Tag: stephen moffat

Sherlock Keeps Us Guessing

Editor’s note: This post would’ve gone up on Monday, but I used this space to say goodbye to Phillip Seymour Hoffman, who passed away the day before. Having said that, the Sherlock season finale was a great mental distraction from all the terrible realities life throws at us occasionally. I hope the show and this post give you a nice mental boost to get you through the rest of the week.

Anyone who is a regular reader of this blog should know that I am a huge fan of the series Sherlock and it’s writer Stephan Moffat. The series 3 finale, which aired this past Sunday in the U.S., definitely did not let me down. I’m not going to spoil too much of the show since I believe half the fun is in the surprise, but if even my hinting at things will ruin it for you then you should wait until you have watched before you continue reading.

If you’re still with us then you know the finale had a LOT of surprises. The theme of the episode was secrets, both the power they have and what people will do to keep them. Discoveries were made about key characters, and there was the usual Holmes & Watson’s lives being endangered, as tends to happen in the finale. What was different was the ending. Yes, it was a cliff hanger, but not in the way you expected it to be. While I loved ever minute of the episode (and pretty much stopped breathing for an hour and thirty minutes) my favorite part was how the episode seemed to be over and the credits about to roll, but suddenly the rug was pulled out from under us. It was as if Moffat had yelled “PSYCH!” and completely fooled us. I’ve never been so excited to be tricked in my life.

I’m sure we’re all eagerly awaiting the return of our favorite detective. Good news: It seems that the BBC is making a push for a Christmas episode this year. Possibly bad news: Moffat has looked at the ratings for each season and took notice to the fact each season has been better than the last. That in itself is actually great news, but he takes it into account that there was a large break in between each series. So, while we might be getting a new adventure soon, it seems we also might be looking at a bit of a wait for a full new season. Mixed messages to be sure, but it’s also understandable considering the major players in the series all have other projects they are working on as well. However long we have to wait, I’m sure Moffat will make it worth our while.

Sherlock, The Doctor, and Brilliant Writing

Sherlock season 3 started last night (for those of us in the U.S.), and instead of yet another review of what worked and what didn’t in the episode, I thought I might do a little piece about what I consider to be some of the most brilliant writing I’ve ever seen. No, this is not going to be a piece gushing over Stephen Moffat’s evil genius (at least not entirely). That’s not to say I don’t think he’s brilliant, but someone else was brilliantly writing the character of Sherlock Holmes before Moffat ever could have dreamed he’d be voicing the greatest detective of all time.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle first introduced us to Sherlock Holmes in 1887… just a little bit before Stephen Moffat’s time. The character has been in 4 novels and 56 short stories. Each story that Moffat uses in his series is at least somewhat based off one of these stories.

*mild spoilers coming up if you’ve never read Sherlock Holmes and/or didn’t watch the S2 final of the most recent series*

********************************************************************************

For those of you still with us, you will remember that S2 ended with Sherlock faking his death by making it look like he jumped off a building. Like everything else in the series, this is a modern retelling of a story originally written by Conan Doyle. In the original, Holmes falls to his death from a waterfall instead, but the motive is the same… he must fool his enemies into thinking he is dead.

While the original stories were written by Conan Doyle, Moffat does a brilliant job translating everything into a modern setting. Does anyone remember the animated Sherlock Holmes series “Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century”? That, too, had Holmes in a modern setting, but with far less satisfying results. When I first heard about the current Sherlock series, I was skeptical that a modern version of Holmes could work. The only reason I gave it a chance was because Moffat was behind the wheel, and I had faith he would be true to the original content. Just like he did when taking over Doctor Who, Moffat took an old concept and continued its legacy. It can’t be a coincidence that two of the only things on television I look forward to with such anticipation are both written by the same man. I know there are people who will disagree with me and claim that Doctor Who has lost something since Moffat took over, but I believe he has done a fine job keeping the spirit of the show alive. I also find it amazing he is able to keep both series consistently good, even if there has to be a bit of space in between each new season. No matter how long I have to wait to get my fix, I always am satisfied in the end and will keep looking forward to each new moment until the last, which hopefully is a long time from now.

Sherlock S3 Ep 2 will air on PBS Sun, January 26th. You can catch up with S1 & 2 on Netflix Instant.

Doctor Who – The Beast Below

The Doctor constantly has some tough choices to make in his travels, but “The Beast Below” may have given him one of his toughest yet.

*Spoiler time, kids*

At first all we know is something big and bad is happening on the Starship UK, but that is all. Oh, and it is something big and bad enough that Amy sends a message to herself telling her to stop The Doctor from investigating the goings on of the space-age British Empire.

Then we find what is at the center of it all, and it is rather quite sad.

It turns out there is a creature guiding the ship, and it is being tortured to keep it going.

Once The Doctor finds the Beast, he has to decide what to do with it. Does he let it keep being tortured to protect the people onboard, set the creature free and kill an entire civilization in the process, or lobotomize the creature so it no longer feels the pain it has to endure? The Doctor is ready to set into motion option number three, but in the final moments Amy gets a realization that changes everything.

“Open your eyes,” The Doctor had told her when they first arrived in the ship. Thank God for everyone that she listened to him. For she was the one who noticed how the creature behaved around the children. And, looking at The Doctor, she remembered what Liz Ten said about when they first found the creature. And she was the one who realized that they didn’t need to torture the Beast for it to continue moving the ship.

“If you were that old and that kind and the last of your kind, you couldn’t just stand there and watch children cry,” she told them. (Quote of the night)

This episode showed the hard choices The Doctor has to make in his life. It also reminded us that sometimes he doesn’t have all the answers and needs someone to show him the right path. Funny that another red-head teaches him this lesson, as Donna was best at doing this for him (as demonstrated by the Series 4 episode “Turn Left”). This season looks to be just as much Amy’s story as it is The Doctor’s.

As always, BBC America gives us a behind the scenes look at the latest episode with Doctor Who Confidential. This gave us a behind the scenes look at everything from cast reactions to set design.

Next week we’re going to get the return of the Daleks and… Winston Churchill? That should be interesting. So tune in next week at 9pm on BBC America for another great adventure with The Doctor and his companion, Amy.

How I Fell For the Doctor

I was going to title this post “Why You Should Be Watching Doctor Who” but I didn’t want to presume to tell anyone what their television viewing habits should be. Instead I thought I’d regale you with a tale of my experience with The Doctor, and why I would describe it as love at first sight.

As a senior in college I have not had the experience with Doctor Who that, say, my father had. I can’t say I grew up with him my whole life or anything like that. Likewise, I cannot talk about how it is an institution here, since the US is really playing catch-up to the level of fandom that the UK has for the show. For that matter, we may never reach the levels of attachment that its homeland has for the series. But that only seems fair.

No, I was first introduced to The Doctor 4 months ago. I met enough people who were obsessed enough with the show that I decided to give it a try during my winter break. Being a lover of sci-fi, I figured it was a good bet I would like the show as well. I was wrong.

I didn’t just like Doctor Who; I loved it. From the moment The Doctor grabs Rose and tells her to follow him I knew this was going to become one of my favorite shows of all time. With each new episode I fell even more in love with every element of the show. The acting is superb, as is the writing. Russell T. Davies and Stephen Moffat never seemed to have a shortage of new and exciting adventures for the Doctor and his companion to enjoy.

Yes, from the moment I started my journey with The Doctor, I was hooked. Countless times the words “One more episode” would be uttered, only to be said again 50 minutes later. By the time I was finished, I had forgotten what a world before meeting the Doctor was like. It was as if I had known him my whole life.

It feels appropriate to share my love for Doctor Who now that the 5th Series premiere is scheduled for tomorrow (April 17th) on BBC America. Even if you haven’t watched a single episode before today, I still highly recommend giving it a chance tomorrow. BBCA will be airing the second half of Series 4 all day tomorrow as well as the specials that aired in between seasons. If nothing else, try to watch The End of Time, as it leads in to the new episode (and is possibly one of the best stories in the series. Russel Davies definitely went out on a high note).

*if you don’t have time to play catch-up, this scene is all you really need to know*

Now is the perfect time to start your adventure with The Doctor for a number of reasons. The show is seeing a new Doctor (Matt Smith), new companion (Karen Gillan), and new producer (Stephen Moffat). Moffat wrote one of my favorite episodes in the series (Blink), so I look forward to seeing what he does now that he is in charge of the whole thing. If I haven’t convinced you Doctor Who is worth checking out, maybe Matt Smith can:

AVC: Doctor Who has always been more of a cult sensation here in the U.S. than in Britain. How would you describe the series to someone here who has never seen it before? What would you say it’s like?

MS: I’d say it’s about a 900-year-old alien who travels around time and space in a blue police box, which is called the TARDIS, having adventures, saving the world, and defeating evil. It’s not bound by space or time or logic or genre, and therefore creatively it can go anywhere and do anything. You can be in the past with dinosaurs one week and in the future the next week, as the world is about to explode. I think it’s full of heart and humor and wit and invention. I think Doctor Who improves your life. And I mean that. It’s not just, like, my mission statement. I do, as a man who’s come to it late on, as well. It’s never too late to get into it. I think we’ve got a new team and a new show, and I think now is the time to start watching.

-excerpt from an interview between AV Club and Matt Smith, the new Doctor (the rest of the interview is the title link for today)

If that doesn’t convince you that Doctor Who is worth your time, then I don’t know what will. I hope you will share in the magical journey with me. I will be posting reviews of the new series as it airs here in the US. I’m sure it will be brilliant.

Happy Birthday + News Roundup

Lots of music and television news to share today. But first…

A happy birthday shout-out to Robbie Coltrane. Coltrane is best known for his portrayal of Hagrid in theHarry Potter series, although he is in a number of other films as well. He turns 60 today.

Moving from movies to television, it has already spread pretty quickly that this is officially the last season of 24. There was talk about it moving to NBC, but that is definitely not happening. The movie is in the works though, and will likely follow chronologically the events of the current season.

And in music, RXP’s Experience Next presents: One Eskimo. This show is free to all and will be at Brooklyn Bowl on March 31.
Last, but certainly not least, MGMT‘s video for Flash Delirium is online for your viewing pleasure.


Bonus round:
For Doctor Who fans, here is an interview with Stephen Moffat.

The new season of Doctor Who premieres this weekend in the UK and April 17th in the US.