Reviews

Ah, another Doctor Who series finale. Like many of the previous finales, this one is something of a mixed bag for me. As in the third series finale, there is a semi-nonsensical world takeover plot line that brings forth many heroics from our protagonist and his friends, leading to some less than stellar plot threads amid scenes of sheer brilliance.

The Osterhagen Key, anyone? Both "The Stolen Earth" and "Journey's End" are cluttered with every possible Doctor Who character from the last four series. While it's nice to see some of them again, some feel shoehorned in with no particularly good reason for being there (such as Jackie Tyler, who is a great character...but why would she leave Tony and go chasing after Rose in an alternate dimension?). I got the feeling while watching it that Russel T. Davies wanted to play with all of his characters again before he put them away for good, which is the only good explanation for the presence of Gwen and Ianto from Torchwood, who do absolutely nothing except look at a screen and comment on the Doctor's attractiveness. (Also, did anyone notice that they automatically knew who the Doctor was, and yet to our knowledge, Jack has never told them about him?) That said, a reunion between Rose and the Doctor is a nice way to wrap up David Tennant's four seasons playing the titular character. The scene where they rush toward each other down a London street is very touching, even though it's cut short by the Doctor getting blasted by a dalek ray gun. I also love the pathos of the end of Donna's run as the Doctor's companion, depressing though it is. RTD didn't just end her character's run, he sealed her away forever.

Similarly, Rose is sealed away forever, although I felt her acceptance of the Doctor's human clone was a little too fast and too tidy. Part of what made Rose such a lasting character in the minds of fans was the all too tragic way she left the series. Giving her a happy ending was all well and good, but it almost cancels out the beauty of that last scene on the beach at Bad Wolf Bay in Doomsday, something I find rather unforgivable.

And Martha... Why is Martha tasked with administering a world-wide suicide pill? That seems like a job for the Americans.

Yet, for all my complaints, I can't give this episode any less than an eight. It's still Doctor Who, which means that even with all the flaws, it's one of the best hours of entertainment on television. There are quite a few nice character moments, and the scene where the Doctor drags the earth back into its proper orbit is perhaps overdone, but still lovely.

It would take a lot more than some plot silliness to rob me of my love for Doctor Who, and I think most fans probably feel the same.

"Doublemeat Palace" is an odd little episode, but I'm quite fond of it. It has a strange, skewed feel to it; the fast food atmosphere is exaggerated for comic effect, and yet still surprisingly realistic. Of all the awful things Buffy goes through from the middle of season five (Joyce's death) to the end of season six (losing Giles, money woes, dirty sex with Spike, Dark Willow's rampage, lots of self-loathing - the list goes on), working at the Doublemeat Palace is pretty close to the top of the list of awfulness. Yet, her stint at the fast food restaurant is not a mere one episode storyline, but Buffy sticks it out and works there for the rest of the season. There is no easy fix to Buffy's financial troubles, just as there is no easy fix in real life. Not just any show would have the courage to depict its superhero star in the depressing job of fast food worker for an extended period of time.

Season six, more than any other season, is all about real life. Even the villains of season six are less otherworldly and more common - who doesn't know a Jonathan, Andrew, or Warren? (Hopefully we all know more Jonathans and Andrews than Warrens.) To me, Buffy's job at Doublemeat Palace is one of the best examples of how much realism pervades season six. In reading other user comments and reviews of Buffy's sixth season, I've noticed fans seem to be almost evenly divided when it comes to the merits of the season - some love it, some hate it. I'm one of the fans who loves it. I love the darkness of many of the story lines - darkness that almost unilaterally stems from human weakness. There are never any easy fixes in life, and every time a character tries to find an easy fix (such as Willow's abuse of magic), things get worse (much, much worse).

Some of my favorite parts of the episode are the scene where Manny is introducing Buffy to the "lifers," evoking images of prison (don't you always feel sorry for the older people who work fast food jobs?); the awesome Soylent Green reference when Buffy tries to warn the Doublemeat Palace customers not to eat the burgers (Sarah Michelle Gellar's performance in this scene amuses me immensely every time I see it); and the stark realism of Buffy's quick shag with Spike out by the dumpsters during her break. The latter scene was proof we'd come a long way from the Angel days, and things with Spike might not turn out to be all flowers and candlelight (which they sure don't - at least not in season six).

Also, it was cool to see Kristin Nelson as the new manager of the Doublemeat Palace at the end of the episode. Fans of USA network's Psych will recognize her as Chief Karen Vick.

I may be the only fan who thinks so, but in my opinion this episode is worth a closer examination.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer was a mid-season replacement in season one, and it showed, since season one primarily set up the characters and the location, but did little else. Season two is when Buffy really took off, with the dark and tragic Angelus story arc, although there were still quite a few inconsequential monster-of-the-week episodes that occasionally weighed the show down. Season three was about as near perfection as television can get, with a great overarching plot line (the Mayor's ascension and Faith's introduction into the series and subsequent betrayal), and excellent character development. Season three would be a hard act to follow, as season four proves.

At the end of season three, Buffy and her friends graduated, and in the wonderfully metaphorical season finale, Sunnydale High was burned to the ground. Things in season four could not possibly be the same after that, and they aren't. The beginning of season four finds Buffy, Willow and Oz attending U.C. Sunnydale, while Xander and Giles struggle to find a new niche in the post-Sunndydale High world. Gone from the scooby gang are Angel and Cordelia, who have moved on to L.A. and the Angel series, and not too far into season four Oz moves on, as well. Season four is a transition season for Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which strips the characters down to the original four, before adding new regulars (Riley Finn, Anya, Tara and Spike in particular). The "big bad" of the season, a strange Frankenstinian amalgam of demon, monster and human parts named Adam, as well as the extra-military organization that created him, The Initiative, are not nearly as compelling as the villains of past seasons.

Yet, this is Joss Whedon, so that doesn't mean season four isn't good, or that it doesn't add something to the series as a whole. The character development in season four is as good as the previous seasons, if not better at times. I would even argue that the slightly less compelling villain/overarching storyline of season four is actually better for the characters, because it keeps the emphasis on them, instead of the usual "end of the world" scenario that has dominated the climaxes of past seasons. Even the finale of season four focuses more on the characters than the peril.

Just as in real life, things change when Buffy and Willow go to college. New friendships and relationships are formed, and sometimes it seems to Giles and Xander that they aren't needed anymore. Buffy and Willow often find themselves struggling with reconciling their past high school identities with who they are as college students and adults. Even though he doesn't attend college, Xander is also struggling to find himself and his place in the world, especially as a member of the group (being the one non-magical scooby). Even Giles is going through a mid-life crisis, which echoes the wanderings and confusion of the younger scoobies. Giles, we must remember, has lost his entire identity through the events of season three: first when he is fired from the Watcher's Council, and then when the school burns down and he loses his position as librarian. The real story of season four of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is the four original scoobies learning how how much they need each other, even (or especially) now that things in their lives are changing, and they're all growing up and moving on from that comfortable place around the table in the old Sunndydale High school library.

The characters added in season four are slightly less successful than the development given to the main characters. Although I love Anya as Xander's girlfriend and I personally feel the more Spike the merrier, Riley Finn is a sadly lacking follow-up to Angel in the romantic department. It isn't that there's anything wrong with Riley or Marc Blucas' characterization of him, it's just that almost nothing could compare with Angel. Although I suppose it's fairly true to life, in that Buffy is young and still capable of bouncing back quickly, it seems somewhat strange that she's able to love someone completely so soon after watching Angel leave her - Angel, her first love and the man she was willing to die for. Personally, I would have preferred watching her hang onto Angel a little while longer before moving on. On top of that, Riley lacks Angel's edge and darkness, which makes his character seem more shallow than it actually is.

My favorite thing about season four, aside from the character development, is Spike. Season three had Spike in only one measly episode, and I suffered from a severe lack of Spike because of it (a very painful malady). Season four introduces Spike as a series regular, and sows the seeds of his redemption and his unusual relationship with Buffy. The writers must be commended for the way Spike is written in season four, because even though he's on the road to becoming a white hat, he doesn't lose his edge or his "Spikeness." Although he's neutered as an evil force with the chip in his head, Spike is not neutered as a character.

In short: season four may not be the best, but it's still worth buying or renting on DVD and watching, if only for the character development.

I found both "The Family of Blood" and its predecessor "Human Nature" extremely hard to watch. That doesn't mean they aren't excellent episodes; indeed they are, they're brilliantly written and performed, but they're not exactly a lot of "fun" to watch. I don't know about other viewers, but some of my favorite Doctor Who episodes are the most fun to watch, like "New Earth" from season two, or "The Shakespeare Code" from season three. I don't necessarily think either episode is tops in the areas of artistic merit or emotional involvement, but they were very entertaining.

"The Family of Blood" storyline is exactly opposite. It's incredibly emotionally involving and artistically satisfying, but I wasn't having any fun when I was watching it. Parts of it felt like a BBC costume drama, which can be taken as either a compliment or a criticism. It was a very courageous storyline to go with, simply because reducing the Doctor to a human school teacher strips him of all the qualities that viewers most love about him. This couldn't have been done as effectively with a different actor than David Tennant. His performance is utter brilliance, because we can see little bits of the Doctor in the character of "John Smith", and yet...all the recognizable mannerisms of the Doctor have vanished in this "human". If you listen closely, you can tell even Tennant's accent is different. It's a very restrained performance, very natural and moving - though I was awfully glad to see the old Doctor back by the end. (I put up a spoiler warning for that, but is it really a spoiler? Did we ever think the Doctor would stay human?)

Freema Agyeman is also tremendous as the Doctor's keeper. Martha is a very likable character, and here we see her facing so many unknowns with a force of will that does her credit. Martha has more at stake even than the Doctor in this episode, because if she is unable to restore him to himself the fate of the world will be on her hands - not to mention she'll be stuck in a time where she has few options as a black woman. On a side note about season three as a whole, I'm not sure having Martha in love with the Doctor was a good idea, as it sort of pulls the viewer in two directions. On one hand, we'd hate to see the Doctor leave Rose's memory behind too quickly, but on the other hand, Martha is very engaging and likable, and it's hard on the audience to see her hurt over and over again. It also seems like a bit of a waste of a subplot if it's not going to go anywhere. Maybe Donna's and Martha's seasons should have been switched? In short, "Human Nature" and "The Family of Blood" are excellent episodes, but not ones I will be re-watching anytime soon.

I have been a big Monkees fan ever since I was a very little kid. I watched their show (in reruns. . .I'm not THAT old) faithfully every week, and for years wanted to see their movie which I knew absolutely nothing about. Recently, I saw a documentary on rock & roll films on AMC, which told of this film. If I recall, it called it a "drug-induced trip," and showed the clip on Mickey falling into the river, to the Porpoise Song, from the beginning of the film. "Weird," I thought, so I rented it. It was weird, plotless, disturbing, funny, original, and musical, all in one. This whole movie was just metaphor, after metaphor. Though I have no idea what it was about really, I do know that much.

I guess I was expecting something more like Help, or A Hard Day's Night, not something so . . . trippy. I felt like I'd been on drugs after watching this film. I'd even go so far as to say perhaps one could become addicted to it. It was like nothing I have ever seen before. I can see why it was not well received when it was made. . . I don't believe people were ready for anything like this. However, it should be re-released. People are now ready for it.

***Spoiler alert***

The end, I must admit, really disturbed me. How could those cute, funny, all American, wholesome boys jump into a river as if (shock!) committing suicide? Strange, though thought provoking. The TV series was nothing like this! I like this movie, but I think I'll have to watch it many more times before I get an idea of what's really going on. It does have it's funny moments, but don't expect anything like the TV show. These Monkees is very cynical cats. The music is exceptional. . . the Porpoise Song will stick in your head for days afterwards. I also love the Daddy's Song dance number. Be prepared to be lost in thought for at least three hours after seeing this film. I would definitely recommend it to any Monkees fans, sixties rock fans. . .or anyone interested in seeing something different. Remember though, you will never look at the Monkees the same way again!