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 I thought I was reasonably well-informed about the history of Doctor Who spinoff fiction, but was rather amazed to discover this 1966 46-page story, in the same format (and by the same publisher) as the Doctor Who annuals, in which the First Doctor prevents an invasion from the Andromeda galaxy with the help of a family who he has rescued (just before the story starts) from the Great Fire of London. Apparently the text is by J.L. Morrissey, who published half a dozen detective novels in the 1930s and 1940s; the artwork is by Walter Howarth, the World Distributors stalwart illustrator. The story itself is standard Who, let down by rather dodgy astrophysics and some awkward phrasing (note extract from first para here). But the characterisation of Hartnell's Doctor is bang-on.
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A friend of mine sent me this greeting:
which apparently means "Merry Christmas and Happy New Year" in his native language.
A special prize for the first person to identify that language!
(And a very special prize for anyone who knows how to pronounce it...)
ETA: Well done ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) bugshaw! Others may guess anyway by clicking on "reply" without reading what others have written.
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As a follow up to this post, the subsequent encounter that followed was on board a ship with a total of 10 ghouls vs. the PC and his NPC allies.
The encounter proved pretty easy, with the ghouls barely scratching into the HP of the hero. The ghouls appeared in two waves, 6 that were topdeck on the ship and four more that joined later after the ruckus started. The fighting arena was big enough to maneuver so that he was only ever facing 3-4 ghouls at a time, while his NPC buddies worked ranged weapons from a distance.
With the benefit of a Protection from Evil spell, the main Hero enjoyed, for the majority of the combat an AC well into the negatives that the ghouls could only touch on a 20 anyways. The ghouls made up for this shortcoming a bit by having three attacks each, but they only connected two or three times, did minimal damage, and the hero saved against the paralysis.
I suppose the danger of him failing the saving throw vs paralysis was the biggest threat, but we're using action die in the game, so a failed roll could be modified, if need be.
Now, in the next session he'll be entering a dungeon, and will have the companion of one NPC ally rather than the two bards that were tailing him before. I'm trying to figure out the approximate level and strength of this NPC so that the hero is still, well, the Hero, but can have a powerful ally that makes up for his shortcomings.
So, the Hero is a fighter (see original post linked above for stats)... I think a Cleric would be best so he has a healer and a pretty decent ally in combat (good combat values, hp, and AC). Now what I'm trying to work out is level and magical buffs. Suggestions?
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Another very long chapter, but an excellent read, full of incident and character. Diocletian comes over as one of the best emperors so far - a slave from Illyria who rose to the top, managed it well, and retired in time to enjoy his later years plating cabbages by the Adriatic. In the meantime he puts down Carausius' rebellion in Britain, wins a war with Persia and sorts out the empire by dividing it into four. Of course, that simply meant new structures that could go wrong; but it was a good solution to the problem of unmanageability.
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I feel a bit mean posting this, because the other reviews I've seen so far of An Earthly Child are rather positive (without spoilers here and with spoilers here). I think Marc Platt's scripts are a bit like Marmite - you love 'em or hate 'em. However, to explain why I didn't like it requires a cut-tag and spoiler warning, thus:
( Read more... )
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It won't have escaped notice that the weather has been a bit cold round here of late. Some (including one who works in the same building as me) think we should take it in our stride, and to an extent I agree that one should try and be slightly Zen about it. But sometimes this is not easy.
Thursday night was a bad night. I was rather enjoying myself at a Bosnian embassy reception when I bit awkwardly on a (really yummy) piece of Baklava and my tooth, re-filled only that morning, began hurting like the blazes. I made my excuses to the ambassadors (the one I was talking to at the time, and the one hosting the party) and hurried as fast as I could to the tram and the Gare du Midi / Zuidstation. Less than 40 minutes later I had reached Leuven station, only 7 km from home. But Leuven was snowbound; the rest of the journey took over two hours, as buses failed to show up and trains were cancelled; eventually I trudged to the warmth of the Novotel and called a cab from there, jaw still aching.
Since then it's been OK here, but we were really alarmed to hear of the Channel Tunnel being closed - and 2000 passengers stuck inside it! - since we were due to head over to the in-laws' tomorrow for a couple of days before Christmas. There is no reliable information available on the Eurostar / Eurotunnel site; but in the Twitter era, you cannot escape instant and public consumer feedback. It is clear that traffic is backed up for hours around Calais and Dover / Folkestone, and there are worrying reports of chaos at the loading ramps. There is no way we can take the risk of travelling with a severely autistic child (who will turn seven on Monday) and being stuck in traffic for hours, so we are not going tomorrow - particularly since the forecast is for more heavy snow precisely in western Belgium and the Pas-de Calais overnight - and quite likely will not go on Monday either. Alas, no pantomime for F, and no reunion with Anne's cousins either. But sometimes you have to accept force majeure.
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Gorgeous, gorgeous track used in the latest ep of Dollhouse, by Swedish grammy-winner Anna Ternheim.
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The Bounty Hunter HD480p 51MB HD720p 123MB
Romantic action comedy about a bounty hunter (Gerard Butler) who learns that his next target is his ex-wife (Jennifer Aniston). Directed by Andy Tennant (Fool's Gold, Hitch, Sweet Home Alabama).
Looks to me as if Mr. Testosterone is dyeing his hair. At the age of 40. Tsk, tsk, tsk.
The Back-Up Plan HD480p 48MB HD720p 121MB
Romantic comedy about a woman (Jennifer Lopez) who has decided waiting for the right one is taking too long. Determined to become a mother, she commits to a plan, makes an appointment and decides to go it alone. On the day of her artificial insemination she meets a man (Alex O'Loughlin) with real possibilities.
I laughed once. At the joke that involves barfing.
Shrek Forever After HD480p 29MB HD720p 53MB
First teaser for the fourth and probably last instalment in which Shrek is feeling over-domesticated. He has lost his roar. It used to send villagers running away in terror. Now they run to him and ask him to sign their pitchforks and torches. To regain his ogre mojo, he strikes a deal with Rumpelstiltskin. The pact goes awry and Shrek must confront what life would be like in Far Far Away if he had never existed.
Directed by Mike Mitchell (Sky High, Surviving Christmas, and, not to forget, Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo).
Valentine's Day HD480p 41MB HD720p 74MB
Full trailer for this ensemble romantic comedy in which intertwining couples and singles in Los Angeles break-up and make-up based on the pressures and expectations of Valentine's Day. Cast includes Julia Roberts, Anne Hathaway, Jamie Foxx, Bradley Cooper, Jessica Alba, Jessica Biel, Jennifer Garner, Shirley MacLaine, Ashton Kutcher, Topher Grace, Emma Roberts, Hector Elizondo, Patrick Dempsey, Eric Dane and Queen Latifah. Directed by Garry Marshall (Pretty Woman, The Princess Diaries).
I'm sorry, but I don't feel it. Looks about as manufactured as the holiday itself.
Coco Chanel & Igor Stravinsky 15 MB
A second, very well-done, (almost) music-only trailer from France for this period drama directed by Jan Kounen (Blueberry, 99 francs). Paris 1913, Coco Chanel (Anna Mouglalis) is devoted to her work and madly in love with the handsome and very wealthy Arthur 'Boy' Capel (Anatole Taubman). At the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Igor Stravinsky (Mads Mikkelsen) premieres his Rite of Spring. Coco attends the premiere and is mesmerised. But the revolutionary work is too modern, too radical: the enraged audience boos and jeers. A near-riot ensues. Stravinsky is inconsolable. 7 years later, the two meet again.
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Feat HD480p 54MB Feat HD720p 126MB
2 1/2 minutes behind the scenes featurette that contains the usual annoying backslapping but also a decent amount of new footage. And an indecent amount of bare-chested Jake Gyllenhaal.
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It's been a good few weeks for us Who fans who follow audio as well as TV. The last two parts of BBC audio The Hornet's Nest, starring Tom Baker as the Fourth Doctor, shipped at the start of the month; for Fifth Doctor fans, we have had the last two of the three Big Finish audios set in Stockbridge and co-starring Sarah Sutton as Nyssa, and also a Companion Chronicle told by Mark Strickson as Turlough; the Sixth and Eighth Doctors both went to Blackpool, and the Eighth Doctor also went back to a future Earth to see his granddaughter; and for good measure I'm throwing in the animated story "Dreamland" and the audiobook "Day of the Troll", both featuring David Tennant in his closing days as the Tenth Doctor. To put you out of your agony of suspense, I will reveal now that I thought the best and worst of these were the two Eight Doctor stories; read on to discover which was which. I believe I have avoided significant spoilers - though this is not always true of the reviews I have linked to.
( Hornets' Nest: Part 4, A Sting in the Tale and Part 5, Hive of Horrors )
( Three Fifth Doctor plays )
( The Nightmare Fair: the Sixth Doctor goes to Blackpool )
( Death in Blackpool: the Eighth Doctor goes there too )
( Dreamland: Tenth Doctor and aliens in Nevada )
( December Books 6: The Day of the Troll )
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Best Christmas song ever.
White Wine In The Sun - by Tim Minchin.
I really like Christmas
It's sentimental, I know, but I just really like it
I am hardly religious:
I'd rather break bread with Dawkins than Desmond Tu-tu ...to... be honest.
And yes, I have all of the usual objections to consumerism
To the commercialisation of an ancient religion,
To the westernisation of a dead Palestinian
Press-ganged into selling Playstations and beer.
...But I still really like it.
I'm looking forward to Christmas,
Though I'm not expecting a visit from Jesus.
I'll be seeing my dad,
My brother and sisters, my gran and my mum,
They'll be drinking white wine in the sun.
I'll be seeing my dad,
My sisters and brother, my gran and my mum,
They'll be drinking white wine in the sun.
I don't go in for ancient wisdom.
I don't believe just 'cos ideas are tenacious it means that they're worthy.
I get freaked out by churches.
Some of the hymns that they sing have nice chords,
but the lyrics are dodgy.
And yes, I have all of the usual objections
To the mis-education of children
Who in tax-exempt institutions
Are taught to externalise blame
And to feel ashamed
And to judge things as plain right or wrong.
...But I quite like the songs.
I'm not expecting big presents.
The old combination of socks, jocks and chocolates is just fine by me.
Cos I'll be seeing my dad,
My brother and sisters, my gran and my mum.
They'll be drinking white wine in the sun.
I'll be seeing my dad,
My brother and sisters, my gran and my mum.
They'll be drinking white wine in the sun.
And you, my baby girl
My jetlagged infant daughter
You'll be handed 'round the room
Like a puppy at a primary school
And you won't understand
But you will learn someday
That wherever you are and whatever you face
These are the people who'll make you feel safe in this world
My sweet blue-eyed girl.
And if, my baby girl,
When you're twenty-one or thirty-one
And Christmas comes around,
And you find yourself nine thousand miles from home,
You'll know what...ever... comes
Your brothers and sisters and me and your Mum
Will be waiting for you in the sun.
Whenever you come -
Your brothers and sisters, your aunts and your uncles
Your grandparents, cousins and me and your mum,
They'll all be waiting for you in the sun.
Drinking white wine in the sun,
Darlin' when Christmas comes
We'll be waiting for you in the sun.
Drinking white wine in the sun
Waiting for you in the sun
Waiting for you
Waiting...
I, I really like Christmas.
It's sentimental, I know.
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Posts since I last counted that got more than 20 comments - 42 in total, top 21 bolded, top 14 and top 7 in larger fonts.
( 42 most commented posts out of about 1100 )
So it's polls, controversial science fiction, and real life evil scientists that generate the most comments here.
One interesting thing (well, interesting to me) is that as Facebook starts to devour the internet, my posts of LJ entries to there are starting to spark discussion as well - and it is a completely different set of posts which get the most attention. More than ten comments were made on the following (there may have been others, but it is very tedious to chase these things down on Facebook):
( ten posts with ten or more comments )
Now, six of these are fairly hard politics posts, and I guess my facebook readership, being more reflective of my professional environment, is more likely to comment on those. But I find it peculiar that of the various posts I made about Torchwood: Children of Earth, two scored high on Facebook but a completely different one scored on Livejournal. I guess it is sometimes just a matter of the post catching the attention of potential commenters; a matter more of luck than judgement.
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If you're able to view BBC Iplayer and have the slightest interest in traditional music, then please go and watch this without further ado.
The highlight of the session for me (apart from the serious eye candy) is Bellowhead's booming rendition of The Mistletoe Bough, which for those who don't know is a jolly old English Christmas song about tragedy, suffocation, death and decomposition. It starts at 16.23 if you want to skip to it.
( I'd recommend listening to the song unspoilt, but the lyrics are under the cut if you want to read them. )
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Thanks to the 97 people who have so far answered yesterday's scripts poll. The results are rather neatly bunched into four groups: 14 could be seen by at least 83 of the 97; there were a further 8 in the 47-62 range; there is a cluster of 3 which could be seen by 15-21 people; and one outlier which only I could see when logged in using Firefox.
( The top 14 )
( the next eight )
( three less popular scripts )
( the last one )
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Simon Pegg thinks you should watch this review of the Phantom Menace, and he's right.
It carefully explains exactly why the film has no excitement, no actual characters, lots of people who say "we must do this thing!" and then either fail to act or end up doing the opposite, why the logic isn't even internally consistent, and why the lightsaber fights don't work. He doesn't even mention midi-chlorians, which I think is frankly generous.
Entire case proven by asking people to describe C-3PO's personality. They immediately come out with several adjectives each:
'Prissy'
'anal-retentive'
'bumbling'
'scaredy-cat'
'timid'
'comic relief'
'high-strung'
'effeminate'
and then describe Queen Amidala:
'...'
'...'
'...That is going to be f***ing impossible, because she doesn't have a personality.'
'...Monotone?'
He's right on every point, but I'd missed loads of the THIS MAKES ABSOLUTELY NO SENSE bits in Phantom Menace. I knew it had no drama or sympathetic characters, but the amount of bonkers is amazing when it's pointed out clearly. And there are moments in this review when he drops the comedy and just states something in detail and you realise that he's absolutely nailed it, and also that the Phantom Menace is a giant steaming piece of ...but then we knew that already.
WARNING: LOTS OF SWEARING FROM THE START.
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I've heard some fun things about North Carolina over the years. Okay, that's not quite true... all the events which have happened to people I directly know are along the lines of wife-beating, being totally outcast from society for daring to get a divorce from said wife-beating husband, fundie christians pulling the usual ostracism and less usual violence against non-christians, allegedly average people doing exactly the same thing to anyone who looks funny, and a number of people I only met briefly who had really, really stupid beliefs on religion and politics. In short, it comes off worse than South Carolina, and that was hardly a bastion of liberal tolerance or informed thought. (Yes, I've been to both - and Georgia, but not Tennessee. I realise my view is skewed and that small-town life is more conservative everywhere, but that's what I honestly have direct experience of).
Still, even I hadn't realised that the Constitution of North Carolina specifically says that only Christians can hold office.
"Article 6, section 8 of the state constitution says: “The following persons shall be disqualified for office: First, any person who shall deny the being of Almighty God.”
Cecil Bothwell won the election, but oh no - he's an atheist! Can't have that. His opponents are complaining (yes, in 2009) that he should be disqualified for being a godless heathen.
Unfortunately for them "article VI of the U.S. Constitution says: “no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.” So they'll have to put up with the properly elected but christ-denying sinner for now.
Anyone got *nice* stories of NC?
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Stephen Cole is one of the most consistently good Doctor Who writers, and I was glad to pick up this Telos novella when last in London - a range that has not always impressed me, but this is one of the good ones. It is a little odd - the old man and the girl who travels with them only decide at the end of the story that they will adopt the identities of "the Doctor" and "Susan", and the story combines the fairly standard base-under-siege-by-telepathic-horror story with a rather subtly done reflection on establishing and keeping identity. Worth looking out for.
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On my last full day in London I left the city centre and took the Tube to Canary Wharf which is located a couple of kilometres to the east. It's the second financial centre of London and is on the Isle of Dogs. It's called an isle because of a large meander of the Thames it's enclosed on three sides by the river. And thanks to a canal on the forth side you can call it an island. You can see it here on a picture of the model of London.
I got off at the Canary Wharf tube station which was opened only ten years ago. It was designed by, who else, Norman Foster.
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We have snow!
Richmond Park today (photo from the Telegraph.co.uk):
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![[Shortly thereafter, at a nearby bakery] ::CRASH:: ::RUMBLE:: ::VRRRRRR:: '... I don't know, officer. It just scooped up an entire rack of scones and drove away!'](http://imgs.xkcd.com/comics/asshole.png "[Shortly thereafter, at a nearby bakery] ::CRASH:: ::RUMBLE:: ::VRRRRRR:: '... I don't know, officer. It just scooped up an entire rack of scones and drove away!'")