekly decide Doctor Knows Best. What the Doctor did was cruel and intentionally cruel at that. He thought he could impress people by showing off without considering the very real consequences to how much it would hurt the person who trusted him most. It was patronizing. And condescending. And petty. And a way for the Doctor to prove to everybody how absolutely smugly superior he was. The interesting thing to me is that the Doctor IS right on some level. There are certain things in Earth's history he's not interfered with, and that has almost certainly been true for all previous Doctors (although I'm not sure if the War Doctor actually interacted with Earth much). He's never killed Hitler. And it seems VERY unlikely that Hitler's entire lifespan is a fixed point in time. Jack Harkness is the ONLY person that is true of. So, yeah, a LOT of times the Doctor says "None of my business." But do you know why Eleven never would have done that to Clara? Because he would cared. He would have offered his advice, his opinion, and his moral support. Because Eleven was a good person. Heck that's EXACTLY what he did in "The Hungry Earth" / "Cold Blood". Twelve is a bonafide turd (even if he does keep a yo-yo with him at all times, which is quite lovable). And I threw up my hands at the idea that he told Courtney she wasn't special. Granted, THAT one he rehabilitated himself from slightly by making her the first woman to walk on the moon, and putting her on the path to be Earth's President, but still, he sucks. And he tells the astronauts to shoot Courtney first. Sure, it's an ironic bluff and he's trying to shame them but it is still really disturbing. His amusement and excitement to the moon being an egg was funny though. I also like that the entire conflict seems to be a metaphor for a woman's right to choose. It was still a riveting episode (at least for the last five minutes). ***1/2.
Mummy On The Orient Express:
Are you my mummy? I think Clara saying that she "couldn't do this anymore. Not like this" pretty much confirmed that it was the regeneration that turned her off the Doctor. I think her saying that was VERY respectful to Eleven, to be honest. Because Eleven NEVER would have done many of the horrible things Twelve has done, and I think it was good that Clara not only recognized that, but made Twelve aware of that fact too. I loved the Doctor's banter with Perkins. Perkins was so keen he even got an offer to be made a Companion. I also laughed at the jokes of the Doctor carrying jelly babies in a cigarette case and the psychic paper reading him as a mystery visitor. Even HE thought that was a bit ridiculous. But to be perfectly honest, even if this episode held my interest, I didn't really enjoy it, which sums up my relationship to the Twelfth Doctor. He's interesting and magnetic, but he isn't actually somebody I want to spend time with. *.
Flatline:
This one sucked too (I am super angry that buttmunch survived) but so as not to be a downer I'll point out all of the things I liked. The tiny TARDIS was a great visual gimmick and they got some great sight gags from it (like the Doctor using his hand like Thing from Addam's Family). Clara was right. The tiny TARDIS was adorable. I also thought it was funny how annoyed Twelve was that Clara was impersonating him and her commenting that he probably only called himself the Doctor to sound important. It's also interesting that it's not only geniuses like Shakespeare who can beat the psychic paper, but idiots with a lack of imagination can too. I loved Danny calling at the worst possible time, even if the hanging bubble chair seem too convenient for its own good. I wish they had used the idea that the monsters truly didn't mean any harm, as that would have made the scenario more interesting than if they were simply monsters. I wish the episode was more enjoyable. Still, the TARDIS in siege mode was a first. I believe that was the first time we've ever seen a bare TARDIS with the Chameleon Circuit off (it looks like a Borg Cube). They can weasel out of this in the future but that is what it seemed like to me. *.
In The Forest Of The Night:
I still don't exactly like this episode (that whiny girl is still beyond obnoxious) but it is definitely more interesting upon a second viewing. I just realized the significance of the Doctor saying "This is my world too. I walk the Earth. I breathe the air," just from binge-watching the season. And Danny Pink is amazing. He is a grounding influence to the show that it literally never had before. The Doctor's relationship with Maebh was interesting although his take on medications reminded me of a Scientologist. And I love that modern kids are thoroughly unimpressed with the TARDIS. That's sad but probably true. I also liked the Doctor's insight that the human race's superpower is forgetting things. It's why we still make war and have babies. That's kind of deep. **.
Dark Water:
That was still fabulous but I'm knocking off half a star from my initial grade because I know the conclusion sucks. First off: Clara and the keys. That would literally be the worst thing a Companion has ever done if we hadn't once witnessed Captain Jack Harkness murder his own grandson in front of his daughter. This is easily second place. I am VERY surprised (pleasantly so) that Twelve believed the betrayal didn't actually change anything. I can see Eleven seeing things that way, but I know Nine would have parted ways with her then and there, and Ten might have too. It was the most profound betrayal I can think of. I have NEVER heard of the Doctor entrusting so many secrets with a Companion before (River Song excepted) and Clara completely used the trust she engendered against him. To be fair to Clara, if what she did was nuts, I can kind of see Twelve has been slowly driving her so all season. I'm not surprised she snapped. Overkill, of course, but that's what was so shocking about her meltdown. Second good thing: Moffat retconning Davies' boneheaded decision that there was no afterlife in the Whoniverse. Davies may think he's being deep and edgy but in reality he's boxing in the storytelling and deciding something for a entire franchise he has no business deciding. It was the level of hubris of the producers of the Paul McGann TV movie to suddenly state the Doctor was half-human. It shouldn't be up to him. I liked the idea that it wasn't actually an afterlife. It was just more life than you were expecting. That's deep too. Missy being the Master: it's a good twist but I kind of don't love it anymore. Don't get me wrong, I don't have a problem with the Master changing genders. What I have a problem with is the Master being crazy as an on-going character trait. That was the single best thing about John Simm, and if they are going to decide simply that every Master from now is now nuts they are really disrespecting the freshness Simm brought to the role. All complaints aside, this was still an excellent episode. Doctor Who is back. ****1/2.
Death In Heaven:
Worse upon a rewatch. Yeah, this is pretty indefensible. Why on EARTH would Moffat kill off a perfectly good character like Osgood ("Bow ties are cool!") for no reason whatsoever? Yes, her scene with Missy was amazing but she didn't need to actually die for it to be that way. Melissa Gomez was pretty great though. "Happy Birthday Mr. President." Bananas. I am incredibly angered that they gave the Brig that undignified an ending (even if the moment where the Doctor finally saluted him was nice). I really hate the idea that he murdered Missy like that. The Doctor should have been the one to do it. Danny was right. The Doctor always gets to keep his hands clean and that was the one moment that shouldn't have happened. And frankly, the Cybermen thing also effs up all of the characters who died on Torchwood. Because I'm pretty sure this means Tosh, Ianto, and Esther are all Cybermen now. Ugh. And I'd be remiss to point out that these Cybermen are a HUGE step down from Nightmare In Silver. Neil Gainman ruined the Cybermen for all other writers. I liked the Doctor being made President of Earth precisely because he threw it in the Master's face. The human race gave the Doctor willingly what the Master had been trying and failing for decades to take by force. That's tight. The AI fanboying the Doctor before Missy killed him was great too. Squee! I'm not sure HOW they can bring Danny back but I'm pretty sure they will (probably in Jenna Coleman's last episode). How does Clara know about Jenny and the Doctor's family history? Even the audience didn't know some of that stuff (married four times?). I love that they revamped the main titles for one episode for Jenna Coleman's sake. THAT was a Doctor Who first. But still, this was a huge let-down and even more-so the second time. *1/2.
Earth Conquest - The World Tour:
The Doctor Who fan art / animation / short films are amazing. That comedian trying to stuff the cat into the duffle bag was adorable. What a cute kitty. I like that Steven Moffat is a rock star in Mexico. I found it funny how after Jenna Coleman gave a really insightful answer to what Doctor Who means to people Capaldi said "That's really nice. And it sounds rehearsed. Have you been telling people this on the tour before?" I almost died at that. ***1/2.
Tour Of The TARDIS:
Needs more round things. ****.
Doctor Who Exclusive:
Four promotional featurettes. Overall: ***.
Casting Peter: Do you know what would have been nice? Getting an interview with Capaldi about this! **1/2.
Writing The New Season: Moffat tells us that the actor is usually most responsible for the new tone of each Doctor after a regeneration. ****.
What Is Doctor Who?: Talking about regeneration. ****.
Why Watch Series 8?: I don't know if they are tip-toeing around spoilers or what, but most of what Capaldi and Coleman say here is incomprehensible to me. **1/2.
Doctor Who Live Pre-Show:
Two things: I don't know why Wil Wheaton is here or why my Blu-Ray actually contains the Intruders commercial from the TV broadcast. DVD's are there to get RID of commercials. ***1/2.
Doctor Who After Who Live:
I liked Chris Hardiwck taking a gratuitous slam at Wesley Crusher and Wheaton doing the same thing to Phantom Menace. Wheaton's theories about the Twelfth Doctor and the Clockwork droids were very insightful and interesting although his guess that Danny Pink was in UNIT was way off. Hardwick correctly guessed Missy was the Master and I like Dan Starkey describing Strax as well-intentioned. That sums him up for me and why I like him. Wheaton got the best insight in pointing out "skin balloons" would make a terrible hashtag. Seriously, Hardwick? You didn't see that? ****.
London - Post-Premiere Q&A:
This had Capaldi, Coleman, AND Moffat, and pretty much destroyed the Nerdist. Do you know what the worst thing is? The host is SUCH an incredible airhead. Capaldi had a look on his face more than once that said "Can you believe this chick?" It's like both aftershows COULD have been great if they had been merged. I would have loved it if it had been Hardwick asking the questions of the big guns instead of being stuck with Mark Gatiss and Dan Starkey. I LOVED Capaldi getting a bit huffy when telling her that any conversations he had with Matt Smith and David Tennant were private and he wouldn't be discussing them. That's fabulous. I also love that Capaldi didn't just go over the moon about the first four Doctors (which he did) but he also acknowledged David Tennant, Matt Smith, Christopher Eccelston, and Russell T Davies for bringing back the franchise in the first place, and saying that he sort of got in while the show was cresting in popularity, and that they did all the hard work. That was cool. But this could have been MUCH better with a Nerdist at the helm. ***.
The Ultimate Time Lord:
Peter Davison is even balder here than he was in "Time Crash". Of course the best part was him sitting down with Colin Baker, Sylvester McCoy, and Pail McGann. Two things immediately struck me: I don't seem to see Paul McGann in very many interviews. He did a commentary for the movie but that's pretty much ALL of I've seen him do on these releases. He didn't even sit down for The Doctors Revisited. I liked hearing Davison and Nicholas Briggs talk a bit about the Doctor's psychology. It was great seeing Davison in the original TARDIS replica too. Steven Moffat had some good insights too. Like how genius regeneration is. If they had simply decided to put another guy in a Hartnell wig and try to pass him off as Hartnell the series would probably only have lasted as long as the replacement did. But by making it a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde situation it can go on indefinitely. I also like that he noted the Doctor is someone who will jump out a window and figure out how to get out of it on the way down. And if he has a sandwich in his hand, he'll eat that before he hits the ground. And I love Davison telling us Moffat probably only cast Capaldi because he couldn't resist the idea of making one single person that happy. That's tight. As for Capaldi, he notes Twelve isn't "User friendly" (boy howdy) and points out something else that I missed but is true. This particular Doctor has to do a bit of work in his head to connect his mind to his intellect ("Do you know how to fly this thing?"). He's not stupid, but compared to the other Doctors, he is. He is not able to access his intelligence as easily as someone like the Tenth Doctor was able to. Which is probably why he's so Asperger's. ****.
The Ultimate Companion:
Great to see Peter Davison reunited with first Sarah Sutton and Susan Fielding, and then Nicola Bryant. They are all right that since the relaunch the Companion has sort of turned into the main character. John Barrowman flirting with Davison was fun too. David Tennant's beard looks fugly. His hair is too dark for his face. Steven Moffat pointed out something about Clara that I hadn't realized until Twelve called her an egomaniac in "Deep Breath": Clara had Eleven wrapped around her finger. He followed her like a puppy dog, and she called the shots in their personal relationship, and Twelve makes her so uncomfortable because his behavior is out of her control, and it REALLY makes her nervous. When she was with Matt Smith she didn't actually SEEM overly bossy. But once you see her with Peter Capaldi you realize she totally was. ****.
Behind The Scenes:
These Extras are like the Doctor Who Confidentials, but 11 minutes instead of an hour. Overall: ****.
Episode 1 - Deep Breath: For a minimalist outfit, NOBODY beats the Ninth Doctor. Yeah, there is NOTHING flashy about Twelve's duds, but they still look out of place on 21st Century Earth. He can definitely blend into the 17 and 1800's better, but he'd get a few stares nowadays. ****.
Episode 2 - Into The Dalek: I love that Moffat originally gave this idea to the videogame before telling them to forget it because he was saving it for the actual show! I would think stars should be a little more careful with the props. Yes, they can fix it with CGI but that stuff is expensive and better used elsewhere. I really hate that this episode kept saying Danny Pink was a ladykiller. Because there was nothing in this episode or any that followed that hinted that was remotely true. Danny seems to be AWKWARD around Clara and is pretty much the furthest thing from a playa ever. I wonder whose bright idea that was. ***1/2.
Episode 3 - Robot Of Sherwood: I cannot believe they actually lucked out with unusually sunny weather in Britain. I had thought that had to have been an effect. I was also impressed to learned the arrow splitting trick was done practically too. It looked great. And only upon seeing the clip of "The Shakespeare Code" do I realize the continuity with Queen Elizabeth in that episode actually holds together decently with "The Day Of The Doctor". I hadn't realized that before. ****.
Episode 4 - Listen: Samuel Anderson has Tom Jones hair. He practices kissing on his hand. He calls it his sock puppet of love. I love that this gave us a brief overview of the very few glimpses of the life of the Doctor we've seen or heard about before the series began. "Listen" was a huge deal. ****1/2.
Episode 5 - Time Heist: I like that Capaldi doesn't like to be spoiled about what's coming because he's afraid it would effect how he played the character. It was funny when the cook said she served the crew memory worms for breakfast. And while Madame Kovorian IS probably the best Doctor Who villainess, they forgot a biggie: Miss Hartigan from "The Next Doctor". She was amazing and still gives me chills. Mrs. Wormwood from The Sarah Jane Adventures is also great but obviously doesn't count because she's not a Who villain. ****.
Episode 6 - The Caretaker: Moffat notes that the Doctor always shows off to women and insults men. I don't think that was always true on The Original Series, but the relaunch? All of 'em did it. All of 'em. That was Nine's opening move, in fact. We see Jimmy Vee out of make-out here. He's a lot older than I thought. I love how "The Day Of The Doctor" essentially said that the Doctor never resigned from UNIT and was still on the payroll! I have no idea why Russell T Davies never did that with Ten. It would have been SO much fun. The creature was a lot more impressive in the actual episode than it was in the featurette. Maybe because it wasn't well-lit there. ****.
Episode 7 - Kill The Moon: Cool that Tony Osobo was on the Original Series twice. Hermione Norris describing her character as an older middle-aged woman was interesting because that is not something I'd usually hear an actress her age says about herself, especially since she's still attractive. Julia Roberts would like everyone to believe she's still 25. I like Capaldi quipping that the only bad thing about using the spacesuits after David Tennant is that there is hair gel in the helmet. I'm a little disappointed the doc didn't discuss Clara and Twelve's blow-up. That was pretty much the center-piece of the entire episode and the Extra acted like the episode ended with things hunky dory. ***.
Episode 8 - Mummy On The Orient Express: Frank Skinner was absolutely right that Perkins was the second smartest person on the train after the Doctor. That's probably why he got an ultra-rare Companion offer. I also laughed at the idea that the guy in the Mummy suit would absent-mindedly try to converse with people on the set while completely forgetting what he looked like and how much he scared them. ***1/2.
Episode 9 - Flatline: Even if Steven Moffat's skills as a showrunner are up for debate, there is no denying it: the man's insights about the character of the Doctor are scary-accurate. His take on the philosophy of the character and the franchise is SO on the nose that I imagine Russell T Davies is seething in envy every time he watches one of these interviews. Moffat is exactly the kind of dedicated Who fan that Davies liked to think he was, but actually wasn't. He had two great insights here: that usually the walls are the things that protect you in Doctor Who, and for this episode they were where the villains resided. And that while the Doctor calls himself the Doctor because he believes he's making people better, by the end of the episode he believes he's making Clara worse. He's not wrong. Boy isn't he ever. The special effects were amazing this episode. I like that the featurette pointed out that Eleven was an art-lover. It was never explicitly stated during Matt Smith's tenure, but there are always arty things going on in the background with Eleven that aren't usually present for other Doctors (save possibly Seven in the TV movie). ****.
Episode 10 - In The Forest Of The Night: When Capaldi is talking about the kids' "crazy hairstyles" I was like "Wow, this guy really IS an older Doctor". Seeing this made me realize why I disliked the episode so much. Nothing actually happens during it. The so-called villain turns out to be on our side and their original plan even occurs. The episode sucks because the Doctor didn't even need to be there at all. ***1/2.
Episode 11 - Dark Water: Another great Moffat quote, this time about Missy: "She's funny, but never at the expense of the scary." I rolled my eyes at Samuel Anderson bemoaning that he didn't actually think people died in Doctor Who. Have you ever actually SEEN this show, Sam? ****.
Episode 12 - Death In Heaven: Storytelling FAIL, Moffat. Killing off Osgood didn't make me think the Master was any more evil. It didn't make me hate her any more either. It just made me annoyed with Moffat. He just killed off a perfectly loveable character to give another character unneeded credibility. That's a genre show cliche. If he truly had faith in Melissa Gomez, he wouldn't have had to try so hard to make the audience hate her. I liked getting a brief history of all of the Masters though. And the Brig twist is even more reprehensible the more you think about it. Moffat DOES realize he just made Amy and Rory Cybermen since they died on Earth, doesn't he? I truly don't think he thought of that. Moffat's biggest weakness as a writer (which is sadly a fault he shares with Russell T Davies) is that he never thinks out his "Big Ideas" to their awful conclusion. Unlike Davies, he has some redeeming qualities. But I wish this sort of sloppy writing would have vanished when Davies did. ***.
Foxes: Don't Stop Me Now:
I believe this is the first Doctor Who music video (at least of the relaunch). It is mediocre. **1/2.
Doctor Who: The Complete Matt Smith Years Trailer: I love me some Eleven. ****.
Blu-Ray Menus: They didn't put in ANY effort into these. **1/2.
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Date: 2015-02-09 04:33 am (UTC)The Flash "Revenge Of The Rogues" - I'm glad we got to see Cold again, but Heatwave really shone here. He's the fiery emotional one to Snart's cold and calculating. I loved it! Wasn't a fan of Barry moving back in. Sure, the moment was sweet, but it didn't feel like a positive to me.
Arrow "Left Behind" - I know, right? I swear, Thea knows Oliver is the Arrow and just doesn't want to tell him. I'm glad Merlyn is back in a big way, and I haven't disliked Laurel in a while.
Gotham "Welcome Back, Jim Gordon" - I'm betting half the mobsters live with their mothers and the other half have dead mothers they consider saints. I'm surprised they got rid of Flass so soon, figured he'd be a more prominent thorn in Jim and Bullock's side. He could come back. Ivy is gross, but I want to see more of her.
Constantine "Quid Pro Quo" - Did we not talk about Jim Corrigan's appearance earlier? Anyway, I enjoyed seeing Faust, even if he is a bit older here (I hope he somehow comes back). You're right about Chas and what this episode did for him, and I was also surprised he had a finite number of lives.
Marvel's Hulk And The Agents Of S.M.A.S.H. "Homecoming" - Abomination isn't as impressive as he once was, but I agree about Hulk and Red Hulk. I still kind of wish this Red Hulk actually felt like he was once General Ross.
Star Wars Rebels "Idiot's Array" - A lot of fun! How weird is it Billy Dee Williams got to voice Lando both here and in the Lego Movie in such a short amount of time?
Galavant "Death After Brunch" - There better be more flashbacks to Galavant's dad! Of all the guest stars they were promoting, I didn't realize he'd be on the show. I enjoyed the jokes about do nothing monarchs too.
Galavant "It's All In The Executions" - So many mixed feelings about it ending with a "To Be Continued", but two thirds of the way through the episode, I knew they couldn't wrap things up. I liked Gal and Richard palling around, and it's interesting they point out Richard never forced Madalena to have relations, but still...he's killed people. Like, a lot. A lot of innocents. I dunno...
The Simpsons "The Musk Who Fell To Earth" - "Squawky" is just as good as Stampy as far as names go. One of the better guest star episodes, lots of good gags.
Grimm "Tribunal" - With having Bud woge (and yes, it always has to be Bud to be the starter Wesen) and all the screentime they were giving him, I was afraid they'd kill him off. I knew Monroe was safe, but maybe not Bud. I was on the edge of my seat all episode, and that fight at the end was the most intense thing Grimm has ever done, topping the zombie riot. Most of the cast actually killed their opponents! No holding back! Four seasons and NBC still doesn't know how to promote this show. There really is no believable way to make it seem like Nick would kill Juliette just because of her transformation. His best friends are Wesen, a Hexenbiest shouldn't matter.
no subject
Date: 2015-02-09 04:49 am (UTC)The Flash "Revenge Of The Rogues" - Not everything that happens in Barry's moment will be a step forward. I'll take the sweet moments where I can get them.
Arrow "Left Behind" - I've never like Laurel and never will. Nothing will change that. Ever.
Gotham "Welcome Back, Jim Gordon" - You are probably right about the mobsters and their mothers. Because in any other scenario Penguin would have gotten grief for it.
Constantine "Quid Pro Quo" - Who is Jim Corrigan?
Marvel's Hulk And The Agents Of S.M.A.S.H. "Homecoming" -General Ross is such an irredeemably nasty character that I like that there is no trace of him in Red Hulk anymore. Maybe Rulk was like that once but he's evolved. That's good.
Star Wars Rebels "Idiot's Array" - He needs to be in Episode VII.
Galavant "It's All In The Executions" - I think the joke with Richard is that he doesn't understand exactly how horrible murder is. It has simply always been how kings got things done and he is very surprised that he isn't loved for it. He's a puppy dog compared to the Lannisters.
The Simpsons "The Musk Who Fell To Earth" - You are right about Squawky.
Grimm "Tribunal" - I was worried for Bud too but I took comfort in realizing that I'd never forgive the show if they killed him off. And I'm betting most fans feel that way too. And I am also betting the writers are fully aware of that fact. Bud is safe no matter what. There would be riots if he wasn't. And NBC is pathetic.
no subject
Date: 2015-02-13 05:50 am (UTC)Constantine "Quid Pro Quo" - He is the original human host of the Spectre. Before that, he was a cop, and we saw Jim Corrigan in the...3rd or 4th...episode of Constantine. Zed had a vision of him with this green aura around him, hinting at his future.
Marvel's Hulk And The Agents Of S.M.A.S.H. "Homecoming" - It works for this show, sure.
Galavant "It's All In The Executions" - He sure acts like it. But that poor, Chef.
Grimm "Tribunal" - That's true, and this show is actually pretty optimistic in that it probably won't kill a good guy if they are a recurring character. Bud not being a main character, though, means he may not be as safe as Wu but is probably safer than Trubel or Josh. At least to me, I probably don't need to worry as much.
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Date: 2015-02-13 07:32 am (UTC)Grimm: Trubel and Josh will be the characters they kill off if they ever do. So far the series has resisted the urge. But they will be the first ones to go.
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Date: 2015-02-20 06:01 am (UTC)Grimm: Agreed. They were easy enough to write off, they could come back and kill one of them off (or have one already be dead) if they wanted to show something REALLY huge coming for Grimms.
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Date: 2015-02-20 06:09 am (UTC)Grimm: It will be Josh. Bank on it.
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Date: 2015-02-24 05:24 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-02-24 08:29 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-03-04 05:18 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-03-04 06:18 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-02-09 04:33 am (UTC)Family Guy "This Little Piggy" - Wasn't Meg wearing open toed shoes when that guy approached her? That plot didn't do anything for me, really, I kept thinking "King of the Hill Did It!" And yes, the time stamp meant the ick. The Brian and Stewie plot didn't interest me at all. Thanks for the Biggs info, I didn't make the connection.
Parks And Recreation "William Henry Harrson" - This episode was so funny! I loved everything about the museum. You're right about Andy, it's why he's such a great influence on April.
Parks And Recreation "Leslie & Ron" - It makes sense that it was Leslie's fault and that it was April. Morningstar was just an excuse. Leslie and Ron have great interactions, and there was so much funny here. And now they're back as a team!
12 Monkeys "Splinter" - The promos had me interested. Hmm. Maybe I'll check it out at some point. Maybe.
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Date: 2015-02-09 04:57 am (UTC)Family Guy "This Little Piggy" - You were right about Meg. King of the Hill's foot fetish episode sucked badly even for that show. I cannot rewatch it. Hearing Peggy compare herself to Rosa Parks for doing foot porn is something that I had to get up and walk away from my TV from because I was so disgusted. I do not know why KOTH made the choices with her character they did. The writers are to blame for coming up with a line that awful. Any time I see Biggs slammed is good. He is NOT too good for the Turtles franchise.
Parks And Recreation "Leslie & Ron" - Having it be April was perfect. And I kind of hated Leslie for it too.
12 Monkeys "Splinter" - It's good and the Pilot is great. But there are a TON of great genre shows on now. You need to catch up with Doctor Who first! :P
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Date: 2015-02-13 05:54 am (UTC)Family Guy "This Little Piggy" - Neither plot was all that good, I don't get why these adult animated programs think there is story potential there.
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Date: 2015-02-13 07:36 am (UTC)Family Guy: It is a chance to humiliate their female characters. And misogynists like Seth and Mike Judge feel the need to do that every chance they can get.
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Date: 2015-02-20 06:05 am (UTC)Family Guy: ::shudders::
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Date: 2015-02-20 06:11 am (UTC)