TV

Doctor Who
6x25 The Seeds of Death Episode Three

Friends
1x02 The One with the Sonogram at the End [goodness-knows-what-th watch]

Once Upon a Time
2x07 Child of the Moon

Starlings
2x07 Episode Seven

TV

Death in Paradise
2x05 Episode 5 [2nd watch]
Sometimes you just have to watch something again as appropriate-for-everyone time-filler.

Comics

Batman '66 #2 by Jeff Parker & Jonathan Case

Really didn't mean to leave it so long since issue one, but there we are. My comments on that still stand: it's good fun, and manages to both evoke the TV series and subtly post-modern-ly riff off it. Marvellous.

I also like the semi-animated "DC2" format. It looks like they've not bothered with that beyond the end of this first three-part story, though, which is a shame if so.

TV

Veronica Mars
2x19 Nevermind the Buttocks

Films

Speed (1994)
[2nd watch]

I think I appreciated this more second time round. Sure, Keanu Reeves can't act -- but he's not as bad as I remembered, mainly because only one or two scenes really require Acting. What it is, however, is fantastically directed and edited, a proper rollercoaster ride that is both exciting and tense as required. Fantastic job by Jan de Bont & co.

this week on 100 Films

Three new reviews were published to 100 Films in a Year this week, including the first from What Do You Mean You Haven't Seen...?

And that's up first...


City Lights (1931)

Though the film is mostly comedic and the romantic plot is a little thin, Chaplin also manages to construct moments that are affectingly emotional. The most notable is the ending, which remains a striking example of subtle acting yielding huge rewards.

Read more here.


The Imposter (2012)

There’s no doubting The Imposter tells a bizarre and fascinating tale, but at times I felt it was one that might be better served through a solid Sunday supplement article than a feature-length documentary film.

Read more here.


It Happened One Night (1934)

it’s the archetypal rom-com: two mismatched people are forced together, initially hate each other, fall in love. I don’t know if it was such a well-known set of events back then, but today it’s a formula we’ve seen repeated a thousand times in cinema. Despite that, its execution here feels fresh.

Read more here.


And new to the new blog...


Babel (2006)

The quickest way to assess Babel is to say that it is about something — or, About Something. The plots, such as they are, aren’t really the point; nor is how they connect, or what chronology they actually occurred in... Naturally, because it is About Something, the Something it is About isn’t made blindingly clear

Read more here.


St. Trinian's (2007)

it has a pleasantly wicked sense of humour, which must be pushing that 12 certificate on moral grounds... There’s a number of good, brief, visual gags too, such as the RE department having a Practical Study of the Easter Story with a girl strung up like Jesus on the cross (Christian bating is always funny).

Read more here.


While You Were Sleeping (1995)

It’s not a laugh-out-loud comedy and it is (of course) heavy on the sentiment, but it does have a lovely Christmasiness that is perfect for [that] time of year.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.

TV

Veronica Mars
2x18 I Am God

Films

The Falcon Out West (1944)
[#71 in 100 Films in a Year 2013]

Jack Reacher (2012)
[#70 in 100 Films in a Year 2013]

Collection Count

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

Number of titles in collection: 1,594 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,173 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 421 [up 3]

Number of discs in collection: 3,983 [up 4]
Number of films in collection: 1,702 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes in collection: 5,873 [no change]
Number of short films in collection: 384 [up 1]

See you next week, faithful reader.

TV

Doctor Who
6x24 The Seeds of Death Episode Two

Starlings
2x06 Episode Six

Suburgatory
2x06 Friendship Fish
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]

Films

Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (Extended Cut) (2013)
[#69 in 100 Films in a Year 2013]

DVD Extras

Special Features on Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters

A whole half-hour of material across three featurettes. Most of it is press kit-level fluff about how great it was and how deep the characters are and so on, but there's some slight insight into the designing of the witch make-up and the creation of the animatronic troll. A bigger movie could've added all sorts about the weapons and other special effects, but I guess it isn't that big a movie.

TV

The Great British Bake Off
4x01 Cake
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]

Law & Order: UK
7x06 Dependent [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on ITV Player.]

Veronica Mars
2x17 Plan B

Films

The Imposter (2012)
[#68 in 100 Films in a Year 2013]
Read my review here.

TV

Archer
4x04 Midnight Ron
For some reason, 5USA haven't scheduled any episodes beyond this. First they dump it in the middle of the night, then they just stop after only showing five episodes? What gives, C5?!
[Watch it (again) on Demand 5.]


Doctor Who
6x23 The Seeds of Death Episode One

My Doctor Who 'season' (Twitter hashtag: #bbbDW50) progresses to the Second Doctor.

As I mentioned at the start, each of these stories has been chosen for a reason. My original choice for the 2nd Doctor was The Ice Warriors, because I've not seen it for years and when I last did I really enjoyed it; plus, with the Martians finally being re-introduced in the last series of nuWho, I thought it'd be nice for my co-viewer to see how they began. As originally scheduled, the DVD of said serial would've been out two days before we started viewing it (i.e. a week from today), but then I inserted the TV Movie into my plans and that got messed up. So I subbed this in -- still Ice Warriors, still well-regarded (or so I thought -- it actually only came 111th in DWM's Mighty 200), and with the added bonus of being a story I've never seen before. There'll only be three of those in this entire project.

This episode is a strong start to the serial. Hardly any of the TARDIS crew, really, but that's more than made up for by the exciting developments at T-Mat control centres on both Earth and the Moon. There's nifty-enough ways of working in big info-dumps to explain what the T-Mat is and establish the world for the workings of the plot, as well as quickly-sketched characters and conflicts. All sorts of promise there. It's underscored by Michael Ferguson's excellent direction, which even manages to keep the presence of the Ice Warriors secret (well, more-or-less) until the episode's final shot. Really looking forward to the rest of this one now.

Also of interest is that this was made at a time when space exploration was at its height -- we hadn't even landed on the Moon when this was broadcast. Yet it depicts a future where Earth has abandoned rocket travel into space and has no interest in travelling further than the Moon, and only that far because it is used to relay T-Mat signals around the planet. It's quite depressing and, the T-Mat stuff aside, all too similar to where we have ended up.


Friends
1x01 The Pilot [goodness-knows-what-th watch]
Two years and one month ago, I commented that I ought to re-watch all of Friends. Well, here I go! I have no clue how many times I've seen any of the episodes -- especially the first series, which I saw multiple times back when it was the only one my sister had on video -- so expect lots of those long, vague "goodness-knows-what-th" bits.


The Last Leg
3x03 (14/8/13 edition)
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]

TV

Cowboy Bebop
1x06 Sympathy for the Devil

The Good Life
4x09 When I'm 65 [series finale]
The Good Life goes out on a high, with a Royal Command Performance in front of the Queen that also happens to be one of its best episodes.

Veronica Mars
2x16 The Rapes of Graff
aka "The One With the People From Arrested Development".

TV

Archer
4x03 Legs
[Watch it (again) on Demand 5.]


Doctor Who
1x11 The Rescue
And so The Daleks comes to an end, with the titular adversary defeated forever. Yep, won't be seeing them again!

All in, the premiere appearance of the Doctor's greatest foe is an adventuresome romp, but with some nice sci-fi ideas and themes laced throughout -- exactly the kind of thing Doctor Who would become best at, really. I wouldn't say it's the best story of either the First Doctor nor the Daleks, but it's a good introduction.

Next time: the Second Doctor and co face the Ice Warriors.


Top of the Lake
Part 6 No Goodbyes Thanks [final episode]
Grim and bleak as you'd expect, and equally elliptical in its answers -- sure, most of the big mysteries were covered, but not always in full, and some things were definitely open to interpretation. Which is a good thing, I suppose.
[Watch it (again) in HD on iPlayer.]


Veronica Mars
2x15 The Quick and the Wed

TV

8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown
4x04 (16/8/13 edition)
[Watch it (again) on 4oD.]

Iconoclasts
6x03 16/8/13 edition

Miranda
1x01 Date [2nd watch]
As with episode 2 in May, I haven't actually watched this since it first aired over 3½ years ago. But I have now re-watched nearly all of the first series in the last three months, so that's nice.

Starlings
2x05 Episode Five

Veronica Mars
2x14 Versatile Toppings

Films

Iron Man 2 (2010)
[2nd watch]

Forget The Dark Knight Rises' 13 months, here's one I haven't watched for 27! But it is also one I enjoyed first time, enjoyed again now, and think some people are overly harsh on -- the Avengers stuff barely features, never mind dominates!

The third one's out on DVD/Blu-ray in three weeks (the UK details were announced today, apparently). Definitely looking forward to it.

this week on 100 Films

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


Haywire (2011)

Like ponderous arthouse fare, but also action-thrillers? Disappointed that these two passions must always be sated independently? Well recent retiree (we’ll see how long that lasts) Steven Soderbergh has come to your rescue.

Read more here.


Underworld Awakening (2012)

By taking such a bold move with the plot, the story pushes the series’ mythology in new and relatively interesting ways. It’s becoming a bit dense and fan-only (unless you let it wash over you and just enjoy the punching), but at least they’re not regurgitating the same old stuff.

Read more here.


And new to the new blog...


(500) Days of Summer (2009)

An opening voiceover warns the viewer that “this is not a love story”. Of course, it is, just one without the traditional ending. Don’t worry, no spoilers here, but I will say that romantics would do well to heed this warning anyway... viewers who are prepared for a story that rings true may well be pleasantly surprised.

Read more here.


Born Free (1966)

the true story of Joy and George Adamson, a Senior Game Warden in 1950s Kenya, who adopted three lion cubs after mistakenly killing their mother. Though they give two away to a zoo, Joy can’t bear to part with one, Elsa, and so they raise her

Read more here.


Flash Gordon (1980)

When I noticed how much I was enjoying it — about five minutes in — I began keeping my eyes open for flaws, any niggling thing that detracted from the experience Hodges created. I couldn’t find a single thing. Not one.

Read more here.


Living Free (1972)

a tale of obsession... The Adamsons devote months of their time, give up a promising career, spend all their savings, drive themselves into debt, and are nearly killed several times, all in a frequently-extreme effort to save three delinquent lion cubs who would be put down were it not for their sentimental attachment.

Read more here.


Sherlock Holmes Faces Death (1943)

He’s put down the hound of the Baskervilles; silenced the voice of terror; uncovered the secret weapon; had, um, some other adventures; and, uh, been to Washington… but now, Sherlock Holmes faces death! Not a man in a black robe with a scythe, just, y’know, the threat. Of dying. Except there’s no threat, really. I suppose Sherlock Holmes Does Some Investigating With No Real Threat To Himself doesn’t sound quite as dramatic.

Read more here.


More next Sunday.