Doctor Who

I think this is quite possibly my favorite season of Doctor Who yet. There were definitely some dud episodes, but I'd say it had the same number of brilliant ones as usual, and I thought the pay-off in the finale was much better than RTD's brand of wrapping things up.

The only thing is that I wish they'd set up Amy's parents coming back a little better. I don't mind the happy ending, and it was mentioned in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it sort of way that Amy's parents had disappeared because of the crack, but it would've been nice to build that up a little bit more.

But I loved the Doctor bopping around in time, I loved the fez (and I loved River for blowing it to bits), and I loved that Amy's memories could bring back the Doctor - this show has played around with memory a lot, in mostly negative ways (most prominently with Donna), and so it was a nice reversal to have memories actually save the day. Plus, the Doctor's subliminal message using the "something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue" to describe the TARDIS was clever.

Overall, I loved the different feel of the season, less sci-fi and more fairy tale - which is weird, because I'm way more into sci-fi than fantasy, but for some reason it suits Who better. I think it's because of the aura of the Doctor as an age-old legend, like River's line about hating good wizards because "they always turn out to be him." There's always been that sense of the Doctor being present throughout history, someone people called on in times of trouble, but this season really crystallized it.

Matt Smith has totally grown on me, especially in that way he has of conveying alienness and incredible age while looking so young. I hesitate to say he's better than David Tennant (whom I think of as "my" Doctor) - he's just different, and it's such a delight watching him.

Amy is by far and away my favorite companion, no matter what age she is. I love her feisty, outspoken attitude - even at seven she's giving the Doctor what for. And, this needs to be said, I love her red hair. She's... a lot like Donna, actually, but with less baggage. And I especially loved the dynamic of having Rory around. Would you believe it, I've finally found a Who ship! I am so in love with Amy/Rory it's not even funny.

I am one of those people who thinks the Doctor should be asexual. I do recognize the attraction of a hot, funny, brilliant guy who's basically the awesomest awesome who ever awesomed, so I don't mind companions crushing on him, but (a) when it's whiny and schmoopy "twu wuv" angst like Rose and Martha, it's ANNOYING, and (b) the Doctor should never, ever return the attraction.

I was worried there for a while, when it seemed like they were not only setting up Amy's attraction to the Doctor, but even after Amy chose Rory, it seemed killing him off was a convenient way to shuffle Rory off-stage and make way for a Doctor/Amy romance. So I cannot tell you how happy I was to see Rory come back. (OMG HE WATCHED HER FOR 2000 YEARS!!! They are EPIC!) I liked how the finale echoed their earlier exchange, when Amy calls them "my boys":

Rory: [scoffs] We are not her "boys."

The Doctor: Yeah, we are.

Rory: Yeah, we are.

Then later, we get:

Rory: I'm not Mr. Pond. That's not how it works.

The Doctor: Yeah, it is.

Rory: [glances at Amy] Yeah, it is.

This time, it's not about the three of them - it's Rory and Amy, with the Doctor on the outside. As it should be. And I am super-excited about a married couple as companions.

I even liked River Song, and her relationship with the Doctor intrigues me. I can see how she could be annoying, being better at Doctoring than the Doctor, and how she's all coy about the future, but she's also kinda badass and I like that. At first it seemed very Time Traveler's Wife-ish, which was a pretty terrible movie (I didn't read the book, but I hear that was terrible, too), but I think it's way less creepy of a set-up here. River is a time traveler, too, and not just living solely for the Doctor, and that makes a huge difference.

Stuff!

Would you believe it, Cobie Smulders is pregnant? Must be something in the water at that HIMYM set. Whatever it is, Craig Thomas is willing to capitalize on it. Also HIMYM-related, the 50 reasons to have sex napkin from last week's episode and Neil Patrick Harris answering some questions.

Also, a summary of every episode of House ever. I admit, I totally lost it at "patient poops a lung." LOL!

A really good review of Leverage, an interview with David Tennant, and OMG Joan paper dolls!!

Time out

I have a headache today, a situation which is not helped at all by the fact that I'm staring at mind-numbing spreadsheets all day. So, taking a break to bring you the news of the day.

First up, David Tennant is leaving Doctor Who. Ordinarily, I'd get all worked up about a major actor leaving a show I like, but it's Doctor Who, and changing up the Doctor every few seasons is kind of what they do (Tennant was the 10th, following Christopher Eccleston, who also played the invisible dude on Heroes). I'm curious who they'll choose for the next one, but as I have very limited knowledge of British actors, I'm not putting out any suggestions.

Lauren Graham (formerly of Gilmore Girls) is going to Broadway to star in Guys and Dolls opposite Oliver Platt. That... seems like odd casting to me. (Also, I can't help thinking about [title of show] and their whole thing about TV actors in musicals.)

There's an interview with Taylor Kitsch (Riggins!!!), and a lot of it is about sports (not surprisingly) but be wary if you don't want to know what's going on on FNL.

I also found this write-up on Dirty Sexy Money, which has reeled me back in after I was somewhat noncommittal at the beginning of the season whether I wanted to stick with it or not. I still miss the stoner space camp Jeremy (he's not nearly as fun when he's trying to woo Nick's wife), and Karen constantly grates on my nerves, but Brian is still super awesome and Brian Jr. is impossibly adorable. Plus, you can never have too much Peter Krause and Donald Sutherland (well, come on, Kiefer must get it from somewhere!).

And finally, for your daily dose of randomness: speeding muppets.

Quiet week?

Who knows... they've reached a tentative agreement on the budget, so it's possible that this week might not be crazy hectic. Of course, school code negotiations are still going on, so who knows. At least it's a short week - yay 4th of July!

I had kind of a busy weekend, with going home Friday night (Patches was friendlier than ever; she must have been lonely), and then rushing back here Saturday morning so I could get to Jenn's beer fest/barbecue. That was fun, and I got a bit of a sunburn, but it's already starting to look tan. I was on call on Sunday, but Teresa didn't need me, so I just cleaned my apartment a lot in preparation for my parents, who might be dropping by today on their way home from NY.

I also managed to get caught up with the last couple episodes of Doctor Who. Steven Moffat rocks my world. I'm pretty happy that he'll be taking over for Russell Davies, because he writes the best episodes. Of course, he also comes up with the freakiest shit, so thanks, not only do I have an irrational fear of statues, I am now even more terrified of the dark than I was before. But the Doctor says I have a good reason!

We finally have premiere dates for Dr. Horrible - or you can read it straight from Joss himself. Word on the street is that, despite today being the deadline and no agreement has been reached, SAG doesn't plan to strike, otherwise who knows, we might've gotten a Dr. Horrible sequel. :)

Psych is coming back soon - yay! Check out what James Roday and Dule Hill have to say about the new season.

Almost quitting time

Did y'all have a nice weekend? Good, 'cause mine sucked. Mostly because I twisted my foot on Saturday morning. It was entirely me being dumb, and if I hadn't been home Friday night with an upset stomach, I wouldn't blame you for thinking I was drunk and tripped over myself. Which I kinda did, except for the drunk part. My foot was asleep, like really, really asleep, like I could step on my own toes and not even notice because my foot was so numb. But I decided to walk on it anyway, and made it about three steps before my foot bent completely in the wrong direction and something went snap crackle pop. To be followed by me immediately falling on the floor, only to have to hop to the bathroom so I could dry heave in the toilet (see aforementioned upset stomach.)

It's pretty much fine now, after a couple days of ice and not moving from the sofa. Okay, a day and a half, because by Sunday afternoon I was not only stir-crazy, but I also had serious grocery shopping and laundry to do, and not even my shuffle-hop was gonna stop me. I did have a nice black-and-blue bump for a while, but I can walk on it now with only a little twingy pain.

Sidebar: I think Blink may be my new favorite episode of Doctor Who, although I'm now adding statues to my list of irrational fears, right below clowns and fish. Seriously creepy, yo. That has nothing to do with anything, but I watched it for like the third time on Saturday while I was sacked out on the couch.

Anyway, just a few links with absolutely no connection to one another:

First, the Presidential candidates' proposals for how to deal with the mortgage crisis reveal what kind of President they will be. Or something like that.

Also, a list of the top 43 moments on Battlestar Galactica. Definitely contains spoilers, but you should be watching it anyway! (Marathon on Sci-Fi Channel going on RIGHT NOW.)

And finally, my favorite reality show (okay, the only one I actually watched), The Mole, is coming back. Minus host Anderson Cooper, but hopefully also without the celebrity cast. This was one of the few reality shows where the premise was engaging, the challenges were difficult, and the contestants were actually intelligent and cared about winning the game rather than becoming a reality TV personality.