Torchwood Miracle Day: Escape to LA

Gwen: "He was just about to tell us!"Rex: "Thanks? Anybody? Thanks?"I wasn't emotionally engaged before, but I am now. This was a much stronger episode than the first three. It feels like we finally arrived. And what's our next destination? That conversation with the assassin sent to kill Jack was tantalizing. He said Jack was special to "them", and talked about rumors of miracles yet to come,

The Ophiuchi Hotline

The Ophiuchi Hotline by John VarleyFirst published in 1977[John Varley is my favorite science fiction author. This is my first review of his first novel. I haven't done a lot of book reviews, so be kind. :)]It's six hundred years in the future, and the human race has been permanently exiled from Earth by alien Invaders that prefer cetaceans to humans. The remnants of humanity live on the moon as

Groundhog Day

[This review includes spoilers.]

Phil: "What if there is no tomorrow? There wasn't one today."

Yes, it's funny. But there's also something Zen-like about Groundhog Day. Phil, a shallow, self-centered, obnoxious weather man from Pittsburgh, starts out as such a worthless human being. He goes through pretty much every possible internal change he can experience, and comes out the other side a

Haven: Fear and Loathing

Duke: “In my experience when people are scared they either run or they fight. I’d start planning for both”.Wow, things are heating up in Haven, literally. I really enjoyed this week’s episode. We got not one, but three types of weekly weirdness and some interesting tidbits in the overarching mystery. Weekly Weirdness(es)The central “troubled” person this week was a young woman named Jackie

Warehouse 13: Love Sick

… in which Artie and Claudia investigate a potential artifact-related outbreak, while Pete and Myka get to play out their own version of The Hangover.

I liked this one. It was a bit of a strange mishmash, but I enjoyed all the parts. I particularly enjoyed the main plot with Claudia, Artie, Vanessa, and Hugo. The case was really intriguing, it was delightful to see both Vanessa and Hugo

Eureka: Glimpse

… in which Fargo and Dr. Marten begin interviewing candidates for the Titan space mission. Meanwhile, Jo and Carter test Zane’s latest development: contact lenses that allow you to assess the environment and predict security threats.Well, this one wasn’t as high on the hilarity, but it still had a lot of nice little character things going on. It has apparently been five or six weeks since the

Twin Peaks: May the Giant be With You

“The mind revealing itself to itself.”Even though the viewership for Twin Peaks dropped off fairly quickly in the second season, this episode—and many that follow it—are more tonally consistent with the lasting impression I have of Twin Peaks than many of the first season episodes are. This premiere is slow, meandering, so offbeat that it’s practically experimental atonal jazz, and filled with

True Blood: Me and the Devil

Sookie: "I always knew there was decency in you, even when you were a smug, sarcastic ass."This episode was a hoot. We got an upgrade in plotlines I initially thought were a waste of time, and a specific all-encompassing theme: parents, grandparents, great-great-great-great grandfathers, packmasters and makers, and I think we even got an ancestor in there. The whole parental gamut, as it

Doctor Who: The Mind of Evil

“You may not find the Master that easy to 'mop up', Brigadier.”

The Master has never been one to let failure get him down. Operation: Plastic Fantastic might have been a complete and total disaster but that's no reason for feeling downhearted. So quicker than you can say “reverse the polarity of the neutron flow” he's back and up to even more mischief. After all, tomorrow is another day... to

Torchwood Miracle Day: Dead of Night

"It's the perfect drug for the new world order."We know more now. There's a vast conspiracy by PhiCorp to corner the painkiller drug market, suggesting that PhiCorp caused Miracle Day. But what humans could possibly have the technology to do something like that? It still feels like something alien is behind it. This is Torchwood, after all.The Americanization of Torchwood continued, with

Eureka: Ship Happens

… in which the town copes with the fallout from the ship’s arrival.So, it turns out the ship that arrived last week was the Columbia, an unmanned interstellar exploration prototype built by Henry 20 years ago. Three years after its launch, the prototype went missing and the whole project was scrapped. Henry thought the ship was gone for good and never expected it to survive, much less find its

Star Trek: The Omega Glory

Cloud William: "Ay plegli ianectu flaggen, tupep like for stahn..."Kirk: "And to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."I don't think anything can excuse "The Omega Glory". Episodes like "The Apple" and "Spock's Brain" are so campy that they've become somewhat fun to watch. But "The Omega Glory" is so bad that it's actually painful.

Eureka: If You Build It ...

... in which town residents begin building a mysterious device out of a random assortment of items while in a trance-like state.Yea! We finally got some honest-to-goodness forward momentum on the half-season arc! Plus, a doozy of a cliffhanger that left us with some genuine fodder for speculation! Woo hoo! Of course, I’m pretty much flummoxed by the final reveal of the episode, and haven’t a

Haven: The Tale of Two Audreys

“They’re not freaks. Some people call them cursed. We call them troubled.”It's a new season of Haven, and Audrey has decided that Haven is her place. This is somewhat complicated by the fact that there is another Audrey Parker, FBI, who I will call Audrey II. The season premiere was good on both the weekly weirdness and overarching mystery fronts. I’m glad I kept watching and I’m ready for

Twin Peaks: The Last Evening

“What kind of dangerous game have you been playing?”Even though each episode—indeed, the entire show—weaves in and out of plots, bringing various disparate points together and then separating them, Twin Peaks tends to keep the characters rather separate. This season finale created most of its tension and horror by examining what happens when these separate characters bump up against each other,

Warehouse 13: Trials

... in which Myka works her first case since returning to the Warehouse, and Claudia gets to tackle her first assignment as “senior agent.”Hmmm ... I’m having mixed feelings on this episode. Things to really like, and things that didn’t work for me at all. Where to start?On the positive side, I liked most of the core character elements, and was elated that they continued to address the

Eureka: Reprise

... in which a representative from Senator Wen arrives in town, just as everyone begins acting a little strangely. Meanwhile, Allison heads to a medical conference, leaving Carter in charge of her kids for the day.Well, that was a fun little disaster puzzle to piece together! I was able to figure out pretty quickly that everyone’s odd behavior was linked to the music and to Holly’s neural

Twin Peaks: Realization Time

“Secrets are dangerous things.”This is very much a penultimate episode. All the strands of the mystery are starting to come together (or to unravel) but it’s hard to discern exactly where they’re leading. Meanwhile, further mysteries continue to develop, raising the question of how, or whether, the Mill is related to Laura’s death, whether Josie is exactly what she seems, and how Hank fits into

True Blood: I'm Alive and On Fire

Sookie: "You drank the whole fairy, and you're going to your room."There was definitely a family theme in this episode. Surprise family (Luna's daughter). Really lousy family (the Mickens and the Hotshot clan). Incestuous family (Bill and the Bellefleurs, and, of course, the Hotshot clan).Do we have a new love triangle? I felt quite a twinge for Eric, who seems to be mourning the loss of his

Torchwood Miracle Day: Rendition

Lynn: "You're the best England's got to offer, then God help you."Gwen: "I'm Welsh."This episode just galloped past, but I found it difficult to write about. And I usually love writing about Torchwood. Maybe I'm just not acclimating yet.De plane! De plane!I did love the plane scenes. Eve Myles just reminded me in a big way of why I've always been partial to Gwen. After being understandably

Twin Peaks: Cooper’s Dream

“Fellas, let’s pack a lunch. We’re taking a walk in the woods.”Three investigative teams went exploring in secret places this episode: Cooper and the sheriff’s boys in Jacques Renault’s cabin; Audrey in the space that shouldn’t exist in the walls of the Great Northern; and Donna, James, and Maddie in Laura’s hiding place. Each investigation seems to be moving towards something, but if that’s

A Dance with Dragons

Warning! Here be huge spoilers! Read the book first!This isn’t a book review. A book review would focus on the merits of the book—perhaps the characterization, a nod to the complicated and convoluted plotting, occasional felicities of language, and so on. Having marathoned my way through George R.R. Martin’s most recent entry in the Song of Ice and Fire, I’m still in the “Wow!” “No way!” “Arrgh!”

NewsFlash: Emmy Nominations 2011

The nominations for this year's Emmy Awards were announced today. This is a time for joy and celebration, when our favourite shows and actors are recognised for all their hard work.

As well as anger and frustration when they are not (don't worry, Sean Bean, there's always next sea...oh).

Actually, this year hasn't been so bad. Yeah, I'm a little pissed off that both Fringe and Community have

Star Trek: By Any Other Name

Kirk: "Immense beings with a hundred tentacles would have difficulty with the turbolift."

This is probably the best entry in the "aliens corrupted by carnal human bodies" theme.

As I've mentioned before, Star Trek didn't have the budget to do truly alien aliens, so they took the logical short cut of having those aliens take on human form. (It's also easier to find a human actor in Los Angeles

Eureka: It's Not Easy Being Green

... in which a prank leads to disaster when Fargo and the GD bowling team face their archrivals in an annual tournament.I liked ‘It’s Not Easy Being Green’ much better than the last episode. The overall vibe was just more fun (as opposed to borderline ridiculous) and the bowling rivalry between Global Dynamics and Area 51, with its extremely high tech pranks, was hugely entertaining. Plus, the

Doctor Who: Terror of the Autons

“The human body has a basic weakness. One which I shall exploit to assist in the destruction of humanity”

Back when he was the undisputed overlord of the entire Doctor Who universe, Russell T. Davies was often heard to say that he liked to reboot the series at the start of every season, treating each season opener like it was ‘Rose’ all over again (which explains the high turnover of

Alphas: Pilot

I didn't want to review this premiere, mostly because I got burned so badly by Heroes. But I am pleased to report that this pilot is surprisingly good. Which is great, because I hate writing negative reviews.Alphas are ordinary people with "special skills". Nina can manipulate people with her voice, Bill has superstrength, Rachel has enhanced senses (I thought she was the most interesting), and

Warehouse 13: The New Guy

... in which Pete is forced to take on a new partner after Myka leaves the Warehouse.And we’re back! Season 3 welcomes us back to the Warehouse 13 “world of endless wonder” by introducing a new agent, bringing Myka back into the fold, and giving us a brief glimpse of this season’s nemesis. We got lots of premise recapping for any newbies jumping on board, and zany antics and quips a plenty to

Eureka: Liftoff

... in which Zane and Fargo accidentally launch themselves into space.It is so nice to have Eureka back! (Of course, I’ve been retro-reviewing the series for the last several months, so I sort of feel like it never left.) Just look at that log line. Doesn’t it perfectly capture the outlandish zaniness that infuses this show? Of course, if the show was all wacky misadventures and no heart, I

True Blood: If You Love Me, Why Am I Dyin'?

Eric: "Would you like to be mine?"Sookie: "Not really. But thank you for asking."I love True Blood, but I find myself constantly miffed that episodes don't stand alone in any way, shape or form -- it's all arc. But I suppose transformation was the common theme in this one: Eric, Jason, Jessica, Marnie.And we start with Eric, of courseEric is certainly not his usual arrogant self: shy smiles,

Twin Peaks: The One-Armed Man

“In the heat of investigative pursuit, the shortest distance between two points is not necessarily a straight line.”And that, my friends, is the mission statement of this show. The first few episodes established the major players and major plots, the intersection of the supernatural with the mundane, and the major themes of mysteries within mysteries and the dark places that are both inside of us

Eureka: Insane in the P-Brane

... in which Allison appoints an old friend as the new head of (the recently reopened) Section 5. Meanwhile, one of GD’s top theoretical physicists comes to believe he can contact the spirit world.‘Insane in the P-Brane’ was a semi-amusing romp designed to introduce a new character who’s going to factor into the half-season arc and to incrementally advance Lexi’s story. The various subplots

Torchwood Miracle Day: The New World

Rex: "You mean Wales is separate? It's like the British equivalent of New Jersey." New cast, new setting, new story -- I expected the first installment of a ten-episode story to consist of set-up, and it was. Very good set-up.The idea behind Miracle Day is super creepy. The writers took what happened to Jack in the second episode of Children of Earth and applied it to the entire world. But

Eureka: Your Face or Mine?

... in which Jo takes over as acting sheriff while Carter undergoes his bi-annual recertification test.‘Your Face or Mine?’ didn’t strike me as anything particularly special, but it was still a reasonably entertaining hour that gave Jo and Erica Cerra a chance to take center stage. Erica’s not usually asked to carry an episode, but she does so ably here, pulling double duty as our favorite

Got Welsh?

As though you could forget...but just in case you did: Torchwood's new season Miracle Day premieres on Friday. For those of us stateside, that means we have to get Starz. Warning: getting Starz might mean that you stay up until sunrise watching the oddly addictive movie The Social Network. I suppose it's a small price to pay for more Captain Jack.Billie, of course, will review the new episodes as

Doctor Who: Inferno

“Listen to that! It's the sound of the planet screaming out its rage!”

For a science fiction series with such a long and diverse history as Doctor Who it is somewhat surprising that ‘Inferno’ is the only time in its original 26-year run that everyone’s favourite Time Lord ever ventured into a “parallel space-time continuum”. Can’t understand why they never did it again because ‘Inferno’ is very

Eureka: Welcome Back, Carter

... in which Carter is officially replaced by a new sheriff.Although amusing at times, this one was a little tedious to get through. Even if the title hadn’t made it blatantly obvious, we all knew that the show wasn’t going to move forward with Carter off in L.A. working for Homeland Security. It was also clear that the robot sheriff wasn’t going to last for long, so it was just a question of

Haven: Consumed

“This local thing is going to take a while”.A wise woman (Billie) said to me that you know by the third episode whether you are going to enjoy reviewing a show or not. I’m enjoying reviewing Haven, but I’m not really sure why. The episode plots are a bit thin and the overarching plot is moving slower than molasses in January. On the other hand, I laugh out loud at least once each episode and I

Twin Peaks: Rest in Pain

“We have a responsibility to the dead.”As Major Briggs explained, funerals are the rituals we use to achieve a new stage in the grieving process, to move from terror and pain to the tender acceptance that is necessary to getting through the series of days that constitute the rest of our lives. They’re also a time for a community to come together, for old friends and odd acquaintances to show

Eureka: From Fear to Eternity

... in which Eva’s efforts to permanently bury the underground bunker come to a head as Zoe begins exhibiting signs of advanced aging.So, given that the writers wrapped the main arc of the season, then left us with a cliffhanger, I’m guessing ‘From Fear to Eternity’ was a mid-season finale when the series originally aired. Carter fired?! Say it ain’t so! I’m sure this situation will be

Doctor Who: The Ambassadors of Death

“Something took off from Mars”

I want to love ‘The Ambassadors of Death’ but find it so damn difficult.

It's certainly not for a lack of spectacle. For once it actually looks like the production team were allowed to spend some serious cash on the show, with action sequences that almost have an epic quality to them. In the first two episodes alone we have massive shootout in an abandoned

True Blood: You Smell Like Dinner

Eric: "Why do you smell so good?"I enjoyed this one as much as the premiere. Some licking and biting, a lot of nudity, a little amnesia, what's not to love?Sookie and EricEric's exotic cubby in Sookie's house made me laugh out loud. I'll say (or say again) that Sookie has calmed down a lot; she just doesn't seem as upset about it as I thought she'd be. I thought she'd explode at him. Maybe, as

Twin Peaks: Zen, or The Skill to Catch a Killer

“The idea for all this really came from a dream?”The final scene of this episode is so iconic that even if you’ve never seen Twin Peaks, you will probably recognize it. In fact, it is so iconic that before I began my re-watch, I’d thought we returned to the red-curtained room in nearly every episode. That scene is the show, for me and likely for many other people.That scene is incredibly

Eureka: Here Come the Suns

... in which an already heated campaign for mayor is disrupted by the sudden appearance of a second sun.With its much larger focus on Eva’s mysterious doings in the buried underground complex, ‘Here Come the Suns’ was a lot more engaging and enjoyable than last week’s episode. I especially liked that they didn’t drag out the mystery of the second sun’s genesis for too long, but instead shifted

Star Trek: Patterns of Force

Gill: "Even historians fail to learn from history."Ah, the dreaded Nazi episode. I wasn't looking forward to it. Yes, I understand why they did it. It was the sixties, and World War II wasn't that long ago. It was an interesting premise, that a specific political structure would always lead to an evil dictatorship and genocide. A bit simplistic, though. And the story was too heavy-handed, no

Doctor Who: The Silurians

“Unless you Silurians tell us what you want the humans will destroy you!”

With ‘Doctor Who and The Silurians’ (to give it its full and accidental title) Malcolm Hulke takes the alien invasion story and flips it on its head. What could’ve so easily been nothing more than a simple tale of human battling lizard men becomes a morally complex thriller thanks to Hulke’s intelligent storytelling and