Tales of Who's Past: Rose

That is a nice jacket.

Rose Tyler traveled with both the Ninth Doctor and the Tenth Doctor. Rose was both a companion to the Doctor and, for (almost) the first time ever, a love interest. The story of Rose and the Doctor is written as a love story, 'without the shagging' as David Tennant would say. I both enjoyed and despised the new take on the companion in Doctor Who. Here's why:

Rose is a Mary Sue, the blank slate for the audience to latch onto and identify with; she is us, we experience the series through Rose's eyes first (check out the very first new series episode, aptly titled 'Rose'). Trouble is, Rose is perfect. Well, okay, to be fair, Rose has flaws, it's just that in language of the series she doesn't ever have any negative consequences. Rose is a cypher, in the sense that she does everything the audience wants to do....it's almost like reading a fan fiction sometimes.

Don't misunderstand me, I adore Rose. Rose was my first companion, and she holds a special place in my heart as a fan of the series, however she does get a bit arrogant and even blasè by the time you get half way through series 2, laughing at danger. Rose saves the Doctor -just like the audience at home wanted too- in The Parting of the Ways, brings Captain Jack Harness back from the dead (the sexy devil!) and destroys the Daleks. But she also treats Mickey (her boyfriend) rather badly and admits to her mother she made a decision long ago, choosing the Doctor over her mother. Try telling Amy that when she traveled with her boyfriend/fiance/husband, daughter and father-in-law. And a mad man in a blue box, naturally.

Rose, I loved you, I missed you when you left, but I also remember the down side to being such a blank slate character. It's a mixed blessing, this Mary Sue business.

Until Captain Jack makes out with the Face of Boe, I remain

frogoat

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Review

Fashionably late, as ever, I deliver unto you, my faithful readers, my review of The Hobbit (well... the first part of a three-part adaption that integrates material from other Tolkien sources to flesh it out further).

Firstly, the film is long. It clocks in at around 3 hours. But don't worry, it will fly by. Peter Jackson's direction gives the film a good pace, with no part of the film dragging nor feeling to short. Obviously, the small fights become gigantic set-pieces for action sequences and I have to say, it's appreciated. After the Lord of the Rings trilogy, it goes without saying that we've come to expect rollicking action adventure in our fantasy films and Jackson delivers the goods with style.

Secondly, I've never read the novel, nor any of Tolkien's work, and I never felt lost or a step behind. The narrative is straightforward enough and the few references I didn't understand didn't amount to any great lose of enjoyment or fits of despair. Always a good sign, surely. At times in the film, however, I did identify that which I believe was clearly 'filler' or, to put it another way, a screenwriter's embellishment or change. This isn't to say the film was made any less enthralling, it's just that the added material was often very noticeable. Certain characters occasionally switching speech patterns, that kind of thing. Again, I haven't read the novel, so feel free to correct me.

Thirdly, the returning cast were on fine form and the new faces were welcome additions. Sir Ian McKellen slides back into the robes of Gandalf with ease, and Andy Serkis is as entertaining as ever as the twisted Gollum. Martin Freeman impressed as a young Bilbo Baggins while Richard Armitage puts in a great turn as Thorin Oakenshield. Special mention, however, has to go to what I believe to be the best piece of character-actor casting in the history of cinema: Sylvester McCoy as Radagast the Brown. I challenge anyone not to play Six Degrees of Separation with this cast...

All in all, I enjoyed this third of the tale. I still don't see this stretching into two further films as smoothly, but I'll reserve judgement for the time being.

Until Gandalf comes out of the Hobbit hole, I remain

frogoat