Doctor Who, Series 6 - Episode 7 - A Good Man Goes To War

THE PLOT

The title says it all really.

Forming an army out of various beings from across time and space who owe him favors, The Doctor leads an attack against the forces who had kidnapped Amy Pond. But who is ultimately behind the kidnapping? What sinister plans do they have for Amy and Rory's daughter? And why is River Song absent from the final battle?


THE GOOD PARTS

* One of the greatest thing about Doctor Who - to my mind anyway - is its' rich universe. There has always been a suggestion in all of the shows, comics, novels, radio plays and what not that there is a whole, big universe out there full of wonders we haven't seen yet. By that token, there are adventures that The Doctor has experienced that we haven't seen. This episode runs wild with that concept, introducing a host of characters that we've never seen before who we are told have adventured with The Doctor before. Among these are a Sontarnan soldier forced to work as a nurse and a lesbian Silurian from Victorian London, who was apparently responsible for killing Jack The Ripper. (Well, if you ignore Doctor Who Comics #2, #3 & #4, anyway...)

* Rory gets the most bad-ass moment in the history of bad-ass moments at the start of the episode. Indeed, this has inspired some to declare him The New Chuck Norris.

* The twist at the end, while obvious in retrospect, is pulled off well. And the clues were there for us to figure it out the whole time. Mind you, I suspect it's going to make rewatching a lot of the last two seasons interesting... just watching the reaction of River Song in response to things happening to Amy and Rory...

* Miraculously, there's actually a sense of suspense going into the next episode. We KNOW The Doctor is going to be successful. The proof is standing right there. But we don't know just how he's going to do it.


THE PROBLEMS

* If anything, this episode tries to do a little too much. The quick cameos are fun as are the new characters we are introduced. And yet somehow, it isn't enough. Hopefully we'll be seeing some of these new characters again later on.

* It's a small thing, but I would like to have seen more interplay between Rory and the Sontaran Medic. A nurse who becomes a warrior and a warrior who becomes a nurse? Hell, they should get their own spin-off!


The Final Verdict: One of Steven Moffat's best scripts ever. And that is saying something! Virtually flawless, with its' only real flaw being that this story deserved two episodes rather than the story told in The Rebel Flesh and The Almost People. There's just too much going on and we could really have used more time with all of these characters as The Doctor built his army.

Doctor Who, Series 6 - Episode 5 & 6 - The Rebel Flesh & The Almost People

THE PLOT

Forced to land the TARDIS due to the turbulence caused by a solar Tsumani, The Doctor, Amy & Rory touch down in 22nd Century Earth. Seeking sanctuary in a nearby monastery, our heroes discover a mining operation that is pulling high-quality acid directly out of the earth using clone labor - beings called "Gangers", that are controlled through a telepathic interface by workers who are safely kept away from the acid in special safety harnesses.

When the storm turns serious and lightning sets off a power surge through the complex, the miners awaken to discover that their Ganger counterparts have gained sentience... and they aren't too happy about the prospect of being "turned off", since clones have no rights and there's no reason for the company to keep them alive. The Doctor quickly finds himself stuck between two factions with no reason to trust one another, pleading for a peace that will be difficult - even for him to arrange. And Amy's strange visions of a woman in an eye-patch continue...


THE PROBLEMS

* When you get right down to it, the story here is nothing new. The idea of artificial life being used to explore the question of "What Is Humanity?" has been done to death and, I'm sad to say, done better. Blade Runner comes to mind immediately.

* The subplot with Amy being reluctant to accept the Ganger Doctor in "The Almost People" is completely pointless, serving only to inject artificial drama into a situation that is tense enough already.

* This two-parter is fairly well padded-out. It really could have and SHOULD have been one episode.

THE GOOD PARTS

* Despite the broad concept being old hat, the actual mechanism for the "Gangers" is inventive.

* The individual performances are excellent overall, particular the Ganger miner who elects to replace his human counterpart so that his/their son will not grow up without a father.

* The final shots of a pregnant Amy Pond, waking up in a Ganger harness somewhere far away from The TARDIS as she goes into labor is a truly horrifying image and an effective bit of horror that perfectly sets up the next episode.



The Final Verdict: There's not a lot of originality here but it is carried off well despite that. Lots of good performances and an effectively chilling ending make this one enjoyable, if not particularly likely to make anyone's Top Ten lists.

Conan The Barbarian 2011 - A Review

Based on a quick glance at several reviews, I seem to be alone on this... but I liked this movie.

It's not fine art but if you're going into it expecting that, you're going to be disappointed.

That being said, this movie is not as good as the Ah-nold flick from the 80s. It is far, FAR better.

Seriously. There's more references to the original Robert E. Howard stories in the first minute of the new Conan Movie than in all of the Ah-nold films.

Some purists may complain that Howard never said that Conan's mom died in childbirth or that his village was destroyed by outsiders. I say, "Well, he never said they didn't either." If I recall correctly, Howard said precious little about Cimmeria, its' people or Conan's family, save in one letter to a fan where he said he guessed Conan was inspired to leave Cimmeria by his grandfather's stories.

But leaving aside all issues of canon and continuity, the Conan Movie is a ripping yarn and fits the spirit of of Robert E. Howard's writing.

And for those of you who care little about how well the legacy of Robert E. Howard is upheld, there's a lot of cool action scenes where lots of blood is spilled and lots of topless slavegirls! There's plenty of eye-candy for the ladies and gay men, with Jason Monoma showing off everything except the Savage Sword of Conan... so to speak.

Long story short, it is epic, awesome and over-the-top in all the ways that matter in a good action movie. A must see for all gamers and fans of the sword and sorcery genre.

First Picture of Anne Hathaway as Catwoman from The Dark Knight Rises

A Noteworthy Quote, Somewhat Related To The Subject of Geek Girls

"They don't want to be spectators. They're courageous and imaginative and adventurous. That's why you like them. They fit into the world you've chosen for yourselves. If you'd wanted a pair of silly, primping maidens who are good for nothing but gossip and needle-point, there are plenty of those around. But I doubt they'd interest you."

--- Senior Ranger Halt, The Emperor of Nihon-Ja by John Flanagan


Okay, he isn't talking about Geek Girls in the scene above. But the sentiment fits, I think.

Ranger's Apprentice is a great series for Young Adults of all ages, by the way. I highly recommend it.