After All Is Said And Done Love Is All That Matters.....

So. Farewell, then, Losty.
Turns out you weren't about SPACE Aliens or Polar Bears or Smoke Monsters after all.
Not really.
But you were about the Dark Tower. Only in your version, Jack/Roland realised what was important and didn't have to go back and do it again and again until he 'got' it.
Love is all that matters. Answers are temporary and may disappoint. Love is eternal.
I'm cool with that.

Poor Good!Jack. Very Sad.

Hopefully, in time, his biceps will console him.

24 Day 8 Episode 17. Very sad.

And there's another reason why he and I are never meant to be. I wouldn't look good with a bullet hole in my tummy.

The Sorkin Agenda

So. The Beast Below was.....a Star Whale. And not a beast at all. Well, I suppose in the strictly biological sense... but not in the perjorative sense anyway.

I loved this one. It was beautiful. Almost as good as Gridlock. And the Sorkin Agenda continues - last week we had 'Who Da Man', this week we had the thing about the thing. And he did the thing. Etc. We also effectively had Mandyville - the place below.

What else was good? The reference to the Solar Flares. Amy Pond. LOVING Amy Pond. Utter nutter, so she is. But just exuding confidence and......agency. She's GOOD.

Also - was that a hint of The Dark Tower, hmmm, Mr Moffat? A Gunslinger (Liz 10) stuck in a loop which re-boots every time the Tower is reached? I think so. Oh yes.

Yep. This was really very good. The Doctor didn't do much, mind you......but he brought the funny and he did some good righteous indignation too. And of course, he had the (non-Sorkin) quote of the week 'I'll do what I always do. Keep out of trouble. Badly.' Gotta love the self awareness there.

Never Doubted Him Never Will (But Pertwee in Still Best Shock)!

So, then. The Eleventh Hour. Was it worth all the hoo hah, all the anticipation, all the angst, all the publicity, all the acres of newsprint, all the sleepless nights, all the trepidation?

I'm sorry.......have we met? OF COURSE it was. I've never doubted him, I never will, and he continues his unbroken run of not letting me down, rather, living up to frankly insanely high expectations.

The script was great (lots of loose ends though, Moff - did you think we didn't notice? It will all end in tears, sure as eggs). The acting was great. Amy (nut job though she clearly is) is going to be a great companion. Eleven is the Doctor. He's not *my* Doctor but he's *a* Doctor - a proper one, and will do a proper job, I reckon. The new Tardis looks great. Murray's music is wonderful (I do wonder if Amy's theme is trying to tell us something.......of course it is). The hommages to Spearhead in particular and Pertwee in general were fantastic (Troughton my ARSE. Pertwee love all the way. As it should be). The TWW gracenote was lovely. The montage of all ten previous Doctors made us scream with delight.

Bean loved it. Joey loved it. Roo loved it. Barry loved it. Tim loved it.

I loved it.

But Pertwee is still Best. He will always be MY Doctor. I'm sure he's glad to see the role still in good hands, though.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Some Reasons Why Sawyer is Best

And it's all lovely. But. But but but but. Me, I'd have focussed on the funny. The nicknames. The dimples. And, OK, yes, the shirtlessness. But mainly the nicknames. He brings the funny like nobody else on Lost. Without him it would be a dull and humourless place to be - despite Hurley's in your face supposed to be funny but actually sad antics. I like Hurley, but like everyone else (except Miles) he's only funny when he's teamed up with Sawyer.

Let's face it. Sawyer is best. And he rocks. And he has very nice shoulders.

A Better Mousetrap?

More humane, anyway.......

OK Go This Too Shall Pass
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qybUFnY7Y8w

Dreamers At Heart

Love the Lovely Silje.


From http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBXueE-sTdw

Ben Linus - He Lies, Because That's What He Does.

I really hope this doesn't mean what I think it does......I LOVE Ben. Probably second only to Sawyer.

Good!Jack and the pursuit of elusive happiness

I watched 24 from Day 1 of Day 1. Well, Day 1 in the UK anyway. Love the lovely BBC 2 for buying and broadcasting it - for taking a chance when Sky, owned by the people who make and show 24 in the US, wouldn't. And I enjoyed it. I did. To a certain extent. But I didn't really *feel* it. I certainly didn't get the Jack love. I liked Tony, me. Soul Patch, as TWoP (or was it MBTV in those days?) used to call him. But I stuck with Day 1. I came back for Day 2, but bailed midway. Can't remember why. Day 3 though - now that, I loved. Lots of Tony. And Chloe. Loved her. Jack was actually interesting too - I began to glimpse what others saw in him. Then he cut off chase's hand and, well......the day was over anyway, so.....

Day 4 I didn't like and bailed, Day 5 they killed Tony and I was done. Apparently there was a Day 6 and an awayday. I know little of these. We'd parted ways. Then, about 13 hours into Day 7 my sister mentioned Tony. I pointed out that good though Soul Patch had been, he'd been dead for years now. She then informed me he was back, and not as a zombie either (hell, I *would* have watched that, to be honest). Cue a frantic catch up using the magic of iTunes and iPhone during a 2 day trip to Paris.

And this time I *was* feeling it. This time Good!Jack (as opposed to Bad!Jack (Shepherd)) totally had me. Because he loved Tony. And Chloe. And Bill. And Aaron too probably. And how he suffered. No longer the happy amoral torturer he - everything he did (in that line - and, for him, realistically what other line is there?) destroyed a bit more of him. He lived by his choices but they were crucifying him. He had a conscience. He was society's acceptable sacrifice used and abused by a succession of evil pliticians and functionaries.

And now Day 8 is proving to be a thing of wonder. The Good!Jack/Renee dynamic has obliterated and residual Skate interest from my heart (I still like Losty best BY FAR - but Good!Jack and Renee have established in just over a year a more powerful and affecting relationship than any of my Losty favourites have managed in 5 years). Of course it's the certainty that Good!Jack cannot and will not ever find true happiness that makes it all so compelling. Renee must be toast, surely? But while it lasts it's required viewing. The tragic hero and heroine doomed to despair, torturing their way to oblivion.

Oh, and stuff gets blown up and a few weeks ago a thumb was cut off. Top Sunday entertainment!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Chroma-fabulous

Imagine a world where many centuries before, Something Happened. Imagine a world where everything is, as far as possible, kept in stasis. A world where post codes and spoons are vital indicators of social standing. A world where most (?) people can only distinguish one primary or secondary colour from the spectrum, and everything else just looks grey. A result of the Something that Happened? Genetically modified colour blindness? As yet, that's unclear. But then, Jasper Fforde's Shades of Grey is only the first volume of a planned trilogy and things are left very much in the air at its close - pretty much everything is still up for grabs....

God but it was hard work at the beginning. The first 150 or so pages were really hard going. I devoured the next 300 in one night. I think this was probably because the world building (although this is our world, right? Or.....not?) was complex and ambitious. Once the elements crucial to the plot had been put in place, and the central mysteries had begun to be hinted at, the story moved at a cracking pace.

Me, I love Jasper Fforde. The Thursday Next books are a triumph as far as I'm concerned. So I was predisposed to like this, and I stuck with it when the going was tough. I'm glad I did. The grim depressing and Logans Run/Soylent Green ending notwithstanding, I can't wait for the next installment.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

If A Picture Paints A Thousand Words.....

The Stephen King gobblefest continues. Latest on the menu - Duma Key. Like Under the Dome, Duma Key is a fairly recent novel (post The Dark Tower, post Lost) and it's certainly not 'horror' (obviously, because otherwise I wouldn't have read it). Unlike Under the Dome, Duma Key isn't really an ensemble piece. There are several characters but only one viewpoint, only one 'star'. Edgar Freemantle - crippled accident victim and ...portal? channel? part-time host? for a malevolent, imprisoned spirit entity. Freemantle's frequent mantra is 'I *can* do this'. Sound familiar? Yeah. Me too.

The plot revolves around the power of Edgar's sketches and paintings - art he produces once he has moved to Duma Key, a spooky island off the Florida coast. While it's not horror, shedloads of people die and it's quite scary (but not *too* scary). It's certainly less scary than Under the Dome or The Dark Tower. And that's not a weakness. It's a strength. There's no terror to detract from the character piece - to detract from the beauty and sadness of Edgar's story. There is loss, redemption, friendship, courage. Not much hope though, at the end. Not for Edgar who has now lost two lives - his first 'ordinary' life, and his second life as an artist. And several friends (and closer than friends) on the way.

Despite the low key ending - there is no triumph, the defeat of the malign entity is bought at the expense of such loss and isn't even necessarily permanent (although the loss is, of course) - Duma Key is a fabulous book. Like a finely polished pearl - despite the links to The Dark Tower and (maybe) the nods to Lost - it seems to be all of itself. A meditation on the power of art (any art, ask Sai King) and where it comes from. And a celebration of friendship. The back cover contains a recommendation from Damon Lindelof. Good call.

The Dark Tower. All 3000+ Pages Of It.

What can I say, really? I have no idea where to start. I've been submerged...somewhere, Roland's *where*, plus sundry other wheres and whens for such a long long time now...

Of course, it hasn't been a long time at all. Less than 5 weeks, probably. Why wasn't it a long time given it was certainly a long *read*? (And not fogetting the break I took to read the latest DWJ, too) Because I have gorged myself on Roland's quest, do it please ya. Absolutely binged myself silly. As addicted as Eddie Cantor Dean used to be to heroin. Lovely Eddie (say sorry). As addicted as Roland was to the Tower itself. Poor Roland. (Again, say sorry).

I started my own quest ( to finish the dam things) mainly because I wanted to mine all the parallels to Lost. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Someting to fill the deadspace between the Xmas/new year Dr Who extravaganza and emotional burnout, and the return of Lost at the beginning of February. Something to help with all the travel I'd be doing. Something to mini blog on tumblr.

Well. We seldom get what we expect (and the Sox'll never win the series). I did get all those things. More Lost stuff than you can shake a stick at, say thanks. An addictive time filler. A tumblr subject line. I also got - surprisingly - a series that I loved more than The Gap. So - in other words a new favourite book series. And probably, in Waste Lands, or maybe Wolves of the Calla, an individual book I love more than Ghost Written, or Deep Secret, or even Jane Eyre. And it has nothing to do with Lost, actually, and everything to do with Roland and Jake and Eddie and Susannah and Oy and the Pere. And Stephen King.

Oh, but to begin with it was hard work. Very hard. I wasn't feeling it at all. I almost bailed so many times. The Lobstrocities at the start of The Drawing of the Three nearly finished me (as well as Roland). And I didn't like him, not one bit (cos, you don't kill kids, right Sayid? Or let them die, Jack). But then...then the door opened. And it wasn't that thing anymore, that Tom Bombadil thing, that Real Story thing. It was this thing. This thing that had reached Rivendell. This thing that had boarded Captain's Fancy. This thing I could suddenly love. This thing I could adore. So, I did. And Jake came back. Hooray. Such a neat way to deal with bifurcated timelines ( operating in a many worlds scenario also). I wonder if any TV writers have taken note...

My favourite moments Reading these books include *cheering* the appearance of Captain Trips (cos everyone just loves plague, right); rooting for Randall Flagg when he was confronting Mordred (poor old ageless stranger, uttering nothing but lies) just cos I hate spiders; and the whole demolition of the fourt wall. Which of course was what made it art. (I so want to add 'basically' there but I'm not sure how well West Wing references would sit in this piece).

And what do I say, after it all? After the tears and the 'ending' and the hope and despair? I say thankee sai. I say I loved every minute of it. I say I'm happy to go back jack and do it again. Although I worry about the variables. I say that when I watched the Lost series 6 premiere in the wee small hours of Wednesday morning, I was looking for Dark Tower links in homage to *that*. I say The Dark Tower is an incredible work of narrative and emotion and I love it to bits.

I say true.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Go Back, Jack, And Do It Again...

The wait is almost over. The final season of Lost is about to begin. I don't think I have ever been so excited, so desperate to get going and yet so scared of what might happen...well, not since the run up to Rose, anyway. Suppose they blow it? They could blow it. It's not, you know, technically impossible. And there's no way it ends happy. Well - no way it remains art and ends happy. Is it Dark Tower all the way, baby (not finished yet but nearly there now)? Or will we return to linear, corporeal life? I'm genuinely scared. This means so much to me. But I'm gritting my teeth. Excelsior!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

And So, The End Is Near.....

Scary and Exciting at the same time. Filled with promise .......and threat. Is my boy toast? Maybe. It looks that way. But who knows? Also.....falling off a cliff? Remember, there are other worlds than these......

Enchanted, Ms Wynne Jones

Diana Wynne Jones is my favourite author. That deal was closed a long long time ago - in the late 1970s, when I first read Wilkins' Tooth - and I have never seen any reason to re-evaluate my position on this.

Inevitably, a new book from DWJ is An Event in my mad little world. Will it be another Hexwood, or Deep Secret? Or, you know, not?

Enchanted Glass is not another Hexwood. And it's not another Deep Secret. But it is a wonderful, charming, inventive and engaging book in its own right, with a beautifully drawn cast of characters and location and an intriguing mythos backing it up. Is it set either in Chrestomanci's world or one of the related worlds? Quite possibly. But equally, it could easily not be. Which is refreshing. I like Chrestomanci, and certainly The Lives of Christopher Chant is in the top 50% of DWJ's output, for me - but all my other favourites are non Crestomanci books. I prefer DWJ when she stretches her wings and tries something new. And if she really wants to go back and revisit old triumphs - well, I wish she'd either consider sequels to Hexwood or Fire and Hemlock, or revist the Magids' multiverse once more.

But I digress. Enchanted Glass appears to be not only written a fresh slate for DWJ it also seems to be nicely set up for one or more sequels, ending as it does on a semi- cliffhanger with some plot threads still trailing. Which is Good News, I'd say.

It's not the most complex book she's ever written. It's not the most challenging. It is however beautifully constructed and played out, and the overall effect is as enchanting as the glass windows which give the book its name. When I finished Enchanted Glass I loved DWJ even more than ever. I hope there are sequels - I want to find out what happens next. I want to find out more about the folk who will not use iron, about the Puck, about Groil and Rolf. I want to know what happens to the counterparts - are they safe? There's plenty of scope for sequels. But *as well* as those longed for sequels to my favourite books though, not instead of .........here's hoping, anyway.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Mr Friendly Throws Like A Girl. What's Up With That?

Everything you need to know about Lost in 8 minutes 15 seconds

In Pursuit Of Resolution-Based Triumph

Further to my resolutions posted yesterday, in an attempt to promote a positive outlook on life and turn that frown upside down, I'm going to tweet or tumblr at the end of every day the things that have made me happy that day. This will help me go to bed thinking happy positive thoughts instead of Wire ones (grim depressing and unintelligible). I'm also going to start each day recording the things I'm looking forward to. For I am DETERMINED to transform myself into the lovechild of Basil Fotherington-Thomas and Mary Poppins or DIE in the attempt. I WILL achieve positiveness. I will. I'm going to be so bloody chirpy people will look at me and quake. Well. Perhaps that's putting it a smidge strongly. Neverthess - project chirpy is off and running.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Blimey, That Went Quickly

Another year over. It seems like only yesterday it was the beginning of 2009. It's a function of getting older, I guess.

So. An eventful year. Some good stuff, mainly to do with the kids who continue to be a joy and a delight and a gift beyond our comprehension and frankly beyond our deserving. Some bad stuff - death in the family, other family type worries, the world economy COLLAPSING, swine flu, that sort of thing.

Concerts played in, concerts and shows attended. Mainly fabulous. Some old friends reconnected with (definite high spots of the year) in fortuitous circumstances (one on Twitter, another literally bumped into in a cafe many hundreds of miles from where she was presumed to be). Some old friends lost touch with. Some current ones finally given up on. Sad. But life goes on.

Books read - lots and lots. Blogs written. Photos taken. BSG discovered and devoured en famille in a few short weeks. A life documented more thoroughly than ......ever? Well, since 1983 anyway. I still have my 1983 diary. Hilarious. Sad. Scary. Hopeful. Spurs had a bad year that year so I thought. We'd have taken that year for most of the last 15, I reckon! Of course, 2009 has been excellent for Spurs. A strong finish to last season, a stronger start to this one. It's bound to end in tears but there were few Spursy tears in 2009 except for the whole losing the carling cup final thing.

A lot of playing, in 2009. Not enough - but more than I anticipated at the outset. It's never enough though. Ended the year buying a beautiful mollenhaur Bass. Hope I get to play it plenty - without diluting how much I play the sopranino or descant, or the rest.....

The year had its usual highpoints - fitness fiesta, Sennen Cove, the Doctor Who Xmas special. Some unexpected additions to the highpoints included the IVFDF and various recorder courses/playing days. The Losty rewatch was a breeze - finished way ahead of schedule. It was the last one before the final series. The 2010 summer marathon will be dealing with a complete work rather than a work in progress. Change my dear. Sigh. 2009 saw the last few Tenny episodes. So - more change. Bad change. I won't write about that.

What will 2010 hold? Feck knows. I have a couple of things to look forward to, already booked in my diary. Shows and concerts I hope to be seeing. Very excited about those. Fitness fiesta, obviously. Sennen.

What else? Well - I will continue to try and be a better mother. I'm left with no choice now but to try and grab our finances by the throat and throttle them into submission. The family issues may make that more difficult but there you go - as Scarlett O'Hara was once told, the good lord doesn't send us shit he hadn't given us the tools to deal with (I'm paraphrasing obviously).

I want to play more, read more, write more and not let my commitment to the gym falter.

I want to love Matt Smith or at least be able to find an accomodation with the situation, as I did when Tom Baker took over, that doesn't mess with my unwavering and permanent commitment to Doctor Who.

I want to see Spurs win the league. Actually, I want to see them win the double.

I want a tidyish relatively clean house.

I want to get 50% of my books on librarything.

I want to keep up with Big Finish.

I want to be more happy and less sad.

Piece of piss, right? ;)



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

The End Is Just The Beginning?

Maybe. We'll see. Fight the future? Or embrace the future? Or just, you know, live in denial from now on?

It's Time - But The Moment Has Been Prepared For....

I never got over the Pertwee/Baker regeneration. Never. I'm still upset about it, remembering it now. I never forgave Tom Baker for not being Jon Pertwee. The only reason he isn't in my triumvirate of ultimate evil is that it would feel slightly treasonous to include him. No regeneration since has affected me so much. Let's face it - by the time Tom left I was much older and (ahem) wiser, and the nature of time being what it is (linear) I continued to get older as the Doctors passed by. Even the Baker/McCoy regeneration which was wrong on many levels didn't affect me so much since by then I wasn't 6.

Today's regeneration, only 18 and some hours away, looks set to affect me even more than Pertwee's. I don't want Tenny to go. I've had more than a year to come to terms with it and, basically, I've failed. I've always hated change (the legacy of the Pertwee regeneration?) and this is definitely one change too far. I keep hoping I'll wake up and it will all be a dream. But no. I'm Not Happy. Tenny has become my equal favourite Doctor, something I never thought I'd say about anyone. Of course, RTD wrote him as Pertwee, kind of, which helped. We won't just be saying goodbye to him but to his faux unit family too. And the master. All my lovely Pertwee analogues removed in one fell swoop.

It's a sad day.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone