Story teaser: The Doctor has been summoned by the Ood who warn him of many things, including the oncoming darkness that seems to be the End of Time. They also show him a face, a face that all humankind has been dreaming, the face of a man that is dead: the Master. The disciples of Harold Saxon attempt to put Humpty Dumpty back together again but all does not go well and the Master is incomplete. While the Doctor attempts to trace down and assist his former friend/enemy, he remains unaware of the full scope of the situation...
Thoughts:
This did not need to be an hour long for one. There's a lot of running around and yelling and jumping in the early sections of the episode that would look silly in a X-Men movie. Very disappointing. I started reflecting on the episode of 'Planet of the Spiders' that is one long chase scene.
Then the Doctor bumps into Wilf and it all begins to settle down. There's all this weird information that's being flung at us, goofy almost random events, then we start to see Wilf and Donna and the story starts to take shape. Russell is writing people talking and communicating normally and he's comfortable again. Unfortunately it takes about twenty minutes to get to this point, especially as the story only starts to gel at this point. This means the first half or so of the episode is Not Good.
While Russell has done some interesting things to explain and fill out the character of the Master, I wasn't all that fond of John Sims' Master when he first appeared. It's not completely fair to judge him here as he's not really playing the Master, he's playing this vampire-like Master, feeding to stay together. As such, more on the edge, he is a bit sympathetic. At some point in the future, I'd like to see a 'normal' Master again. The character was good, fun even, and this version has just been mental.
There are a couple bits to the cliffhanger, neither of which I will mention here. The first bit goes on a bit too long, kind of beats the 'joke' into submission to a point where it begins to get tedious. It's a good 'wow' moment but gets too dragged out.
The other bit of the cliffhanger? That's a big 'HOLY CRAP!' moment. I squeaked and covered my mouth with my hand like an old woman. It's awesome bit looks like a Bad Thing.
Can't wait until next week.
26 December 2009
24 December 2009
Home Theatre Update
Tore apart my home entertainment center today looking for the point of failure. I unplugged this and plugged in that, then unplugged that and plugged in this. Quite the mess. After awhile I noticed that when my PS3 was connected to the television and was plugged into the power strip, I had feedback. When it was unplugged, no feedback.
This depressed me greatly. I haven't had the PS3 all that long and losing it would mean that I'd have limited or no access to my DVDs, video files, and the few blu-rays I own.
I kept testing. Unplugging the cable from the cable box into the television also removed the feedback. With it out, I could plug the PS3 in with no problems. Excellent! Except now I have no cable.
This opened a number of new questions. Was it the connector on the TV? The box? What? Luckily it's a nifty new type box with multiple input and output connections and I had a network cable running from the gateway to the area of the TV for the Mac mini that's also in that area. I still saw feedback using an alternate output method. Once I unplugged the cable coming into the box and replaced it with the network cable, I was good again.
So it looks like it's the input cable. Considering we didn't replace this cable when we changed cable providers earlier in the year, it's very possible that the cable just went bad. Or it could be another connector. I'll follow it back later. It took me most of the day to find this problem.
The best part about this is that I spent all this time working to improve my video quality and I'm using it to watch scratchy old video from the 1960s.
Yes, I am ridiculous.
This depressed me greatly. I haven't had the PS3 all that long and losing it would mean that I'd have limited or no access to my DVDs, video files, and the few blu-rays I own.
I kept testing. Unplugging the cable from the cable box into the television also removed the feedback. With it out, I could plug the PS3 in with no problems. Excellent! Except now I have no cable.
This opened a number of new questions. Was it the connector on the TV? The box? What? Luckily it's a nifty new type box with multiple input and output connections and I had a network cable running from the gateway to the area of the TV for the Mac mini that's also in that area. I still saw feedback using an alternate output method. Once I unplugged the cable coming into the box and replaced it with the network cable, I was good again.
So it looks like it's the input cable. Considering we didn't replace this cable when we changed cable providers earlier in the year, it's very possible that the cable just went bad. Or it could be another connector. I'll follow it back later. It took me most of the day to find this problem.
The best part about this is that I spent all this time working to improve my video quality and I'm using it to watch scratchy old video from the 1960s.
Yes, I am ridiculous.
23 December 2009
Brief grump
Hate complaining but I'm going to do so briefly to get it over and done with.
Determined that my right contact lens was in inside-out the other day and went to fix it yesterday. Intense pain that I mistook for my eye readjusting instead of foreign materials. When it just didn't go away, I eventually wised up and removed the contact. Went about a day only sort of being able to see. Got a new contact in there this afternoon and it went in all comfortable and smooth, like it should. Much better.
Unfortunately that makes it easier to see the problems with my TV. It has bands of visual interference that slowly climb and distort the picture. It's accompanied by audible feedback. It's worse on certain inputs. I'm wondering if there's a bad cable that's leaking back and forth. Another theory is that my recent use of the component input for the first time since getting the TV overloaded something inside the TV and it's blowing out. Maybe it's something crossing over with the old receiver I also have plugged into the TV. I'm hoping to have time tomorrow to tear the home theatre apart and see if I can uncover the problem. I'm really hoping it's just a cable. I really don't want to get a new TV at this time. Not if I can help it anyway.
Determined that my right contact lens was in inside-out the other day and went to fix it yesterday. Intense pain that I mistook for my eye readjusting instead of foreign materials. When it just didn't go away, I eventually wised up and removed the contact. Went about a day only sort of being able to see. Got a new contact in there this afternoon and it went in all comfortable and smooth, like it should. Much better.
Unfortunately that makes it easier to see the problems with my TV. It has bands of visual interference that slowly climb and distort the picture. It's accompanied by audible feedback. It's worse on certain inputs. I'm wondering if there's a bad cable that's leaking back and forth. Another theory is that my recent use of the component input for the first time since getting the TV overloaded something inside the TV and it's blowing out. Maybe it's something crossing over with the old receiver I also have plugged into the TV. I'm hoping to have time tomorrow to tear the home theatre apart and see if I can uncover the problem. I'm really hoping it's just a cable. I really don't want to get a new TV at this time. Not if I can help it anyway.
21 December 2009
Florida Trip Nov 2009 - Disney's Hollywood Studios
We spent a LOT of time here and that was reflected in the amount of pictures I took. I believe they are all posted now.
The Great Movie Ride - 3 times. You take a guided tour through movie history. The animatronics are of a generally high quality. The ones that are good (Gene Kelly, Julie Andrews, James Cagney, John Wayne, etc) are really good. The ones that aren't (Sigourney Weaver, Harrison Ford) aren't good but that's likely due to likeness rights and contracts and such. The highlight is the Wicked Witch of the West animatronic near the end of the ride. It's one of the higher level animatronics and moves impressively. It ends with a montage of clips from movie history in a 'theatre' of sorts. While there are some really fun sections to the ride, the tour guide script is very dull, intentionally so I believe. If you don't get into the classic old Hollywood scene, then there isn't much to see here. I enjoyed it a lot but I can see how others in my group got bored with it.
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular - Once and we missed the beginning stunt. Doh. Fun, great look into how stuntwork works but it's a little long. Not sure I'd want to watch it over and over again on one trip. Highly impressive though.
Star Tours - 5 times. Chances are this version of the ride will be gone by the next time I go to Florida. It's getting refurbed and changed. While the hydraulics might need some work (or I just get queasy on simulator rides) I'm wondering how the update will go. I've heard rumours. Could be awesome or could be too much prequel stuff. That would lack cool.
MuppetVision 3D - 5 times. I still love this thing. It's getting remastered. I like that idea.
Studio Backlot Tour - Once. There's a brief show, some stuff to walk through, and a tram tour where you get to see a lot of old props. It's fun but another of those things that I'm not sure would be neat for multiple trips.
Toy Story Midway Mania - Once. Fun game. I won. :)
Walt Disney: One Man's Dream - Once. Lots of historical stuff regarding Uncle Walt. Props, photos, reconstructions of things, models, all sorts of neat stuff. I didn't watch the video at the end. This is a lot of fun for me. I think this works for me over the Backlot Tour because it's not a guided tour. I can pop in for a few minutes or linger, it's not that I'm locked into something for a half-hour.
The Magic of Disney Animation - Once. Got my picture taken with Sorcerer Mickey but the picture didn't turn out darn it.
Rock n Roller Coaster featuring Aerosmith - Once. It's a dark coaster inside a building. All I knew about it going in was that it launches at 60MPH and goes through two loops where you are upside-down. The going upside-down is what stopped me from going on it last time. This time I talked myself into it. You're latched in all sorts of tight and the first loop is right after you launch so you're through it so quick you don't even notice. The second one I noticed and it freaked me out to see the floor. When we got off the ride, my reaction was kinda like my reaction to the Mummy ride the first time: 'I dunno if I liked that.' I was giggling as we walked out. It was fun. Pity we did it after our days at Universal because it might have helped me talk myself into going on the Hulk. It's fun. I'd ride it again. I think.
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror - 10 times. This also gives me hope that I'd like Rock n Roller Coaster more if I rode it a few more times. The first couple times I rode this during this trip I was still uncomfortable, like I was the first trip. Knowing we had more time to spend at Hollywood Studios than last time, I was inclined to ride it more. As I rode it, I got more comfortable with it. By the end of the trip, I went from clutching onto the handles with a deathgrip to having both hands in the air for the entire ride, hooting and hollering with excitement. This is good stuff.
Fantasmic! - Once. Laser, firework, water, fire, projection, and character show. Mickey falls asleep and his dream gets hijacked by Disney villains. He fights back and everything ends well. A fun show but more of it was video projected onto water than I expected. Now that I know what to expect, I'd see it again but the process to get into the theatre is a pain in the butt, especially when the group gets separated on the way inside. It's another of those things you have to set aside time to accomplish and I like keeping the days a little more loose than that. I know, I'm lazy.
Pictures, Pictures, Pictures:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2045438&id=1353274305&l=aed1d0bf37
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2045580&id=1353274305&l=3fb2bd9827
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2045416&id=1353274305&l=91863074c5
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2045041&id=1353274305&l=6af1844553
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2044910&id=1353274305&l=e870c31594
The Great Movie Ride - 3 times. You take a guided tour through movie history. The animatronics are of a generally high quality. The ones that are good (Gene Kelly, Julie Andrews, James Cagney, John Wayne, etc) are really good. The ones that aren't (Sigourney Weaver, Harrison Ford) aren't good but that's likely due to likeness rights and contracts and such. The highlight is the Wicked Witch of the West animatronic near the end of the ride. It's one of the higher level animatronics and moves impressively. It ends with a montage of clips from movie history in a 'theatre' of sorts. While there are some really fun sections to the ride, the tour guide script is very dull, intentionally so I believe. If you don't get into the classic old Hollywood scene, then there isn't much to see here. I enjoyed it a lot but I can see how others in my group got bored with it.
Indiana Jones Epic Stunt Spectacular - Once and we missed the beginning stunt. Doh. Fun, great look into how stuntwork works but it's a little long. Not sure I'd want to watch it over and over again on one trip. Highly impressive though.
Star Tours - 5 times. Chances are this version of the ride will be gone by the next time I go to Florida. It's getting refurbed and changed. While the hydraulics might need some work (or I just get queasy on simulator rides) I'm wondering how the update will go. I've heard rumours. Could be awesome or could be too much prequel stuff. That would lack cool.
MuppetVision 3D - 5 times. I still love this thing. It's getting remastered. I like that idea.
Studio Backlot Tour - Once. There's a brief show, some stuff to walk through, and a tram tour where you get to see a lot of old props. It's fun but another of those things that I'm not sure would be neat for multiple trips.
Toy Story Midway Mania - Once. Fun game. I won. :)
Walt Disney: One Man's Dream - Once. Lots of historical stuff regarding Uncle Walt. Props, photos, reconstructions of things, models, all sorts of neat stuff. I didn't watch the video at the end. This is a lot of fun for me. I think this works for me over the Backlot Tour because it's not a guided tour. I can pop in for a few minutes or linger, it's not that I'm locked into something for a half-hour.
The Magic of Disney Animation - Once. Got my picture taken with Sorcerer Mickey but the picture didn't turn out darn it.
Rock n Roller Coaster featuring Aerosmith - Once. It's a dark coaster inside a building. All I knew about it going in was that it launches at 60MPH and goes through two loops where you are upside-down. The going upside-down is what stopped me from going on it last time. This time I talked myself into it. You're latched in all sorts of tight and the first loop is right after you launch so you're through it so quick you don't even notice. The second one I noticed and it freaked me out to see the floor. When we got off the ride, my reaction was kinda like my reaction to the Mummy ride the first time: 'I dunno if I liked that.' I was giggling as we walked out. It was fun. Pity we did it after our days at Universal because it might have helped me talk myself into going on the Hulk. It's fun. I'd ride it again. I think.
The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror - 10 times. This also gives me hope that I'd like Rock n Roller Coaster more if I rode it a few more times. The first couple times I rode this during this trip I was still uncomfortable, like I was the first trip. Knowing we had more time to spend at Hollywood Studios than last time, I was inclined to ride it more. As I rode it, I got more comfortable with it. By the end of the trip, I went from clutching onto the handles with a deathgrip to having both hands in the air for the entire ride, hooting and hollering with excitement. This is good stuff.
Fantasmic! - Once. Laser, firework, water, fire, projection, and character show. Mickey falls asleep and his dream gets hijacked by Disney villains. He fights back and everything ends well. A fun show but more of it was video projected onto water than I expected. Now that I know what to expect, I'd see it again but the process to get into the theatre is a pain in the butt, especially when the group gets separated on the way inside. It's another of those things you have to set aside time to accomplish and I like keeping the days a little more loose than that. I know, I'm lazy.
Pictures, Pictures, Pictures:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2045438&id=1353274305&l=aed1d0bf37
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2045580&id=1353274305&l=3fb2bd9827
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2045416&id=1353274305&l=91863074c5
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2045041&id=1353274305&l=6af1844553
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2044910&id=1353274305&l=e870c31594
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