An Epic Journey Through Time & Space

To mark the 50th anniversary year of Doctor Who and to celebrate the release of the last few existing episodes on DVD, I shall begin the ultimate Doctor Who marathon today. As best I can, I will watch every existing episode of Doctor Who in chronological order between today, Janauary 1, 2013 and November 23, 2013- the 50th anniverary. I figured if I watch at least 2 episodes a day over the next 326 days, I can accomplish this herculean task. I will blog after I have finished with each story with my review, hopefuly followed by a response from my blog counterpart.

FIrst stop- November 23, 1963- 76 Totters Lane.

Happy Who Year!
-Michael

A Christmas Box bigger on the inside

Sorry it's been a while since I have been on here, Michael has been here more timely than I, but we both have been busy. We have had the whole first half of the current season pass us by and now we are days away from the Christmas episode and the introduction of new companion Clara.

Christmas is actually what I want to talk about. This year I have been working retail to get by( since the loss of my office job over a year and a half ago) Christmas is not the best of times to be working retail in a mall, unless one entertains legions of Cybermen or squads of Daleks overtaking the holiday horde.

We have SO much Doctor Who merchandise for sale that is makes my heart heavy with joy. It really is quite amazing to see the variety of people buying this stuff. Yeah, there are still the die hard old fans that come in to buy stuff, but the new "Whovians" are great to see too. Grandma's are buying for their grandkids, kids are buying for their friends and families who watch together are buying for each other.

We have three sections in our store in a very prominent place housing all the Who goodies and I was thrilled the other day to realize I needed to make an understock for some of the merchandise because there was not enough room on the shelf. HOW FREAKING GREAT IS THAT!

I have explained to numerous People what the TARDIS is, What a DALEK is...I have even heard a co-worker or two tell people about the show( it's like I am a proud parent hearing my child explain how the TARDIS got stuck in the 60's Police Box shape because the Chameleon Circuit got stuck)

Pins, Dolls, Sonic Screwdrivers, Fleece Blankets, Bathrobes, Yahtzee games, Mugs, Cups, Tumblers, Cookie Jars, Modems, Bow Ties, Fezes and Scarfs oh my, we have them all


I believe the days of having to hide your head and sheepishly say you are a Doctor Who fan are over. WE are Out and Proud and ready to head into the Time Vortex.

Enjoy the Christmas Episode "The Snowmen" and I will talk to you soon
-Bill

Inmate at the Asylum of the Daleks!!

After a long hiatus, the Doctor, the Daleks and I are back! Sorry it's taken me so long to blog but it's been a busy summer. I've been bouncing between classic episodes and new ones.

As we approach the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who next year, the final DVDs of the existing classic episodes are being released. Over the summer, some real classics came out.

 Patrick Troughton's 2nd Doctor has the most episodes missing from the back catalog so any release of his is so precious. While the Krotons has never been ranked as a fan favorite, it does show the 2nd Doctor, Jamie and Zoe and classic form. It's a delight to watch them play off each other as they fight the Croutons!

 Death to the Daleks is the final complete classic Dalek episode to be released and the 3rd last of the 3rd Doctor (Ambassadors of Death and the Mind of Evil are forthcoming). I have such fond memories of this story from my childhood and all these years later, it still holds up. It's so bittersweet to see Liz Sladen as Sarah Jane Smith with Jon Pertwee's 3rd Doctor. Although they are no longer with us, their work and their memories will live with us forever. This episode also marks the last appearance of the Daleks without Davros in the classic series, and I think they're jolly good in it.

The latest classic release completes the Sylvester McCoy era. I don't think The Greatest Show in the Galaxy was broadcast on my local PBS station, so I didn't see it until it was released on VHS in the mid to late 90's. Season 25 had it's ups and downs with the great Remembrance of the Daleks and Silver Nemesis, while the more off beat Happiness Patrol and Greatest Show were not favorites. I wish they has made this a 3 episode story and made Silver Nemesis a 4 part story. While it is classic 7th Doctor/Ace, the story wanders and the cast are all over the place. But it does leave the viewer with an impression of the Doctor that will take us through to the end of the classic series.

Which brings us to tonight's premiere of Series 7 or Season 33 or Year 3! It's been over 8 months since last we saw the 11th Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe. It's been two years since we had a proper Dalek story and this seems to bring them back in full force. After their annual appearance during the RTD era, they've been very scarce under the Grand Moff.

Amazingly, this is only the 4th times in the shows almost 50 year history that the Daleks have kicked off a new season (Day of the Daleks, Destiny of the Daleks, Remembrance of the Daleks and now Asylum of the Daleks). This episode also kicks off the final 5 episodes of Amy and Rory. While I've enjoyed the Pond's time in the TARDIS, I think their departure is past due. I'm looking forward to the new girl who is scheduled to debut in this year's Christmas special. It's simply a great time to be a Doctor Who fan. :)

Special Weapons Dalek- FIRE!!

Tara, Frankly my dear I don't give a ...

Sunday before breakfast and before Michael left for the day(while Jim was showering) we popped in the first episode of

 This particular story is not my favorite of the Key to Time season, but Micheal requested that we watch it, due to the fact that it's the story that Mary Tamm gets to pull double duty and play two roles.

Of course, this was sort of a moot point, as we only watched the one episode and her second role of the princess does not actually appear in the first episode.

What does appear however is this hideous outfit that she wears. Sorry, yes, this is at heart a gay blog written by two gay men, so from time to time, there will be some sort of comment on fashion.

Yes, I know it was the 70's, but that's still no excuse for a hideous costume.

When I think of Mary Tamm's role as Romana, I generally tend to think of the two stories that I remember most from my childhood. The Ribos Operation and the Stones of Blood. I don't know if its just because they were played more on my local PBS station, or if they just stuck out in my mind over the others.


In regard to the weekend spent together, we may not have watched much Who, but we did talk about it, trading quips over characters and titles that were similar to words that came up in conversation. We also chatted about the upcoming 50th year anniversary and what we might like to see happen.

We finished up by having breakfast at a local diner and reading the article about Doctor Who in this months Entertainment Weekly-Bill

Olympic games they play with us...

So Michael and Jim are here on the cape for the weekend, while we have not watched any Doctor Who as of yet ( I am hoping for a Romana mark 1 story in remembrance of the late Mary Tamm) we did watch the opening ceremonies of the Olympics.

I must say a few things about it:

-1) This should have happened

-2) This also should have happened

-3)  I know that this did happen...

        ...but come on, points 1 & 2 were what really should have happened.


-4) While it was cool that 007 transported the queen to the opening ceremonies, I happen to think it would have been just a bit cooler for the Doctor to pick up the Queen and bring her there via TARDIS. I'm just saying...

Thats it for now
Sorry for the 3 week lull in between posts, I expect to pick up the pace and post more regularly from now on.
-Bill

K-9 or Canine...that is the question

Pet Dogs...be they mechanical or flesh'n'bone and time are two things that every pet owner has to  contend with. Don't worry, this blog post is not going to be maudlin or traumatic, or even sad. I have no horrible news to impart.

I am just posting this because tomorrow my girl beagle Kara is going in for surgery to have a few polyps in her bladder removed. The vet surgeon says that it is very routine surgery and that dogs actually take to this type of surgery better than humans do. The incision is small, no larger than what it would be when she was spayed.

It just makes me realize that pet ownership comes with its good points and bad points. Even when your dog is a mechanical super computer like (The Doctor's, Romana's, Leela's and Sarah Jane Smith's dog) K-9 sometimes things still go wrong:

    -He could get laryngitis and have a completely different voice for a full season
    -He could stupidly chase a beach ball into the ocean for no apparent reason and get his insides       soaked
    -He could have to stay inside because the ground is slightly uneven and he cannot maneuver it

or he could just get rusty and being trapped in a century with primitive technology, he could have a lack of available working parts to fix himself up with.


That's all for now, I just wanted to share that thought, take care of your pets because they take care of you by providing you with love, companionship, friendship, laser beam snouts and answers to complex mathematical equations.

Oh, and this is Kara, she's just a regular girl that likes treats a bit too much, she hasn't helped defeat monsters or villains or evil despots but she sure is good for a cuddle.

-Bill

A Few Helpful Hints

Here are a few things I have picked up as life lessons from watching Doctor Who:

-Not all alien planets have quarries, but most alien planets look like quarries

-Being good at math does not guarantee that you will live a long life

-Not all people with hair like Rick James are logic computing robots from the future

-Sometimes screaming your head off DOES actually defeat the monsters

-If you find a severed stone hand with bling, don't hold it

 -Most corridors look the same and are endless

 -Having big boobs and wearing a bikini will generally always get you noticed

-If you see someone who looks exactly like you, there is a distinct possibility that person is either:
   an evil megalomaniac dopple-ganger intent on taking over the world,
   an android,
   an alien copy,
   a plastic mannequin imbued with an alien life-force,
   or an exact copy of you that has been regenerated from a severed body part

And probably the most important thing
 
-If a ventriloquist dummy carries a knife, moves on its own and contains a pig's heart... get the hell out of there.

Bill