The Dragon Staff of Maladoria
23–26 July 2021
Monday, 6 November 2023
Sunday, 5 November 2023
TV
Talking Shakespeare
BBC Four have been showing a lot of Shakespeare stuff recently, to mark the 400th anniversary of... something or other. Anyway, I keep meaning to watch bits of it, but keep not actually doing so. Tonight had one of the most interesting schedules thus far — this was the only part I watched live (and it was good, even if I'd already seen a surprisingly large number of the featured interviews, a couple very recently), but I intend to catch up on more later. We'll see if I actually do. I do like Shakespeare sometimes, but sometimes it can feel hard going.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
BBC Four have been showing a lot of Shakespeare stuff recently, to mark the 400th anniversary of... something or other. Anyway, I keep meaning to watch bits of it, but keep not actually doing so. Tonight had one of the most interesting schedules thus far — this was the only part I watched live (and it was good, even if I'd already seen a surprisingly large number of the featured interviews, a couple very recently), but I intend to catch up on more later. We'll see if I actually do. I do like Shakespeare sometimes, but sometimes it can feel hard going.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Fiction
Doctor Who: Nothing O'Clock by Neil Gaiman
Chapters 1–8 [the end]
The final tale in the original version of 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories — i.e. the one starring the then-current Eleventh Doctor — written by arguably the biggest name involved in the project. And this story definitely shows why that's the case, because it's a cracking tale that would've made an excellent actual episode, too. Nothing like ending on a high... except, of course, there's now two more stories to go.
Chapters 1–8 [the end]
The final tale in the original version of 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories — i.e. the one starring the then-current Eleventh Doctor — written by arguably the biggest name involved in the project. And this story definitely shows why that's the case, because it's a cracking tale that would've made an excellent actual episode, too. Nothing like ending on a high... except, of course, there's now two more stories to go.
Games
The Dragon Staff of Maladoria
19–22 July 2021
I'm playing this digitally via PDFs, and so each day I finish by scrolling down to the next day in the calendar file, in the hope it will reopen where I left off (sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't — I haven't worked out how or why). Sometimes, if the next day has minimal or no action, that means I basically see all it is straight away... and that's how today I ended up playing four days when I only meant to play two. It may be messing somewhat with the precise schedule I drew up back in September but, as I said the other day, something's bound to knock me back eventually.
19–22 July 2021
I'm playing this digitally via PDFs, and so each day I finish by scrolling down to the next day in the calendar file, in the hope it will reopen where I left off (sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't — I haven't worked out how or why). Sometimes, if the next day has minimal or no action, that means I basically see all it is straight away... and that's how today I ended up playing four days when I only meant to play two. It may be messing somewhat with the precise schedule I drew up back in September but, as I said the other day, something's bound to knock me back eventually.
this week on 100Films.co.uk
Time for another weekly monthly check-in with 100Films.co.uk, where there were again no film reviews, but it was time to look back at October...
Of course, as well as the overview of what I did watch, there was the matter of what I didn't...
More next Sunday? You never know.
Of course, as well as the overview of what I did watch, there was the matter of what I didn't...
More next Sunday? You never know.
Saturday, 4 November 2023
TV
Doctor Who
32x00a Space [2nd watch]
32x00b Time [2nd watch]
32x11a Bad Night
32x11b Good Night
32x11c First Night
32x11d Last Night
32x11e Up All Night
33x00a Good as Gold
33x00b Pond Life [2nd watch]
33x13b Clarence and the Whispermen
33x14a The Inforarium
33x14b Clara and the TARDIS
33x14c Rain Gods
One of the reasons I raced on to the Tenth Doctor part of my Doctor Who 60th anniversary celebratory marathon yesterday (even though I’d only just finished the Ninth Doctor section and it might’ve been nice to have a gap to keep them distinct) was because I knew what was coming for the Eleventh Doctor. It’s a bit of a fiddly one, so I wanted to make sure it fell on a Saturday so I comfortably had the time to sort it out (normally a Sunday would be fine too, but I’ve got plans tomorrow).
So, what is all this I've chosen? Well, as I've written before, it's been something of a challenge working out what to include for nuWho Doctors, which has led to some of my more unusual choices. And yet in many ways these are an obvious choice: actual, real episodes of Doctor Who that I’d never seen… albeit only mini episodes, most of them released exclusively with home media purchases (be it on disc or digital) of entire seasons. But they’re a rarity, because the Matt Smith / Steven Moffat years are the only era where that really happened (series two did have the TARDISodes, although they were a bit pointless; and nowadays each season of Classic Who gets a new minisode to promote its Blu-ray release. But I digress). Still, even though they’re only mini-eps, they were made as part of Who’s official production, featuring the primary stars of the show — they may only be short, but that fact arguably make them more “real” than any tie-in book or retrospectively-recorded audio drama can ever be. And, as that, I really should’ve watched them a long time ago. But I didn’t, so here we are.
So, there are 13 of the blighters. All produced for one series on DVD? No, of course not — there's really multiple different things going on here, from different times and places, so I'll explain. The first seven "episodes" are from nuWho series 6. Of those, the first two (Space and Time) were a two-part sketch for Comic Relief 2011 (I watched it at the time, but as that time was 12 years ago, I thought it merited going back to). The next five were a series of connected shorts included on the series 6 home media release; although, really, only the first four are connected and the fifth is a prequel to Closing Time (they made a lot of other prequels in that era (five during series 6, eight during series 7, one for series 8, and two set before series 9), but most were released online so I watched them at the time).
The next six "episodes" bring us into the series 7 era. Good as Gold was a short written by kids (you can tell) and shown on Blue Peter in May 2012, between the 2011 Christmas special and series 7 in September 2012. Pond Life was a series of five shorts webcast in the immediate run-up to series 7, edited together into one piece for the home media release (well, stuck together — it would be better if they'd edited into one piece instead of literally just bunging them back to back, credits 'n' all). Next is Clarence and the Whispermen, which is actually an episode prequel (to The Name of the Doctor; its second), but it didn't get the usual online release (hence I hadn't seen it), only debuting on the Series 7 Part 1 DVD. The final three are all random short scenes that debuted on the complete series 7 home media release. Their order varies depending which listing you look at. I watched them in the order they appear on the Blu-ray menu; and as that was their first point of release, I’d argue that’s the most definitive (as much as it matters, which it doesn’t). They’re a bizarre trio — even shorter and less consequential, and certainly less connected to anything, than the ones from series 5 and 6. Their very existence feels… weird.
And for all that faffing, the total runtime of material I've never seen here is... 27 minutes. Throw in the rewatches and it gets up to 40 minutes. Almost one regular episode's worth! Wow.
Talking of regular episodes, the numbering I've used is... arguable. It's a mix of when these shorts were released and when they're set. For example, the five scenes that make up Night and the Doctor debuted on the series 6 home media release, so could be argued to be 32x13a-e; but, as I mentioned, the final one is set before Closing Time, aka 32x12, so I've chosen to number them 32x11a-e. Of course, the first four are a sort of miniseries, while Up All Night is an unconnected TV prequel that just has a similar title, so perhaps only the last one belongs as 32x11a and the other four sit somewhere else. But we could be here forever with those kinds of arguments. Point is, I'm not claiming the numbering is definitive, but it's something.
Oh, and there's also...
Doctor Who Confidential
6x13a The Nights' Tale
Technically, the last-ever episode of Confidential (so, not this one) — a 15-minute one-off, included on the series 6 home media releases, covering the production of two of the Night of the Doctor shorts and the Space and Time Comic Relief skit. The way they're discussed here makes me think they were all destined for DVD/Blu-ray exclusivity before being repurposed for Comic Relief. And there's no mention at all of the second two Night scenes — another "two parter", this time with just the Doctor and River — which is... mildly odd. All in all, rather than enlightening me about production, it's made me more curious about the circumstances of the shorts' production.
32x00a Space [2nd watch]
32x00b Time [2nd watch]
32x11a Bad Night
32x11b Good Night
32x11c First Night
32x11d Last Night
32x11e Up All Night
33x00a Good as Gold
33x00b Pond Life [2nd watch]
33x13b Clarence and the Whispermen
33x14a The Inforarium
33x14b Clara and the TARDIS
33x14c Rain Gods
One of the reasons I raced on to the Tenth Doctor part of my Doctor Who 60th anniversary celebratory marathon yesterday (even though I’d only just finished the Ninth Doctor section and it might’ve been nice to have a gap to keep them distinct) was because I knew what was coming for the Eleventh Doctor. It’s a bit of a fiddly one, so I wanted to make sure it fell on a Saturday so I comfortably had the time to sort it out (normally a Sunday would be fine too, but I’ve got plans tomorrow).
So, what is all this I've chosen? Well, as I've written before, it's been something of a challenge working out what to include for nuWho Doctors, which has led to some of my more unusual choices. And yet in many ways these are an obvious choice: actual, real episodes of Doctor Who that I’d never seen… albeit only mini episodes, most of them released exclusively with home media purchases (be it on disc or digital) of entire seasons. But they’re a rarity, because the Matt Smith / Steven Moffat years are the only era where that really happened (series two did have the TARDISodes, although they were a bit pointless; and nowadays each season of Classic Who gets a new minisode to promote its Blu-ray release. But I digress). Still, even though they’re only mini-eps, they were made as part of Who’s official production, featuring the primary stars of the show — they may only be short, but that fact arguably make them more “real” than any tie-in book or retrospectively-recorded audio drama can ever be. And, as that, I really should’ve watched them a long time ago. But I didn’t, so here we are.
So, there are 13 of the blighters. All produced for one series on DVD? No, of course not — there's really multiple different things going on here, from different times and places, so I'll explain. The first seven "episodes" are from nuWho series 6. Of those, the first two (Space and Time) were a two-part sketch for Comic Relief 2011 (I watched it at the time, but as that time was 12 years ago, I thought it merited going back to). The next five were a series of connected shorts included on the series 6 home media release; although, really, only the first four are connected and the fifth is a prequel to Closing Time (they made a lot of other prequels in that era (five during series 6, eight during series 7, one for series 8, and two set before series 9), but most were released online so I watched them at the time).
The next six "episodes" bring us into the series 7 era. Good as Gold was a short written by kids (you can tell) and shown on Blue Peter in May 2012, between the 2011 Christmas special and series 7 in September 2012. Pond Life was a series of five shorts webcast in the immediate run-up to series 7, edited together into one piece for the home media release (well, stuck together — it would be better if they'd edited into one piece instead of literally just bunging them back to back, credits 'n' all). Next is Clarence and the Whispermen, which is actually an episode prequel (to The Name of the Doctor; its second), but it didn't get the usual online release (hence I hadn't seen it), only debuting on the Series 7 Part 1 DVD. The final three are all random short scenes that debuted on the complete series 7 home media release. Their order varies depending which listing you look at. I watched them in the order they appear on the Blu-ray menu; and as that was their first point of release, I’d argue that’s the most definitive (as much as it matters, which it doesn’t). They’re a bizarre trio — even shorter and less consequential, and certainly less connected to anything, than the ones from series 5 and 6. Their very existence feels… weird.
And for all that faffing, the total runtime of material I've never seen here is... 27 minutes. Throw in the rewatches and it gets up to 40 minutes. Almost one regular episode's worth! Wow.
Talking of regular episodes, the numbering I've used is... arguable. It's a mix of when these shorts were released and when they're set. For example, the five scenes that make up Night and the Doctor debuted on the series 6 home media release, so could be argued to be 32x13a-e; but, as I mentioned, the final one is set before Closing Time, aka 32x12, so I've chosen to number them 32x11a-e. Of course, the first four are a sort of miniseries, while Up All Night is an unconnected TV prequel that just has a similar title, so perhaps only the last one belongs as 32x11a and the other four sit somewhere else. But we could be here forever with those kinds of arguments. Point is, I'm not claiming the numbering is definitive, but it's something.
Oh, and there's also...
Doctor Who Confidential
6x13a The Nights' Tale
Technically, the last-ever episode of Confidential (so, not this one) — a 15-minute one-off, included on the series 6 home media releases, covering the production of two of the Night of the Doctor shorts and the Space and Time Comic Relief skit. The way they're discussed here makes me think they were all destined for DVD/Blu-ray exclusivity before being repurposed for Comic Relief. And there's no mention at all of the second two Night scenes — another "two parter", this time with just the Doctor and River — which is... mildly odd. All in all, rather than enlightening me about production, it's made me more curious about the circumstances of the shorts' production.
Fiction
Doctor Who: The Mystery of the Haunted Cottage by Derek Landy
Chapters 1–6 [the end]
Bit out of sync with these 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories at the minute — here's the one for the Tenth Doctor.
Chapters 1–6 [the end]
Bit out of sync with these 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories at the minute — here's the one for the Tenth Doctor.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
After the last busy few weeks, this is a relatively quite one — just three new titles... although, every one of them is a multi-film set.
Number of titles in collection: 3,190 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,022 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,168 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 306 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,772 [up 8]
Number of films: 3,922 [up 10]
Number of additional cuts: 347 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,621 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,088 [up 1]
And, to keep the excitement levels up, it's also time for the monthly running time update. Woo-hoo!
Total running time of collection (approx.):
549 days, 9 hours, and 55 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 17 hours, and 13 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
After the last busy few weeks, this is a relatively quite one — just three new titles... although, every one of them is a multi-film set.
Number of titles in collection: 3,190 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,022 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,168 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 306 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,772 [up 8]
Number of films: 3,922 [up 10]
Number of additional cuts: 347 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,621 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,088 [up 1]
And, to keep the excitement levels up, it's also time for the monthly running time update. Woo-hoo!
Total running time of collection (approx.):
549 days, 9 hours, and 55 minutes.
(Up 2 days, 17 hours, and 13 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 3 November 2023
Fiction
Doctor Who: The Beast of Babylon by Charlie Higson
Chapters 1–12 [the end]
Resuming the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series, here wrapping up my time with the Ninth Doctor in my 60th anniversary marathon. Higson is known to write good James Bond books, but how does he fare in the Whoniverse? I had mixed feelings. I thought he captured the voice and attitude of the Ninth Doctor well, and he pulls a neat trick with de facto companion Ali that would only work in literature (no spoilers!), but the way it unfolded didn't feel quite Who-y enough for me. You know when you sort of admire something, or like elements of it, but you just didn't actually like it, for some reason? That. Never mind.
Doctor Who: Revenge of the Judoon by Terrance Dicks
Chapters 1–14 [the end]
Although the 60th TV specials starting later than I'd anticipated has bought me some leeway, I don't want to become too relaxed and wind up messing this up — especially as they keep unveiling brand-new treats, like the colourised version of The Daleks that's airing on November 23rd. So, with the Ninth Doctor barely done, it's straight on to arguably the most popular Doctor of all time now: David Tennant’s Tenth Doctor.
As I said when I reached the Ninth Doctor, because I’ve been an avid fan and follower of Who throughout the “new series” era, naturally there are no TV episodes to turn to here; but when it comes to expanded media, as befits such a popular incarnation, I’m spoilt for choice: they published dozens of novels during his few years, most of which I bought but few (if any) of which I’ve actually read; several of his episodes have received the Target novelisation treatment, too; more recently, Tennant has starred in multiple different box set-length audio adventures for Big Finish; and then there are the comic books, from DWM and both of the series’ US licensors, IDW and Titan. But most of those types of media have already been covered (or will be soon) as part of my 60th anniversary celebratory marathon, and I was loathe to commit to anything else too long (so out go any of the novels, or something like the nine-episode Dalek Universe series; although, as it turns out, maybe I would've had time). Instead, I’ve gone for something so short that its brevity is in the title. Well, it's in the range title. Not that it was a range, exactly, more of a general initiative.
For the sake of those who don't remember it: coinciding with the Tenth and Eleventh Doctor years, there was a reading initiative in the UK called “Quick Reads” — short, easy-to-read books aimed at reluctant or inexperienced readers of all ages. A new selection was published every year for six or seven years. Well, I presume that’s how long they lasted, because that’s how many Who entries were published (one each year from 2006 to 2013, except for 2011). (A quick Google suggests Quick Reads is still going in some form. Why Who stopped participating, then, I don't know.) Anyway, as a different type of ‘novel’ to the others I’ve already covered, I thought I’d go for one of those for the Tenth Doctor. It’s kind of a poor way to represent the BBC Books era — which encompassed hundreds of full-length novels across the Eighth Doctor, Past Doctor, and new series ranges — but, as I've said before, I was already worried about finding time for the couple of novels I have included. Besides which, I don’t own many Past Doctor ones, and the Eighth Doctor ones were often a bit arc-y as I remember (i.e. you wouldn’t want to go reading just one; although, as I chose the first book in a four-book cycle for the Seventh Doctor, I’m aware that's somewhat hypocritical).
Also of note: this is by the legendary Terrance Dicks, who is at least partially responsible for me being a Who fan. I first got into the show while it was off the air, via a few Target novelisations that were in my primary school's library, and the very first one I read (as well as several more, I expect) was written by Dicks. In many ways, then, I owe all this to him.
Chapters 1–12 [the end]
Resuming the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series, here wrapping up my time with the Ninth Doctor in my 60th anniversary marathon. Higson is known to write good James Bond books, but how does he fare in the Whoniverse? I had mixed feelings. I thought he captured the voice and attitude of the Ninth Doctor well, and he pulls a neat trick with de facto companion Ali that would only work in literature (no spoilers!), but the way it unfolded didn't feel quite Who-y enough for me. You know when you sort of admire something, or like elements of it, but you just didn't actually like it, for some reason? That. Never mind.
Doctor Who: Revenge of the Judoon by Terrance Dicks
Chapters 1–14 [the end]
Although the 60th TV specials starting later than I'd anticipated has bought me some leeway, I don't want to become too relaxed and wind up messing this up — especially as they keep unveiling brand-new treats, like the colourised version of The Daleks that's airing on November 23rd. So, with the Ninth Doctor barely done, it's straight on to arguably the most popular Doctor of all time now: David Tennant’s Tenth Doctor.
As I said when I reached the Ninth Doctor, because I’ve been an avid fan and follower of Who throughout the “new series” era, naturally there are no TV episodes to turn to here; but when it comes to expanded media, as befits such a popular incarnation, I’m spoilt for choice: they published dozens of novels during his few years, most of which I bought but few (if any) of which I’ve actually read; several of his episodes have received the Target novelisation treatment, too; more recently, Tennant has starred in multiple different box set-length audio adventures for Big Finish; and then there are the comic books, from DWM and both of the series’ US licensors, IDW and Titan. But most of those types of media have already been covered (or will be soon) as part of my 60th anniversary celebratory marathon, and I was loathe to commit to anything else too long (so out go any of the novels, or something like the nine-episode Dalek Universe series; although, as it turns out, maybe I would've had time). Instead, I’ve gone for something so short that its brevity is in the title. Well, it's in the range title. Not that it was a range, exactly, more of a general initiative.
For the sake of those who don't remember it: coinciding with the Tenth and Eleventh Doctor years, there was a reading initiative in the UK called “Quick Reads” — short, easy-to-read books aimed at reluctant or inexperienced readers of all ages. A new selection was published every year for six or seven years. Well, I presume that’s how long they lasted, because that’s how many Who entries were published (one each year from 2006 to 2013, except for 2011). (A quick Google suggests Quick Reads is still going in some form. Why Who stopped participating, then, I don't know.) Anyway, as a different type of ‘novel’ to the others I’ve already covered, I thought I’d go for one of those for the Tenth Doctor. It’s kind of a poor way to represent the BBC Books era — which encompassed hundreds of full-length novels across the Eighth Doctor, Past Doctor, and new series ranges — but, as I've said before, I was already worried about finding time for the couple of novels I have included. Besides which, I don’t own many Past Doctor ones, and the Eighth Doctor ones were often a bit arc-y as I remember (i.e. you wouldn’t want to go reading just one; although, as I chose the first book in a four-book cycle for the Seventh Doctor, I’m aware that's somewhat hypocritical).
Also of note: this is by the legendary Terrance Dicks, who is at least partially responsible for me being a Who fan. I first got into the show while it was off the air, via a few Target novelisations that were in my primary school's library, and the very first one I read (as well as several more, I expect) was written by Dicks. In many ways, then, I owe all this to him.
Thursday, 2 November 2023
TV
This Cultural Life
1x01 Kenneth Branagh
Accidentally caught tonight's repeat of this on BBC Four and watched most of it.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
1x01 Kenneth Branagh
Accidentally caught tonight's repeat of this on BBC Four and watched most of it.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Audio Drama
Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor Adventures
1.1 Ravagers 3: Food Fight
+ the full CD's worth of behind-the-scenes interviews
The end of the Ninth Doctor's first Big Finish box set, and thus the end of my time with this incarnation for my 60th anniversary marathon (except for the short story, of course). The Ninth Doctor audio series is another one (like the Timewyrm novels) that I've commenced but not finished as part of this anniversary marathon, and so will have to endeavour to return to later to complete. I'm not sure how I feel about them choosing to kick it off with a three-part adventure — on the one hand, it gives the box set a unified feel; on the other, I'm not wholly convinced there was enough going on to justify it; and there's an argument to be made that three standalone adventures would've better showcased the potential to new listeners; but, to loop back round, if you're pitching it to new listeners, maybe they'd expect something released as a set to be one big story?
Whatever. The main draw is undoubtedly Christopher Eccleston, and he slips back into the role as if he'd never been away. He had the least time of all the new series Doctors to make his mark on the role, and yet he absolutely did — this isn't "any old Doctor" as voiced by Eccleston, but unmistakeably and specifically the Ninth. In that respect, at least, Ravagers nails it.
1.1 Ravagers 3: Food Fight
+ the full CD's worth of behind-the-scenes interviews
The end of the Ninth Doctor's first Big Finish box set, and thus the end of my time with this incarnation for my 60th anniversary marathon (except for the short story, of course). The Ninth Doctor audio series is another one (like the Timewyrm novels) that I've commenced but not finished as part of this anniversary marathon, and so will have to endeavour to return to later to complete. I'm not sure how I feel about them choosing to kick it off with a three-part adventure — on the one hand, it gives the box set a unified feel; on the other, I'm not wholly convinced there was enough going on to justify it; and there's an argument to be made that three standalone adventures would've better showcased the potential to new listeners; but, to loop back round, if you're pitching it to new listeners, maybe they'd expect something released as a set to be one big story?
Whatever. The main draw is undoubtedly Christopher Eccleston, and he slips back into the role as if he'd never been away. He had the least time of all the new series Doctors to make his mark on the role, and yet he absolutely did — this isn't "any old Doctor" as voiced by Eccleston, but unmistakeably and specifically the Ninth. In that respect, at least, Ravagers nails it.
Games
The Dragon Staff of Maladoria
8–11 July 2021
I accidentally played a bit ahead of my intended rate a few days ago, since when I've been continuing ahead of time. I figure I'll naturally 'fall behind' again at some point for some external reason, so I may as well wait for that to knock me back on track rather than force it now and end up on catchup again later!
8–11 July 2021
I accidentally played a bit ahead of my intended rate a few days ago, since when I've been continuing ahead of time. I figure I'll naturally 'fall behind' again at some point for some external reason, so I may as well wait for that to knock me back on track rather than force it now and end up on catchup again later!
Wednesday, 1 November 2023
TV
Doctor Who at 60: A Musical Celebration
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Talking Doctor Who
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
The official Doctor Who 60th anniversary celebrations kick off in earnest today, with over 800 episodes of related content coming to iPlayer under the Whoniverse banner (including almost all of the classic era, joining the modern episodes that were already on there), plus new spin-off Tales of the TARDIS. Also, these two programmes were screened on BBC Four. The latter is a new archive-driven documentary, while the former is the visual version of September's concert (which I'd already listened to, twice).
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Talking Doctor Who
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
The official Doctor Who 60th anniversary celebrations kick off in earnest today, with over 800 episodes of related content coming to iPlayer under the Whoniverse banner (including almost all of the classic era, joining the modern episodes that were already on there), plus new spin-off Tales of the TARDIS. Also, these two programmes were screened on BBC Four. The latter is a new archive-driven documentary, while the former is the visual version of September's concert (which I'd already listened to, twice).
Podcasts
Light the Fuse - The Official Mission: Impossible Podcast
2x17 In the Cutting Room with Editor Eddie Hamilton Part 2
When Dead Reckoning was freshly out, the interviews on the pod erred a little too much towards the promotional. But now, with it well out, they're really good at getting into the nitty gritty of how and why choices were made.
2x17 In the Cutting Room with Editor Eddie Hamilton Part 2
When Dead Reckoning was freshly out, the interviews on the pod erred a little too much towards the promotional. But now, with it well out, they're really good at getting into the nitty gritty of how and why choices were made.
Tuesday, 31 October 2023
Monday, 30 October 2023
Audio Drama
Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor Adventures
1.1 Ravagers 2: Cataclysm
I believe most of the Ninth Doctor Big Finish box sets are made up of three self-contained episodes, with maybe the odd two-parter — just like the TV season they’re spun off from, of course. But this first set is actually a three-parter (not even "technically" one, it just is one — this is the "running around treading water" middle part), which does make it a more fitting choice for my marathon than I’d been expecting (every other Doctor got one story, but I was prepared to let the Ninth have three just for the sake of neatly completing the set. Turns out, if I’d planned to just listen to the first episode, it would’ve been a mistake!)
1.1 Ravagers 2: Cataclysm
I believe most of the Ninth Doctor Big Finish box sets are made up of three self-contained episodes, with maybe the odd two-parter — just like the TV season they’re spun off from, of course. But this first set is actually a three-parter (not even "technically" one, it just is one — this is the "running around treading water" middle part), which does make it a more fitting choice for my marathon than I’d been expecting (every other Doctor got one story, but I was prepared to let the Ninth have three just for the sake of neatly completing the set. Turns out, if I’d planned to just listen to the first episode, it would’ve been a mistake!)
Sunday, 29 October 2023
Audio Drama
Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor Adventures
1.1 Ravagers 1: Sphere of Freedom
My Doctor Who 60th anniversary celebratory marathon now officially moves into the nuWho era — although the War Doctor is an entirely nuWho concept, so, y’know — but here is where nuWho actually began: with the Ninth Doctor.
Finding “things I’d never experienced” for some of the Modern Who Doctors was a challenge — having lived through those eras, I saw all the main stuff as it happened. Therefore, it has to be tie-in media for them; but that’s still tricky when it comes to the Ninth Doctor, because his era was so short-lived. Not only did I see all of his TV episodes, I read several of the tie-in novels (perhaps all of them; I forget — it was almost 20 years ago!) and DWM comic strips (again, I definitely read some, perhaps all). Fortunately, the last couple of years have seen Christopher Eccleston give in and start recording new adventures for Big Finish — and, somehow, I’ve made it all this way into my 60th celebrations without listening to a single Big Finish production! Perfect timing, then. (In fairness, I probably would’ve listened to one for the Eighth Doctor if it weren’t for them being almost my only option for the Ninth Doctor. I didn’t decide on these texts in chronological order, y’know. Wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey.)
Somewhat as an aside to the actual listening, this choice brings up the issue of how I number Big Finish releases on here — by which I mean the "1x01" bit before the episode title. I'm often unsure how to go about that with Big Finish titles, in part because they seem to provoke the confusion themselves. I mean, when they announced Eccleston would be back for a second series with them, a lot of people were confused, because hadn't they just released a second box set and a third was on the way? But no, you see, because box sets 1 to 4 were his first series, and now he was doing four more, which would be a second series. Okay? Except each of those first four sets has its own title, as well as individual titles for the episodes in the set — so what makes them a series split into four sets, rather than just four sets? What makes the fifth box the start of a "new series" and not just a fifth set in a run of at least eight sets? And bearing all this in mind, does that mean that (for example) the first episode in the second box is actually episode 1x04, not 2x01? Or is it neither — is it Respond to All Calls 1x01? But, hold on, isn't it just part of series one...?
In short: argh! I don't know if they do this deliberately and revel in it, because there's definitely a part of Who fandom that seems to delight in how messy the canon is — you know, how something like Trial of a Time Lord can simultaneously be one story and four stories. Or perhaps they just don't think about it, and are happy to write whatever they think sounds best in any given press release. Who knows. I've gone with the slightly messy layout that I've gone with, because it's actually clearer than some others I tried, and it broadly reflects the numbering on the boxes themselves (the first four are just number 1 to 4, but "series two" are labelled 2.1 to 2.4. I've not bought any "series three" yet).
1.1 Ravagers 1: Sphere of Freedom
My Doctor Who 60th anniversary celebratory marathon now officially moves into the nuWho era — although the War Doctor is an entirely nuWho concept, so, y’know — but here is where nuWho actually began: with the Ninth Doctor.
Finding “things I’d never experienced” for some of the Modern Who Doctors was a challenge — having lived through those eras, I saw all the main stuff as it happened. Therefore, it has to be tie-in media for them; but that’s still tricky when it comes to the Ninth Doctor, because his era was so short-lived. Not only did I see all of his TV episodes, I read several of the tie-in novels (perhaps all of them; I forget — it was almost 20 years ago!) and DWM comic strips (again, I definitely read some, perhaps all). Fortunately, the last couple of years have seen Christopher Eccleston give in and start recording new adventures for Big Finish — and, somehow, I’ve made it all this way into my 60th celebrations without listening to a single Big Finish production! Perfect timing, then. (In fairness, I probably would’ve listened to one for the Eighth Doctor if it weren’t for them being almost my only option for the Ninth Doctor. I didn’t decide on these texts in chronological order, y’know. Wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey.)
Somewhat as an aside to the actual listening, this choice brings up the issue of how I number Big Finish releases on here — by which I mean the "1x01" bit before the episode title. I'm often unsure how to go about that with Big Finish titles, in part because they seem to provoke the confusion themselves. I mean, when they announced Eccleston would be back for a second series with them, a lot of people were confused, because hadn't they just released a second box set and a third was on the way? But no, you see, because box sets 1 to 4 were his first series, and now he was doing four more, which would be a second series. Okay? Except each of those first four sets has its own title, as well as individual titles for the episodes in the set — so what makes them a series split into four sets, rather than just four sets? What makes the fifth box the start of a "new series" and not just a fifth set in a run of at least eight sets? And bearing all this in mind, does that mean that (for example) the first episode in the second box is actually episode 1x04, not 2x01? Or is it neither — is it Respond to All Calls 1x01? But, hold on, isn't it just part of series one...?
In short: argh! I don't know if they do this deliberately and revel in it, because there's definitely a part of Who fandom that seems to delight in how messy the canon is — you know, how something like Trial of a Time Lord can simultaneously be one story and four stories. Or perhaps they just don't think about it, and are happy to write whatever they think sounds best in any given press release. Who knows. I've gone with the slightly messy layout that I've gone with, because it's actually clearer than some others I tried, and it broadly reflects the numbering on the boxes themselves (the first four are just number 1 to 4, but "series two" are labelled 2.1 to 2.4. I've not bought any "series three" yet).
Saturday, 28 October 2023
Films
Alien Love Triangle (2008)
A Life Less Ordinary (1997)
A Danny Boyle double-bill courtesy of FilmBath Festival — one short, one feature. Normally you'd assume the latter was the main draw. It was Boyle's follow-up to Shallow Grave and Trainspotting, and though it's not as well remembered as either, it's one of his I'd never seen, so it was fun to get the chance to see it on the big screen. It's pretty good.
But the real attraction was the short that screened before it. Filmed in 1999 for a project that was never completed, this is only its third-ever public screening — and the other two were over 15 years ago, both on very limited and special occasions; and this is another of those (it's not just beginning a wide tour or something, as far as I know). Quite how FilmBath scored that coup, I don't know. Frankly, it does make me wonder if it's being prepped to pop up somewhere more significant. The fact Criterion are about to release Trainspotting on 4K, with the extras not yet fully revealed, makes me wonder if it'll be on that disc. Well, I hope it does become more widely available at some point, because it's fun and I'd like to see it again.
A Life Less Ordinary (1997)
A Danny Boyle double-bill courtesy of FilmBath Festival — one short, one feature. Normally you'd assume the latter was the main draw. It was Boyle's follow-up to Shallow Grave and Trainspotting, and though it's not as well remembered as either, it's one of his I'd never seen, so it was fun to get the chance to see it on the big screen. It's pretty good.
But the real attraction was the short that screened before it. Filmed in 1999 for a project that was never completed, this is only its third-ever public screening — and the other two were over 15 years ago, both on very limited and special occasions; and this is another of those (it's not just beginning a wide tour or something, as far as I know). Quite how FilmBath scored that coup, I don't know. Frankly, it does make me wonder if it's being prepped to pop up somewhere more significant. The fact Criterion are about to release Trainspotting on 4K, with the extras not yet fully revealed, makes me wonder if it'll be on that disc. Well, I hope it does become more widely available at some point, because it's fun and I'd like to see it again.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Another slew of new additions this week, including a bumper lot of 4K — among them, Criterion's first UK release on the format (hooray!) Also an upgrade from BD to 4K, for a BD I bought a few months ago and hadn't even opened. I suppose it's not the first time that's more-or-less happened, but it feels like one of my shortest repurchase windows ever. I'm not happy about it... and yet, at the same time, I did it.
That's not the most uncommon addition of the week though, an honour which goes to a true rarity: an entire release for just a short film. That would be Pedro Almodóvar's Strange Way of Life, which is exclusive to HMV on Blu-ray and comes out on Monday. It's streaming in 4K on MUBI, mind, so I'll probably watch it there. Yeah, maybe I am a fool...
Number of titles in collection: 3,187 [up 9]
Of which DVDs: 1,022 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,165 [up 9]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 306 [up 5]
Number of discs in collection: 7,764 [up 13]
Number of films: 3,912 [up 10]
Number of additional cuts: 347 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,621 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,087 [up 1]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Another slew of new additions this week, including a bumper lot of 4K — among them, Criterion's first UK release on the format (hooray!) Also an upgrade from BD to 4K, for a BD I bought a few months ago and hadn't even opened. I suppose it's not the first time that's more-or-less happened, but it feels like one of my shortest repurchase windows ever. I'm not happy about it... and yet, at the same time, I did it.
That's not the most uncommon addition of the week though, an honour which goes to a true rarity: an entire release for just a short film. That would be Pedro Almodóvar's Strange Way of Life, which is exclusive to HMV on Blu-ray and comes out on Monday. It's streaming in 4K on MUBI, mind, so I'll probably watch it there. Yeah, maybe I am a fool...
Number of titles in collection: 3,187 [up 9]
Of which DVDs: 1,022 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,165 [up 9]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 306 [up 5]
Number of discs in collection: 7,764 [up 13]
Number of films: 3,912 [up 10]
Number of additional cuts: 347 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,621 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,087 [up 1]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 27 October 2023
TV
Doctor Who
33x15 The Day of the Doctor [3D; 3rd watch]
Resuming my Doctor Who 60th celebration marathon now, although with somewhat less urgency — I'd been pacing it under the assumption the 60th anniversary specials would begin on 11th November, but (as recently announced) they're actually starting on the 25th. So my new goal is to be done by the anniversary itself, 23rd November, which gives me more wriggle room. I might even throw in a few extra bits and bobs.
For now, it's back to progressing through the Doctors in order... which, in this case, means a sidestep from the common/real-world numbering so as to place the War Doctor in his in-universe context. And, as with The Five Doctors the other week, this one’s a bit of a fudge: of course I’ve seen it before, and there’s other War Doctor content I could’ve chosen, including a novel (though I don't own it) and multiple Big Finish box sets (which I do own). However, I’ve covered both those forms of media elsewhere, and (as I believe I’ve mentioned) I was loathe to include too many novels for fear they’d take me too long to read and delay the whole project. That’s also why I didn’t plump for the novelisation of this story as some kind of happy medium (it’s meant to be great, mind, so I really do want to read it. Seriously considering reading it during those two weeks I've gained).
So, the only way I can justify this as unseen is because I’ve never watched it in (true) 3D before, despite owning the Blu-ray and a 3D TV for a number of years. But (also like The Five Doctors) it just also feels right to make space for such a big, brilliant, 50th anniversary episode in my 60th celebrations. (And this is the last time I’ve so egregiously cheated, I promise.) Also, it's just really bloody good.
I also watched all of the special features on the 3D Blu-ray, which include an "Early Trailer" (90 seconds of clips, with text referring to "This Fall", so I guess it originated at ComicCon or something), the specially-created "Save the Day" trailer (still awesome), a short making-of called Behind the Lens (it's only 13 minutes and makes you long for the full hour-long Confidential we'll never have for this), plus the following programmes (in the order I watched them)...
Doctor Who Explained
A 45-minute special created for US TV in the style of the Doctors Revisited series (presumably made at the same time by the same team). Not bad as a primer for neophytes.
The Last Day
[2nd watch]
A short prequel to Day. I never much cared for this short — it always felt like something they made because they had the money to do so, not because there was an extra bit of story worth telling or universe worth expanding on. Oh well. (You can still watch this on YouTube, if you want.)
The Night of the Doctor
[2nd watch]
This, on the other hand, is fantastic. The 8th Doctor's last hurrah! What a surprise this was when it was released, but so welcome. That it didn’t lead to a full 8th Doctor spin-off series is possibly my biggest disappointment in Who history. McGann is brilliant in the role and he and we deserved so much more. At least there’s the audios. (You can also watch this on YouTube, or — befitting its important status — on iPlayer.)
Sadly, the cinema intros and whatnot weren't included on this release. I think they're on the box set copy? Maybe I'll get that out and give it a spin someday. Though why I'd choose to watch the special in 2D when I have it in 3D... Well, there is one argument in 2D's favour: for compatibility, the 3D versions runs at 24fps (i.e. it's slightly longer), whereas the 2D version runs at the original 25fps.
A final observation, relevant to my 60th marathon: no one knew about the War Doctor when the 11 Doctors, 11 Stories series began, so he doesn’t have an instalment in that series, meaning today will be my only encounter with the fella. As I said, there’s other War Doctor content I could have chosen instead that would have taken longer — as well as being more truly original, and truly War Doctor focused — so maybe I should have... but I didn’t, so it is what it is. (Maybe I’ll take some of that in post-60th — like I’m planning to do with the rest of Timewyrm — as some kind of recompense.)
33x15 The Day of the Doctor [3D; 3rd watch]
Resuming my Doctor Who 60th celebration marathon now, although with somewhat less urgency — I'd been pacing it under the assumption the 60th anniversary specials would begin on 11th November, but (as recently announced) they're actually starting on the 25th. So my new goal is to be done by the anniversary itself, 23rd November, which gives me more wriggle room. I might even throw in a few extra bits and bobs.
For now, it's back to progressing through the Doctors in order... which, in this case, means a sidestep from the common/real-world numbering so as to place the War Doctor in his in-universe context. And, as with The Five Doctors the other week, this one’s a bit of a fudge: of course I’ve seen it before, and there’s other War Doctor content I could’ve chosen, including a novel (though I don't own it) and multiple Big Finish box sets (which I do own). However, I’ve covered both those forms of media elsewhere, and (as I believe I’ve mentioned) I was loathe to include too many novels for fear they’d take me too long to read and delay the whole project. That’s also why I didn’t plump for the novelisation of this story as some kind of happy medium (it’s meant to be great, mind, so I really do want to read it. Seriously considering reading it during those two weeks I've gained).
So, the only way I can justify this as unseen is because I’ve never watched it in (true) 3D before, despite owning the Blu-ray and a 3D TV for a number of years. But (also like The Five Doctors) it just also feels right to make space for such a big, brilliant, 50th anniversary episode in my 60th celebrations. (And this is the last time I’ve so egregiously cheated, I promise.) Also, it's just really bloody good.
I also watched all of the special features on the 3D Blu-ray, which include an "Early Trailer" (90 seconds of clips, with text referring to "This Fall", so I guess it originated at ComicCon or something), the specially-created "Save the Day" trailer (still awesome), a short making-of called Behind the Lens (it's only 13 minutes and makes you long for the full hour-long Confidential we'll never have for this), plus the following programmes (in the order I watched them)...
Doctor Who Explained
A 45-minute special created for US TV in the style of the Doctors Revisited series (presumably made at the same time by the same team). Not bad as a primer for neophytes.
The Last Day
[2nd watch]
A short prequel to Day. I never much cared for this short — it always felt like something they made because they had the money to do so, not because there was an extra bit of story worth telling or universe worth expanding on. Oh well. (You can still watch this on YouTube, if you want.)
The Night of the Doctor
[2nd watch]
This, on the other hand, is fantastic. The 8th Doctor's last hurrah! What a surprise this was when it was released, but so welcome. That it didn’t lead to a full 8th Doctor spin-off series is possibly my biggest disappointment in Who history. McGann is brilliant in the role and he and we deserved so much more. At least there’s the audios. (You can also watch this on YouTube, or — befitting its important status — on iPlayer.)
Sadly, the cinema intros and whatnot weren't included on this release. I think they're on the box set copy? Maybe I'll get that out and give it a spin someday. Though why I'd choose to watch the special in 2D when I have it in 3D... Well, there is one argument in 2D's favour: for compatibility, the 3D versions runs at 24fps (i.e. it's slightly longer), whereas the 2D version runs at the original 25fps.
A final observation, relevant to my 60th marathon: no one knew about the War Doctor when the 11 Doctors, 11 Stories series began, so he doesn’t have an instalment in that series, meaning today will be my only encounter with the fella. As I said, there’s other War Doctor content I could have chosen instead that would have taken longer — as well as being more truly original, and truly War Doctor focused — so maybe I should have... but I didn’t, so it is what it is. (Maybe I’ll take some of that in post-60th — like I’m planning to do with the rest of Timewyrm — as some kind of recompense.)
Articles
Hollywood Can Reap the Rewards of Physical Media Again, But Only If…
by Bill Hunt (from The Digital Bits)
An excellent piece on the current state and potential future of film & TV physical media (i.e. DVD and Blu-ray).
by Bill Hunt (from The Digital Bits)
An excellent piece on the current state and potential future of film & TV physical media (i.e. DVD and Blu-ray).
Thursday, 26 October 2023
Wednesday, 25 October 2023
Games
The Dragon Staff of Maladoria
8–13 June 2021
I've not been keeping up with this too well the past week for various reasons, so the never-ending "catchup" continues today and tomorrow. Considering I'm playing it at a special accelerated pace anyway, it kind of doesn't matter. Also a good indicator that, next year, when I'm playing 2024's calendar in real time, if I miss a day (or two, or more) catching up shouldn't be a problem.
8–13 June 2021
I've not been keeping up with this too well the past week for various reasons, so the never-ending "catchup" continues today and tomorrow. Considering I'm playing it at a special accelerated pace anyway, it kind of doesn't matter. Also a good indicator that, next year, when I'm playing 2024's calendar in real time, if I miss a day (or two, or more) catching up shouldn't be a problem.
Tuesday, 24 October 2023
TV
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
31x06 Episode 6
Richard Osman's House of Games
7x12 Week 3: Tuesday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
31x06 Episode 6
Richard Osman's House of Games
7x12 Week 3: Tuesday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Monday, 23 October 2023
TV
Blankety Blank
3x03 Episode 3
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Leverage
5x14 The Toy Job
This is the third Christmassy thing I've accidentally watched in as many weeks! It's not even Halloween yet, never mind December! Might just have to give in to it at this point, though...
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
31x05 Episode 5
Richard Osman's House of Games
7x11 Week 3: Monday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
3x03 Episode 3
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Leverage
5x14 The Toy Job
This is the third Christmassy thing I've accidentally watched in as many weeks! It's not even Halloween yet, never mind December! Might just have to give in to it at this point, though...
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
31x05 Episode 5
Richard Osman's House of Games
7x11 Week 3: Monday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Games
The Dragon Staff of Maladoria
1–7 June 2021
Missed yesterday (again), so more catching up to done. I was only meant to go as far as the 6th, but accidentally did the 7th too. Oh well.
1–7 June 2021
Missed yesterday (again), so more catching up to done. I was only meant to go as far as the 6th, but accidentally did the 7th too. Oh well.
Sunday, 22 October 2023
TV
Blankety Blank
3x02 Episode 2
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
7x09 Week 2: Thursday
7x10 Week 2: Friday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
3x02 Episode 2
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
7x09 Week 2: Thursday
7x10 Week 2: Friday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Films
Nothing Sacred (1937)
[#77 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2023]
The Pigeon Tunnel (2023)
[#78 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2023]
[#77 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2023]
The Pigeon Tunnel (2023)
[#78 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2023]
Saturday, 21 October 2023
TV
Blankety Blank
3x01 Episode 1
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
31x04 Episode 4
Richard Osman's House of Games
7x06 Week 2: Monday
7x07 Week 2: Tuesday
7x08 Week 2: Wednesday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
3x01 Episode 1
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
31x04 Episode 4
Richard Osman's House of Games
7x06 Week 2: Monday
7x07 Week 2: Tuesday
7x08 Week 2: Wednesday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Games
The Dragon Staff of Maladoria
25–31 May 2021
Missed a couple of days, for various reasons, so splitting my catchup across today and tomorrow (partly because the end of the month provides a very convenient break point).
25–31 May 2021
Missed a couple of days, for various reasons, so splitting my catchup across today and tomorrow (partly because the end of the month provides a very convenient break point).
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
After last week turned out quieter than expected, all of that stuff turned up this week — a total of 11 new titles, six from Radiance and five from Australian label Umbrella (shipped all the way from Down Under). Three of the latter are 4K titles; and another could've / should've been a DVD-to-BD upgrade, but the BD actually contains a different, shorter cut of the film and mostly different special features (a bunch of new stuff and very little of the old stuff), so I'll once again be keeping both.
Number of titles in collection: 3,178 [up 11]
Of which DVDs: 1,022 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,156 [up 11]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 301 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 7,751 [up 14]
Number of films: 3,902 [up 11]
Number of additional cuts: 347 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes: 9,621 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,086 [up 1]
See you next week, faithful reader.
After last week turned out quieter than expected, all of that stuff turned up this week — a total of 11 new titles, six from Radiance and five from Australian label Umbrella (shipped all the way from Down Under). Three of the latter are 4K titles; and another could've / should've been a DVD-to-BD upgrade, but the BD actually contains a different, shorter cut of the film and mostly different special features (a bunch of new stuff and very little of the old stuff), so I'll once again be keeping both.
Number of titles in collection: 3,178 [up 11]
Of which DVDs: 1,022 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,156 [up 11]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 301 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 7,751 [up 14]
Number of films: 3,902 [up 11]
Number of additional cuts: 347 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes: 9,621 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,086 [up 1]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 20 October 2023
Thursday, 19 October 2023
TV
Richard Osman's House of Games
7x04 Week 1: Thursday
7x05 Week 1: Friday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
7x04 Week 1: Thursday
7x05 Week 1: Friday
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Wednesday, 18 October 2023
Fiction
Doctor Who: Spore by Alex Scarrow
Chapters 1–4 [the end]
My time with the Eighth Doctor (as part of my Doctor Who 60th celebrations) comes to an end already, wrapping up (as always) with his story from 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories.
Also, I'm now taking another pause, thanks to life stuff getting in the way. My Doctor Who 60th celebratory marathon will resume in just under two weeks, on or around the 27th.
Chapters 1–4 [the end]
My time with the Eighth Doctor (as part of my Doctor Who 60th celebrations) comes to an end already, wrapping up (as always) with his story from 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories.
Also, I'm now taking another pause, thanks to life stuff getting in the way. My Doctor Who 60th celebratory marathon will resume in just under two weeks, on or around the 27th.
Tuesday, 17 October 2023
Audiobook
Doctor Who: The Scent of Blood
written by Andrew Lane, read by Dan Starkey
For the Eighth Doctor's entry in my 60th anniversary celebratory marathon, the obvious choice might've been a Big Finish audio drama — that's arguably where his era really exists, given his TV time is limited to one TV movie (which I've watched repeatedly as the Eighth Doctor contribution to marathons such as this in the past, so it certainly didn't fit my "something new" rule) and a minisode (also previously seen, of course). Other reasonable choices to represent "his era" would've included the DWM comic strip or one of the many BBC novels — but, as I've said before, I didn't want to do too many novels (plus I read quite a lot of them at the time, so would've had to pick a random later one), and I'd already ticked off the DWM strip (I was trying to avoid repeating too many types of media). But what else is there?
Well, for quite a few years now, Big Finish haven't been the only ones producing original Doctor Who audio — the BBC themselves have stuck their oar in from time to time. They do a lot of audiobook readings of existing print books, of course, but they also do audio originals. As they've recently done a trilogy of these for the Eighth Doctor, all of which I've bought through Audible, I thought now would be a good excuse to start them. I don't think they were planned as a trilogy — they seem to keep going back to the same writer, reader, and guest lead character (de facto companion, I guess), and they've done it three times now, rather than it consciously being "a trilogy" — so I've only picked the first for this entry (in contrast to what I've chosen for another Doctor, but more on that soon... well, in a couple of weeks...)
written by Andrew Lane, read by Dan Starkey
For the Eighth Doctor's entry in my 60th anniversary celebratory marathon, the obvious choice might've been a Big Finish audio drama — that's arguably where his era really exists, given his TV time is limited to one TV movie (which I've watched repeatedly as the Eighth Doctor contribution to marathons such as this in the past, so it certainly didn't fit my "something new" rule) and a minisode (also previously seen, of course). Other reasonable choices to represent "his era" would've included the DWM comic strip or one of the many BBC novels — but, as I've said before, I didn't want to do too many novels (plus I read quite a lot of them at the time, so would've had to pick a random later one), and I'd already ticked off the DWM strip (I was trying to avoid repeating too many types of media). But what else is there?
Well, for quite a few years now, Big Finish haven't been the only ones producing original Doctor Who audio — the BBC themselves have stuck their oar in from time to time. They do a lot of audiobook readings of existing print books, of course, but they also do audio originals. As they've recently done a trilogy of these for the Eighth Doctor, all of which I've bought through Audible, I thought now would be a good excuse to start them. I don't think they were planned as a trilogy — they seem to keep going back to the same writer, reader, and guest lead character (de facto companion, I guess), and they've done it three times now, rather than it consciously being "a trilogy" — so I've only picked the first for this entry (in contrast to what I've chosen for another Doctor, but more on that soon... well, in a couple of weeks...)
Monday, 16 October 2023
Fiction
Doctor Who: The Ripple Effect by Malorie Blackman
Chapters 4–10 [the end]
Finishing off the Seventh Doctor portion of my Doctor Who 60th celebration. Unfortunately, I think this is the weakest in the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series so far. No doubt that Blackman is a skilled and important author in general, but here the narrative seems to go round in circles, and she hasn't really captured the voices of the Doctor and Ace. Shame, especially when the other stories have been really rather good, on the whole. Let's hope the back half of the range isn't going to let it down...
Chapters 4–10 [the end]
Finishing off the Seventh Doctor portion of my Doctor Who 60th celebration. Unfortunately, I think this is the weakest in the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series so far. No doubt that Blackman is a skilled and important author in general, but here the narrative seems to go round in circles, and she hasn't really captured the voices of the Doctor and Ace. Shame, especially when the other stories have been really rather good, on the whole. Let's hope the back half of the range isn't going to let it down...
Sunday, 15 October 2023
TV
David Tennant Remembers Hamlet
This Hamlet (and the stage production it was based upon), not, like, the original one or something.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Gregory Doran Remembers Shakespeare Live! From the RSC
Never got round to watching the production Doran is reminiscing about, which aired back in 2016. I've had it downloaded since then, and it's back on iPlayer now, so really I just need to find the time and make the effort.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
This Hamlet (and the stage production it was based upon), not, like, the original one or something.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Gregory Doran Remembers Shakespeare Live! From the RSC
Never got round to watching the production Doran is reminiscing about, which aired back in 2016. I've had it downloaded since then, and it's back on iPlayer now, so really I just need to find the time and make the effort.
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Fiction
Doctor Who: The New Adventures
Timewyrm: Genesys by John Peel
Chapters 19–23 + Epilogue [the end]
Amidst the pervy stuff, and the surprisingly antagonistic relationship between our two heroes (much more so than on TV, though perhaps that was designed to build out of the Doctor’s treatment of Ace in stories like Fenric and Ghost Light), there are some passages that are quite insightful about the character of both the Doctor and Ace. And, at times, you can almost imagine this as an actual TV story in 1990 — albeit with less gore, fewer bared boobs, and lower-key locations. All in all, it's not the greatest Doctor Who story ever, but I largely enjoyed it. Will definitely have to promptly continue with the Timewyrm arc after my 60th celebrations are complete.
Doctor Who: The Ripple Effect by Malorie Blackman
Chapters 1–3
Finishing off my time with the Seventh Doctor via this entry in the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series — a group of tales specifically aimed at kids (they were originally published by Puffin, the imprint of Penguin aimed at younger readers), so quite the antithesis to the New Adventures and all their gore and sex!
Timewyrm: Genesys by John Peel
Chapters 19–23 + Epilogue [the end]
Amidst the pervy stuff, and the surprisingly antagonistic relationship between our two heroes (much more so than on TV, though perhaps that was designed to build out of the Doctor’s treatment of Ace in stories like Fenric and Ghost Light), there are some passages that are quite insightful about the character of both the Doctor and Ace. And, at times, you can almost imagine this as an actual TV story in 1990 — albeit with less gore, fewer bared boobs, and lower-key locations. All in all, it's not the greatest Doctor Who story ever, but I largely enjoyed it. Will definitely have to promptly continue with the Timewyrm arc after my 60th celebrations are complete.
Doctor Who: The Ripple Effect by Malorie Blackman
Chapters 1–3
Finishing off my time with the Seventh Doctor via this entry in the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series — a group of tales specifically aimed at kids (they were originally published by Puffin, the imprint of Penguin aimed at younger readers), so quite the antithesis to the New Adventures and all their gore and sex!
Radio
Doctor Who @ 60: A Musical Celebration
[2nd listen]
Even though I'd already listened to this, I decided to put it on during its Radio 2 broadcast, as originally intended, because why not? It's all good stuff.
[Listen to it (again) on BBC Sounds.]
[2nd listen]
Even though I'd already listened to this, I decided to put it on during its Radio 2 broadcast, as originally intended, because why not? It's all good stuff.
[Listen to it (again) on BBC Sounds.]
Saturday, 14 October 2023
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
After last week's complete deadzone, this week is fairly chockablock with newcomers, including several titles weeks ahead of their official release date. It was meant to be even more chockablock, but a long-awaited package from Australia is waiting even longer (I thought it would make it through customs, etc, in time for today, but it looks like it'll be tomorrow or Monday), and another distributor's so-called shipping of my package didn't actually include handing it over to Royal Mail. Can't deliver it within 48 hours if they don't get given it for 96 hours, can they? That will also now be in next week's tally, which — depending on the vagaries of pre-release shipping and postal services — could wind up with twice as many new titles as this week.
Number of titles in collection: 3,167 [up 6]
Of which DVDs: 1,022 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,145 [up 6]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 298 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,737 [up 11]
Number of films: 3,891 [up 11]
Number of additional cuts: 344 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 9,621 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,085 [up 6]
See you next week, faithful reader.
After last week's complete deadzone, this week is fairly chockablock with newcomers, including several titles weeks ahead of their official release date. It was meant to be even more chockablock, but a long-awaited package from Australia is waiting even longer (I thought it would make it through customs, etc, in time for today, but it looks like it'll be tomorrow or Monday), and another distributor's so-called shipping of my package didn't actually include handing it over to Royal Mail. Can't deliver it within 48 hours if they don't get given it for 96 hours, can they? That will also now be in next week's tally, which — depending on the vagaries of pre-release shipping and postal services — could wind up with twice as many new titles as this week.
Number of titles in collection: 3,167 [up 6]
Of which DVDs: 1,022 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,145 [up 6]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 298 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,737 [up 11]
Number of films: 3,891 [up 11]
Number of additional cuts: 344 [up 2]
Number of TV episodes: 9,621 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,085 [up 6]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 13 October 2023
Audio Drama / Podcasts
Doctor Who: Redacted
2x06 Redemption [season finale]
Weirdly, this episode makes a big thing out of a "the Doctor is missing from the universe" subplot, then ends with a tease for next month's first special, The Star Beast. I say that's weird because I don't recall the Doctor going missing being a plot point in the last few Jodie episodes (indeed, her final one is set largely in the present day, working with UNIT), so you might think the Doctor being missing is something to setup the specials, but the trailers for those suggest this 'cliffhanger' is teasing something quite early in Special 1. So... what? Unless "the Doctor has been missing for some time" is part of the specials' story, I guess. Well, we'll find out next month!
[Listen to it (again) on BBC Sounds.]
2x06 Redemption [season finale]
Weirdly, this episode makes a big thing out of a "the Doctor is missing from the universe" subplot, then ends with a tease for next month's first special, The Star Beast. I say that's weird because I don't recall the Doctor going missing being a plot point in the last few Jodie episodes (indeed, her final one is set largely in the present day, working with UNIT), so you might think the Doctor being missing is something to setup the specials, but the trailers for those suggest this 'cliffhanger' is teasing something quite early in Special 1. So... what? Unless "the Doctor has been missing for some time" is part of the specials' story, I guess. Well, we'll find out next month!
[Listen to it (again) on BBC Sounds.]
Radio
Doctor Who @ 60: A Musical Celebration
Recorded last month and scheduled for broadcast this coming Sunday, the BBC unexpectedly released this full two-hour concert on BBC Sounds yesterday. It contains a couple of themes from upcoming episodes, which they shared on social media. It's all a bit odd (why drop it randomly several days early? Surely no one was going to leak something like this?), but here it is.
[Listen to it (again) on BBC Sounds.]
Recorded last month and scheduled for broadcast this coming Sunday, the BBC unexpectedly released this full two-hour concert on BBC Sounds yesterday. It contains a couple of themes from upcoming episodes, which they shared on social media. It's all a bit odd (why drop it randomly several days early? Surely no one was going to leak something like this?), but here it is.
[Listen to it (again) on BBC Sounds.]
Thursday, 12 October 2023
Fiction
Doctor Who: The New Adventures
Timewyrm: Genesys by John Peel
Chapters 2–8
In which we are (re)introduced to Ace by her waking up in bed naked, with no memories, so she has to do things like take a long look at herself in the mirror. Straight away, the NAs are living down to their slightly sordid reputation. On the bright side, at least author John Peel stops his description of her body at “muscular” rather than indulging in any more fan fantasy. Although later we meet a thirteen-year-old priestess-cum-prostitute who spends all her time topless, so, y'know, give with one hand 'n' all that...
Timewyrm: Genesys by John Peel
Chapters 2–8
In which we are (re)introduced to Ace by her waking up in bed naked, with no memories, so she has to do things like take a long look at herself in the mirror. Straight away, the NAs are living down to their slightly sordid reputation. On the bright side, at least author John Peel stops his description of her body at “muscular” rather than indulging in any more fan fantasy. Although later we meet a thirteen-year-old priestess-cum-prostitute who spends all her time topless, so, y'know, give with one hand 'n' all that...
Wednesday, 11 October 2023
Fiction
Doctor Who: Something Borrowed by Richelle Mead
Chapters 1–6 [the end]
Heading rapidly towards the end of the classic era in my Doctor Who 60th marathon, now. Indeed, you could argue this is the end, because for my Seventh Doctor main text I've chosen something that came after the final episode from 1989 (see: further down this very post). Of course, a counter-argument would be the classic era doesn't actually end until 2005, just before the start of Rose. Anyway, that's really a discussion for another day: here, we're still with the Sixth Doctor, for the next story from the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series.
Doctor Who: The New Adventures
Timewyrm: Genesys by John Peel
Preface + Foreword
Prologue + Chapter 1
For the Seventh Doctor portion of my Doctor Who 60th anniversary marathon, we're heading into the Wilderness Years. After it became apparent that the series was done on TV (at least for the time being), Virgin acquired the rights to publish a series of novels continuing the adventures of the Doctor and Ace. The New Adventures are practically an era unto themselves — a run of books that took the series in new directions (violence, sex, and swearing, as well as genuinely adult ideas), introduced enduring characters (Professor Bernice Summerfield remains a Big Finish favourite to this day), and even stories (Human Nature was later adapted for TV).
When I first got into Doctor Who, they sort of 'were' it (arguably alongside the DWM comic strip; although the TV Movie was on the horizon, which caused its own changes). I read a couple of them back in the day, but they were already very well established at that point — it felt like too many to catch up on in full, especially as I was probably a bit young for them. A year or two ago I went on a bit of a spending spree and bought up a bunch of those that are supposed to be the best (I ended up with 23. Buying the entire series still feels like a ridiculous expenditure — there are 61 novels in all — especially as some of the later ones were subjected to short print runs and so go for hundreds of pounds). My purchases included the linked quartet of novels that opened the range, of which this is the very first. Yes, for the Seventh Doctor I'm reading a book that's "part one of four". I have no idea how well it stands alone (let's find out!), but I may well be looping back round to read books 2 to 4 later (after I've finished off my 60th marathon, of course).
Chapters 1–6 [the end]
Heading rapidly towards the end of the classic era in my Doctor Who 60th marathon, now. Indeed, you could argue this is the end, because for my Seventh Doctor main text I've chosen something that came after the final episode from 1989 (see: further down this very post). Of course, a counter-argument would be the classic era doesn't actually end until 2005, just before the start of Rose. Anyway, that's really a discussion for another day: here, we're still with the Sixth Doctor, for the next story from the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series.
Doctor Who: The New Adventures
Timewyrm: Genesys by John Peel
Preface + Foreword
Prologue + Chapter 1
For the Seventh Doctor portion of my Doctor Who 60th anniversary marathon, we're heading into the Wilderness Years. After it became apparent that the series was done on TV (at least for the time being), Virgin acquired the rights to publish a series of novels continuing the adventures of the Doctor and Ace. The New Adventures are practically an era unto themselves — a run of books that took the series in new directions (violence, sex, and swearing, as well as genuinely adult ideas), introduced enduring characters (Professor Bernice Summerfield remains a Big Finish favourite to this day), and even stories (Human Nature was later adapted for TV).
When I first got into Doctor Who, they sort of 'were' it (arguably alongside the DWM comic strip; although the TV Movie was on the horizon, which caused its own changes). I read a couple of them back in the day, but they were already very well established at that point — it felt like too many to catch up on in full, especially as I was probably a bit young for them. A year or two ago I went on a bit of a spending spree and bought up a bunch of those that are supposed to be the best (I ended up with 23. Buying the entire series still feels like a ridiculous expenditure — there are 61 novels in all — especially as some of the later ones were subjected to short print runs and so go for hundreds of pounds). My purchases included the linked quartet of novels that opened the range, of which this is the very first. Yes, for the Seventh Doctor I'm reading a book that's "part one of four". I have no idea how well it stands alone (let's find out!), but I may well be looping back round to read books 2 to 4 later (after I've finished off my 60th marathon, of course).
Tuesday, 10 October 2023
TV
Behind the Sofa
22x05 Timelash
I've not watched one of these before, so for those who don't know: it's a series on the Doctor Who Blu-rays where stars of the show from across the classic era (and very occasionally the new one) sit down and watch episodes and commentate on them, Gogglebox style. They've done them for every season of the show so far released on Blu-ray, meaning it's a fairly long-running series in its own right now (as there have been 14 box sets so far). Therefore how one numbers the series' seasons is, I suppose, a point of debate — I've gone with the season of Who it's about, but as this was the 11th box set released, you could argue this is season 11 of Behind the Sofa. (I say "point of debate" — obviously only nitpicky people like me care about such things.) One day I intend to watch all the episodes — after watching the serial in question would've made sense, but I've just not found time for it before now. It's certainly quite fun.
Doctor Who
22x11 Timelash Part Two
Well, this story really does live down to its poor reputation.
22x05 Timelash
I've not watched one of these before, so for those who don't know: it's a series on the Doctor Who Blu-rays where stars of the show from across the classic era (and very occasionally the new one) sit down and watch episodes and commentate on them, Gogglebox style. They've done them for every season of the show so far released on Blu-ray, meaning it's a fairly long-running series in its own right now (as there have been 14 box sets so far). Therefore how one numbers the series' seasons is, I suppose, a point of debate — I've gone with the season of Who it's about, but as this was the 11th box set released, you could argue this is season 11 of Behind the Sofa. (I say "point of debate" — obviously only nitpicky people like me care about such things.) One day I intend to watch all the episodes — after watching the serial in question would've made sense, but I've just not found time for it before now. It's certainly quite fun.
Doctor Who
22x11 Timelash Part Two
Well, this story really does live down to its poor reputation.
Monday, 9 October 2023
TV
Doctor Who
22x10 Timelash Part One
My Doctor Who 60th marathon move on to the Sixth Doctor now, with the only one of his TV stories I haven't seen. Is one of the worst-regarded stories in Who history (in DWM's "Mighty 200" poll, it came 199th out of 200; in their 50th anniversary poll, it came 238th out of 241) appropriate for an anniversary celebration? Eh, why not — taking the rough with the smooth 'n' all that.
22x10 Timelash Part One
My Doctor Who 60th marathon move on to the Sixth Doctor now, with the only one of his TV stories I haven't seen. Is one of the worst-regarded stories in Who history (in DWM's "Mighty 200" poll, it came 199th out of 200; in their 50th anniversary poll, it came 238th out of 241) appropriate for an anniversary celebration? Eh, why not — taking the rough with the smooth 'n' all that.
Fiction
Doctor Who: Tip of the Tongue by Patrick Ness
Concluding the Fifth Doctor portion of my 60th anniversary celebration with this entry in the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories anthology. I should've read it yesterday, really, but I ran out of time. Fortunately, the Sixth Doctor section spreads across two days, so I should be a little more caught-up after tomorrow.
Concluding the Fifth Doctor portion of my 60th anniversary celebration with this entry in the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories anthology. I should've read it yesterday, really, but I ran out of time. Fortunately, the Sixth Doctor section spreads across two days, so I should be a little more caught-up after tomorrow.
Articles
The Challenges of Making Universes Beyond
by Mark Rosewater (from Magic: The Gathering Official Site)
This is an interesting article about some of the processes and challenges that went into making Magic: The Gathering's Doctor Who products.
by Mark Rosewater (from Magic: The Gathering Official Site)
This is an interesting article about some of the processes and challenges that went into making Magic: The Gathering's Doctor Who products.
Sunday, 8 October 2023
TV
Doctor Who
20x23 The Five Doctors [40th Anniversary Edition; 3rd or so watch]
+ the new audio commentary (there are four different ones across all the cuts now) with Peter Davison, Janet Fielding, and Mark Strickson, moderated by Matthew Sweet
The Fifth Doctor enters my 60th anniversary celebration by way of the 20th anniversary special, here in a new-and-improved version created to mark its 40th anniversary. Anniversary-tastic!
Of course, the media I chose to consume for my Doctor Who 60th celebrations was all supposed to be new to me — the original idea was serials I hadn’t seen before, which was immediately a problem because I’ve seen every episode from the Seventh Doctor onwards, and so that’s what led to the “mixed media” concept. There are multiple Fifth Doctor texts that could’ve fit either version, but I’ve gone back to one I’ve actually seen several times before (though my most recent viewing was in 2008, i.e. 15 years ago).
So it's just a cheat? Yes and no. As I mentioned above, this is the “40th anniversary version”, which was freshly released just last month as part of the Season 20 Blu-ray set. It was my desire to watch this new version that meant it nabbed the Fifth Doctor’s spot in my celebration marathon. So, although I have seen The Five Doctors before, I’ve never seen this edit, with these special effects*, in HD. Not to mention that, as the big 20th anniversary celebratory story, it fits very nicely as part of a 60th celebration anyway.
* There's a lot more to the new version that just some light polishing on the old effects: there are 117 new effects shots throughout the story, including things like digital set/location extensions. There's a neat comparison video of the different versions here that shows at least a few of them.
20x23 The Five Doctors [40th Anniversary Edition; 3rd or so watch]
+ the new audio commentary (there are four different ones across all the cuts now) with Peter Davison, Janet Fielding, and Mark Strickson, moderated by Matthew Sweet
The Fifth Doctor enters my 60th anniversary celebration by way of the 20th anniversary special, here in a new-and-improved version created to mark its 40th anniversary. Anniversary-tastic!
Of course, the media I chose to consume for my Doctor Who 60th celebrations was all supposed to be new to me — the original idea was serials I hadn’t seen before, which was immediately a problem because I’ve seen every episode from the Seventh Doctor onwards, and so that’s what led to the “mixed media” concept. There are multiple Fifth Doctor texts that could’ve fit either version, but I’ve gone back to one I’ve actually seen several times before (though my most recent viewing was in 2008, i.e. 15 years ago).
So it's just a cheat? Yes and no. As I mentioned above, this is the “40th anniversary version”, which was freshly released just last month as part of the Season 20 Blu-ray set. It was my desire to watch this new version that meant it nabbed the Fifth Doctor’s spot in my celebration marathon. So, although I have seen The Five Doctors before, I’ve never seen this edit, with these special effects*, in HD. Not to mention that, as the big 20th anniversary celebratory story, it fits very nicely as part of a 60th celebration anyway.
* There's a lot more to the new version that just some light polishing on the old effects: there are 117 new effects shots throughout the story, including things like digital set/location extensions. There's a neat comparison video of the different versions here that shows at least a few of them.
Fiction
Doctor Who: The Roots of Evil by Philip Reeve
Prologue + Chapters 1–6 [the end]
Things are overlapping a bit at the moment with my Doctor Who 60th anniversary celebrations: yesterday, the Third Doctor finished on the same day I did my entire Fourth Doctor segment; except it wasn't quite my entire Fourth Doctor, because there's also this story from the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series — which I'm reading on the day I do the main Fifth Doctor instalment. Cripes! But I'm on a relatively tight schedule (possibly — there are some choices later on where I can't be sure how long I need to allow for them), so I can't allow myself the luxury of spreading things out too much.
Prologue + Chapters 1–6 [the end]
Things are overlapping a bit at the moment with my Doctor Who 60th anniversary celebrations: yesterday, the Third Doctor finished on the same day I did my entire Fourth Doctor segment; except it wasn't quite my entire Fourth Doctor, because there's also this story from the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series — which I'm reading on the day I do the main Fifth Doctor instalment. Cripes! But I'm on a relatively tight schedule (possibly — there are some choices later on where I can't be sure how long I need to allow for them), so I can't allow myself the luxury of spreading things out too much.
this week on 100Films.co.uk
No new reviews were published to 100Films.co.uk this week (it'd be a miracle if they were at this point), but there was the second half of my monthly review: the "failures"...
It'd be a miracle if there was more next Sunday, but you never know.
It'd be a miracle if there was more next Sunday, but you never know.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Normally I post these updates on a Saturday, though sometimes they're delayed if I have too much to add. This week, though, there's nothing to add — so I just kinda forgot, because quiet weeks are so rare. Then I remembered... but had to work out the latest running time increase, because it's that time of the month again, and that took a little time. So here we are on Sunday, even though there's nothing to report... except a new running time, of course.
Number of titles in collection: 3,161 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,022 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,139 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 298 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,726 [no change]
Number of films: 3,880 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 342 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,621 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,079 [no change]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
546 days, 16 hours, and 42 minutes.
(Up 12 hours and 30 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Normally I post these updates on a Saturday, though sometimes they're delayed if I have too much to add. This week, though, there's nothing to add — so I just kinda forgot, because quiet weeks are so rare. Then I remembered... but had to work out the latest running time increase, because it's that time of the month again, and that took a little time. So here we are on Sunday, even though there's nothing to report... except a new running time, of course.
Number of titles in collection: 3,161 [no change]
Of which DVDs: 1,022 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 2,139 [no change]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 298 [no change]
Number of discs in collection: 7,726 [no change]
Number of films: 3,880 [no change]
Number of additional cuts: 342 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,621 [no change]
Number of short films: 1,079 [no change]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
546 days, 16 hours, and 42 minutes.
(Up 12 hours and 30 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Saturday, 7 October 2023
Fiction
Doctor Who: The Spear of Destiny by Marcus Sedgwick
Chapters 5–12 [the end]
And that's the end for the Third Doctor section.
Chapters 5–12 [the end]
And that's the end for the Third Doctor section.
Comics
Doctor Who: The Iron Legion by Dave Gibbons, Pat Mills, John Wagner & Steve Moore
3 Doctor Who and the Star Beast
My Doctor Who 60th watch/read/listen-through progresses to the Fourth Doctor, and one of the texts that gave me the idea to make this a multimedia exercise rather than just sticking to TV (that and the fact I've seen every TV adventure for the Seventh to Thirteenth Doctors. Nothing wrong with some rewatches, but there are plenty of new books, audios, and more for me to get to, too).
I've wanted to read these comics for a long time (I bought this volume when it was first released back in 2004, for one thing), but especially so recently when rumours first emerged that the 60th anniversary specials would feature Beep the Meep — a character who made his debut here. As has since been revealed, the TV episode isn't just a new outing for the Meep, but an adaptation of this very story (which, incidentally, was originally pitched for TV in the '70s, but rejected and so repurposed as a comic — what goes around comes around 'n' all that).
It's just one of five stories collected in this volume, and I had thought about reading the entire book for this slot, but as things panned out I didn't really have time. Somewhat ironic, that. Anyway, it means the Fourth Doctor becomes the first Doctor whose contribution to my 60th marathon takes but a single day. He won't be the last. Indeed, the next is tomorrow...
3 Doctor Who and the Star Beast
My Doctor Who 60th watch/read/listen-through progresses to the Fourth Doctor, and one of the texts that gave me the idea to make this a multimedia exercise rather than just sticking to TV (that and the fact I've seen every TV adventure for the Seventh to Thirteenth Doctors. Nothing wrong with some rewatches, but there are plenty of new books, audios, and more for me to get to, too).
I've wanted to read these comics for a long time (I bought this volume when it was first released back in 2004, for one thing), but especially so recently when rumours first emerged that the 60th anniversary specials would feature Beep the Meep — a character who made his debut here. As has since been revealed, the TV episode isn't just a new outing for the Meep, but an adaptation of this very story (which, incidentally, was originally pitched for TV in the '70s, but rejected and so repurposed as a comic — what goes around comes around 'n' all that).
It's just one of five stories collected in this volume, and I had thought about reading the entire book for this slot, but as things panned out I didn't really have time. Somewhat ironic, that. Anyway, it means the Fourth Doctor becomes the first Doctor whose contribution to my 60th marathon takes but a single day. He won't be the last. Indeed, the next is tomorrow...
Videos
Shuffle Up & Play
36 The Four Doctors Play Commander
The latest episode of Tolarian Community College's gameplay series sees the Professor and friends — including two designers of the Magic Doctor Who set — play a Commander game with modified Doctor Who decks. And it's all a whole lot of fun, packed with in-jokes and references for those of us who love Who. Good stuff.
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]
36 The Four Doctors Play Commander
The latest episode of Tolarian Community College's gameplay series sees the Professor and friends — including two designers of the Magic Doctor Who set — play a Commander game with modified Doctor Who decks. And it's all a whole lot of fun, packed with in-jokes and references for those of us who love Who. Good stuff.
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]
Friday, 6 October 2023
TV
Doctor Who
7x24 Inferno Episode 6
7x25 Inferno Episode 7 [season finale]
Did Inferno live up to the hype as the greatest Third Doctor story? Well, that's a near-impossible bar to meet. I wouldn't immediately say it was my most-favourite from his era, but it is very good indeed.
7x24 Inferno Episode 6
7x25 Inferno Episode 7 [season finale]
Did Inferno live up to the hype as the greatest Third Doctor story? Well, that's a near-impossible bar to meet. I wouldn't immediately say it was my most-favourite from his era, but it is very good indeed.
Fiction
Doctor Who: The Spear of Destiny by Marcus Sedgwick
Chapters 1–4
The third short story in the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series, to conclude the Third Doctor section of my 60th anniversary celebrations.
Chapters 1–4
The third short story in the 11/12/13 Doctors, 11/12/13 Stories series, to conclude the Third Doctor section of my 60th anniversary celebrations.
Videos
Tolarian Community College
"Blast From The Past" Full Deck Reveal - A new Doctor Who Commander Precon for Magic Gathering!
Following the livestream I logged on Tuesday, reveals of the Magic: The Gathering Doctor Who cards have been continuing all week, culminating in this video reveal of the classic-era-themed deck.
I've been reading and watching a few bits of Magic-related content over the past couple of months, and Tolarian Community College — hosted by the Professor (who somewhat styles himself after the Doctor because, yep, he's also a Whovian) — is one of the best channels I've come across. So this video isn't just a list of cards, but a fun and informative series of reveals and analyses.
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]
"Blast From The Past" Full Deck Reveal - A new Doctor Who Commander Precon for Magic Gathering!
Following the livestream I logged on Tuesday, reveals of the Magic: The Gathering Doctor Who cards have been continuing all week, culminating in this video reveal of the classic-era-themed deck.
I've been reading and watching a few bits of Magic-related content over the past couple of months, and Tolarian Community College — hosted by the Professor (who somewhat styles himself after the Doctor because, yep, he's also a Whovian) — is one of the best channels I've come across. So this video isn't just a list of cards, but a fun and informative series of reveals and analyses.
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]
Thursday, 5 October 2023
TV
Doctor Who
7x22 Inferno Episode 4
7x23 Inferno Episode 5
Ever since I came across it as a viewing method, I've really enjoyed watching classic Who serials at the rate of one episode per day. But with content for all 15 Doctors to get through before an unspecified date in November — and with various interruptions still to come along the way — here and there I may need to continue to alter the pace a little, like today.
7x22 Inferno Episode 4
7x23 Inferno Episode 5
Ever since I came across it as a viewing method, I've really enjoyed watching classic Who serials at the rate of one episode per day. But with content for all 15 Doctors to get through before an unspecified date in November — and with various interruptions still to come along the way — here and there I may need to continue to alter the pace a little, like today.
Games
The Dragon Staff of Maladoria
13–15 April 2021
Oh no, I died! Luckily, in this game you get to just come straight back to life (for a cost) and carry on. Well, it'd be a pretty rubbish calendar if you died in the first few months and couldn't play the rest of the year, wouldn't it?
13–15 April 2021
Oh no, I died! Luckily, in this game you get to just come straight back to life (for a cost) and carry on. Well, it'd be a pretty rubbish calendar if you died in the first few months and couldn't play the rest of the year, wouldn't it?
Wednesday, 4 October 2023
Tuesday, 3 October 2023
TV
Doctor Who
7x20 Inferno Episode 2
I should probably note that I tend to post a bit more about these on Letterboxd than I do here, if anyone's interested. (The exception being first episodes/days, where I'm explaining more of my 60th plans here.)
7x20 Inferno Episode 2
I should probably note that I tend to post a bit more about these on Letterboxd than I do here, if anyone's interested. (The exception being first episodes/days, where I'm explaining more of my 60th plans here.)
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