Current mood: Pretty good. I just had lunch or dinner or something, and am feeling pretty content.
Current music: Random playlists on the iPod again. I think the last song I listened to was something by the Beatles.
Current annoyance: My left knee's started hurting a little, off and on, while I'm walking. And I just told someone earlier today that my knees hadn't bothered me seriously in years, too. Mind you, that's not really all that coincidental, as I believe the reason I was thinking of that enough to say it is that both knees have felt very subtly odd lately, like they're sometimes collapsing sideways slightly as I walk. Stupid knees.
Current thing: Reading. Not that that isn't always my thing, but lately I seem to be reading in longer, more concentrated fashion than is usual in this era of constant distractions. Last week I read an entire novel in one sitting. Admittedly, it was a fairly short novel, but it's been a ridiculously long time since I last did that.
Current desktop picture: A photo of Millennium Centre in Cardiff, Wales, as seen in Doctor Who and Torchwood, which my sister took when she was there last month. Here, I don't think she'll mind me sharing it:
Current book: Finity by John Barnes. Very odd book. Definitely interesting, but odd. I'm taking it on faith that the plot will make sense eventually.
Current song in head: Jonathan Coulton's "First of May," which has been stuck in my head since approximately, um, the first of May.
Current DVD in player: Nothing at the moment, but most recently disc one of season one of Supernatural, which I've been watching because several people I know are hugely enthusiastic about it. Based on the first four episodes, I can say that I like the characters and that I think the premise has potential, but the stories aren't impressing me all that much.
Current refreshment: Moroccan Mint tea (green tea flavored with mint). Mmm, nice.
Current worry: Having to face airport security when I fly out next week to visit relatives. There are reasons I've been avoiding flying as much as humanly possible. I'm not afraid of terrorists or plane crashes, but I am kind of afraid of Homeland Security.
Current thought: The sun should be up soon. Once it is, I've got a couple of things I need to do in the daylight world before I go to sleep.
I watched the first few episodes of Supernatural (and then a later one to see Amber Benson guest-starring), and I found a lot of things to like about it but just not enough to make me come back week to week. I think I've moved past my ability to really appreciate monster/case-of-the-week series like this. I think it's the same reason why I gave up twice on Bones (despite liking it), and why there are three or four unwatched episodes of House sitting on my DVR. I know there are arcs on all three of these shows, and they're not really guilty of using the reset button in the same way that, let's say, a Law and Order or Star Trek would. But with all three shows, Bones and Supernatural especially, I could really love an invidiual episode but couldn't get invested enough to watch them all.
ReplyDeleteNow I have been watching the third season of the new Doctor Who recently. (Yes. Don't ask how. I suspect you have, too.) And I'm really loving it. The second, with the exception of the absolutely terrific "Girl in the Fireplace" was very uneven, and never really played to David Tennant's strengths. This season, and "Human Nature"/"Family of Blood" especially, have done that in spades. I don't know if the remainder of the season will do the same, but I'm enjoying this just about as much as I did the first season. Tennant is really starting to come into his own as the Doctor, I think.
It does help that I came to a realization early on in this season: Doctor Who is ultimately a kid's show. Holding it to exactly the same standards as more adult fare is perhaps a mistake, and unfair. What it manages to do within that framework is pretty terrific; what it does when it's at the top of its game is nothing short of remarkable.
Sorry, didn't mean to go on like that.
Interestingly, I think I may be a fair bit more tolerant of strictly and deliberately formulaic shows (like House) than of merely episodic ones. It is more the reset button that bothers me, and as long as the characters have continuity and development (or, hell, even just really good dialog), there's at least a good chance that I'll be willing to accept the formula and roll with it.
ReplyDeleteThe last couple of Supernatural episodes that I've watched after posting this have impressed me a bit more, as they've done a better job in terms of using the monster plot of the week to bring out various character insights. (It probably didn't hurt that one of the supernatural baddies in question came from a story that scared the crap out of me as a kid, either. :))
As for Doctor Who, I've found this season to be a bit uneven, too, though perhaps not as much so as the last one. I think it benefits greatly from the fact that Martha is a much better fit for the Tenth Doctor than Rose was... I had major issues with the way the dynamic shook out between those two, and it did mar my enjoyment a bit, but I'm loving Martha to pieces. And, yes, "Human Nature"/"Family of Blood" was, indeed, impressive.
Who is very much considered a kids' show in the UK, and that's certainly an important factor in terms of what it does and doesn't do. But, really, IMO, the beautiful thing about Doctor Who is that it is utterly in a category by itself. Holding it up to a standard of adult drama is missing the point, but I think comparing it to ordinary kiddie shows does, too. Doctor Who is Doctor Who, bless it, and it's meant to be fun for everybody, young and old. What's remarkable about it is how well it manages to do that.
And, hey, go on all you like!
Hey, when does it start here? By the way, where ya goin.
ReplyDeleteIt'll be starting here sometime in July.
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm going to Delaware for this family reunion thingy I somehow got roped into attending. (Other side of the family, obviously. :))
Yes. Um, July. I haven't at all seen the episodes yet. No, not at all...[whistles innocently]
ReplyDeleteI've quit even trying to look innocent. :) What the hell... I buy the DVDs, anyway, so they get my money, and I tell all my American friends how great the show is and how they have to watch it when it comes on here (and have had several of them listen to me!), so I'm doing their advertising for them. I feel no moral compunction at all, and if the BBC sues me, they're idiots.
ReplyDeleteI wish I was living in the "Isles". I want to see them now! Its not fair. `further ranting`. Have a heart, please
ReplyDeleteAnd here I thought I was being impatient because I hadn't had the chance to watch yesterday's episode yet. :)
ReplyDeleteIt was...I am still giddy, hours later, it was such a good episode.
ReplyDeleteHeh. I just finished watching it about five minutes ago, and, damn, that rocked!
ReplyDelete