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mymoonjin1 · 4 years

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Chris Chibnall ruined Doctor Who

Doctor Who sucks now. I’m sorry for starting this off with such a blatant statement, but we all know it’s true. And this angers me so, so much, because it used to be one of my all-time favorite shows, and now with a female lead it had so much potential, lost in shitty writing. Here we go.

I have to admit, I used to be one of the people against changing the Doctor’s gender. I thought it would be weird, that they were only doing it for PC reasons, etc. I changed my mind since then, but needless to say, I remained disappointed. I think that a female Doctor would have been a refreshing take on the character, it would have shut up people (like me at the time) and it would have made a lot more people take interest in Doctor Who. Jodie’s era could have been amazing, magical and revolutionary. But alas, here we are.

Jodie Whittaker’s first episode was watched by a little over 14 million people if I recall correctly. But why did the show fail in keeping that number? Simple: the writing sucks. Chris Chibnall is not a good showrunner. He took elements he knew of Doctor Who and tried to copy them, without understanding what made them special.

Let’s start with character development. The Doctor. There was a moment in Spyfall when Yaz says: “what would the Doctor do?”, and for the longest moment I thought… “what would this Doctor do?”, which is NOT something I should be thinking this far in Jodie’s run as the Doctor. It’s all been oh’s, wow’s, unnecessary exposition and not a single truly emotional moment, one that makes me feel like I know or relate to this Doctor. I feel like they tried to make a sort of female Eleven without everything that made him special. Jodie said multiple times “yeah, I can play an alien”, and of course, she could have. But the problem it’s not just about playing an alien. The Doctor is an extremely complex character, with extremely complex emotions. Emotions we are yet to see from her. And I am not saying she isn’t a great actress. I absolutely loved her in Broadchurch, a show that was also run by Chibnall. She is capable of showing emotional range. So why hasn’t she? Shitty writing. My guess? Chibnall is scared of criticism saying that this Doctor (a woman) is too emotional, criticism that wouldn’t have existed in previous Doctors' incarnations. Which is bullshit, and also leads me to my next point: the companions.

Having three companions may have sounded good in paper, but the reality is that none of them has had enough screen time to properly develop as characters. My guess? In the eyes of Chibnall (and probably the BBC, I don’t know), a team would lessen the controversy around the new Doctor. But they didn’t bother with them.

If someone asked you to describe Yaz or Ryan’s personality, what would you say? …Exactly. The only one worth watching is Graham, and even he hasn’t had a proper storyline. They tried to show more of their struggles in Can You Hear Me?, but here’s the thing. It is far too late in their arcs for this. At this point, it just felt way too forced. As someone with depression, It would have been great to see more of Yaz’s struggles with it, but just one episode is not nearly enough. Also, she connected with a police officer who we are never going to see again! Don’t you think it would’ve been better to see this development in her relationship with the Doctor? NONE of them have a strong friendship with her. They just say she’s amazing because she takes them places and shit. Not because they actually want to spend time with her. What are Yaz’s reasons to be there? She wanted to be more than just a cop that gave tickets, she wanted to help people, yet she just…left? And she has mentioned being a cop like, once since then. How does this make any sense?

Ryan was supposed to have dyspraxia, which hasn’t been mentioned since the bike thing, I think. It would have been great to see this being an actual part of his character and seeing him coping with it whilst traveling around in space and having dangerous adventures. But nope, they completely forgot about it, as well as his Youtube channel. Also, what are his motivations, his ambitions? Why is he there? In Can You Hear Me? we learn about his friend’s struggles with mental health, but again, shouldn’t it have had more impact coming from Ryan? A character we are supposed to care about at this point?

As for Graham, like I said, he’s the one with a more formed personality. He’s a goofball, he worries about the “kids” of the group, he’s a father figure. Great. But the problem is they presented him as wanting to travel with the Doctor to get over his grief, but they hardly show any of it. And there wasn’t any hint throughout the first season of him having any sort of thirst for revenge, so him wanting to kill Tim Shaw just came out of nowhere. But my biggest problem this season, was when he was opening up with the Doctor about his fear of his cancer returning and she just… said: “I’m sorry, I’m still socially awkward”???? WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL? There’s been plenty of times that we’ve seen this awkwardness. It is ALL we’ve ever seen from this Doctor. This was NOT the time to say this. This could have been a beautiful way for them to connect, to show more of the Doctor’s emotional side, yet what we got was a “suffer in silence bro, I’m so awkward lol”. REALLY? The Doctor has always shown compassion. Even if they don’t understand what their companions are going through, they are always there for them. Why would the writers think this was a good idea? It’s infuriating.

I’ve been watching a LOT of Youtube videos talking about why Chibnall’s run has been a disaster. I really liked one called “Is the Doctor a hypocrite?”, by B-WHERE. In the video, they essentially say that this Doctor’s moral compass is a mess. In Arachnids in the UK, for example, she somehow thinks locking up all of the spiders and letting the queen die suffocating is more humane than just killing them quickly, which is what the villain does in the end. Ummm? Okay? Listen, the Doctor has always faced difficult moral decisions, even scary ones, like in the Family of Blood two-parter. But as the video says, they’ve never claimed to have moral superiority. And maybe this could have been a more distinctive flaw in the character, a flaw that maybe her companions saw and disagreed with. Like Ten’s wake up call at the end of Waters of Mars. But no. Again, it’s just plain shitty writing.

Ok. Now... The Timeless Children. Jesus Christ. There are so, so many reasons this was the worst thing to ever happen to Doctor Who, but y’all are probably wishing for this rant to be over, so I’ll just mention two.

In over fifty years, we’ve NEVER needed an origin story for The Doctor. The show is called “Doctor Who” for a reason, the question that should never be answered. And they just go and shit all over one of the most beloved sci-fi shows of the twentieth century in a single episode. Again, this is mentioned in several videos, but I thought the same thing right after watching the episode: making the Doctor another “chosen one” goes against everything the show represented. The Doctor was an ordinary alien who was not very good at the Academy, ran away with a stolen TARDIS because he disagreed with the Time Lords way, and couldn’t even control where the TARDIS would go at first. The Doctor is an idiot in a box. The Doctor helps because he wants to; because it’s decent and kind. ANYONE could be like the Doctor. And now, it turns out he’s always been special. The Doctor is the reason why Time Lords regenerate. The character is basically a god now. Why is this a bad thing? This changes EVERYTHING, and yet, it WILL CHANGE NOTHING going forward. Ruth’s Doctor says so herself, it doesn’t change who the Doctor is. Oh, but it does. It changes who the Doctor WAS. None of it matters now, none of their sacrifices, it meant nothing. That’s what makes this so heartbreaking. And I had so much faith in this season. I actually enjoyed a few episodes, like Nicola Tesla’s Night of Terror. I thought they were going down the right path. But Chris Chibnall has ruined my favorite show in just one episode. My only comfort is that there’s still plenty of Classic Who episodes I haven’t watched. Those will be the ones I’ll look forward to.

(Also, that’s nOT HOW REGENERATION WORKS! IT DOESN’T BRING TIME LORDS BACK TO LIFE! IT HEALS/PREVENTS THEM FROM DYING WHEN THEY’RE IN PHYSICAL DANGER. GOD, CHRIS, WHY ARE YOU SO STUPID!) Okay, rant over, deep breaths. Thanks for reading!

#doctor who #the timeless child #13th Doctor #chris chibnall #rant #twoheartedslytherinwrites #twoheartedslytherin

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odanurr87 · 4 years

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2019: My year in K-Dramas - Part 2

And we’re back! So, um, yeah, this took a lot longer than I imagined at first, but the truth is I was also dealing with coursework and other projects. As a result, I decided to break this last post into two, so instead of 6 shows in 1 post, you get 6 shows across 2 posts, building anticipation like a kdrama! And, I mean, two of those shows are My Love from the Star and Descendants of the Sun... Those two powerhouses deserve a bit more attention, maybe a couple of rewatches. Anyway, let’s get this show on the road!

WARNING! I’ve purposefully kept any big spoilers out of this post but some light spoilers may remain. Proceed with caution.

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When the Camellia Blooms (2019)

Gong Hyo-Jin as Oh Dong-Baek and Kang Ha-Neul as Hwang Yong-Sik.

Release Date: September 18 - November 21, 2019

Episodes: 20

Available on: Netflix

Summary: Dong-Baek is a single mother who moves to the town of Ongsan to open up a bar, the Camellia, while trying to raise her son, Pil-Gu. Six years later, Yong-Sik, a police officer and the youngest son of Dong-Baek’s only friend in Ongsan, returns and is instantly smitten by her. Yong-Sik is determined to woo her but Dong-Baek is also equally determined to resist his advances at first, a situation that is further complicated by the sudden reappearance of Dong-Baek’s ex and Pil-Gu’s biological father, Kang Jong-Ryul, who tries to win her back. When a serial killer known as Joker resurfaces after years of inactivity threatening to go after Dong-Baek, Yong-Sik launches an investigation to catch the elusive Joker once and for all.

What I liked:

The down-to-earth feel of the show. Save for the murder mystery element of the show, When the Camellia Blooms is pretty down-to-earth, depicting characters that could very much exist in our neighbourhood and exploring problems related to everyday life. How many kdramas show the struggles of a single mom trying to handle a love life while raising her son? I bet there are not a lot of them, and the only similar one I’ve watched, and would recommend, is One Spring Night, that depicts the life of a single dad balancing a romantic relationship while raising his son (it’s probably a more realistic representation all around down even to side characters). Even Yong-Sik is not the idealized male protagonist that most kdramas favour, at one point referred to as a “country bumpkin” by Dong-Baek’s ex, and while he may come across as rather simple-minded, he’s also refreshingly honest, determined (both in his pursuit of Dong-Baek and Joker), hard-working, and always there when the chips fall. While Dong-Baek’s ex is an ass for the majority of the show, I appreciated his inclusion because it clearly showed the contrast between the two characters vying for Dong-Baek’s affections: the man who pities her, and the man who encourages her; the man who’s ashamed of how she’s living her life, and the man who’s proud of what she has accomplished; the man who loves his memory of her, and the man who loves her as she is now; her past, and her present. Which one of the two will become her future?

The supporting cast. I am going to put them all together in the same bag as I don’t think anyone was particularly outstanding, but they all contributed to making this show a most entertaining watch from beginning to end: from Yong-Sik’s superior and chief of police, Byun Bae-Soo (played by Jeon Bae-Soo), through the simple-minded landlord with political aspirations, Noh Gyu-Tae (played by Oh Jung-Se), his cunning wife and ace attorney, Hong Ja-Young (played by Yeom Hye-Rae), to Dong-Baek’s kleptomaniac friend, Choi Hyang-Mi (played by Son Dam-Bi). At one point I even became more interested in the relationship between the characters of Gyu-Tae and Ja-Young, so strong were their performances. And I couldn’t help but feel sad for Hyang-Mi despite her many opportunistic deeds, a character who’s had a life as unforgiving as Dong-Baek, especially when we learn the reason behind some of her actions, and happy for her when she realises family isn’t always blood and ultimately chooses to walk a path of redemption. Sure wish we had seen more of that. You could make the case that Gyu-Tae and Hyang-Mi are the best out of the supporting cast, perhaps because of how much their characters grow over the course of the show.

What I didn’t like:

How the murder-mystery was handled/resolved. The first episode starts with the murder of an unknown person at some unspecified point in the future, a typical enough hook. We’re shown that person is someone who Yong-Sik apparently knew and cared for, but even when later episodes extend that scene frame by frame, tempting the audience to participate in this game of whodunit, the identity is only allowed to be revealed when the series catches up to that moment. The murder mystery element is sprinkled throughout the series as Yong-Sik is intent on protecting Dong-Baek and catching the serial killer Joker. But this isn’t Broadchurch, where the entire show revolves around solving the murder mystery and seeing its effects on the people of the small town of Dorset. No, in a way, the murder mystery in When the Camellia Blooms feels like a strategy, designed so that when the real goal of the show is revealed, the exploration of motherhood, you’ll be too invested to back out. One could argue the same for the romance between Dong-Baek and Yong-Sik. As a result, the murder-mystery feels drawn out and starts losing some of its steam as we approach the final episodes. Involving Dong-Baek’s mother in the whole affair was oddly convenient but felt out of place and worked against the show. Here we have a woman who knows, or thinks she knows, who the killer is several episodes before the end, and not only does she not tell the police about it but she actually confronts the killer. In any other show, the outcome would have been inevitable: the woman is murdered, leaving the police another clue as to who might have done it. However, since the show has already planned a happy ending for this character, she can’t be killed (incidentally, this happens with another character as well), even if the show later tries to toy with our feelings by suggesting she’s dead (not because of Joker though). The reveal of the culprit’s identity was a letdown, not only because the writers showed their hand early on but because we were never really given good suspects to begin with, and in a murder mystery that’s essential. Yes, we’re given a good pool of suspects for Joker’s latest victim, but since we also know Joker killed other people and is targeting Dong-Baek, not to mention the tone and themes of the show, we can readily eliminate almost all of them. They could’ve toyed around with the idea of a copycat, killing a person and pinning it on Joker, but they didn’t. And don’t get me started on how they finally catch Joker, this dreaded serial killer who had managed to avoid capture for years but turned out be to a bit of a joke, pun intended.

How insufferable Pil-Gu became towards the end. To be fair, I blame the adults (and writers) in this show more than I do Pil-Gu. I had no qualms about how his character had been handled for most of the show, but then along came Episode 17, where the writers decided to amp the drama to 11 just for the sake of it, a trope I really don’t like. Basically, through a series of misunderstandings that no adult feels compelled to clear up, Pil-Gu throws a tantrum, accusing her mother of not loving him anymore, and why does she need to get married, and why can’t she live alone with him for the rest of her life, etc., etc., forgetting it was Pil-Gu who, earlier that episode, had asked Yong-Sik to stay at their home and protect his mom. Like I said, nobody even bothers to explain the situation to him (even though he’s shown to be pretty smart and should’ve probably figured it out himself) and, worse, Dong-Baek plays along and decides to break up with Yong-Sik, determined never to love anyone other than Pil-Gu for the rest of her life. Jesus. As if wanting to twist the knife further, Episode 18 ends with a grown-up Pil-Gu, a jarring and decidedly out-of-place transition, suggesting he grew up to be a fine man as a result of her mom’s decision, but anyone who’s ever watched a kdrama knows better than that: you’re just padding out events for the sake of drama and this show didn’t need that. At this point, I lost whatever appreciation I might have had for the character of Pil-Gu and was half rooting for Yong-Sik to be promoted and get his ass back to Seoul ASAP, never to return to Ongsan again.

The existence of Episode 18. Yes, this is the episode where Dong-Baek and Yong-Sik break up, but that’s not what I’m getting at as I discussed that point previously. Episode 18 also sees Pil-Gu suddenly want to live with his biological father out of a misunderstanding (so many misunderstandings in these last few episodes!) and Kang Jong-Ryul try to act as that father to him. It’s clear he’s out of his depth with Pil-Gu, but he seems to be trying so it feels jarring when Dong-Baek returns for Pil-Gu and punches him in the face. Look, Jong-Ryul has been a bit of an ass throughout so he has more than earned that punch but not in this context. The show immediately kicks in the music that depicts this as a moment of triumph and personal growth for Dong-Baek but I kept thinking, “The one time this dude is actually trying to step up to the plate, assuming his responsibilities as a father, and he gets punched for it? Sure, he’s not that great but he’s only had Pil-Gu for, what, a week? Less? And it’s not like he kidnapped him or anything. This doesn’t even make sense.” And what growth are we talking about when she immediately caters to the whims of a kid and breaks up with Yong-Sik? Who is the adult in this relationship? Are there any adults in this show? There’s a decidedly marked absence of fathers, and those there are aren’t shown in a very good light but that’s another matter. Episode 18 is, quite simply, an episode that shouldn’t exist as it really brings nothing to the table and only pads out the inevitable.

OTP: While not my #1 pick amongst the shows I watched in 2019, it was refreshingly different, with the show slowly building their relationship in spite of Yong-Sik’s relentless attempts to woo Dong-Baek. In any other show, such determination could’ve come across as annoying, perhaps bordering on harassment, but this is mitigated by Yong-Sik’s sincere personality, his active listening of Dong-Baek’s problems, his support and encouragement of her, and ultimately his respect of the boundaries set by Dong-Baek, a woman who is not accustomed to such repeated shows of affection and is ill-equipped to handle them. It was very rewarding to see her evolution as a character, finding the confidence to grow out of her shell, even if there were some flaws in the journey.

Verdict: While the show trips a little at the end it was a solid watch, and I could see myself returning to it every once in a while because of its mundane (and I’m using this word as a compliment here) aspects. It doesn’t hurt it has some good humour in between all the crying. Oh, yes, there’s a reason why I chose that particular gif to represent the relationship between Yong-Sik and Dong-Baek.

Rewatch meter: I’m going to cheat and say it’s Medium-to-High.

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Bring it on, ghost (2016)

Kim So-Hyun as Kim Hyun-Ji, and Ok Taec-Yeon as Park Bong-Pal.

Release Date: July 11 - August 30, 2016

Episodes: 16

Available on: Netflix, Viki

Summary: Park Bong-Pal is a 2nd year Economics student with a side job as an exorcist due to his strange ability to see ghosts, a fact that has prevented him from having a normal life and that he deeply resents. One night, while performing an exorcism at a high school, he comes across Kim Hyun-Ji, a former high school student turned wandering spirit, who has no recollection of her past but possesses an innate talent to fight ghosts and spot their weak points. During this encounter, the two accidentally kiss, and Hyun-Ji briefly recalls some of her memories. Convinced Bong-Pal holds the key to her memories and determined to find out more, she manages to persuade a reluctant Bong-Pal to let her move in in exchange for helping him fight ghosts. But Bong-Pal soon learns that not all ghosts are evil, and some may be even cute enough to fall for.

What I liked:

Kim So-Hyun as Kim Hyun-Ji. Do I need to add anything further? That picture should be enough evidence in and of itself. Kim So-Hyun looks like she’s having a blast acting as a kickass high-school student/ghost who has a penchant for upsetting Bong-Pal and looking criminally cute while doing so. With a personality like that, it’s no wonder Bong-Pal couldn’t help but fall for her. Who wouldn’t? Perhaps what makes her character so lovable is precisely the fact that she works off of Bong-Pal’s more curt personality. As they say, opposites attract.

Lee David as Kim In-Rang and Kang Ki-Young as Choi Cheon-Sang.

The humor. I’ll admit that I miscalculated with these two in the beginning, resigning myself to having to endure their interventions in what I felt was shaping up to be an otherwise great show. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find they made for some good comic relief, especially after they convince Bong-Pal to let them handle the business side of exorcising ghosts and join him and Hyun-Ji in their nightly escapades. That sounded better in my head. The humor is never crass and, most importantly, it never outlasts its welcome. Hey, they even try to do him a solid and hitch him with his crush, but Hyun-Ji has already managed to work her magic on him unbeknownst to her. In fact, much of the show’s humor is also a credit to the comedic rapport between the characters of Bong-Pal and Hyun-Ji, especially in the earlier episodes when their different personalities are most notable, but also later on when feelings of jealousy start to surface. Their playful bickering is often reproduced in some of the background music used and is also present in some of the ghost fights as if saying, “Yeah, we’re fighting a pervert ghost in a sauna and having a blast, what of it?”

The formula. What do I mean by that? For the most part, this show works like a procedural, with Hyun-Ji and Bong-Pal fighting the ghost of the week in each successive episode, while at the same time having a multi-episodic story-arc. This is the formula used in US TV shows: introduce an interesting story-arc in the first few episodes, then forget all about it until the final episodes of the season, with filler episodes in between. The difference being Bring it on, Ghost is actually a good procedural: there are no filler episodes, every ghost fight serves a purpose, whether it be to develop our protagonists (at times providing interesting backstory) or to strengthen their bond, and the main story-arc is always subtly running in the background until the paths of our protagonists and villain cross and events come to a head. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, US TV shows should seriously consider having shorter and tighter seasons, as their quality suffers otherwise. Bong Pal and Hyun-Ji’s ghost fights will also sometimes include moral or life lessons that flow naturally and never feel forced; nobody’s beating you over the head with them and shouting, “DO YOU GET IT NOW?!” As you can imagine, they’re certainly more subtle than US TV shows, but then again kdramas seem to have mastered the art of telling a lot without actually saying it, something others could learn from.

What I didn’t like:

The amnesia trope. Look, before you say anything, I understand why it’s there, sorta, it’s a reversal of Kim Hyun-Ji’s clinginess (that is an actual word) to Bong-Pal, if for different reasons. I don’t mind that it happened, but what I do mind is that it’s never reversed, making it somewhat difficult to believe that she’d fall for a stranger in what appears to be a very short amount of time. You could argue she’s unconsciouscly attracted to him given their past connection, and the show does at one point suggest that she may be regaining her memories, or that it’s possible at least, but nothing comes of it. This sudden bout of amnesia also offers her temporary protection from the villain, but at the end of the day I am left thinking that the show could’ve done without it or reverse it at the very end.

OTP: It’s a team effort, but Kim So-Hyun kills it!

Verdict: An infinitely rewatchable show with an all-around solid cast and great sense of humor. Like Strong Woman Do Bong-Soon, this show is sure to put a smile on your face if you’re feeling down or if you simply want to have a good time.

Rewatch meter: High

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One More Time (2016)

Kim Myung Soo as Yoo Tan, and Yoon So-Hee as Moon Da-In.

Release Date: October 26 - December 14, 2016

Episodes: 8

Available on: Netflix

Summary: Yoo Tan is the lead singer of an indie band called One More Time, together with his girlfriend, Moon Da-In, and his childhood friends. However, with bills mounting and his hopes for success dwindling, his relationships take a turn for the worse. When he’s offered to sign a contract with a music label, Yoo Tan sees his long-awaited chance and decides to burn all bridges to his past life, but an unexpected event that forces him to constantly relive the past twenty-four hours makes him reconsider his outlook on life.

What I liked:

The concept. The idea of being stuck in a time loop is not a particularly new one, with Groundhog Day being the most obvious, and highly entertaining, exponent, although I do remember an episode of Stargate SG-1 called “Window of Opportunity” that exploited the same concept, if to a different effect. As in Groundhog Day, One More Time uses this idea as a vehicle of self-reflection for the main character, transforming him from a bitter, selfish, and somewhat egocentric person, to someone far more likable, who recognises the value in the friendships he has forged and rediscovers the love he holds for the woman who has always been there for him. But this is only the prelude to our story as One More Time extends this concept by providing a reason for the time loop: tying it to Moon Da-In’s life, or death. In Groundhog Day, Bill Murray’s character, Phil, is eventually confronted by the fact that, for all the things he can do as a result of the day resetting, he cannot prevent death no matter how hard he tries. This is a sobering moment for our main character. However, Yoo Tan goes through an even more harrowing crucible, as the person whose death he seemingly cannot prevent is his girlfriend, Da-In. Thus, the series shows us Yoo Tan’s many attempts to save her while delving into Da-In’s past. Will he succeed and get a second chance at a life with Da-In? I guess you’ll have to watch the show for that.

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The songs. With a running time of 240 minutes, give or take, don’t expect a large soundtrack (compared to most kdramas), but I believe that is something that actually works in the show’s favour, as the songs are always used to highlight a given context, thus engraving them in your mind and rendering them memorable. I don’t really know how to explain it, and I blame my musical illiteracy. Sadly, the powers that be didn’t think that such a short web series was worthy of having a physical or even digital soundtrack release, what made finding any trace of these songs rather difficult for the past few years. Fortunately, one of the composers and singer, known as ODD, has recently released some tracks on her YouTube channel. These are: ‘Moonlight,’ ‘Birds,’ ‘Without you,’ and ‘In this night.’ While ‘Moonlight’ is my personal favourite, all four tracks are entirely deserving of being released, at least on Spotify so I can listen to them over and over again. With Spotify apparently coming to South Korea this year, that may yet be the case. There is also the main song, ‘One More Time,’ sang by none other than Kim Myung Soo himself in perhaps the most emotional scene in the drama, but it still remains elusive.

The leads and their chemistry. I had absolutely no trouble believing these two were in love with their longing stares and beautiful smiles. Kim Myung Soo and Yoon So-Hee did an incredible job (and the writers too, obviously) selling me on their relationship in such a short amount of time. At every point in the show I could understand where the characters were coming from, how much they cared for one another, and why they’d go to great lengths to protect their better half. Yes, they go through a rough patch at the beginning of the show, but that only makes it feel more real and it’s a necessary stepping stone in Yoo Tan’s character arc. I also really liked how the show took the time to explore Da-In’s past and see events from her perspective, highlighting just how central her character is to the plot of the story. Can’t say anymore for fear of spoilers. Really wish these two actors were to collaborate again in main roles.

Kim Ji-Young as the Grim Reaper. The way the show integrated a Grim Reaper was well thought out, and making her a child was a stroke of genius played to great comedic effect. I mean, who’d think this cute child was the embodiment of Death? Her childlike appearance is contrasted by her adult personality, and you can see she’s more than a bit fed up with troublesome humans who make her job more difficult than it already is, and she grows increasingly annoyed at a particular pair of them. I’ll let you guess who. Come to think of it, she reminds me a little of the older version of Samshin, the goddess of birth and fate, from Goblin. A great character all around without whom the show would be considerably lessened.

What I didn’t like:

Honestly, there’s really nothing that comes to mind. Sure, I could nitpick and say that some characters and storylines are dropped midway through the show, but I think it’s fair to say they had served their purpose, and trying to account for them in later episodes would’ve wasted the show’s valuable runtime. Could it have benefited from having a few more episodes? I suppose it’s possible, and I would’ve welcomed the chance to spend more time with these characters, but I believe the show was effective in telling its story across eight episodes, and any more could have placed the narrative under considerable stress. For instance, while I absolutely love Angel’s Last Mission: Love (incidentally, also starring Kim Myung Soo), one has to admit the plot was stretched longer than it needed to, and certain events do not hold up under further scrutiny.

OTP:

There is no sadness that last for eternity. There is no love that lasts for eternity either.

I’m going to vote that there is.

Which one are you voting for? Love or sadness?

Sad love.

Verdict: They say that good things come in small doses. If so, that fits this show perfectly. It was my introduction to Kim Myung Soo, who would then go on to deliver a stronger performance in Angel’s Last Mission: Love, as well as my introduction to Yoon So-Hee, whom I’d love to see in more main roles. While delivered in a short format I’m not used to, the show’s creators made the most of it and not a single minute feels wasted. An interesting concept that benefits from some tight writing, beautiful music, solid leads, and a lovable OTP, packaged as a mini-series. What more could I want?

Rewatch meter: High

#kdrama #kdramas #one more time #when the camellia blooms #let's fight ghost #bring it on ghost #kim myung soo #kim so hyun #gong hyo jin #kang ha neul #ok taecyeon #yoon so hee #review #netflix #viki

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bewareofchris · 4 years

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Public Relations 20/??

R atm | Alec Hardy/Dr. Bill Masters | Broadchurch, Masters of Sex | Strong language, eventual sexual situations

“The fact that Alec Hardy was not currently, had not ever, and did not want to date the American sex research did not seem very important at all to the town of Broadchurch. They did what they had always done with a little bit of juicy gossip: they made a spectacle of it.”

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Bill was not ready to sit across a table from Virginia Johnson. It didn’t seem like the sort of thing that he would ever be ready for again. In fact, given an infinite time to prepare himself, Bill was certain that he would never have reached a point at which he felt capable of this moment. Some things were best when they were beyond your own control.

Virginia was now, as she had always been, a beautiful woman. He could not look at her without remembering how desperately he had longed to rest his cheek on her warm skin. At how quickly, and how deeply, he had started to crave her. Maybe, when they were brand new to the affair, he had really believed it was all a matter of work. Maybe he’d really convinced himself that they’d attached electrodes to themselves and called it science and that it really had been about the science. (Maybe it had been for her.) But that first taste of her had ruined him; every moment after he had lived with an insatiable desire to touch her again.

And he had.

(Oh, hell, he had touched her over and over and in every way a man possibly could.)

Those things were in the past now. Bill looked at Virginia and he remembered the warmth of her skin, and the softness of her touch, and the way her breath caught on the edge of his name.

Virginia looked at him with polite detachment. If she remembered the intimate details of their past; she didn’t remember them with any urgency or fondness. Her hands were folded over a pad of paper she’d brought to the meeting. Her back was straight. Her hair was falling around her face in soft waves, framing the slight pinkness of her cheeks. Her smile was patient, but her voice was crisp. “I think we can both agree that it is our best interest, and in the best interest of the work that we find suitable replacements for one another. In a work capacity of course.”

“Yes,” Bill said. He agreed by rote, without vigor. He was as aware as she was that his opinion didn’t matter anymore. “Yes, that is what’s best for the-- For the work.”

“I would expect you would want to hire your own new assistant. I would like the authority to hire my own as well.”

“Of course.”

Virginia’s smile was strained. There was the faintest worry at the edge of her lips, but she brushed it away. Her attention refocused on the list in front of her; her finger ran down the line of demands to be sure that she’d covered everything she’d intended.

“In fact,” Bill said before any more points could be raised, “I--uh, I have been needing someone that I could trust to run things here. Betty’s been doing a good deal of the work and that’s-- She’s been doing a very good job, but it’s not really her job to do. So, as soon as you’re settled, I need to take some time away from the office.” He cleared his throat. (He thought to himself, this pain in his chest was a part of healing. Nothing broken ever healed without hurting first.) “I need to sort out some personal things.”

“I’ll be settled by the end of the week, I’m sure,” Virginia said. “Take all the time you need, Bill.” The meeting was brought to a close with those words. She gathered up the few things she’d brought, tucked them against her chest and turned to leave the conference room. She wasn’t retreating, but off to return as her rightful place as the most well-liked and hardest-working person in the building. She was off to secure her place with the other staff, to reassure them that things would be put right again, and to clear away the dust that had settled in her untouched office.

Virginia stopped just at the doorway, with her fingers resting against the door jamb and her confident smile turning soft, and uncertain. “Thank you for making this an easy transition, Bill. I am confident that we will get past this initial uneasiness. We both believe in what we’re doing here. We both know it’s more important than either of us.”

Bill smiled; he nodded. He tried to squeeze words out of his aching throat. He meant to say he agreed with her. He thought this work was important. He always had. But just then, looking at the table top because he couldn’t bear to look at her, he thought he might have been wrong about everything he’d ever believed.

As much as enjoy your vague details about a case you’re not at liberty to discuss in detail, I have no idea how to help you.

There must be someone that you can review the case with that understands better.

Hardy didn’t mind honesty; he didn’t even mind being told no. He wasn’t frustrated at Bill for stating obvious things. What little information he’d been able to explain through time-consuming texting had been riddled with holes because Hardy really wasn’t supposed to be sharing any details.

What limited responses he got back were hindered by the fact that Bill was an American and a doctor and neither of those things qualified him to be any good at solving the crimes that needed solving.

Hardy did have someone much closer in terms of geography and ability. He’d been eyeing her number in his phone off and on for days. He’d thought about how she must have been getting along in her new job while he sat out on his front stoop watching the water rolling toward him. The gathering cold nipped at his fingers and the tip of his nose and he thought of how annoying it might have been to suffer through the holidays with Ellie Miller.

She seemed like the sort that would start preparing for Christmas in November. The one that would hum Christmas carols under her breath, and insist on greeting every person with cheerfulness. She would have invited him for dinner again. She would have forced him to drink eggnog. She might even have harangued him into some appreciation for the whole season.

Yes, Christmas with Ellie Miller would have been hell.

But at least it would have been a busy, colorful sort of hell. Not the hell that was stretching out before him, as an endless gray nothing. If he were lucky, he might convince his daughter to call him back on the holiday. (He’d already started in on it too. That’s who he was, barely November and he was already dropping hints in his usual phone calls about how nice it would be to hear from her in real time. At how he missed her. At how the holidays were coming.)

Hardy was working up his courage to ask Miller to meet him somewhere. He was preparing a speech about how he wanted her help to solve this crime--unofficially of course--and why it was a decent use of their time. He was still reviewing the fine points of his argument, and that had to be the reason he hadn’t called her yet.

Bill interrupted his brooding, with another text announcing itself with a pert chirp of his phone. Across an ocean and God-only knew how many miles, Bill Masters was thinking of him. He said:

I can’t help you with the detective aspects, but I can listen if there’s things you need to get off your chest.

Hardy smiled at the phone, with the sensation of his heart breaking just a little more. What I’ve got to say isn’t going to fit in this little text box.

Time passed by breaths and heartbeats. Hardy was sitting on his front stoop, feeling like a fool, wondering what Bill must have thought of him. It was a dangerous game to feel so at ease with someone you couldn’t even see.

The response took less than a minute, and it sat there for at least ten:

You could call.

A man should never be ruled by impulse. Decisions like these required the proper amount of thought. (But why did they? Why should he take time to decide if it were a good idea to call a friend? Why should he linger over it with worry, with his heart beating loud in his chest? Why should he worry at all? Bill was only a friend. This was only a phone call.) Hardy had been the one to press the call button, but the sound of the ringing in his ear still startled him. The first plucked strings of panic swelled in his throat. He might have even ended the call before it could go through but--

“You called,” Bill said.

“Oh,” Hardy answered with his thumb pushing into his eye socket, “was I not meant to? I can hang up if I’m--”

“No,” Bill said with a rush. The noise behind him turned off, and his voice evened as he continued, “no, I’m glad you called. You hadn’t answered my text, I was afraid that I’d overstepped.”

“It’s just a phone call,” Hardy said, “between friends.”

Bill’s words were a polite smile, “of course. That’s what I thought exactly. You need a friend and I need a friend, and this is only a phone call.”

It was too cold, and too open, and too public to be outside now. Phone calls like this one were meant for inside spaces so Hardy picked himself up to go back into his little cottage. He locked his door and found a nice place on the couch to relax into. “How did things go with Virginia?”

“I sat there like an idiot, nodding my head, agreeing with everything she said.”

Hardy grimaced at that. “Did she ask you for anything outrageous?”

“No,” Bill sighed, “I don’t want to talk about Virginia. We could talk about your case, or anything else. Not Virginia, not right now.”

“I don’t want to talk about the case yet,” Hardy said. He was searching for a reason to make this phone call worth the effort, grasping at anything that he could think of to make a conversation out of. “You could explain Thanksgiving to me. That’s a thing that’s happening soon, isn’t it?”

Bill snorted, “what do you want to know about Thanksgiving?”

“I don’t know, tell me about it.”

Bill had a voice meant to be heard, and a mind that had spent years soaking up every detail that it happened across. He was a terribly intelligent man wrapped up in awkward man’s skin, but he eased into explaining the mundane details of the holiday like he was explaining something of great importance.

“Are you still listening?”

“Of course I am,” Hardy answered, “keep talking.”

@it-is-ineffable, @marvelmisha, @e3105eb, @may-darling, @bigleosis, @jiffry6969, @stardust-andwine, @echelongaga

#illogical husbands #public relations: the fic #grouchy bastards in love #Alec Hardy #Bill Masters

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multifandom-panda · 4 years

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HOW CHIBNALL PISSED ME OFF

I have been away from Tumblr for years, but here I am now. The reason for my return is simple: Chibnall pissed me off and Facebook is not the right place for a a rant like the one you are going to read. Posting it on twitter would make more sense, you say? Probably. But I have no time to count words. I will start with why I had high expectantions on Chibanl and then I will explain how he shuttered every single one of them.

1. When I heard Chibnall was coming after Moffat I was happy. I have always had that twisted relationship with Doctor Who where I loved the adventures, the adrenaline, the jokes, the discoveries, the aliens, but I also loved the feels and angst that came with the Companions and the Master. I had seen Broadchurch, so I “knew” Chibnall, I was sure enough he would not mess around. I was so wrong

2. Female!Doctor. Not a fan. Nu-uh. I have never felt the need for a female Doctor. There were plenty of great female characters in Doctor Who, both in the Classic era and the New era. Every single one of them had their own personality, their own skills and flaws. It was great, because they were actually people. Doctor Who was the first show that I watched where I didn’t get annoyed by female characters. They were strong in their own ways, and that didn’t mean being a super killing machine without special fighting skills. They were real and they were fundamental. Without them the Doctor lost his moral compass and we saw that more than once. So no, I didn’t need a female Doctor, I was alreay represented by amazing women in the show who were not less important than him. Moreover, I have no problem feeling represented by a man, I mean... men are still people, they have feelings and I am capable of understanding that. It’s called empathy. I am not so stupid that I cannot relate to a character only because they don’t have my genitalia.

3. Lack of imagination. Another problem I have with a female Doctor is the same I have when authors remake characters, when they change gender or ethnicity to a character to give people representation. It’s insulting. You are basically saying that you are not capable of creating a new character for that minority (being women, an ethnic group or disabled people) without using a pre-existing character. It means that in your head, to detach yourself from the negative stereotypes, you need a white male model because you are not able to imagine a minority character without those flaws on your own.

4. Companions: Graham was fun compared to Ryan and Yaz, but if we compare the Companions to the older ones, the new ones lose. And lose real bad. They left me nothing. They characterization is non-existent, they follow the Doctor and that’s it. Ryan should have disability but it appears only when the screenwriter remembers. Meh. I don’t have much to say about them, they really didn’t left any impression on me. I was not fond of Martha and I can list reasons why, I couldn’t stand Clara and I can go on 30 minutes saying why. These new ones are just... meh.

5. The Doctor. I didn’t see him... her... them. Let’s start with a note: I saw Jodie in Broadchurch and I didn’t like her there, so when I found out she was going to be the new Doctor, I was not amazed. If it had to be a woman, I would have preferred someone else, but anyway. This Doctor didn’t have any special features, it just looked like an hyped 10 or 11, but without their depth. Kind is an adjective, not a character trait. I feel that her character was not studied enough, she didn’t have enough depth. It got better with the beginning of this new season but honestly? You can’t be able to write a character properly only when they face their nemesis.

6. The episodes. Oh. My. God. The first season of this new Doctor was a series of episodes that looked like they jumped out of the 60s. Teaching people through an entertainment show doesn’t mean you have to take the show, make an episode on whatever the problem you want to discuss is and make some sort of documentary about it. It means you try to explain to people through fun, adventures, analogies... those who watch DW now are not 6 years old. They know that if you show them a genocide on another planet with segregation, spaceships etc, you are telling them not to be racist assholes. They do not need Rosa Parks to give them a lecture. Episode in which appears a villain with an unkown objective and we don’t see ever again, but ok.

7. The cherry on top. The timeless children. What. The. Actual. Fuck. So Chibnall just decided to take 60 years of TV show and toss it into the garbage can, right? That was the purpose, right? Because otherwise I don’t see it. So the Doctor is a creature from another planet, not Gallifrey, who can regenerate. The Gallifreyan see them, think “oh nice” and go all Frankenstein on them. Noice. I have just a teeny tiny itsy bitsy problem with that. And for one I mean so many that they are more than the leaves on the trees in the Amazon forest. You are nullifying “End of time”, “This is Gallifrey”, the 50th anniversary... moreover Clara saw their past, she would have seen that something was off. They can’t remember? Fine. But it’s still there, it’s not like they transplanted their brain.

8. The name of the Doctor. The big secret. The name that must never be spoken. The name that was keeping the universe together... and they revealed it like that. Brendan? Really? The name of the Doctor was a legend, you were not supposed to name them for real! Brendan? SERIOUSLY?

9. Doctor and Master. They were friends since they were kids. They grew up together. They studied together. They went on adventures together. They lost friends together. They grew apart and they kept fighting each other... but they were best enemies. Ok, a couple of times one really killed/let the other die, but go back to the beginning and count those times. They were two faces of the same coin, getting on each other nerves and saving each other over and over again. For the Doctor, the Master was the only other Time Lord in the universe for so long he was willing to pardon a genocide to save him (more than once). Their relationship was based on the fact that in a way they were complementary: the Master has no restraints, while the Doctor tries to be good when they both have done so many terrible things (including genocide, eh Doctor? You are not so innocent, honey). Their relationship was beautiful and painful. And it went down the drain. You are telling me that the Doctor is a superior being, they are not equals anymore, they are not two faces of the same coin, they are not even the same species so what are we talking about? And the coldness of the Doctor while she lets him die? Who the hell are you?

TL;DR Chibnall took a character I loved from a show I loved and torn it apart. The season and the characters were not written as I expected, I mean that they were 2D version of themselves, no depth there. Nothing interesting. I think he tried too much all at once: female Doctor, 3 companions, one shot episodes. Man, pick one thing you want to change and stick with it. You already have to run a show you have never run before, so you have to understand how to make it work. 4 characters are difficult to handle all at once and at the same time give them all the right space, depth and characterization in seasons that have less than 15 episodes each.

I am so pissed. I didn’t appreciate Jodie, but in a little corner of my mind I had always tought I would come back to Doctor Who once she was gone, but that’s not possible anymore. Funny thing is, this show made me meet the majority of my friends, the people with whom I started hanging our 6 years ago. We would have never met without DW probably. I kind of feel robbed now.

#doctor who #chibnall #disappontement #the timeless children

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scifinal · 4 years

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DW s12e10: It's Quite Unfortunate That This Child Keeps On Regenerating

It's only fitting that the first post on a blog called "SciFinal" should be about a season finale.

Not that fitting is the fact that in said post I'm going to begin where it all started for me.

Part One: How I Even Got into This Mess of a Show in the First Place

While I call myself a huge Doctor Who fan, even a – *gasp* – Whovian, I must admit I am not as familiar with the franchise as I would like to be; I've seen the new show, I've seen Torchwood (though, admittedly, I had to force myself to finish the fourth season – but that's a story for another day), I've listened to a handful of audio dramas (including Kaldor City, which I consider to be canon for both DW and Blake's 7) – mostly Torchwood audio dramas, but who cares, – I've read a couple of comics, I've got a novel or two somewhere on my bookshelf, I've seen the first couple of seasons of the classic show, but that's about it. I can't say I grew up with it – it wasn't on TV when I was a kid, there isn't an official Ukrainian dub, et cetera, et cetera. I first heard about it when I was about thirteen, when my classmate did a project about something they liked – and was pretty dismissive of my peers' hobbies at the time, believing myself to be somewhat above them, so I didn't pay much attention.

Then somebody finally pressured me into watching it (I believe I was fifteen or something back then) and I loved it. The first two episodes of the first season, I mean. I watched those, texted my friend something like "consider me a Whovian now!" and abandoned the show completely only to return to it maybe several years later.

I loved it. This time, for real.

Doctor Who has been with me ever since that time, it has a big soft spot reserved for each and every Doctor ever in my heart, and for each and every companion. I know full well it's cheesy, and it's stupid, and it's technobabble-y, and it's glorious in all of its cheesy technobabble-y stupidity.

And I hate this finale.

Part Two: Doctor, Why

I hate this finale – because I hate Chris Chibnall. Mind you, not the gentleman himself (I don't even know what he looks like, and I can't be bothered to Google), I hate what he did to Doctor Who.

Now, when it was revealed that the would replace Steven Moffat I felt... nothing. What did you expect? I had no idea who the man was. I know now he's made Broadchurch, and I know he wrote a bunch of stuff for Torchwood back in the day, including Cyberwoman. I had to drop Broadchurch because of how well-handled the depressing atmosphere was, and I love the flawed, dumb, sexy-cyber-bikinied, almost-fifteen-minutes-of-Ianto's-whining-including (I know because some time ago I literally cut almost every single moment of Gareth David-Lloyd whimpering, moaning, groaning, screaming, and mugging at the camera out of the episode and made those bits and pieces into a beautiful clip show called "I HATE THIS" to explain exactly why his face was and still is so punchable) mindless fun that is Cyberwoman (this is also one of the two episodes in which they actually do something fun with the pterodactyl living inside Torchwood's underground base). The latter also led to the creation of one amazing in how it develops Ianto's character audio drama entitled "Broken". I love Broken. I am now forcing you to look at its cover because of how much I love it.

Here we go. Now, back to the point of me rambling pointlessly

In his video "Sherlock Is Garbage, and Here's Why", a well-known YouTuber hbomberguy pointed out how Steven Moffat's problem is that he is more than capable of writing a good one-off episodes, but ultimately fails at managing multiple complex, overarching stories, as visible when you look at the difference between Moffat's individual episodes and his run on the show.

Now, I believe that Chris Chibnall suffers from the same affliction: he's a good screenwriter but a terrible, terrible showrunner. Sure, he's made Broadchurch, but Broadchurch, in its essence, was a complete singular story with a beginning, a middle, and an end. There were no bigger, incomplete arcs expanding at the expense of other episodes, and the show did exactly what it was originally designed to do: it told an uninterrupted story.

Here comes Chris Chibnall's run on Doctor Who.

Now, while Steven Moffat was ultimately not very good at managing overarching stories, he tried to do so nonetheless, and the fans seemed to like his attempts. And while I can't be sure as to whether it was Chris' original vision for the show or he and his co-writers were merely trying to emulate Moffat, he attempted the same. A friend of mine has even pointed out how, to her, it was painfully obvious how the writers of the finale were desperately trying to copy Moffat's style (to give you some context, she grasped it from a 30-second clip of the CyberMasters' reveal, and that clip basically consisted of me filming my laptop's screen and laughing at their design, making the video wobbly and the audio distorted). At the time of writing this post this friend hasn't seen a single episode of Chibnall's era and, as far as I know, has no wish to do so – mainly because of two reasons that both have something to do with the finale:

Somebody's already spoiled it for her, so who cares;

I ranted to her about how shit this finale is and now she hates everything about Chibnall era.

I am very sorry for the latter, since I genuinely believe there are some nice episodes in these seasons, and I especially like the "historical" ones, they really are quite a lot of fun, I like Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison fighting badly CG-ed alien scorpions, I love Lord Byron and Mary Shelley running around a haunted house trying to escape from a Cyberman (even though it's all too similar to the Agatha Christie episode from Russel T Davies' run), I adore that episode about Rosa P–– oh, wait, no, that one was crap and ripped off Blake's 7... Anyway, I love Jodie Whittaker's Doctor, I am a big fan of Graham, I like Ryan just fine, and I can put up with Yaz, even though it's been two seasons and I've still got no idea what's her personality supposed to be, and I absolutely love the new Master (he reminds me of a cute little pug with a big Tommy gun). There is plenty of good stuff in these two seasons, they are lots of fun to watch, but this finale... Oh god, this finale.

Part Three: We Had All of Time and Space at Our Fingertips and We Ended Up with This

We are getting to the point of this whole thing. I would love to begin with the obvious, the twist, but there's so much wrong with this who-cares-how-many-parter than this one big thing.

It is inept. It is impotent. It is incompetent. It is bad at almost everything except its okay camera work, somewhat good (for a British TV show, I mean) effects, and its really solid performances.

Its editing is tone-deaf to the extreme. There is a moment in the final episode where Ko Sharmas asks who will be the first to cross the Boundary and step into the unknown, and immediately it cuts to Yaz walking towards it, all fast and silent. I would love to show you a clip of it, but I don't have one and I can't force myself to download the episode and sit through this shitshow again just to present you with a ten-second clip. Nonetheless, that part is not edited like a dramatic moment. You edit comedies this way. Bad comedies. Bad editors edit bad comedies this way.

Its plot is incoherent. There are several plot threads in this finale, and they're managed in a way that doesn't make the viewer care about all of them at the same time, rather the viewer goes "oh, I've completely forgotten this was happening" and then, before they can even begin to care, the show cuts to something else. It's all over the place and oh so annoying.

The plot armour is painfully obvious despite every attempt to disguise it. There wasn't a single, solitary second when I believed the Doctor was really going to sacrifice herself and, lo and behold, here comes the old guy ex machina to do it for her. The only questions I was asking at that moment were "How are the writers going to prevent the Doctor's death now that they've seemingly created themselves a way to go on forever?" and "How can Whittaker care so much about her performance in this scene she's literally almost crying?". I wholeheartedly related to the Master asking "So why are we still here?" and shout–– hiss–– mumbl–– whatever-ing "Come on, come on, come on!" – at that point I've suffered through at least forty-five minutes of utter nonsense, people going preachy, religious Cybermen with Dalek motivations, that absolutely ludicrous scene in the previous episode when the show was trying its worst to make me perceive autonomous flying Cyber-heads with laser eyes as a serious threat, a shit twist and... Oh.

I've got to finally touch on the shit twist, haven't I?

It doesn't make sense. No, I mean it. I guess it makes sense from the show's writers' standpoint to retcon everything in a way that would allow them to go on forever without having to come up with a way to circumvent limited regenerations, yes. And I won't be touching upon all the lore people say this twist has ruined. No. It doesn't make sense as it is.

The twist is revealed to us by a madman that claims to have hacked into a database, claims to possess control over the Doctor's mind, and gives the Doctor and the audience no actual solid proof that the Timeless Child is, indeed, the Doctor. We have Ruth, sure, and she's nice enough (damn, I want that vest), and she's a Timelord that happens to own a TARDIS that looks like a blue police telephone box, and she calls herself the Doctor. Here's Ruth:

I really like Ruth. She also makes no sense from the show's timeline standpoint, since the Doctor's Type 40 TARDIS only got stuck looking like a police box in 1963, so there's no reason for the Doctor to not remember being her.

We also know that the Judoon have identified Ruth as "the Fugitive"... except in one of their previous appearances in the show they weren't able to identify their targets exactly and thus were seeking out non-humans. There is a possibility that they were only looking for a Time Lord on Earth.

You know what? It's possible that Ruth is actually the Master messing with the Doctor. I have just as much proof of this as I have of the fact that the Doctor is some kind of an endlessly regenerating superbeing.

But this is not the most maddening thing here. I loathe it, but I don't loathe the twist itself: I loathe its lifelessness, I loathe how empty, how unemotional, almost robotic it feels. When somebody'd spoiled the finale for me, I got angry, and I started asking questions, and when later I saw the actual thing...

This gif. I can't even explain how accurate it is. I stood there, in the middle of my kitchen, episode paused, holding a cup of cold tea and desperately looking around as if in my surroundings I could somehow find that emotional reaction that this show failed to evoke. I was ready to burst into tears of how empty it felt, and how empty I felt, and how the same show that has Christopher Eccleston go from literally foaming at the mouth with pure hatred to shocked silence in a matter of second because of one sentence that you, a viewer, can't help but be astonished by failed to make me feel the tiniest speck of literally any emotion. And slowly, I felt that vast void in my chest fill with sheer, pure, flaming hatred for the person who made me feel nothing, for the story that left me not bored – but empty.

And the next moment, in its own unique way of being absolutely tone-deaf, the show introduces the CyberMasters, looking ridiculous, being asinine in concept, making me burst into laughter with their dumb design. Wow.

So.

Chris Chibnall's Doctor Who is no longer a show. Chris Chibnall's Doctor Who isn't even, as somebody on Stardust said, a fan fiction. It's a rollercoaster. A lackluster rollercoaster that lifts you from the vast caverns of frozen hell, devoid of any life whatsoever, soulless and abandoned, to the heavenly torture of being so bad, so utterly awful and ridiculous, that you can't help but laugh as you watch something you used to love be distorted and deformed to the point where you can't recognise it anymore nor really care. This is what Chris Chibnall's Doctor Who has become. And I'm going to continue my ride on that grotesque rollercoaster. I'm going to pirate that ride and get on it again. Because I'm a masochist. Because I want to feel something, even if it's hatred towards those that make me feel nothing.

Because some time ago my fifteen-year-old self watched the first season and learned a lesson that I hold dear after all these years – that I can't abandon hope, and that someday, somehow, things are going to get better. That the future is being written right now. That the future can change.

#doctor who #thirteenth doctor #doctor who review #i hate this #review #sci fi

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saiangelo999 · 5 years

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2019 T.v. show Tracker

Part 2

Animes

Mo Dao Zu Shi

Finished it. Read the novel. Checking out the Cdrama (The Untamed). Obsessed. Watch it, it’s worth it.

Currently watching season two! Jing Ling is so precious and all the chibis are SO CUTE!

Dororo

In progress (~episode 20) - Love it so far! Excited to see where it goes!

Update: Dororo was always precious but I just appreciate this child more and more as the episodes continue. I really enjoyed the lighter episode with the opposite village and the swordsmaster. Also, I am glad that Itachi finally died... but tbh I can’t hate him. Dororo is soo forgiving, my precious child.

Edit: Completed. Enjoyed the story and the way that it was wrapped up.

My Roommate is a Cat

Completed - Loved it! Super cute, fluffy and touching. Fun to watch! Really enjoyed the show and REALLY want more! Please make a season 2!!

Fruits Basket 2019

It’s definitely doing its job of hitting the heartstrings true to Fruits Basket lore (I loved the manga). That opening (1) tho is so depressing really setting the mood for the show I guess... I’m excited for more and aware of the pain that is yet to come. But I am excited (and hopeful) to see them do justice to the plot this time. Update: s1 is almost over and I really enjoyed it!

One Punch Man

Loved it!! Finished season one! It was way too short... Will watch season two when all the episodes come out! I actually found the show to have a lot of parallels with The Disastrous Life of Saiki which could be the reason that I enjoyed it so much. I really don’t know how all the fans who watched it when it was first released could have waited so long for season two.

Ruroni Kenshin

Randomly started it cuz I was planning on watching it for a while and it was on Netflix so I thought - why not. Liking it so far but I haven’t gotten very far yet so it’s hard to form an opinion atm.

Dramas

Bad Guys

Completed - Good Binge.

It was very addicting, very interesting premise that captured my attention initially. It’s a good binge, but around episode 10 the show, the show sort of fizzled out for me. The hitman’s storyline (Jung woo) was a bit too melodramatic for my taste and was a bit off-putting, however I absolutely loved the psychopath’s story. That definitely kept me hooked throughout. One huge plus of this show is the action, and it is a lot of fun to watch if you don’t think about the show too much.

Gibo to Musume no Blues

Completed - Loved it! I’d highly recommend it!

This show was so adorable and so sweet and fun to watch from start to finish. I really enjoyed this slice of life and the warm stepmother and stepdaughter relationship throughout the show. It was very heartwarming to watch. I loved how all the characters were treated with respect and didn’t seem like hollow caricatures, I liked the relationships portrayed in the show and the general warmth that this show had throughout.

I am still not over what happened to Ryoichi :( , but I can say that I absolutely loved every single character in this show. The baker definitely grew on me more and more throughout the later half of the show and he became very lovable. Overall, this was a great drama that I am glad I checked out!

Children of Nobody/ Red Moon Blue Sun

Completed - Loved it! 15/10 would recommend!

This drama was really really gripping. I like how the story didn’t feel very formulaic, and I admit I was quite unsure what was going on in the first 2 or so episodes. But once the plot line was set in motion, I was along for the ride. One huge reason for that is probably the main character Cha Woo Kyung, she won me over very quickly and her backstory was very intriguing. I also really like Yi Kyung’s character as well as his team, though it did take me a while to warm up to him. The children all did a phenomenal job as well - I especially like Ha Na and Si Wan’s acting.Si Wan is another huge factor that kept me watching, the child actor did a great job!

One thing I definitely appreciated with this show was how morally grey all the characters were, it made them more relatable. If I were to compare it to similar mystery/crime kdrama’s I’ve seen, I think so far this would rank the highest - the plot was engaging, the characters were interesting, there was absolutely ZERO focus on developing a romantic relationship and the topic - abuse (child primarily) was handled well.

Her Private Life

Really loving Ryan Gold so far!! He’s actually super considerate and kind? Love it! Quite like the female lead as well. Love her relationship with her best friend, they are absolutely adorable! Not too happy about what I heard about the Eun Gi thing where they did the Reply staple of making the viewers assume that he’s her brother only to find out he’s interested in her romantically and that they aren’t blood-related... why is this trope so popular? This reminds me a lot so far of Reply 1997.

Update: show is moving on in a very cliche way... extremely predictable so far. Will maybe stick w it bc I love Ryan’s character and the couple are adorable. TBH I didn’t start this for the plot. Another gripe that I have is just why do kdramas always do the thing where the main couple are meant to be and met during their childhood? I don’t get why that’s so popular... But I do respect the fact that Ryan’s real mom did not abandon him and that arc was resolved quickly.

Overall, it was better than a lot of other dramas in this genre and it was done with much less unnecessary drama. I appreciated how the side characters were handled and liked that they were given time to have their own sub-plots. A decent show all in all.

The Fiery Priest

Loved it! I like the mix of the action and comedy that was showcased in the show. I found this show to be very similar in the plot structure, comedy (to an extent) and characterizations to Chief Kim so I enjoyed the show a lot and had a pretty good idea of what to expect from the show. It’s a fun show that keeps you hooked for more, and like Chief Kim don’t expect any romance between characters to really develop.

Angel’s Last Mission: Love

Shin Hye Sun is just gorgeous, omg. She’s also a really good actress. I really liked seeing her in this role coming out of watching Still 17 to see the sheer difference in personality. I am enjoying the contrast. Also, I like her chemistry with Myungsoo. I don’t care for the second lead nor can I bring myself to empathize with him. I also am somewhat disappointed with her family sub-plot because so far it seems pretty cliche so I’m hoping for a plot twist or two.

DNF.

Project S The Series: Spike

I FINALLY finished it! Really loved it. Great acting, loved the pace of the show and how realistic it felt. I really liked watching the team come together and grow together. The few female characters were a delight - Jern is so lovable and adorable. Bright is very sweet and does a lot for the team. Puen’s relationship with the entire team was interesting to see - his strong bond with Singha and now Than, his relationship with Jern and ofc his friends. Than’s relationship with his dad was also portrayed realistically right til the end. It’s a good watch, and I’ll definitely re-watch the series.

Ao to Boku

So addicting, waiting for the last episode to be subbed. Please get subbed!

Update: it was subbed! Finished it! Enjoyed the drama overall. A nice mystery/friendship/slice-of-life one. Be warned that although there is a bit of mystery it is mainly a slice-of-life/friendship drama.

The Untamed

I enjoyed it overall (tho I did end up skipping over some episodes). I thought that it was a faithful adaptation to the novel considering the censorship issues. I love how they took out a lot of the explicit gay but still somehow made parts of the show gayer. Also I LOVE fairy. Fairy is an adorable fluffball that owns my heart <3.

DNF - He is Psychometric

Melo Suits Me/ Be Melodramatic

So... they really made one of the cutest love stories tragic huh. I’m really enjoying the show so far, I love the friendship between the main 4 leads. I am interested about the industry and I like the balance that the drama has with its humour, friendship, love and slice-of-life elements. I really like the actress and her manager couple they are so cute! I kind of wish I have more cute mother-son moments with the kid so hopefully in a future episode.

Update: Finished it! Liked the ending overall, had one minor qualm. I really liked the Director (Yeller) that was introduced. He was an unexpected delight and I love his dynamic with Eun Jung. I did like that they did end up subverting a romantic relationship and left it platonic. That was unexpected.

T.v. shows

Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Season 6 - Finally finished it! Lot of fun, and enjoyed watching yet another season of the show. I really enjoyed their Cinco de Mayo heist this year and thought that was a lot of fun. I personally didn’t really feel Gina’s absence too much though her going away words were cute near the beginning of the season.

Broadchurch

Completed - Completely binged season 3! I love this show!

I forgot how beautiful the cinematography in the show was! Their little village is gorgeous. It’s a bit jarring to watch it after a year or so because my memory of season 2 of Broadchurch was quite hazy. Nevertheless, I absolutely love this show. This season was very different from the previous ones, and it had a good build up but the final reveal of the culprit was quite... predictable. However, there was a twist that came with the reveal that came completely out of the blue. I liked the way Alec/D.I Hardy and Ellie handled the issue at hand and set an example of how cases of rape should be handled within the police force. It was also really nice to see Beth’s growth, the vicar and what Maggie were up to! I also enjoyed seeing Alec and his daughter’s relationship grow. Too bad its cancelled... here’s hoping that one day they’ll renew it.

Stranger Things season 3

I personally liked it a lot more than season two because I felt that it had more growth from the characters. I liked Eleven’s character growth and how the dynamic of the relationships changed and seeing the kids grow up. But, I’m definitely getting a bit tired of this show... because although I did enjoy this season, I still feel that in a way it was redundant.

Derry Girls s2

I loved it! So funny. So adorable. Love the characters and the ridiculous situations that they put themselves in (or are put in). Sister Michael is still my fave, her lines are always pure gold.

Anne with an E season 3

Trying to keep track of it as it is airing on CBC. I missed the second episode :( But I watched episode 3 and the foreshadowing for the residential schools omg

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unseenthewriter · 5 years

Text

CHAPTER 3: PAST

Chapter 3: 1592 Words

Total: 5439 Words

"Oh thank fuck I'm in completely dry clothing." I said softly and started to clean up my room. I should get some more suits though. They are both dirty now. I mean I'm in my pajamas because of this.

There was a knock on my door. I quietly grabbed my gun and opened the door.

"Kid it's just me." Hardy said. "Do you have a permit for that."

I lowered the gun. "Yes, here it is." I said grabbing the permit from the drawer I had it in. I locked the gun away.

Hardy gave me back the permit and looked around.

"You don't have much stuff do you." He said looking at the closet with the one box full of mementos.

"It's a habit. Living in two different countries and all." I said.

He nodded and grabbed the box. "Pack your clothes then. You're staying with me."

"Sir please I can take care of myself." I pleaded.

"You pointed a gun at me." He said walking away with my box.

I have been a bit on edge but that was a totally reasonable response! Right? I sighed. I guess I'll pack my stuff then.

~~~

After dropping off my suits at the dry cleaners I was trying to settle into Hardy's guest room. By that I mean I was staring at the contents of my box.

There was a knock on the door.

"Dad says to let you know that dinner is ready." A teenage girl said.

"Oh uh who are you?" I asked.

"Daisy." She said and left me.

"Cool, great I had no idea he had a daughter." I said to myself.

I stared at the dinner. Daisy and Hardy finished already. So Hardy was doing the dishes and Daisy said she was going to do homework. Hardy sighed. "I'll call Miller if you don't start eating that." He said.

"Fine." I said softly. At least it's not fish. Just eat it quick and be done with it. "So you have a daughter." I said.

"Did your Dad never mention that?" He asked.

"No, I didn't know much else about you besides the heart thing." I replied.

"Hmm well he talked about you a lot." Hardy said.

I coughed almost choking on some food. "I didn't know that." I croaked and drank some water.

"Yes, everything from how you started college at 15 to apparently being a guitar player and singing in a Beatles cover band." Hardy said.

I cringed. "He did talk a lot."

Hardy chuckled a little at that. I stood up and washed my dish. "Sorry for being a bother." I mumbled.

Hardy sighed. "Your Father was much more of a bother."

I nodded. "Well, I'm going to finish unpacking."

~~~

I stared at the ceiling. My mind wasn't allowing me to sleep. I glanced at my phone. 5 AM might as well get up.

I groaned my shoulder was even worse today. I'll have to deal with that later. I put on a dress shirt and my one extra pair of pants. "No jacket today." I muttered while tying my Dad's old tie.

I walked into the kitchen. It was empty. Everyone is still asleep then. I walked into the living room and looked at the books. "These are all boring books" I whispered to myself and grabbing a random one.

2 hours later Daisy and Hardy woke up. I could hear them in the kitchen but just stayed quiet and reading on the couch.

Daisy left for school shortly after. "Murray get off the couch." Hardy said.

I put the book back. I was right about it being boring anyway. Hardy handed me a piece of toast. While he was eating another one. "Come on, let's get going."

~~~

Hardy didn't mention to me that he was going to court again today. I only realized that when I saw the court. "I would've taken another car if I knew you were in court again today." I said.

"It's fine. You should learn a bit about it anyway." He said while getting out of the car.

"A heads up would've been nice." I mumbled and grabbed my bag. "I'm not dressed well enough for court."

"It's not like your testifying kid jeez." He said.

Sure, whatever! I'll just feel naked without a sports coat then.

~~~

I quietly worked on some paperwork while the court was in session. Miller must be back at the station today. The court was adjourned after something was brought up. I wasn't paying attention enough to know what.

"What were you even working on." Hardy confronted me after I was out of the court.

"It's related to my Dad's will." I said.

"It's been over a year since he died." He said.

"Yeah and he was an MI6 Agent with a very complicated will. I'm about 3/4th of the way done with everything I need to do with it." I sighed.

"What left that's been taking this long." He asked.

"His personal items at his office. MI6 is not fun to deal with." I frowned.

Hardy raised an eyebrow.

"I wish I was lying." I groaned.

"Well, there's no leads with your break-in." Hardy said while we were driving.

"I'm not surprised the dude is very thorough. It took me ages to catch him." I said.

"Who is he anyway." Hardy asked.

I sighed. "He went by Maxman on the dark web so we called him Max. Never did find out his real identity. All I know is that he's a freaking psychopath."

My phone buzzed. I cursed softly and didn't pick up. I do NOT have the energy to deal with him today or ever.

"Who was that." Hardy asked.

"No one important just annoying." I said.

Hardy smirked at that.

~~~

My phone kept vibrating on my desk. "Are you going to pick that up any time soon?" Miller asked.

"I'd block his number but it wouldn't help." I replied throwing the phone across the room.

"Alright..." Miller said.

I rubbed my shoulder. I shouldn't have thrown the phone now it's hurting again.

"Here." Miller said and handed me a pill. "What's up with that shoulder anyway."

"It got shot." I said after taking the pill.

"It what." Miller said surprised.

"I was shot." I repeated.

"But you're 22." She said.

"London doesn't mess around." I joked.

"You were shot here? Not in the US?" Ellie asked.

"Yeah what's more reasonable a cop in the UK getting shot or a minor in the US" I muttered.

"I mean you've seen the state of the schools in the US right?" Miller said.

"Yeah well, I went to MIT starting at 15. It was mainly a bunch of weird nerds there." I said.

"You went to MIT?" Miller said.

"Did Hardy not mention that?" I asked.

"I didn't know that you went to MIT." Hardy said. I had no idea he was behind me.

"My Dad didn't mention that to you but he mentioned the other thing." I said.

He shrugged.

"Well, I went to MIT. I mean I was specialized in cybercrime." I said.

"That doesn't mean that you had to go to MIT." Miller pointed out.

I shrugged. "I got in with a full-ride why not."

"You got in with a FULL RIDE?" Miller said.

Hardy smirked. "Now I remember MIT."

I groaned and stood up. "Taking that call seems a lot nicer now." I grumbled and grabbed my phone. It rang again.

"DS Finnegan Murray speaking." I said.

"Finn dude I've called you like 100 times!" Ashton exclaimed.

"142 times actually. I was ignoring you." I said while taking the call outside.

"Bro come on you know I'd only CALL you if it was an emergency."

"Like how your Mom coming over to your place the next day but your place is a disaster was an emergency?"

"Finn come on you know my Mom." He moaned.

I sighed and pinched my nose. "Fine whatever what is it."

"Why didn't you tell me you were moving like where are you man?!" Ash exclaimed.

"Me moving is the opposite of an emergency. I do it all the time." I reminded him.

"Not without telling me! Where are you?" He said.

"As far away as possible from you." I said sarcastically.

"Finnnnnnnnn please." He begged.

"I moved to Broadchurch." I said.

"The place your Daddyo vacationed all the time?" Ash asked.

"Please stop calling him that. HE didn't even like being called that. And yes the place my Dad vacationed all the time." I said.

"I've heard it's boring af there you should move back to the US man." He said.

"I've told you a thousand times I can barely take a trip there anymore let alone move there." I sighed.

"Man you're the worst why you gotta do ya old pal Ash like this." He said.

I froze. My breathing was starting to get harder. "I have to run Ash bye."

"Wait dude plea-"

I hung up and cursed. Not NOW. I still haven't had the chance to get a new inhaler since moving. I leaned against the wall. I guess this is happening then. I slowly slide to a sitting position. Just breathe Finn breathe.

Someone knelt down to my level but I could barely focus on who. It's Hardy. I blinked. Miller is calling someone. An ambulance I assume. Hardy was saying something but I couldn't understand with my mind panicking. I blacked out.

AN: Finn the eternal idiot who doesn't know how to talk to anyone!

#familyflaws #writing

0 notes

tenscupcake · 7 years

Text

my first, and possibly only, official statement on the new doctor.

i've honestly been truly and thoroughly baffled, and rather disappointed, by the lack of discussion occurring around this polarizing issue. in fact, in my brief experience on various social media platforms, discussion is rarely, if ever, allowed. the tiniest expression of discontent with the new doctor immediately elicits a slew of insults and accusations of misogyny. i have yet to have an actual conversation with anyone about this, aside from close personal friends who share my views, because those who don't share them will not even engage them. they instead immediately resort to name calling and shut down any attempts at conversation i make. honestly, it has driven a wedge between me and doctor who and its fandom like i've never experienced, not even in all my suffering through the moffat era.

i hesitated for a while about coming back on here at all. but i figured it would be wrong of me to not give my friends and acquaintances here a chance to really hear me out, since before i took a hiatus i hadn't really properly articulated my reasoning (for the aforementioned reasons). so to anyone interested in my thoughts on the matter (and let me explicitly mention here that i am referring only to rational people who are willing to either read silently and go about their day or else engage in a polite discussion with me, not people who are just going to send me vicious anonymous asks), here they are.

i’m sure it’s no surprise to any of my followers that i haven’t been actively watching the show for some time now. in fact, i stepped away indefinitely sometime early season 8, not because i had any issue with capaldi, but because i didn’t feel moffat’s writing had improved any since the last season.

so, it may have come as a surprise to many of you that i even had a strong reaction of any kind, be it positive or negative. and i can certainly see where you’re coming from, if that’s the case.

when it was announced early last year that moffat would finally be leaving, i threw a party. i literally did. i got together with my one other real-life friend who watches the show, watched rtd episodes, and made blue cupcakes (that were supposed to be TARDIS colored but turned out more of a pale teal and baby blue combo). i can’t even explain how happy i was at the mere suggestion of him leaving. because in my eyes, he took my favorite show and turned it into something i resented. it was such a slow and painful process to come to terms with the fact that a show i once loved was causing me so much grief, and finally part ways with it (at least in the sense of following along with the new episodes; i’ve obviously remained active in the rtd sect and continue to devote a significant chunk of my life to the doctor and rose *blush*). but i just couldn’t deal with the constant disappointment and rage anymore. i knew it was for the best.

i liked broadchurch well enough, with the exception of the second season, and i thought there was no way chibnall could be worse than moffat. and best case scenario, he could potentially resurrect the show into something i’d enjoy again. maybe it was foolish to hope for such a thing, but i owe far too much to this show after all it’s done for me to not give it a second chance under new leadership. so when, a few weeks ago, they told us the date they’d be announcing the new doctor, i got properly excited again. to put a face to my renewed hope in the series? it was hard not to get excited. the sound of the tardis still makes my heart swell with joy and gratitude. i’m still invested. just look at my room or my wardrobe. i’m a self-proclaimed doctor who geek through and through. if i wasn’t, i don’t think it would be possible for me to be genuinely upset about anything that happened to the show. the things we love are the things that can hurt us the most.

so, without prolonging the inevitable any longer, i’ll try to explain why i was/am upset by the casting announcement.

i really have three main reasons.

1. the issue of representation.

let me start out by saying i am a passionate advocate for better (i won't say more, because i don't think that's the issue at hand) female representation in media. especially film. i desperately want more intelligent, strong, powerful women in fiction. but what i absolutely do not want is to recycle traditionally male characters into female ones. doesn't this seem counterproductive to anyone else? its almost as though a man always has to pave the way, and only once he's established a character can a woman potentially take over. it’s trite and more than a little insulting.

give me more original female characters who kick ass. give me more natasha romanoffs, more reys, more elle woods, more leslie knopes.

don’t give me more batgirls or supergirls. don’t take a character as prominent and culturally significant as the doctor and morph him into a woman after 50+ years (or 2000+, depending on your perspective).

and you know, i've actually seen people say (addressing people who are upset about the casting): ‘a character’s gender doesn't have to match yours to be a good role model for you.’ you know what? to an extent, i actually agree. as a matter of fact, i strongly identify with and take inspiration from the doctor, even though he's a man. does nobody hear how hypocritical it sounds to say you want a woman to play the doctor purely so girls can have another role model, and then turn around and in the next sentence say gender is irrelevant to role models? yeah, this one really floored me.

but though i do think that one’s role models don’t have to match one’s gender 100% of the time, it is important to have some that do. and i do think there is an imbalance in the number of strong male leads in tv and film versus the number of strong female leads. keyword: strong. i’m tired of sexist stereotyping and failed bechdel tests, too. probably more than most, actually. but i think taking existing male characters and gender bending them is the absolute worst way to go about rectifying this imbalance.

2. the issue of the nature of gender.

i want to preface this by saying that, until fairly recently, i was something of a fundamentalist when it came to gender. but over the years, i’ve realized how problematic such views are. i’ve invested hours upon hours of my free time scouring reddit threads and watching documentaries about trans issues to understand this crucial part of the LGBT community. to learn. and what i’ve gathered from my thorough research, and heard from the many personal experiences of transgender individuals i’ve read, is that gender is something distinct from biological sex that is immutable. the gender you’re born with is the gender you are for life. (and yes, as i understand it this does also apply to genderfluid individuals - they’ve always been genderfluid even if it was not always expressed.) and changes made to physical appearance are merely affirming one’s gender, not changing it.

changing the doctor into a woman flies directly in the face of this very concept. and to me, it really, truly feels like an insult to the trans community.

it’s going back to the regressive fundamentalist view that sex = gender. that because the doctor has a woman’s body now, he must therefore identify as a woman. though this hasn’t been explicitly confirmed in so many words, given the widespread use of feminine pronouns and the term ‘woman’, i think it’s safe to conclude this is the case for the show. and this is so contrary to the whole message the LGBT community is trying to put out.

now. i’ve heard several potential counterarguments to this, so bear with me as i go through them.

first, people say ‘but the doctor is an alien, not a human. our gender expectations don’t apply.’ true. yes. he is an alien. but is the show really about his alienness? i think you’d be hard-pressed to convince me that it is. the truth is, though it’s told through tales of distant planets and creepy aliens, it’s really a show about humanity, and always has been. doctor who has always espoused a meaningful kind of secular humanism. it’s explored what it means to be human in so many impactful ways. and it’s because the doctor looks and acts human much of the time, succumbs to human emotions and has such human flaws, that he is so relatable. yes, it’s a sci-fi show about time travel and regeneration and spaceships, but if the doctor were completely alien and had no human qualities, it wouldn’t have become such a hit. don’t try to deny that. trying to distance the doctor from humanity is a detriment, not a benefit, to the show.

and though some may argue we ought to hope for and potentially work towards a future where gender is irrelevant, the fact is in today’s society gender is exceedingly relevant. and important. transgender people and feminist movements wouldn’t exist - wouldn’t need to exist - if it weren’t.

second, i see people say ‘the doctor has no gender.’ this one admittedly really throws me. no gender? where is the evidence for that?

for one thing, what point would there be to differentiating between time lords and time ladies if gender was not of import on gallifrey?

there is also a plethora of evidence to the contrary: the doctor has in fact consistently identified as a man. starting JUST with ten:

in ‘the christmas invasion’: he says ‘same man, new face. well, new everything.’

also in tci: ‘oh, that's rude. that's the sort of man i am now, am i?

also in tci: ‘no second chances. i’m that sort of man.’

in ‘fear her’: ‘look at my manly hairy hand’

in ‘evolution of the daleks’: ‘the only man in the universe who might show you some compassion’

in ‘utopia’: ‘i was a different man back then.’

in ‘voyage of the damned’: ‘i’m the man who’s going to save your lives’

in ‘the end of time’: ‘even if i change, it feels like dying. everything i am dies. some new man goes sauntering away.’

a couple of these quotes actually indicate that he has an innate sense of being a man that transcends regeneration. depending on his current level of angst, it seems, he sees himself as a different man or the same man, but the ‘man’ part remains the same. he doesn’t say ‘person’ or ‘character’ or anything to that effect. he says ‘man.’

not to mention, the doctor consistently objects to being called a human (or martian), and corrects those who mislabel him as such, but never once objects to being called a man (which is quite often).

and just so that no one accuses me of singling out one doctor too much, here’s a quote from the first doctor from the pilot, an unearthly child: ‘i’m an old man. how can an old man like me harm any of you?’

right off the bat. the doctor has been identifying as a man for literally thousands of years.

sorry for lingering on that sub-point for a while. it’s just so mind-boggling to me because there’s so much freely available evidence to the contrary.

third, i’ve noticed there seems to be some level of collective amnesia of the backlash from when the master made a comeback as missy. given what i’ve observed of people praising the decision retroactively, no one seems to remember the fandom’s response from that revelatory episode anymore. but i remember it vividly. a number of people were furious, the trans community and its allies in particular. and this outrage returned with a vengeance when missy kissed the doctor (12) later on. though i had already given up on watching the show by then (at least as long as moffat’s hellish reign continued), the anger and frustration i was seeing really resonated with me.

i have never forgotten that, and it is undoubtedly a big part of the reason i’m so angry and frustrated now. i am at least consistent, if nothing else. but conversely, there seems to be a lack of consistency among much of the fandom, as i sense none of the widespread ire from the past making a resurgence now, and it’s unclear why. the same issues regarding gender are at play. it’s leading me to assume that many people are embracing this decision purely for perceived representation, while disregarding potential cultural issues it may raise, which i think is dangerously selfish and shallow.

3. the choice of actress.

i’m not going to pull any punches here, since i’m already putting my blog’s reputation in jeopardy by making this post at all. i don’t like jodie whittaker, specifically. i think she’s a terrible actress.

this is based purely off of watching broadchurch, because it’s the only thing i’ve seen her in. but her performance paled miserably next to david’s and olivia’s, and even some minor characters’. i mean, beth’s life thoroughly sucked, and everything in it went from bad to worse for a while, but i didn’t really care. she didn’t make me care. i think that’s a huge red flag for any actor. because, i mean, compare that to olivia’s performance. i mean, SHIT. miller made me feel things every episode. intense things. and beth didn’t. at all. ever.

so, even IF the other two issues were somehow resolved, i still wouldn’t be happy with the casting choice, because i am not at all impressed with this person’s acting ability. the doctor is a huge role. a critical one. and i’m honestly not sure what she did to earn it.

so, that’s it. it’s not every nook and cranny of my position, but it’s the gist of it.

as my final thought, i’ll reiterate what i said at the beginning, to anyone considering responding to this: hostile ad hominem responses will be resolutely ignored, but (time and volume of responses permitting) polite intellectual debate will likely be engaged. but let it be said that though i’m willing to listen to reason, it’s highly unlikely anyone will change my mind.

i don’t want this to widen the chasm between me and the fandom. i already feel so distant from it already, like i’m hanging on by a thread. in all likelihood, i won’t discuss the subject at all any more after this post, save for when responding to others’ comments or questions about it. and even then, i will do so privately whenever i can. because i really don’t want to dwell on it anymore. i’ve finally sunk myself back into ep after an extended hiatus due to surgery and work, and that’s what i’d really like to dedicate my free time to from here on out. that and my other d/r fics. that’s what makes me happy; not bickering with people who don’t agree with me.

so please! feel free not to respond to this at all. it is completely optional and even somewhat discouraged, because i am tired of thinking about it and being yelled at and insulted for it. i’d love to forget about it and move on, at least until i’m forced to confront it again this christmas. i want to get back to what my blog is all about - nine and ten’s era. david. the fun smattering of friends and parks gifs. but above all else, the doctor and rose. the couple i’ve dedicated the past four years of my life to.

no matter what happens, i’m going to stay with them. whether or not i stick around on tumblr, i’ll continue posting my fics on ao3. they’re my happy place. these characters mean the world to me. and doctor who will always be very dear to my heart, regardless of how the future of the show pans out. i hope my followers never doubt that.

#please do not reblog #negativity cw #if you don't want to see it #don't read it #i know it's long #but it's me #i'm nothing if not thorough #meta #hope i don't regret this #there's also a substantial amount of anti moffat talk in here #fair warning for that too

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honeybadgerradio · 7 years

Text

Southern VS Patreon, Court Acquits Man in Rape Case - Polecat Cast 120

Join us on the Polecat Cast as we discuss the news of the week, including a millionaire who commits suicide when his wife has an affair, a court in India acquits a man in a rape case, the Lauren Southern vs Patreon story results in policy changes, and more!

Show notes: https://www.patreon.com/posts/13566355

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Show notes:

Doctor Who Has a Personality Disorder... No, Seriously This Time… By Max Derrat

When you think of the most toxic fanbases out there, what comes to mind? Steven Universe? Beliebers? Fans of Silent Hill (post number three)? In my time on the Internet, I have never seen a fanbase that is as omnipresent and crazy as the Doctor Who fanbase.

Thankfully, I’ve been able to ignore the toxicity, as I still don’t know a single thing about Doctor Who aside from two things: a) multiple actors have played the character, and b) almost every person I have ever met that has contributed to my deteriorating mental health has been a Doctor Who fan.

But nonetheless, it seems to me (and correct me if I’m wrong), that Doctor Who being a morphological entity is a core essential element of his character, hence why so many actors have played the role. Recently, it was announced that the world would be introduced to a female Doctor Who, that will be played by Broadchurch actress Jodie Whittaker. With the little knowledge I had of the character, it seemed to be a fun little experiment, as long as they weren’t trying to hamfist identity politics into the mix.

But why in god’s name would I think that when I consider that a huge portion of this show’s fanbase comes from tumblr?! On top of the new Doctor Who being a woman, she is also going to be bisexual and have a lesbian affair. This is according to Michelle Gomez who plays the character of Missy in Doctor Who.

Fellow Honey Badgers… dear viewers… please enlighten me as to why I am an ignorant slut on this issue?

Source: http://www.dailystar.co.uk/showbiz-tv/hot-tv/632867/female-dr-Doctor-Who-bisexual-lesbian-gay-affair-Jodie-Whittaker-Pearl-Mackie

Indian High Court Judge Acknowledges Women Misuse Legal System By Andrew G.

In many countries throughout the world, people abuse the legal system for personal gain. In the U.S., the term “lawsuit happy” is often used to describe individuals who sue one another for the smallest infractions. However, India’s culture lends itself to a very different type of abuse of their legal system. Many Indian women bring forth suits against men for “raping” them. However, a large quantity of these cases are brought under false pretenses. Many involve such circumstances as a woman claiming that a man promised marriage before engaging in sexual intercourse, with that promise “unfulfilled,” a woman can cry rape. In many cases, if the woman is living with the man’s family at the time of the alleged rape, the man’s family can also be jailed.

This week in India, a Delhi High Court Judge presided over a case where a woman had appealed a lower court’s ruling acquitting a man of raping her. Before marrying the man in 2015, the woman filed a rape case. The man allegedly raped the woman after being forced to consume a sedative-laced drink. However, during an interview with police, the woman admitted that there was a “misunderstanding” between the couple, casting doubt on the rape claim. Both the man and the woman had asked for the police report to be quashed because they both wished to marry. The lower courts rejected the request, forcing the man to stand trial. During the trial, the woman decided not to provide any testimony, and being the only witness the court had no choice but to acquit the man. However, after the acquittal, the woman turned hostile and filed an appeal, which ended up in the Delhi High Court.

Delhi High Court Justice Pratibha Rani rejected the woman’s case. In a statement she made, Rani said that.

“This court has observed on a number of occasions cases where both persons, out of their own will, develop consensual physical relationship. When the relationship breaks up, the women use the law as a weapon for vengeance and personal vendetta. They tend to convert consensual acts as incidents of rape, defeating the very purpose of the provision. This requires a clear demarcation between rape and consensual sex, especially in the case where complaint is that consent had been given on promise of marriage,”

Justice Rani’s statement shows that at least one person in India’s legal system understands that women can file false rape claims against men.

Sources http://www.indiatimes.com/news/india/court-acquits-man-in-rape-case-saying-some-women-term-consensual-acts-as-rape-after-break-up-326744.html https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rbbCqUSbs8 http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/women-term-consensual-acts-as-rape-after-break-up-delhi-high-court-1730100

Patreon Partakes in Partisan Politics

By Mike J.

Patreon has come under fire after the controversial banning of Canadian based, independent journalist Lauren Southern. The move seems to be related to Southern's involvement with the French based anti-illegal immigration and anti-human trafficking group Génération Identitaire. Earlier in May, Southern and members of Génération Identitaire were briefly detained by the Italian coast guard, although never arrested or charged, after attempted to halt a German NGO ship known to be ferrying illegal migrants from Libya to Sicily. According to Southern, the ship was empty at the time and was on it's way to pick up more migrants. In the letter sent to Southern by Patreon, they sum up their reasoning for the closing of her account by stating: "It appears that you are currently raising funds in order to take part in activities that are likely to cause loss of life."

Supporters of Southern were quick to point out that her banning seemed politically motivated and also hypocritical as Patreon hosts several Antifa related accounts who seem much more apt to cause loss of life than Southern herself. Patreon CEO Jack Conte took to YouTube a week later to attempt to explain the reasoning behind Southern's banning and to announce new policies aimed at making his company more transparent. In the video Conte states that Patreon will also be banning the prominent Antifa group "It’s Going Down" from their service. Conte further states that a warning system and appeals process are also in the works for user of the website. It's unclear if the appeals process, once in place, would apply to Southern but even if it did Southern has stated that she would not seek to appeal Patreon's decision and instead has opted to move to a different platform.

Source: http://bigleaguepolitics.com/patreon-changes-policies-response-backlash-banning-lauren-southern/

Millionaire Commits Suicide in Wake of Wife's Infidelity

by L Kemlo

Sad story about a UK man.

Phil Smith, 52, committed suicide after suspecting his wife was having an affair after following to witness her with another man. Mr. Smith was a successful businessman and moved out of the £1.5m home he shared with his partner and their three daughters a few days before his death. Mr. Smith left delayed text messages to his children and friends before hanging himself in a rural holiday chalet. The owner of the chalet said that he had booked a couple times prior, one time paying and never showing up.

Mr. Smith had suffered a stroke in 2012 that left him with pain and depression. Mrs. Smith denies having an affair, saying that the stroke left him paranoid and that although they had talked about divorce they were working through the issues.

His daughter, Khianna, who worked with her father, said he had broken down in tears at the office on Tuesday, January 31 when he told her he had seen his wife with a man. Khianna said that he planned to see a divorce lawyer and was looking into flats to move into because the relationship was over. She said, "He loved her to bits but he couldn't see a future."

Source: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/millionaire-businessman-52-killed-himself-10890871

Check out the latest Honeybadgers episode.

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breakingtheglasses · 7 years

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Southern VS Patreon, Court Acquits Man in Rape Case - Polecat Cast 120

Show notes: https://www.patreon.com/posts/13566355

Help save the doge! http://www.feedthebadger.com/projects

Libsyn: http://honeybadgerradio.libsyn.com/

Support us monthly! http://www.patreon.com/honeybadgerradio

Support us one-time! http://www.feedthebadger.com

Show notes:

Doctor Who Has a Personality Disorder... No, Seriously This Time… By Max Derrat

Fellow Honey Badgers… dear viewers… please enlighten me as to why I am an ignorant slut on this issue?

Source: http://www.dailystar.co.uk/showbiz-tv/hot-tv/632867/female-dr-Doctor-Who-bisexual-lesbian-gay-affair-Jodie-Whittaker-Pearl-Mackie

Indian High Court Judge Acknowledges Women Misuse Legal System By Andrew G.

Delhi High Court Justice Pratibha Rani rejected the woman’s case. In a statement she made, Rani said that.

Justice Rani’s statement shows that at least one person in India’s legal system understands that women can file false rape claims against men.

Patreon Partakes in Partisan Politics

By Mike J.

Source: http://bigleaguepolitics.com/patreon-changes-policies-response-backlash-banning-lauren-southern/

Millionaire Commits Suicide in Wake of Wife's Infidelity

by L Kemlo

Sad story about a UK man.

Source: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/millionaire-businessman-52-killed-himself-10890871

New Honey Badger stuff

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myloveliestmistake · 7 years

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I’m rewatching Broadchurch for the third time I think, and I’ve gotten to Jack Marshall’s storyline which I somehow have managed to forget about every time. I just want to take a minute and write about it because it makes me incredibly sad. To be innocent of something but have everyone assume you guilty without even taking a minute to ask your side of the story is horrible. To have to look friends in the eyes and to beg them “please believe me. You have to believe me.” is so so powerful and affecting but in a heartbreaking way. Jack Marshall for whatever else he may have done in his life (like marrying someone so much younger than him, I don’t doubt from the way his character is written that he truly did love her but it’s still hard because of power dynamics, authority, etc.) did not kill Danny Latimer and it breaks my heart to watch his life destroyed and his heart broken my so many people every time. He came to live a quiet life and build relationships and then in the end that’s not what he gets. He’s innocent but he knows everyone thinks he’s guilty and yet still he tries to face those people who might have reason to hate him most and to suspect him most because they’re desperate for an answer to who killed their son and why, and he tries to make them understand that he didn’t do it. The scene in the end of one of the episodes where the family is doing a press conference and it cuts between scenes of that and audio of that and Jack burning photos of him and these boys he’s mentored and cared for kills me. He burns these images that are precious to him, that remind him of the good times he’s had and the relationships and connections he’s built, and he burns them in an attempt to protect himself. He knows that people have already written him off as guilty and so if they saw these photographs they would just take that as proof that he really is who they think he is. There wouldn’t be a second thought given that perhaps these pictures are just innocent evidence of a natural human bond being formed, a parental and child connection. They would only see what they wanted to see and that would vilify him and prove him guilty of the worst. The scene where a mob is after him and then Mark goes and talks to him...Jack is forced to reveal intimate and personal information about himself to this person who doesn’t know him that well just to clear his name. He offers this giant loss that has haunted him for years, that tore his family apart and his attempts to repair that and to fill that hole for even just a second by being around children who reminded him of his son, and Mark in that moment understands him. They understand each other and it’s a beautiful moment. But Jack is being pushed out of this place he’s made a quiet life for himself in through no fault of his own because it’s not safe for him. People are so quick to believe that it’s him because the evidence looks convincing from one perspective. It just hurts my heart a lot and I honestly love that character and his storyline. Because that human need to fill a hole left by loss is something I can relate to on so many levels.

#Broadchurch #Jack Marshall #spoilers #I just have a lot of feelings about this #and it literally hurts my heart to think about Jack Marshall's story #and the way people treat him and write him off #and the things he does because he just desperately wants people to believe him #personal #loss #grief

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tychodreams · 7 years

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12, 35, 42

12. What song always makes you sad/emotional?

Hang on, kids, because I’m a very emotional person and music makes me feel a lot of things very easily. This’ll be a long list (so I’ll limit ‘emotional’ to sad emotional just to keep this as short as I possibly can...). There’s a certain point in Beyoncé’s Disappear where for some reason I always tear-up (it’s nothing to do with the lyrics or anything). Her song Sandcastles breaks my heart every time, as does D. D. Dumbo’s Oyster. Friday Afternoons: Cuckoo, from the Moonrise Kingdom soundtrack does the same because of how the films used it, and Radiohead’s Glass Eyes and Daydreaming kills me with it’s combination of those heartbreaking lyrics and the backing (plus the Daydreaming music video is painfully bleak—it just involves the lead singer wandering aimlessly through doors, alone, before winding up collapsing alone and out of breath in a dark cave). A Symphony Pathetique and All Farewells are Sudden, by A Winged Victory For the Sullen are peaceful in the most emotional of ways to me (and their arrangement of Michael Nyman’s String Quartet no 2 pt 3 is one of the most beautifully emotional pieces I’ve ever heard), as is Okkervil River’s Mary on a Wave. Don’t even get me started on Sufjan Stevens’ Oh God, Where Are You Now?. Nick Drake’s Pink Moon breaks my heart, thinking about how close he was to suicide at that point. From Steven Universe, It’s Over Isn’t It?, Something Entirely New, and Here Comes a Thought kill me with their context within the show (and how much I relate to the latter), and the same goes for Beth’s Theme from the Broadchurch soundtrack by Ólafur Arnalds, and for La Valse d’Amélie by Jann Tiersen from the movie Amélie, The Departure from Gattaca by Michael Nyman, Stand by Me by Ben E. King from the movie of the same name, One is a Bird from the end of Over the Garden Wall (this one especially; it unfailingly makes me cry), and Cœr Volant from Hugo by Howard Shore and Zaz. Björk’s All Neon-Like always made me think of my boyfriend and when we broke up I listened to it so much that I’m kinda scarred by it now even though I’m so over him. The story behind Radiohead’s How To Disappear Completely is heartbreaking and I’m incapable of listening to it. I sung To Build a Home by The Cinematic Orchestra at my graduation with @itsthisorcluedojohn and now it makes me cry to think about having left that place. David Bowie’s new posthumous song No Plan, Home by LCD Soundsystem, and The Weekend by Dappled Cities destroy me with the inherent finality of them. Okay I think that’s just about it. Sorry this ended up being so long. I love getting to talk about songs that are emotionally important to me. (a lot of the less explained ones here are important because I listened to them while I read stories that were important to me—I link music to memories very strongly)

35. Do you use Skype? Facetime?

No, not really. I tend to like to reserve visual contact to real-life interactions, although I can’t really say why. I guess a lot of it is the fact that I do a lot of pacing and fiddling when I’m on the phone (since the only person I ever really call is a close friend of mine, and our calls last for hours), and I wouldn’t be free to do any of that with video.

42. Are you afraid to die?

Nope, not in the least. I’m in the “I’m not afraid of death but I’m very much afraid of dying” club, in that I’m very afraid of the pain and suffering of dying, but the total oblivion and lack of thought and existence that I know to come afterwards just doesn’t feel like something that should be feared, especially since that pretty much sums up my experience of sleep—a long period of total unthinking unconsciousness (I either don’t dream at all, or am totally incapable of remembering if I do).

#anon

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yeonchi · 6 years

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Doctor Who Series 11 Review: Prelude

I’ve touched on the topic of Jodie Whittaker being the Thirteenth Doctor late last year and fair to say, my views haven’t changed. I said that I would see how she does in the series before I make any judgements, and what better way to do that than with this new review series?

In this series, I hope to answer two questions for myself:

How does Jodie Whittaker’s performance set the bar for other Doctors after her, male or female?

Will the so-called “SJW/feminist/diversity agenda” affect the way I see and think about Doctor Who?

Given the fact that I don’t post or reblog a lot of Doctor Who stuff (since I only follow their official Tumblr and not a lot of their posts come up on my feed), this will probably be a first for some of my current followers. Those of you who know me by reputation will probably think that I would make a rant series either supporting or opposing the Doctor being female. Unfortunately, I don’t feel passionate enough about this series or this topic to justify making such a series - besides, there are more than enough people talking about this already.

Here’s how this series is going to go. Every week, I’ll be posting my thoughts on each episode of Series 11 and rating them on a scale out of 10 with half-points if necessary. I’ll also be doing this with the 2018 Christmas Special and later the rest of the Thirteenth Doctor’s run if I think each series is good enough to warrant a continuation of my reviews. Please note that each review will have spoilers, so the content will be hidden behind a cut - you will have to enter the post to continue. After the break, I’ll be stating the background behind this whole thing and giving a few thoughts about the trailers. Please feel free to follow me if you wish to follow this review series.

Background

The casting of Jodie Whittaker has been an unprecedented and controversial experiment for Doctor Who. While I do feel some concern for the show and the fanbase, I actually don’t mind having a woman as the Doctor, particularly since we have seen cross-gender regenerations in the show. However, I think that there should only be a female Doctor after at least three or four male Doctors (so, based on an average of 4 years per Doctor, then every 12-16 years) - I’m a bit “meh” when it comes to every second Doctor, but if they do two female Doctors in a row, that’s when I know that the “feminist agenda” has probably corrupted the show, particularly given that Jodie Whittaker has identified as a feminist in an interview. Call me sexist if you must (though I would say that your assumed judgement is misguided), but I think that the Doctor’s predominant gender (that is, the gender for most of his incarnations) is male, and I quote this line from the General in Hell Bent as a basis for my belief:

“Oh, back to normal, am I? The only time I've been a man, that last body. Dear Lord, how do you cope with all that ego?”

Yes, I’ve heard from some commentators that this line has some misandric connotations, but I haven’t really thought much of it since it’s just a throwaway line to me. Basically, I’m trying to see both sides of the debate so I can understand why some people feel a certain way about the casting of the Thirteenth Doctor.

Up to this point, I’ve tried to steer away from any leaked material or sneak peeks relating to the new series - though I have watched a trailer or two and read a few news articles - so that I can do this review series on a clean slate with minimal bias as possible. I haven’t watched any shows or movies featuring Jodie Whittaker, including Chris Chibnall’s other drama Broadchurch. However, I have been concerned at the way Jodie Whittaker has been lauded for her role before the series was even broadcast. I get it, she’s the first female actor to play the Doctor, but can’t we just wait and see how she does? The gap between the announcement of her casting and the premiere of the series has only served to promote division and toxicity within the fanbase. The same goes for those on the other side of the debate.

Now, over the course of the build-up to the series, a lot of people have said some shit, including people working on the production team, people working in the media, fans who support a female Doctor and fans who are against it. One reason for why I’m writing this series is because I’ve seen some critics in the final category comment on the “SJW agenda” in Doctor Who. With this review series, I want to see for myself (to the best of my ability) if this agenda has really affected Doctor Who in the way that these critics have claimed.

In the past couple of years, I’ve tried enlightening myself to the criticisms of political correctness and the social justice warrior (SJW) culture so I can understand why people opposing these concepts have their views. At face value, it may look like some people are opposing feminism, diversity or religion when in actuality, they have a deeper and more complicated reason for doing so. However, because I’ve been mostly unaware of a lot of these things before then, chances are that I won’t be that well-versed in those topics. We shouldn’t have to care or worry about these things, but the current social and political climate is making these issues hard to ignore.

From observation, people are okay with diversity, it’s just the way that they are going about it; filling quotas instead of hiring/casting based on talent and ability, pointing out the character’s identity every episode or using their identity to define them instead of giving them individual personalities. Like I said, I’m a bit dense in that regard, so it can be hard for me to pick up where diversity is actually being forced. Therefore, I would appreciate if people on both sides of the SJW debacle (toxicity will not be tolerated) pick up on anything I may have missed if they happen to stumble upon this series.

At this stage, I’m being carefully neutral towards everything that’s been going on, but if it becomes clear to me that the show is pushing an anti-male/pro-minority agenda, then my opinion on the series will probably change.

First thoughts on the cast

The first time I heard Jodie Whittaker, I thought she sounded like a deeper version of Jane Horrocks; think of her character, Fifi Forget-me-not from Fifi and the Flowertots, but 25 years older. I thought I wouldn’t be able to get that comparison out of my head, but after a few months, I managed to convince myself that their voices weren’t that similar.

Bradley Walsh is better known as the host of the ITV game show The Chase, which is broadcast daily on Channel 7 in Australia in addition to a local version on top of it. Even though I watch the show sometimes and like the format of it, I would never have thought that Bradley Walsh was an actor until I heard that he was cast as one for the new companions on the series.

Mandip Gill and Tosin Cole are new names to me, but they have been in a few other UK dramas. Given the diversity of the new cast, I have heard complaints that their casting (alongside Jodie Whittaker’s) was part of a “forced diversity agenda”. At this time, I don’t think that it’s a problem for me, but I’ll be watching to see how they do.

Looking at the trailers

Up to this point, I haven’t seen much of the Thirteenth Doctor to justify me giving a verdict on her yet. Heck, even her first scene in Twice Upon a Time was just her saying “Oh, brilliant!” then the TARDIS just starts exploding, causing the Doctor to fall out of it just as it disappears.

The trailers still aren’t enough for me either, but I’ll quickly run through them and state a couple of thoughts about them. Trailers are just scenes and lines taken out of context, so judging something based on that is probably jumping the gun. Regardless, here goes...

Series 11 Teaser, 15 July 2018

In wisps of light, we see the Doctor (Whittaker) taking a fish finger from Ryan Sinclair’s (Cole) plate and dipping it in his poached egg, giving Yasmin Khan (Gill) a pizza and replacing Graham O’Brien’s (Walsh) newspaper with a copy of The Beano from 1981.

Then we see some text - “The universe is calling”. Calling for who, I wonder?

And then the Doctor materialises for a brief moment before the trailer ends.

I’m hearing a few Northern voices in the teaser, so no doubt it’ll be set around that region. Okay, according to this article, the first episode will be based in Sheffield, so I’m a few months late to raise that mystery. Still, this is a divergence from the series’ usual setting in London.

Series 11 Trailer, 19 July 2018

The Doctor: “All of this is new to me. New faces, new worlds, new times. So if I asked, really, really nicely, would you be my new best friends?”

“Best friends...” Not sure if they’re phasing out the word “companion” because they think it’s outdated, because when I think about the two, I realise that the word’s getting a bit old as well. Then again, the companions that the Doctor has had over the years have been his friends, and some of them have been his best friends, which can be seen from the way he reacts to losing them or when he is about to lose them. Take a look at the Tenth Doctor with Rose or Donna, the Eleventh Doctor with Amy and Rory, and the Twelfth Doctor with Clara for reference. Sorry if I hurt your feels with the videos in the links, but you can’t say that I didn’t warn you about the spoilers. Is it just me, or have the companion parting scenes been done in two stages?

Once again, this is a trailer, so I can’t infer much from it. Regardless, it looks okay; it’s nothing that special for me (I’ll probably be saying this a lot throughout these reviews).

Release Date Trailer, 7 September 2018

A pop song in a Doctor Who trailer? Now that’s an unprecedented move to appeal to the kids. Nah, I’m not much a fan of that idea. The breaking windows and glass ceiling? Part of me thinks this is a metaphor for the Chinese/Japanese word for “unprecedented” (破天荒), while another part of me thinks that it is a metaphor for the “glasshearted” (玻璃心) fans who are against a female Doctor. The Doctor’s reaction and smug smirk kind of backs this up as a jab to those fans. Boy, don’t look in the comment section of that video.

Series 11 Trailer #2, 20 September 2018

The Doctor: “I’m the Doctor. When people need help, I never refuse.”

That’s nice.

Man: “Why are you asking her?” Ryan: “‘Cause she’s in charge, bro.” Man: “Says who?” All: “Says us.”

I’ve been hearing some complaints about the “feminism” in this scene, but if we take the Doctor’s gender away from the equation, then we have seen in the series that the Doctor takes charge when he has to, or if he is not available, gets his companion(s) to do it for him. At this point, I think these complaints are based on a scene taken out of context, so I might come back to that one when I’m doing the review for that episode.

The same song from the previous trailer is reused in this one - the song is “Glorious” by Macklemore featuring Skylar Grey, by the way. Disregarding the song and aside from the one scene I pointed out, there doesn’t seem to be any other problematic elements. Given everything I’ve learned, however, I’ll be treading into this series with caution.

Anyway, that is it for the introduction. Next week will be the review for the first episode of Series 11, The Woman Who Fell to Earth.

#doctor who #doctor who series 11 #thirteenth doctor #doctor who series 11 review #thirteenth doctor review

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bewareofchris · 5 years

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Public Relations 17/??

R atm | Alec Hardy/Dr. Bill Masters | Broadchurch, Masters of Sex | Strong language, eventual sexual situations

<< prev | Part 1

The established rhythm of Bill’s life had been utterly destroyed; developing a new sense of normal was continuously hindered by the fact that Bill had (apparently) never appreciated the women in his life. It had felt like he appreciated them when he had them, but the disaster that his personal and professional life had become proved otherwise.

It was embarrassing to be an adult that had to re-learn how to do basic tasks like shop for groceries, pay bills and clean his bathroom. The necessity of putting on a polite, interested, personable professional face exhausted him. The first reasons he had ever one looking for an assistant was to relieve him of the emotional labor of interacting with his patients on a social level.

Bill was interested in the science; the people were just a means to that end.

But even as tired as he was at the end of the day, sitting on his single dining room chair, staring at the lackluster TV dinner he’d picked up on his way home, Bill could handle all of those things. He was smart, and capable, and resilient. (That’s what his Mother said when she tried to make it sound like he’d developed super powers from being beaten by his father. You’re made of tougher stuff, she’d say. You can withstand anything. Bill couldn’t withstand anything but he’d gotten more than enough practice withstanding his father’s fists.)

The unbearable thing was remembering about his children. It hit him low in the gut, now and again, when the room around him got quiet. He remembered that he had children, he remembered that he missed them. It was like remembering an appointment at the last second, it gripped your whole body in a wave of warmth that you’d ever forgotten something important. Bill had been a terrible husband, a terrible lover, and a terrible father.

All the evidence he needed was the fact that he was capable of forgetting his children. That he had to remember them in quiet spaces. Every time it overcame him, he soothed himself by thinking that he’d fix it. He thought he still had time. He thought, certainly, tomorrow he was going to go and see Libby, or a lawyer, and he was going to work it out.

Every day ended the same: Bill, a lukewarm TV dinner, and the realization that he’d forgotten his children again.

Bill never went to see Libby; she came to his office so early in the morning that she was there before he arrived. She was beautiful, the way she always had been, and furious still. With her back as straight as a steel beam and her hands folded together in her lap, she sat on the little couch in his office waiting for him.

“Libby,” he said.

“Don’t,” was her response, as sharp as a knife. “I always hated it when you put on that voice. I knew you were lying to whoever you were talking to, and you always used that voice on me.”

Bill couldn’t have defended himself even if he’d been given the time to.

“I’ve hired a lawyer,” Libby said.

“Good.”

Libby’s frown was so tight it might as well shredded her lips across her teeth. She shifted her hands on her lap and tried again, “I don’t want the house. I’ve decided that I don’t want to live here anymore. I’ve told the lawyer the only thing that I want from you is the children. Let’s be honest,” and Libby would be honest, as brilliant and hurtfully honest as she could be, “you never wanted them anyway.”

Bill hadn’t even set his briefcase down. It bumped against his leg when his arms twitched, and he wasn’t certain if he meant to cross his arms or raise his fists at the statement. He couldn’t even work out if he were insulted to be thought so little of, or offended at the implication he would just let his children go. (That was the loudest thought: they were his children.)

“I don’t think we should do anything rash,” Bill said.

“It’s not rash,” Libby said. “I don’t want your house. I don’t want your money. I don’t want anything from you. I only want my children.”

“They’re our children, Libby.”

Libby snorted at that. She stood up with a jerk of annoyance. Her hands were fretting in front of her and then smoothing down the length of her skirt in the next moment. She looked at him like he were a bug. “You never even held them as babies, Bill. You weren’t at half their birthday parties. I had Johnny alone. Don’t stand there acting like you’ve ever cared about my children.”

“I have cared.”

“You’ve pretended to care,” Libby corrected. “That’s fine. I knew what you were when I decided to get pregnant. Even if I didn’t know before Johnny was born, I knew before Jenny.”

“I’m not giving up my children, Libby.”

Libby looked at him with pity. She shook her head when words failed her, and ran her tongue over her pink lips. “Then I’ll see you in court.”

Bill didn’t have time to say another word before Libby walked out. He was left standing there, still holding his briefcase, trying to figure out what had happened and what he could possibly do about it. (And the answer was, he had happened and there was nothing to do about it.)

Would you ever forgive your wife?

Bill had sent the message a full day ago and Hardy had spent every moment thinking about the answer. The cheapest, easiest answer was to say that he had forgiven her. She had said that she was sorry, she had said that she wished things would have been different, and he had said he forgave her.

Hardy hadn’t meant it though. He’d been keeping the peace. He’d been doing what was best for his daughter. (Whatever that meant.)

Tess had wounded him. The severity of that wound couldn’t be measured because it could not be separated from the consequences of her selfish betrayal. Maybe he could have forgiven her for fucking another man; maybe he could have gotten over being lied to. Maybe it wouldn’t have even mattered, not really, that she’d betrayed him.

What man in all the world could say that he’d never thought about being unfaithful. Hardy had been the receiver of appreciative glances in the past; he’d had opportunities to take advantage of discreet indiscretions. And he’d thought about it in earnest. He’d built fantasies out of the idea that he didn’t have to be faithful to his wife as long as he could keep secrets.

But he hadn’t done it.

No, the trouble with Tess fucking another man behind his back wasn’t that she had taken her clothes off and spread her legs. It was that a murderer had gotten away. A little girl couldn’t have justice for the atrocity committed against her because his wife had been too cock-hungry to do her job properly.

Tess had let him take the blame. She’d sat there with tears in her eyes, telling him how sorry she was about everything, but she let him take the blame. She saved her career and her reputation. She protected herself by agreeing that it was meant to protect their daughter.

Hardy lost everything because Tess took her clothes off with another man. It was a hard thing to forgive but it was an easy thing to turn bitter in the pit of your stomach. If he had to choose if he wanted to hate his wife until the day he died, he simply didn’t have the stomach for it.

Yes, was all the answer he sent back.

Bill’s response was immediate: Have you ever purchased a couch?

I have. Are these two things related somehow?

I need somewhere to sit that isn’t my bed or the dining chair.

The limited things that Hardy knew about Bill should not have made the statement as surprising as it was. Wait, have you never purchased a couch?

No. Well, I have paid for a couch but I haven’t picked it out. Libby always chose the furniture, and Virginia decorated the office.

You didn’t help?

I didn’t see the need to. Of course Bill had not seen the need to. Why should a man worry about things when he had women to do it for him?

It was your home and your office.

Yes. If Bill had any sense of shame, he must have been staring at his phone working out how to explain himself. I trusted that it would be taken care. Libby and Virginia both knew my preferences and I paid. We all did our part.

Have you considered that it is not the 1950s and that you are an asshole, Bill Masters?

That thought does occur to me frequently, yes.

Hardy wasn’t smiling at his phone because he was happy. It didn’t feel like joy, but it felt like something. He was curled forward in bed, smiling at his phone screen with a disbelieving sort of laugh caught in his throat. Are you looking at the couches now?

Yes.

Are you alone?

Yes. (Of course he was. Bill must have run out of women he hadn’t already pissed off.)

Tell me about them.

Why?

It will help you decide which one you like the best. If you don’t like it you’re not going to waste time texting about them. Hardy leaned back into his pillows, with the phone held over his face.

Oh. That’s clever.

They wasted time like that, Hardy reading Bill’s sarcastic descriptions of couches and the sales persons. They narrowed the choices down to two possible contenders. Bill sent him pictures, and Hardy offered advice until he was too tired to stay awake a moment longer. He thought he should have told Bill that he was going to pass out at any moment, and not to worry (he was still alive) but he woke up the next morning with the phone laying next to his face.

The last text he got from Bill said: Good night, Alec. I hope you sleep well.

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#illogical husbands #alec hardy #bill masters #grouchy bastards in love

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