[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@Gunslinger

You are confusing “willing to critique” with “don’t like”.

We are a little less childish here. Take note.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@craig -Ha!  have we ever been seen together?

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@craig – this Sofa is past the 20 page danger zone….

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

*cough* Film Thread *cough*

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

Apropos of something I had to do while I was between houses, should you find yourself in the position of needing something to lift your spirits then I highly recommend Pitch Perfect. Despite the cheesy premise, it is not only one of the funniest films I’ve seen for ages but a complete and utter joy from beginning to end.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@purofilion

I have space – it’s a bed I lack.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

I am no longer itinerant (but am sleeping on the sofa for reason too convoluted to get into on coffee shop wifi)

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@mudlark @ichadod et al

You may find this of interest: Why American Beer is So Bland

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@mudlark

I once tried pancakes with maple syrup when I had breakfast at a diner in Vermont, but although I love maple syrup I found the combination a good deal too sweet for my taste,

That’s because you forgot the bacon and scrambled eggs.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@arbutus

It is regional – and inevitably, being Britain, to a degree class-related.

In some places, supper is tea, lunch is dinner (at school I took Dinner Money, not Lunch Money, but when it was permitted (such as on field trips) I took a packed lunch) and pudding is afters.

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@arbutus

 So sorry about the cricket! It’s always tough to see the home team go down in such an unfortunate manner.

The home team won!

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@purofilion

A little gem from Jim Maxwell on Test Match Special.

“And to our listeners in Australia just waking up – got back to bed”.

(Glen McGrath was the one of the side men on TMS – I think it may be impossible for him to come over as anything other than a really nice chap)

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@purofilion

whilst the English crowd caused Johnson to completely lose his bottle.

He bowls to the left;

He bowls to the right;

Oh Mitchell Johnson;

Your bowling is is shite.

(To be fair, he was about the only Aussie to show any real fight this series)

, is that Clarke could have waited until the English and the ex-Pats here could properly celebrate their win. Instead, the papers will report what “Clarke’s next move is”

Not over here they won’t!

At least it wasn’t done in two days, which looked a distinct possibility at tea yesterday.

 

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

In fact the entire innings can be fitted into a Tweet:

04W24W0W04100000W40000110W020000401000W000000000101000011W0011200010040040000W1W30000000000000400000000000001004W

That’s a high proportion of dot balls.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@mudlark, @purofilion

 

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

A question for the Aussie contingent: Since he was the top scorer, should Extras get Michael Clarke’s job?

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@purofilion

Last time I look “problem” and “challenge” had the same number of syllables.

Also, Freddie Mercury never much let scansion get in his way. Just listen to We Are The Champions.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

I prefer to think of myself as a challenge….

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

I have a JINGLE!!!!!

*Beams*

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@purofilion

where the frell have you been?

Still peripatetic, but tantalisingly close to being able to put a stake in the ground.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

Which SF hero are you? Kinda fun.

Scully.

Pick the bones out of that!

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@fern8372

To be honest I’m very disappointed with the new doctor he’s ruthless, he isn’t handsome, he isn’t funny, and the adventures we’ve seen so far in season eight aren’t even close to as fun or interesting as they were with David Tennant or Matt Smith. He’s just a boring Doctor and he always seems kind of depressed. Also, he doesn’t seem to be as brilliant as past Doctors. I think they should have had a younger more handsome doctor because that really brings up viewers. I love the show with or without a handsome doctor but they were doing so well with the actors up until now and I really hope in the upcoming episodes there will be a better story than it is now. Also, in the past, the Doctor’s companions were always on the TARDIS with him but now, Clara is being dropped off on Earth after every adventure. In the past the present time was much less involved and I liked it that way.

This post was brought to you by Troll-O-Bot Enterprises, generating posts that contain all your bait needs(1), without that pesky “effort” thing.

1. Caution: Do not use where people can see you coming.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@bluesqueakpip

Probably because it’s bloody difficult to get over those sodding hills; which is why most of the very ancient Welsh
towns are on the coast.

Q How do you get two whales in a car?

A: Up the M4 and across the Severn Bridge.

 

This joke is brought to you by Make the Colonials Fell Excluded Ltd.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

PS – an update this week

“An addendum to last week’s Dr Who
story. We neglected to mention
that Patrick Troughton was also
in full costume at the time.”

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

Courtesy of last week’s Popbitch (for non UKers a salacious – if past its best – gossip newsletter and website with a focus on music, media and celebrity generally). I can’t make up my mind whether “enjoy breakfast” is a euphemism or not.

Those of a over-sensitive disposition should look away now.

“Ask a Doctor Who fan where  Patrick Troughton
died and they will likely tell you
that he died at a Doctor Who
convention in Columbus,
Georgia, two days after his
67th birthday.

Which is perfectly correct.

But another answer would be:
“At a Doctor Who convention,
inside a fangirl with whom he
was about to enjoy breakfast.”

Said fangirl has been dining
out on this story ever since.”

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@fortheloveoftheatre

To be honest, it kinda makes laugh trying to picture a gangbanger talking with a British accent and talking ‘gansta’

You realise Stringer Bell was played by a Brit, right? 😉

For an insight in the UK gang culture (with emphasis on the culture rather than the fact) then The Krays and Long Good Friday are decent primers, maybe Mona Lisa (Bob Hoskins pops up a lot!). Also Sexy Beast and for a ..er… high concept treatment Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels. And if you are a fan of classic cinema, the Brighton Rock.

Films dealing with black British gang culture are fewer and further between. In fact, can’t think of one. Anybody?

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@ichabod

e Bishop as a comedy loon at all but as a tragic figure who’d had his brains scrambled by Evil Forces,

Which might work but for the illegal, unethical and cruel experiments on children that started way before evil forces head-fuckery.

 

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@fortheloveoftheatre

 when The Doctor says he is ‘clever’ is that his way of saying he’s a genius? Like… is ‘clever’ and ‘genius’ interchangeable?

It would be fair to say that the Doctor doesn’t do modesty, but is a bit prone to understatement. He essentially means “cleverer than you”. A bit hubristic, you might think…

the way Rose talks about ‘Living on the Estate’ it makes it seem like she’s living in the slums/ghetto/barrio

Think “project” or “Jenni from the block” rather than slum. A working class area, originally built by the local council, but possibly sold as a private residence since. The full term is “council estate”. They vary greatly, from “block/ tower” living to large expanses of semi-detached (duplex in US parlance, I think). Tower style is typically associated with poorer inner city areas today. Roses’s is of the block style. A lot of implications are there in terms of “class”, both in terms of economic class and the presence or absence of taste, which might explain why Rose was so happy to buy a ticket on the Tardis.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

Wakey wakey – spot the spammer @craig

http://www.thedoctorwhoforum.com/members/vivekkumarsrivastava016/

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@denvaldron

Someone once said that the golden age of science fiction was twelve

But to be fair, that someone was a complete moron

@Purofilion

I’ll be the dissenting voice on Fringe. I am on my second attempt at watching, at the prompting of a friend (having bailed the first time after about 15 episodes). It has two problems for me: one is that it gets the “Filler” and “Arc” balance badly wrong, with far too many “Didn’t we see that in the X-Files?” moments (and even the opening credits are a straight lift).

But the more serious problem is Walter Bishop, played by the aforementioned John Noble. Bishop is a comedy sociopath and that is a trope that should have been taken out of the back, forced to kneel before getting a couple of rounds from a Glock 17 in the back of its head, buried and then dug up, shot a few times more just to be certain, buried again and then urinated on by the entire population of Fargo, North Dakota.

As an idea it is so cancerous that not even a fine actor like John Noble can stop it seeming as a pustulant canker on the face of a perfectly decent bit of hokum. Stuff that was aiming for tasteless ending up being merely distasteful.

But don’t let me cloud your opinion.

Farscape is a different kettle of fish – The Peacekeeper Wars, which wrapped up the show after premature cancellation, is totally worth waiting for, and Claudia Black’s Aeryn is one of the greatest female characters in all of SF.

Have you watch Objects in Space yet?

Just watched Whedon’s Much Ado and was pleasantly surprised – that it was shot in 12 days with very little time for rehearsal shows only occasionally. Obviously you have a completely wrong-headed view of the divine Amy Acker, so you might have problems with it (but if I can tolerate Alexis Denisof who gets to shag the delectable Ms Hannigan, then you can show a little flexibility too). It also has the great advantage of not having Keanu fucking Reeves is in

And check out Dead Like Me (make sure you don’t watch the movie first). I had forgotten what a contemplative piece of telly it was.

 

 

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@jimthefish

much like the ‘fair use’ policy for quotes in book reviews etc. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was.

Fair Dealing – fair use is something different and has no equivalent in English law.

I doubt the writers lose all rights, but I imagine the compensation is more effectively managed and covers all media, rather than first serial use + syndication.

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@jimthefish @purofilion

Ah so it’s a creative proprietary situation rather than a legal issue.

It depends on the contract, and the assorted Equity/ Writers Guild/Musicians Union have powerful sway. The Nation estate owns the Daleks and permission was required to use them. Similarly, in Star Trek: Enterprise, T’Pol was to be called T’Pau (Spock’s grandmother), but the writer who came up with her in the 60s owned the character and would have been due royalties, so the ST:E character was changed.

Actors get residuals if footage is reused, I believe.

Even incidental music needs careful thought. A client of my brother once asked if he had seen a Simpsons episode call Lisa Goes To Washington. The client had never seen it, but a snippet of his music being used in it was paying his mortgage (and it took nearly 20 years to sort out the rights to all the music on The Wonder Years before it could come out on DVD, since nobody anticipated the need to tie it down – still only in the US).

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@pedant @janetteb @arbutus @jimthefish

centuries have passed. Have they?

I think it was 400 years between War Doc and Day of… (the screwdriver door unlocking programme).

Between God Complex and Closing Time 11 went on a 200 year walkabout.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@arbutus

Eleven never mentions Rose, or appears to even think of her, ever again. Similarly, Twelve doesn’t seem to miss Amy, he’s all wrapped up in Clara now

I think you are perhaps underestimating how much time has past – Moffat was quite careful to spell out the centuries that past between Eleventh Hour and Day of the Doctor. I do not think that was accidental. Ten immediately twigged the Bad wolf reference. But to Eleven it was centuries ago. (And did any Doctor mention Sarah Jane before School Reunion?)

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@fatmaninabox

*applause*

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@purofilion

@jimthefish pretty much nails it with BSG –  the initial mini-series is superb, but as the show goes on it falls into the Ronald D Moore problem of arbitrary changes to character to suit whatever point her wants to make.

Another from cousin’s Netflix: rewatching Dead Like Me. Only two seasons, but I had forgotten how enjoyable it was, despite many behind the scenes issues. (Georgia Lass, an aimless Gen Why? 18 year old is killed by the toilet seat from the de-orbiting Mir space station. Then her life begins. Now if that doesn’t tempt you I don’t know what will….)

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

See, here’s the problem with being indulgent to long-winded rambling egoists.

THEY DROP HONKING GREAT SPOILERS IN THE MIDDLE OF THEIR RAMBLES because in their ARSE-driven rage they do not have the remotest interest in being respectful.

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@ichabod

BTW, although I take your point re The Good Wife, it isn’t really a lawyer show – it is about Chicago politics and that is what gave us Obama, so  interesting from that POV (also Alan Cummings kicks arse)

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@denvaldron

As for being concise, that’s just a tool.

No. It is a craft and, in this waffly age of epic fantasy, perhaps the single most underrated. I know many perfectly decent writers who are pathologically incapable of meeting a deadline because they are incapable of writing to  a brief and being concise.

Maybe that is as good a working definition of a hack as any:  a writer who can meet a brief to deadline.

That is something that

Every.

Single.

Doctor Who

Writer

Ever

Has been able to do.

It is a craft that not all writers have the skill set (including the freedom from ego) to pull off.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@denvaldron

 To shower the writers of the classic series with contempt is both unbecoming and misguided.

Then it is as well nobody has done that.

I’m a hack – I write for money and I do research for money. I answer the question my client set me, and although I (or my work partners) may pich ideas we are, in the end, hired guns. That is what a hack is, and it is not, in any way, an insult.

Also, one of the things that most hacks have in common (by force of circumstance) is that they tend to be concise.

Just sayin’.

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@Burrunjor

 “oh you are so stupid because you don’t like what I like”

<snipped drivel>

What was the purpose then?

This has been repeatedly explained in this thread and in direct response to you. Sorry, not playing your juvenile game.

Someone with a different opinion is a troll?

No, someone who behaves in the manner of a troll is troll.

If you wish to be thought as something other, then lose the sweeping statements and the pants. Make an argument in the manner of a grown up.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@ichabod

So I looked in on the American remake, “The Returned”, and pretty much hated it — clunky, full of FBI and other nonsense,

Nope, that’s Resurrected (which did not acknowledge the source material, despite lifting heavily from it). The Netflix remake is exactly that, and properly acknowledges Haute et Court productions, with Camille, Lena and the whole shebang.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

Greetings from Uncomfortably Close To Wales

While flat sitting for my cousin I have been watching The Good Wife (courtesy of her Netflix account). It is surprisingly moorish (and not in a ‘driven out of Europe by Charlemagne’ way).

Also Lilyhammer, featuring Steven van Zandt (of the E Street Band) is very quirky and fun.

And the first 4 eps of the US version of Les Revenants is pretty much a shot-for-shot remake (but I gather that changes soon)

If you haven’t seen Les Revenants then YOU MUST. It is marvellously intelligent storytelling.

 

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@burrunjor

Well, your days of being taken seriously are no nearer a start.

you clearly know nothing about story telling.

I would point out how halfwitted openings like this are, but there are perfectly honourable halfwits out there who would, quite reasonably, take offence.

Killing a character off for no reason like Osgood

She wasn’t killed off for no reason, something everybody around here has been able to grasp (even when they didn’t entirely like the reason). Your inability to keep up is your problem, not the writers. They don’t write for the slowest kid in the classroom, so it is not too surprising that you can’t understand stuff.

Also how on earth does it make you think good guys can die more. Do you really think that Kate or The Doctor or Clara could have died? NO because ultimately they unlike Osgood are main characters

I’m sure there is a dialect of English in which this makes sense. OK, I’m lying. There isn’t.

Also what show doesn’t kill its main characters off nowadays anyway?

To the extent that it has become something of a cliché. Everyone wants to be Joss Whedon.

Plus her death served no purpose in the story either.

No purpose that you understood. Important distinction, that.

Now, your mum’s just phoned and asked me to remind you to take your Ritalin and go to bed. Also, heed the example of the gentleman from Tralfamador and at least try to uphold the honour of fools.

 

Hello @all. Ta for the tag @purofilion. Always enjoy a little Troll Flambé

(Still itinerant, but now with a shiny new car)

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@purofilion @bluesquekpip

Ultimate Schism

Untempered Schism.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@tenthdoctorftw

I don’t like Moffat’s writting, which I thought I was allowed to believe. But clearly as you point out, I’m not.

The drama queen routine isn’t helping. Any idiot can programme a bot to post “I hate Moffat” (or, for that matter, “I love Moffat”). But that will cut no ice here – despite a lot of verbiage you still haven’t explained what it is you dislike (well, the one thing you did suggest was taken apart brick-by-brick)..

It is where you go after that which is important and which will earn you cred around here. But we’ve been through the show in forensic detail so if people are short that’s why – show some insight.

 try explaining things to people while you’re trying to figure out the right word or expression for every other thing

We all do that. They key is to stop and think.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@tenthdoctorftw

Oh my. So much anger, so little clue.

 1)You don’t know me

You aren’t as rare as you think you are;

2)Misunderstandings can be made esily

Like when you rock up in a new place and conduct yourself with the grace of an elk with indigestion

3)English in not my native language s

On the evidence presented to date, language is not your native language.

You do not need to be fluent in any language to avoid unsupported assertions and opinion presented as truth. This, of course, would involve being interested in what others have to say – something you have shown no inclination to be.

Bridge Dweller, heal thyself.

 

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@arbutus

Ta for the kind words. My house is no longer mine (see here if interested), and I am still itinerant

It’s still trundling along 9and a tiresomely slow pace, since the place I’m buying has a tenant who is entitled to proper notice). Am relying on the tolerance of friends a bit more than I am entirely comfortable with. On the other hand, this might prompt me to take my first holiday for six years, so swings and roundabout.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@purofilion

 I’m assuming he wanted this kept secret but the propinquity of the Hellmouth caused an early shriving in the Church –  the scene which pedant suggests was penned differently to what the audience eventually saw, I think

The reveal was at the same point, but the scene was less conspicuously poetic (despite alluding directly to William’s poetry) with Buffy more sceptical and Spike more self-pitying. Loath as I am to credit Petrie, I think he had a firmer grasp of where the characters were, while Joss had a firmer gasp of the Internet Noise Machine.

But compared the the gear-crunching clunkiness at the end of Sleeper, then of First Date, the revisions to Beneath You were Chaucerian.

[IAmNotAFishIAmAFreeMan @replies]

@jimthefish

Old school script editors of the Bob Holmes variety would have made sure something like this would have been addressed, I suspect.

That’s a very interesting point. Did BC2 have the same editorial team as the original?

Iain M Banks’s later SF became borderline unreadable because he changed editors to one without the balls to say “Er, Iain mate, reel it in a bit!” (this comes from a very good source).

[Author]

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