December 2009

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Doctor Who: End of Time (Part One)

27 December, 2009 in Just Stuff | Permalink

The End of Time Part 1. Ok anyone reading this that doesn’t want to be spoiled don’t read anymore.

I had a number of fears about these episodes, and to be honest a few of them are still in place. That said, I loved it. I was surprised how much I did love it actually.

The Master’s resurrection, didn’t worry me like I thought it was. In the season 3 finale, he talked aobut the time lords resurrecting him to fight the Time War, so it has been stated in canon that a dead time lord can be resurrected, and it makes sense that the Master would have left instructions for that, in the hope some group of nut bags will follow it.

Oh before I forget, I want to kiss Russell for his description of Christmas in the beginning, I warmed my little pagan heart.

The Doctor on the Ood planet. I didn’t like him. He wasn’t the Doctor Victorious of Waters of Mars, but his humour was, I don’t know, a little cruel and mean spirited. I put it down to him still trying to find his way back from the darkness, but when the show started it worried me because I thought that was going to be the norm. I love the Master’s dark and twisted humour, but the somehow the Doctor just made me cringe, and not in a good way.

Ok the Master. I don’t know how to explain it, no one does manic, insane, haunted and evil quite like John Simm. Just as Tennant has become my favourite Doctor, Simm is now my favourite Master. Yes I know a lot of people prefer the more controlled evilness of past Masters, but Simm for me has captured my heart. Speaking of which, oh my little slasher heart is all a flutter. The scene in the wasteland where they start by reminiscing about life on Gallifrey to the point they share the sound of drums. It was exquisite, it was crazy and heartbreaking. It spoke of love once there that had become so twisted, and in the end remains twisted and damaged. And I swear at one point I was so sure he was going to kiss the Doctor.

And what can I say about the Master in bondage and collared that doesn’t make me sound like a pervert? Well not much because the only responses I can come up with is oh my god, and drooling on the keyboard. And then, a world full of Masters, Masters in dresses and highheels. I’ve never had a crossdressing kink, but man it was just so good.

Wilf, what can I say again, I used to think Donna is my favourite companion, and yes as series length companions go, she is, but Wilf, there is just something so right about him, so perfect (but not in a too perfect way). The scene in the cafe with the Doctor was just perfectly pitched for me. There was a sad humour there, Tennant’s performance of the Doctor’s grief and angst was spot on. Wilf’s complete love for Donna hasn’t changed. Oh and the comment about how he sees her looking sad sometimes, like she’ll stop and get this sad look in her eyes that she can’t understand. And the Doctor telling him that regeneration is just like death, that everything he is dies and some other bloke gets to saunter off….. Fuck. (and yes I’ll admit I teared up through that whole scene)

Bits that worry me. The hint that the Doctor can actually die. Everyone is feeling safe because 11 has been casted, but I keep hearing rumours that the Doctor dies and a whole new different time lord takes his place. I swear I will be so pissed, probably to the extent of stopping watching if that happens.

My biggest fear has always been Gallifrey returning. That somehow the Time War will be rewritten, and Gallifrey and the TimeLords will return. I have had fears of that since the Fires of Pompeii when the Seer said ‘she is returning’, although people said that was about Rose, and then when the Doctor was given the prophecy about ‘it returns’ I knew somehow Gallifrey would play a part. I loved what I saw in this episode, and the hints I got from the ‘sneak preview’ I saw. I love the evilness that shows through with the Time Lords. They aren’t heroes, they were never the ‘good guys’. The Doctor was the rebel, he ran away because he wouldn’t play by their rules, he was made head Chancellor in an attempt to keep him under control, and banished to earth when they couldn’t control him. In many ways the Master is more like the TimeLords of Gallifrey than the Doctor ever was. So I loved seeing that cold cruelty being shown. What I fear is they will return, that the Doctor won’t be alone. The Time War is such a big canon moment, a part that I loved because of the effect it has had on the Doctor. I loved the description in the sneak preview of how savage the war is, because the Doctor and all he loved had to live through that, and all but him had to die to stop it. I just pray that isn’t rewritten in the end.

It’s a week until the last part, and the end of Ten. In that time I will bounce about the awesomeness of the episode and try not to fear for the future of my show.

forward thinking

12 December, 2009 in Study | Permalink

So it’s official, the paper I did crap in, I was given my grade and it’s a B-. It was what I was expecting, I am still kicking myself about it. It’s a fucking terrible grade, and I’m so disappointed in myself. I can’t remember how long it’s been since I had a grade that low, so yeah, a little upset. I’m a little ashamed of having to tell people it’s a B-, but there’s also this part of me that goes, ‘see, I’m not really intelligent, it’s all been a big lie.’

But aside from that fucked up stuff in my head, I’ve been trying to be rational about all this. As I’ve said before, to get into Masters you need a B+ average and I have that. My grade marks for my PGDA are an A, an A-, a B+ and this B-. So it will work out as either a high B+ average or a low A- average. It isn’t a grade average I would have liked, but it is still enough to allow me to apply to the Masters programme. I was reminded yesterday that one of the reasons they do an average rather than a individual grade requirement is often students will drop low in one paper and this takes that into account.

My main problem now is not one that is related to me having ‘issues’ but rather a ‘normal’ problem probably everyone that applies for Masters has to deal with. As part of the application you have to include a short (about a page) proposal for what you want to do for your thesis. My problem isn’t finding something to do, but rather deciding on which one I want to do. Over the last couple of years when I realised Masters was an option I made a list of thesis proposals I wanted to do, and have currently narrowed it down to two. I’ve now got to decide which one to do.

Oh yeah I saw Susan yesterday about the article. I had sent her the literature review. I was a little worried it didn’t sound academic enough. Now I’m not saying I thought it was crap, more, well there’s a standard for academic journals, a sound to them and I thought mine sounded too much like a student’s essay and not enough like a academic journal. It’s only natural as that’s where my experience lies. Susan seemed to think it was ok, and in fact the only major comment was about the size. The article needs to be about 6000 words, the literature review and methodology part needs to be about 1/3, so about 2000 words. My literature review alone is 3500, so yes, I’ve been a little wordy. How unusual. So we decided I should work on the Findings section this time and that will help me edit what needs to be in the lit review.