TV

The Good Life
2x01 Just My Bill

Shetland
Part 1 (of 2)
Part 2 (of 2)
Adaptation of Ann Cleeves' novel Red Bones. Thought it was very good, very Scandi / Nordic Noir. There are three other novels so I hope they make more.
[Watch parts one and two (again) in HD on iPlayer.]

Comics

2000 AD #1789-1791

Featuring...

• Judge Dredd The Days After, by John Wagner & Henry Flint
• Judge Dredd The Bean Counter, by Al Ewing & Nick Dyer
• Judge Dredd The Rich Cabaret, by Al Ewing & Andrew Currie
• Durham Red The 'Nobody Wants This Job' Job, Parts 5-6, by Alan Grant & Carlos Ezquerra
• Tharg's 3rillers Present 1947, Parts One - Three, by Kek-W & Michael Dowling
• The Grievous Journey of Ichabod Azrael Manhunt, Parts One - Three, by Rob Williams & Dom Reardon
• Nikolai Dante Sympathy for the Devil, Parts 4-6, by Robbie Morrison & Simon Fraser
• Future Shocks Other People's Machines, by David Baillie & Mark Simmons

The longest Dredd epic ever (so I'm told) comes to an end here, setting up a different status quo for 2000 AD's biggest character. Al Ewing's run gets off to a good start, particularly in the intriguing Rich Cabaret, which comes with great art from Andrew Currie.

1947 is a solid self-contained little story, much better than another lacklustre Future Shock from writer David Baillie. Ichabod Azrael -- or, to give it its full title, The Grievous Journey of Ichabod Azrael (and the Dead Left in His Wake) -- is a funny one, where I feel I may've preferred the original series (handily summarised by Tharg in his intro that Prog, thank goodness).

And Nikolai Dante comes to its final conclusion, with an open-ended finale that I don't imagine pleased everybody. I ought to go look up some reaction really…

Next Prog: all part ones (bar Ichabod). Neat.

Collection Count

Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.

You may remember (but probably won't) that back in September I decided to have a rethink about what I count as a film for the purposes of this tally, dropping the total by 79 as I (at least temporarily) removed concert films and the like. Well, after six months or not really coming to any other conclusion, I've begun to reinstate at least some of them -- hence the huge jump below. I'm still not entirely happy with it, but I don't fancy a fourth count (alongside films, TV episodes and shorts), so other than not counting them at all (which, when some run well over two hours, doesn't seem right), they go back. Most return to the Films column, but a couple go in Shorts or TV episodes depending on their length or content. The total added back was 50. I know I allowed one or two things to slide by with nothing counted, but where all 29 others have gone, God only knows...

Anyway, stuff I actually added this week includes the already-hard-to-come-by limited edition of The Man Who Wasn't There, '90s TV 'hoax' Ghostwatch, and the newly-released fan-produced documentary, Ghostwatch: Behind the Curtains. All DVDs! What is the world coming to...

Number of titles in collection: 1,544 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,157 [up 3]
Of which Blu-rays: 387 [no change]

Number of discs in collection: 3,870 [up 3]
Number of films in collection: 1,663 [up 45]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 5,737 [up 5]
Number of short films in collection: 377 [up 3]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Anna & Katy
1x02 Episode 2
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]

Comic Relief 2013
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Films

The Raven (2012)
[#30 in 100 Films in a Year 2013]

Comics

2000 AD #1786-1788

Featuring...

• Judge Dredd Day of Chaos: Wot I Did During the Worst Dissaster in Mega-City History & Chaos Day, Parts One - Two by John Wagner & Henry Flint
• Durham Red The 'Nobody Wants This Job' Job, Parts 2-4 by Alan Grant & Carlos Ezquerra
• Grey Area One of Our Own, Parts 2-4 by Dan Abnett & Lee Carter
• Nikolai Dante Sympathy for the Devil, Parts 1-3 by Robbie Morrison & Simon Fraser
• Future Shocks A Guide for Prisoners Arriving from the Year 2149 by David Baillie & Warren Pleece
• Future Shocks Silent Running by David Baillie & Anthony Williams
• Future Shocks Downloan by David Baillie & Nick Dyer

PJ Maybe vs the Dark Judges? Great. The two-part Chaos Day feels inaptly named, though -- after all the build-up and disaster, not much occurs on the day itself. Grey Area substitutes endlessly re-explaining its own premise with a predictable 'twist' ending. It remains promising at least. I didn't like -- or really get -- any of the Future Shocks. Shame.

Articles

Joss Whedon On Kickstarter And Firefly: "It Doesn't Just Open The Floodgates."
by Adam B. Vary (from BuzzFeed)

After the phenomenal success of the Veronica Mars Kickstarter (that link is a good in-depth article about it, by-the-by; also this), naturally fans have begun to ask, "what's next?" And it'll come as no surprise to anyone that top of the most-asked list is some kind of continuation for Firefly/Serenity. Realising that if he didn't answer the question he'd be asked non-stop, here Whedon reveals what the chances are. In short: he's a bit busy right now.

TV

The Hour
2x02 Episode 2
Picking this one back up. Apparently the series ends on a cliffhanger, even though it's been cancelled. Shame.

The Last Leg
2x07 (8/3/13 edition)
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]

Only Connect
Comic Relief Special: Neuromantics vs Muppets
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]

Stella
2x10 Episode 10 [season finale]
Unlike The Hour, this feels like it could be the last-ever episode, but it'll be back for a third run. Ironic.

Weekly comics? Since 1977.

TV

Alexander Armstrong's Big Ask
2x03 Episode 3

Comic Relief's Big Chat with Graham Norton
Part 1 (of 4)
6 or 7 hours of live chat? Yeah, I've iPlayered it to watch in chunks, beginning with the first hour-and-a-half. So far, too much back stage suff with some idiot off Radio 1. More Graham with guests, please -- that's what this is meant to be after all.
[Watch it all (again) on iPlayer.]

The Matt Lucas Awards
2x02 Episode 2
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]

Top Gear
19x07 Africa Special Part 2 [season finale]
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]

TV

Elementary
1x17 Possibility Two

Heading Out
1x02 Episode 2
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]

How I Met Your Mother
8x06 Splitsville
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]

Stella
2x09 Episode 9

Films

Meet the Parents (2000)
[#29 in 100 Films in a Year 2013]

TV

Alexander Armstrong's Big Ask
2x02 Episode 2
Missed episode one. That's what happens with stuff on Dave. I imagine it'll be on again...

Anna & Katy
1x01 Episode 1
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]

Broadchurch
Part 1 (of 8)
ITV's much-lauded new thriller. Solid start, clearly plenty of untugged threads to fill the remaining seven episodes.
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]

Films

Haywire (2011)
[#28 in 100 Films in a Year 2013]

Comics

2000 AD #1785

Featuring...

• Judge Dredd Day of Chaos: Tea For Two by John Wagner & Edmund Bagwell
• Flesh Midnight Cowboys, Part Twelve by Pat Mills & James McKay
• Durham Red The 'Nobody Wants This Job' Job, Part 1 by Alan Grant & Carlos Ezquerra
• Grey Area One of Our Own, Part 1 by Dan Abnett & Lee Carter
• Cadet Anderson: Psi-Division Algol, Part Six by Alan Grant & Steve Yeowell

Flesh limps to an end... well, an 'end', because it's all a big setup for the next arc. Can't say as I care. Cadet Anderson also goes away, taking Yeowell's sketches with it. Durham Red is set in the character's past, taking a really dangerous job. Might she die then?! In her past? Oh, the palpable lack of tension.

Dredd was a nice aside and Grey Area still has promise though, so there's that.

Articles

Joss Whedon Q&A On Eve Of SXSW
by Jan Yamato (from Deadline)

Joss chats about Much Ado, Avengers 2, S.H.I.E.L.D., and various other things in that vein.

Films

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
[#27 in 100 Films in a Year 2013]


(I also finished Battleship, in case you were wondering.)

Magazines

Bleeding Cool Magazine #1

Articles

JN-T: The Life And Scandalous Times Of John Nathan-Turner REVIEW
by Ian Berriman (from SFX)

This sounds very much like a must-read, I must say.

this week on 100 Films

Two new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week, and they were...


Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993)

early in Batman’s career Bruce falls in love and finds happiness, causing him to question whether to continue down the path he’s already dedicated his life to. The scene where he talks to his parents’ grave, expressing his guilt at potentially finding happiness after so much mourning, is one of the most powerful, emotional moments in all of Batman’s many iterations.

Read more here.


Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)

It may not match the TV series in places, in my subjective opinion, but in its own right it shines. Gary Oldman does the impossible and offers a Smiley that is neither an imitation of Guinness’ nor a deliberate counterpoint, but stands apart as an equally proficient rendering of the character.

Read more here.



And new to the new blog...


The Happening (2008)

Shyamalan’s worst film to date. [Written before The Last Airbender.]

Read more here.


Hitman: Unrated (2007)

Hitman seems to be doing its best to blend in and go unnoticed — much like a good hired assassin would do, you’d imagine. Except in this film, all the assassins are bald and have barcodes tattooed on the back of their head — not at all conspicuous.

Read more here.


In Bruges (2008)

hilariously funny... The easily-offended might disagree, and some jokes are a tad too obvious, but it’s nice to genuinely laugh at a film rather than force the odd smirk so as to at least get something from an otherwise wasted 90 minutes

Read more here.


Ocean's Twelve (2004)

This all-star sequel to the 2001 Rat Pack re-make received a thorough slating from critics on release... it’s still a pretty enjoyable film. But it’s true that the first is better.

Read more here.


Ocean's Thirteen (2007)

Thirteen is Twelve with Eleven’s sheen. Its critical success relative to its immediate predecessor is, I think, another of the gang’s expertly executed cons.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.