Culture on My Mind
Fortnight Philosophy
September 25, 2017
(Yes, that Richard Simmons.)
Culture on My Mind is inspired by the weekly Can’t Let It Go segment on the NPR Politics Podcast where each host brings one thing to the table that they just can’t stop thinking about.
For more creativity with a critical eye, visit Creative Criticality.
Doctor Who: Terminus
The Black Guardian Trilogy, Part II
(4 episodes, s20e13-e16, 1983)
The trilogy gets stuck in the mud.
Picking up right where we left off, Turlough is wandering the corridors of the TARDIS, sabotaging the time capsule at the Black Guardian’s guidance. A skeptical Tegan stumbles across him and resists his charms while escorting him to his quarters. Coincidentally, they once were Adric’s.
Two production notes: First, in close-up, Tegan’s makeup is a bit excessive. Second, this is the first story to call the round things “roundels.”
Tegan leaves, carrying the caduceus necklace from her first encounter with the Mara, and vents to Nyssa. Meanwhile, Turlough continues his nefarious task, removing the space-time element from the main console and inducing a fracturing of the TARDIS. The effects of the temporal fracturing are quite well done. Nyssa is trapped in her quarters, and as a skull forms on the door, she has no choice but to go through. As the door closes, the Doctor jams it open and follows Nyssa through to the new spacecraft beyond. The Doctor explains that this is a failsafe in case the TARDIS becomes unstable. Moments later, Tegan follows, and later (under orders from the Black Guardian) so does Turlough. The door closes behind him.
The Doctor finds Nyssa as two space pirates explosively board the ship and head to the bridge. Their breach point is sealed by what looks like Great Stuff foam, and the pirates discover that this is the wrong ship. They take the Doctor and Nyssa hostage as the pirate ship rockets away, but the Doctor convinces them to work together as the ship automatically begins docking procedures at Terminus Inc.
As Turlough and Tegan search the ship, they encounter a robot (from which they run) and a locked room with an occupant who cries for help. The door opens a crack and robed arms reach out for Tegan. Turlough saves her and they rush for the doorway to the TARDIS, but it phases in and out of reality. As the ship begins to dock, the doors open and the robed figures swarm. One of the pirates panics, proclaiming that the ship is a plague ship, and the occupants have something called Lazar’s disease.
Turlough and Tegan take shelter under the deck plates, but the force of the marching passengers jams their exit in place. They search for another way out as the Doctor and Nyssa accompany the pirates to the bridge. The Doctor searches for a solution as Nyssa stumbles, obviously infected, and finds the pirate Olvir hiding behind a chair. Nyssa coaxes him out, and he explains what he knows of Terminus and Lazar’s disease. The station supposedly offers a cure, and the Doctor discovers that the station is at the center of the known universe.
Tegan and Turlough come across an armored figure who orders the robot to sterilize the ship. They sneak away and continue the search for a way out as another guard searches for the source of rising readings of some sort. Meanwhile, the ship begins sterilization by pumping noxious gas through the crawlspaces occupied by Tegan and Turlough. The Doctor’s party search for the TARDIS, and Nyssa and Olvir encounter the robot. After Olvir inadvertantly touches her and Nyssa inexplicably takes off her skirt, the robot takes Nyssa to the armored guards. The armored guards want their hydromel – which is in our world is another name for tasty, tasty mead, but in this story is an antifreeze-colored vaccine – and take Nyssa to the rest of the infected on Terminus. The lead guard, Eirak, sends a wolf-creature called the Garm to search for the errant guard as the Doctor and Kari (the other pirate) search for Olvir and Nyssa, eventually ending up the station as well.
Tegan and Turlough keep hanging out in the crawlspaces, safely out of reach of the plot. It seems that Fifth Doctor-era writers had a hard time writing for an ensemble. The travelers eventually escape, but their contribution to the story is still minimal.
The Doctor and Kari explore Terminus, finding a guard named Valgard who knocks down Kari and attacks the Doctor. Kari retrieves her gun and shoots the guard, leaving him stunned as the pair escape into a forbidden zone… the same one where the errant guard went before. Deep in the bowels of the station, Nyssa has achieved clothing once again but loses hope as the guards ignore her and leave her with the infected, presumably to starve to death. She is soon taken for treatment.
Eirak discovers that part of the hydromel shipment is merely colored water and receives a report from Valgard about his encounter with the Doctor and Kari. Valgard challenges Eirak’s leadership, which Eirak offers in exchange for the stowaways. Meanwhile, Olvir steals a set of armor and sets up a decoy to deflect attention from his presence.
The Doctor and Kari come across Bor, the errant guard. He is burned by radiation, and the Doctor offers to carry some scrap metal as they continue to the station’s engines. The engines are damaged and are leaking radiation, and Bor is trying to build a shield with the scrap. If the engine were to explode, it would somehow affect the entire universe. Supposedly, it already has some time prior, introducing a Doctor Who explanation for the Big Bang. The discussion is interrupted by Valgard and the Garm. The former attacks the Doctor but is stunned as the latter returns Bor to the safe zone, which is where a bound Nyssa is looking worse for wear. Fortunately, Olvir is there to rescue her. Unfortunately, his attempt is stymied by the Garm, which is immune to the pirate’s blaster. The Garm takes Nyssa into the radiation zone, and Olvir follows. He battles Valgard as the Garm takes care of Nyssa.
Turlough takes his leave of the Tegan and requests help from the Black Guardian. After a hint, he dives back into the crawlspace, still offering nothing to the story but getting a terrible shock for his efforts. Seriously, dude, the panel said “NO TOUCH.”
The Doctor and Kari find the station’s control room and reason out exactly how Terminus created the Big Bang: The station is a time ship, and the pilot dumped the fuel from the malfunctioning engine. The resulting explosion propelled the ship forward in time, killing the pilot but jumpstarting the universe. A second explosion would destroy the universe, and the computer has already started the procedure. Thanks, Turlough.
Tegan and Turlough notice that TARDIS door is becoming more solid, so they keep poking at the bypass switch. When the computer announces the ship’s movement, Tegan runs to the control room as Turlough finishes his work and reboards the TARDIS. In the engine compartment, a wounded Valgard reveals that he was once a pirate like Olvir, trained by the same commander. Olvir refuses sympathy and leaves in search of Nyssa, and once the younger pirate is gone, Valgard retrieves a gun and pursues.
The Doctor and Kari try to stop the procedure, but lack the strength to move the proper control switch. They seek out the Garm, who is escorting Olvir to Nyssa. Nyssa awakens in a barren chamber, fully cured but once again in nothing but her skivvies. Why exactly is she spending this adventure in her delicates? Anyway, she figures out that the radiation could cure all of the infected if properly applied.
The Doctor summons the Garm, who then saves the day by stopping the fuel dump. The Doctor disconnects the computer from the control console, then fulfills the Garm’s wish for freedom by smashing the creature’s control box. The Doctor and Kari race to finish the engine shutdown procedure but are interrupted by Valgard. The guard is ambushed by Nyssa and Olvir, and Nyssa bargains for his help by offering a refined process to supply hydromel. That would free the guards from the Terminus Corporation’s control forever.
I recommend yeast, honey, and good clean water.
Eirak returns, prompting to Valgard to remind the leader of their deal. While the guards chat, the Doctor puts plans in motion to wrap up the adventure, but there is one more wrinkle that he did not anticipate: Nyssa wants to remain behind and spearhead the Lazar recovery. After tearful goodbyes, the Doctor and Tegan return to the TARDIS.
Meanwhile, Turlough has been tortured by the Black Guardian for his insolence. He has marching orders: Kill the Doctor!
And that leads me to the overwhelming problem with this story. It’s supposed to be the next story in a three-part revenge tale, but we don’t really make any headway at all with the Black Guardian’s plans. Turlough, the corporeal arm of the Black Guardian’s will, spends pretty much the entire story in a crawlspace with Tegan. While this (hopefully) sets up Tegan as the foil for Turlough’s plans in the conclusion, at no point does he make an attempt on the Doctor’s life except for the opening gambit.
Which, when you think about it, neuters the Black Guardian. Either he’s incompetent as an omniscient being because he didn’t know about the TARDIS failsafe, or he’s faking it and not really that all-knowing to begin with.
Setting aside the trilogy, I also have issues with the story. Terminus, the name being an obvious clue, is supposed a for-profit hospital for victims of the Lazar plague from which no one ever returns. If that’s the case, how are they still operating? Word has obviously spread that the Lazar victims, whom the Terminus Corporation demonizes, don’t come back, so why keep funneling money to them? Where are the regulators? Where do they keep the bodies? I’m missing something here, and that impacts my enjoyment of the story.
Finally, Nyssa. She has been one of my favorite companions in the franchise so far because she’s smart, capable, and independent. Her farewell suits her character because she’s sacrificing herself to help countless others. She’s doing the right thing, and she learned that lesson from the Doctor. The sad part of the tale is that this story does everything it can to objectify her. I can understand that she starts the story without a blouse because she’s working in her quarters, and I further understand when she has to leave half-dressed because it’s an emergency. I can even understand the logical leap of leaving a clue for the Doctor. It’s a huge leap, but sure, whatever.
What I don’t understand is why she needed to spend the rest of the story in her shift rather than getting a new costume from the wardrobe department, even if it was the equivalent of surgical scrubs. Logically, do the rest of the cured people end up in the blank room in their underwear or naked? Again, we don’t know, so based on the evidence, I see an attempt to symbolically strip down Nyssa to her most vulnerable state, but it backfired for me.
I’m really going to miss Nyssa. Her departure leaves the Doctor with two companions that I don’t particularly like, and while I like the idea of a Trojan Horse companion whose goal is to kill the Doctor, the execution has been lacking so far. I feel that there are tough times ahead.
Between watching the serial and finalizing this write-up, I spent a lot of time trying to land on a score. Nyssa is a big bright spot for this story, but there’s just so much to overcome between the mediocre and the infuriating. Sadly, it ends up at the lower of my two options.
Rating: 2/5 – “Mm? What’s that, my boy?”
UP NEXT – Doctor Who: Enlightenment
The Timestamps Project is an adventure through the televised universe of Doctor Who, story by story, from the beginning of the franchise. For more reviews like this one, please visit the project’s page at Creative Criticality.
Doctor Who: Mawdryn Undead
The Black Guardian Trilogy, Part I
(4 episodes, s20e09-e12, 1983)
The Key to Time comes home to roost.
A schoolboy named Turlough steals (and totals) the Brigadier’s car, offering quite the introduction to a new companion. He has an out of body experience after the crash, though both he and his classmate Ibbotson will be fine. The Brig, on the other hand, is incensed. After all, it was a rare 1929 Humber 16/50 Open Tourer (Imperial Model).
The out of body experience is courtesy of the Black Guardian, who seeks revenge against the Doctor after their last encounter. As Turlough recovers at the school, he discovers a crystal that links him to the Black Guardian, and we learn that he is not native to Earth. Under the Guardian’s influence, he leaves the infirmary (with a reluctant Ibbotson) and boards a transmat capsule.
Speaking of, our heroes are moving through time and space. Tegan is recovering from her experience with the Mara, Nyssa has a new wardrobe, and the TARDIS gets knocked off course. They nearly collide with a nearby spacecraft before materializing inside it, and the travelers find that the ship is abandoned. In fact, Tegan makes a Mary Celeste quip, continuing a Doctor Who tradition. The crew sought refuge on Earth as the ship swung through an elliptical flight path, which it does every six years. As the travelers attempt to leave – the TARDIS is trapped there by the plot – Turlough arrives on the ship and sneaks into the TARDIS. Everyone eventually converges on the phone box, and the Doctor takes Turlough back to Earth to disable the trap, leaving Tegan and Nyssa behind. As the Doctor works on releasing the transmat beam, Turlough nearly kills him with a rock, but the plot is foiled as the transmat device inadvertently explodes. Turlough is knocked back and the TARDIS materializes and vanishes.
Turlough and the Doctor are intercepted by the Brigadier, who doesn’t recognize the Doctor at all. The Doctor chalks up the memory lapse to his regeneration, but the Brigadier’s memory is still a blank. Meanwhile, Nyssa and Tegan explore the area and find a transmat capsule. Inside, they find a severely burned version of the Doctor who asks to be taken to the TARDIS.
The Doctor accompanies the Brigadier to the officer’s quarters. They discuss prior adventures, all of which seems to jog the Brigadier’s memory as he flashes back to the Second Doctor and a Cyberman, the Third Doctor’s awakening and regeneration, his brief encounter with the First Doctor, the Yeti, an Axon, a Dalek, and his first and last encounters with the Fourth Doctor. Sadly, he’s also suffering from a nervous breakdown. As they share tea, the Doctor mentions Tegan and the Brigadier remembers a Tegan from several years ago. Turns out, they are the same person.
Putting the pieces together, we find that Nyssa, Tegan, and the TARDIS are in 1977, but the Doctor is trapped in 1983. Tegan elicits the help of the 1977 Brigadier while the burned Doctor supposedly regenerates into a new form called Mawdryn (cloaked in the Fourth Doctor’s maroon overcoat) and orders Nyssa to take the TARDIS to the abandoned starship. When the 1977 Brigadier arrives, they group finds a scream-worthy Mawdryn with his brain exposed. Mawdryn continues the ruse of a failed regeneration and eventually convinces the companions to return to the starship.
In 1983, the Doctor realizes that the events of 1977 may be the reason for the Brigadier’s breakdown. After finding the Guardian’s crystal, the Doctor also determines that they must intercept Turlough before the boy determines how to operate the transmat capsule. Together, they fix the homing beam, but it soon self-destructs. Luckily, the Brigadier has a homing device that was a gift from Tegan, and the Doctor uses it to take all of them to the starship via the transmat capsule. There’s a minor caveat: If Brig-83 and Brig-77 were to meet each other, the results would be catastrophic. As Tegan would say, ZAP!
The Doctor and Brig-83 find a room with stolen regeneration technology, and the Doctor presumes that Mawdryn (whom he refers to as the “creature”) wanted to regenerate, which poses a whole bushel of questions about using Time Lord technology to regenerate non-Gallifreyans. Meanwhile, Turlough works his way to the TARDIS and discovers a room of beings in the same state as Mawdryn.
Through a confusing series of events, Brig-83 encounters Mawdryn and hooks him up to the regeneration machine, Brig-77 encounters the rest of Mawdryn’s people, the Doctor reunites with Tegan and Nyssa, and Turlough returns to the TARDIS. The Doctor and Nyssa meet up with Brig-83 and get the story from Mawdryn, discovering that they are mutants who tried to use regeneration technology but instead ended up immortal and in continuous agony. Tegan arrives just before the rest of Mawdryn’s people, and the mutants beg for the secret to end their pain. Unfortunately, if the Doctor gives them that energy, he will expend all of his remaining regenerations and will die. The Doctor refuses, and the mutants scheme.
The Black Guardian realizes that the Brigadier’s presences may jeopardize his plans, so he orders Turlough to detain one of them. Soon enough, Brig-77 is locked away and Turlough returns to the TARDIS. The Doctor orders Turlough to take Brig-77 to the transmat capsule as Brig-83 returns to Earth on the TARDIS. The Doctor is forced to return to the starship, however, as the mutants have infected Nyssa and Tegan with their malady, which is exacerbated by time travel. The Doctor attempts to reverse the polarity of the neutron flow to escape the warp ellipse that confines the starship, but the attempt turns them into (rather adorable) children. The Doctor reverses it again and returns to the starship just as Brig-77 tries to leave (unsuccessfully) via transmat.
The Doctor has no choice but to sacrifice himself to end the loop. Everyone converges on the regeneration laboratory and Brig-83 begins the procedure. It is interrupted by Brig-77 who, by touching Brig-83, releases a large temporal energy wave. Nyssa and Tegan are cured, the Doctor is saved, and Mawdryn’s people are freed of their undead existence. The travelers return to the TARDIS and both Brigadiers are returned to their proper times, although Brig-77 won’t remember anything until he encounters the Doctor in 1983. The abandoned starship self-destructs, ending the loop for good.
And then there’s Turlough, who has stowed away on the TARDIS. He asks to join the Doctor’s crew, and the trilogy continues.
I admired how heroic the Doctor was. It added a certain degree of power to the story that we haven’t seen in some time. I also loved how the companions were able to carry a substantial part of the story. It was also nice to see the Brigadier again, despite the obvious internal continuity issues (First, Tegan didn’t give him the tracker. Second, there’s really no reason why he shouldn’t have been able to rationalize this adventure with everything he knows about the Doctor.) and the entire UNIT dating controversy. I know that I’ve been hard on him in the past, but he’s softened on the Doctor over time.
Overall, this was an entertaining and well-written story that handled split time periods quite nicely.
Rating: 4/5 – “Would you care for a jelly baby?”
UP NEXT – Doctor Who: Terminus
The Timestamps Project is an adventure through the televised universe of Doctor Who, story by story, from the beginning of the franchise. For more reviews like this one, please visit the project’s page at Creative Criticality.
Culture on My Mind
Fortnight Philosophy
September 11, 2017
Culture on My Mind is inspired by the weekly Can’t Let It Go segment on the NPR Politics Podcast where each host brings one thing to the table that they just can’t stop thinking about.
For more creativity with a critical eye, visit Creative Criticality.
Doctor Who: Snakedance
(4 episodes, s20e05-e08, 1983)
Someone felt a need to revisit Kinda?
The adventure opens with a mysterious man and his necklace as they sit on a barren planet. Creepy and kooky, but not particularly ooky.
On board the TARDIS, Nysssa tries on a new outfit while the Doctor puzzles over some strange readings. Tegan had set the coordinates for the next destination, inadvertently choosing Manussa, and now she’s having strange snake-related dreams. On the target planet, ruling family members Tanha and Lon debate the merits of celebrating the eradication of the Mara, the snake creature that the Doctor believes still possesses part of Tegan’s mind. The Doctor hypnotizes Tegan to explore this possibility and discovers that it is true. He recalibrates the machine so Tegan is protected from all outside sounds and the group sets out to find the snake cave in Tegan’s dream.
Tanha and Lon have already entered the cave as part of the ritual celebration with a researcher named Ambril. They are examining wall paintings that detail a legend of the Mara’s return. When the travelers arrive, Tegan’s fear prevents her from entering, so Nyssa waits while the Doctor explores within. A salesman scares Tegan with snake toys, causing her to run into the crowd and disappear. The Doctor finds the ruling family and convinces them to meet Tegan, but with her disappearance, they dismiss him.
Nyssa and the Doctor return to the TARDIS, expecting Tegan will try to find her way back, but Tegan has collapsed and was rescued by a local fortune teller who removes the hypnosis device. As a result, the Mara exerts control over Tegan.
The Doctor and Nyssa go back out to search for Tegan, and when Nyssa finds her, Tegan is erratic and runs away, hiding in a hall of mirrors where she confronts the Mara succumbs further to its control. The Doctor returns to Ambril and accurately matches current events to the legend of the return, which is detailed to him by Ambril’s assistant Chela. The Doctor reunites with Nyssa and explores the snake cave, while the Mara sends the operator of the mirror chamber to retrieve Lon. When he arrives at the booth, the Mara takes control of him.
The Doctor and Nyssa return to the TARDIS to analyze a blue crystal, which they presume may be the Great Crystal linked to the Mara. They discover that it is the key to the Mara’s full return. Meanwhile, Mara-Tegan and Mara-Lon have taken the carnival worker to the cave and opened the inner door, exposing the remnants of the ancient civilization within. Coming to the same conclusions, the Mara and the Doctor discover that Ambril knows where the crystal is located. The Doctor tries to retrieve it, but he is arrested. The Mara, on the other hand, entrances the carnival worker and sends Lon to fetch the crystal. Lon persuades Ambril, who has just shared the diary of his predecessor Dojjen with Chela, to return to the cave to see the chamber interior. The Mara convinces Ambril to return the Great Crystal to the cave during the ceremony.
Nyssa sneaks into the palace dungeon and tries to free the Doctor. As Chela shares the diary with the Doctor, Nyssa searches for the key to the cell. Nyssa is caught by Tanha and the Doctor discovers that Dojjen left his post to study the forbidden teachings of the Snakedancers. Nyssa is reunited with the Doctor inside his cell, and they spend their time researching the crystal and the diary. The ancient Manussans were able to create the crystals, which transformed their negative emotions and thoughts into the Mara. They later forgot that they had created it, and the only memory of the Mara’s origins was maintained by the Snakedancers.
When Lon and Ambril announce their intention to bring the Great Crystal to the ceremony, Chela frees the Doctor and Nyssa. They are soon cornered by the palace guards, where Lon orders their immediate execution. Tanha intercedes, allowing the Doctor to tell his side of the story, and the Time Lord presumes that Lon has been marked by the Mara. Ambril offers to show them the Great Crystal, and while everyone is distracted, the Doctor, Nyssa, and Chela escape.
The Doctor uses his crystal to summon Dojjen, the mysterious man from the beginning of the serial. Together, they enact the Snakedance ritual, which requires a snakebite on their wrists so they can communicate telepathically. Dojjen counsels the Doctor to find his “still point” and destroy the Mara forever. As they commune, the community around them commences the celebration ritual.
As the celebration continues, Lon plays his customary part before breaking character and announcing the return of the Mara. The Doctor and company burst into the chamber as Lon places the Great Crystal and reveals the Mara, which feeds on the assembled crowd’s fear and grows stronger. The Doctor focuses his will through his “still point” and battles the Mara. The Mara tries to break the Doctor’s concentration by channeling a panicked Tegan, but Dojjen reinforces the Doctor’s center. The Doctor pulls the Great Crystal from the wall and the Mara’s influence is broken, causing the snake to fall to the ground and die.
Tegan is embarrassed and horrified at her actions, but the Doctor comforts her. He reassures her that the Mara is gone for good.
The good news is that the writers didn’t put Nyssa in a coma again. Additionally, she seems to have been well-briefed on Kinda‘s details before this adventure. The Doctor continues his fatherly development, and Nyssa got a chance to shine as she unwrapped the mystery. As Tegan, Janet Fielding sold the possession aspect quite nicely, leaving no part of the set unchewed.
But the story was only average. At least we’re free of the Mara now, right? Right?
Please?
Rating: 3/5 – “Reverse the polarity of the neutron flow.”
UP NEXT – Doctor Who: Mawdryn Undead
The Timestamps Project is an adventure through the televised universe of Doctor Who, story by story, from the beginning of the franchise. For more reviews like this one, please visit the project’s page at Creative Criticality.
Culture on My Mind
Fortnight Philosophy
August 28, 2017
Culture on My Mind is inspired by the weekly Can’t Let It Go segment on the NPR Politics Podcast where each host brings one thing to the table that they just can’t stop thinking about.
For more creativity with a critical eye, visit Creative Criticality.
Dragon Con 2017
Atlanta, GA – September 1-4, 2017
Dragon Con!
It’s an annual tradition for me, and this year will be my ninth time attending. This will also be my second year as an attending professional. If you plan to be there, these are the places where you will be able to find me over Labor Day weekend.
The convention app is now available in both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. It’s also available online.
NOTE: All Dragon Con schedules are tentative until the convention ends on Monday. Even then, things are a bit suspect. As things change before the convention, I’ll update this post.
Wednesday (it’s the new Thursday)
I will be around starting Wednesday, pretty much wandering the hotels, picking up my Hard Rock Dragon Con gear, and catching up with some friends.
Thursday (it’s the new Friday)
2:30p-6:30p: Dragon Con Newbies Walking and Rolling Tours/Q&A
Main Programming
Marriott Marquis, Atrium Level, A601-A602
Want to know the best way to get from one con hotel to another? Need to learn where the food court is? If so, come on one of our walking tours and find out. Small group tours will be going out every 10-15 minutes.
Panelists include: Kevin Bachelder, Sue Kisenwether, Kim McGibony
Friday
10:00a: Dragon Con Newbies Q&A
Main Programming
Location TBD
First Dragon Con? Confused or overwhelmed? Savvy con attendees will share tips & tricks.
Panelists include: Kevin Bachelder, Sue Kisenwether, Kim McGibony
1:00p: Marvel Cinematic Universe
American Science Fiction and Fantasy Media
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M301-M303
We’ve seen some new heroes brought forward with Dr. Strange, and Spiderman coming back into the fold. Trailers for Black Panther and Thor have teased us with more. How do you think the MCU is holding up almost 10 years?
Panelists include: Page Branson, Kitty Chandler
2:30p: Wolverine on Film
American Science Fiction and Fantasy Media
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M302-M303
From second-choice casting to a role that has created an indelible mark on movie heroes. Hugh Jackman’s take on Wolverine has been an amazing run. We’ll look back at the whole run of 8 movies & cameos.
Panelists include: Will Nix, Jeff Burns, Bill McIntire
5:30p: Earth Station Who Presents 50 Years of the Cybermen!
BritTrack
Hilton Atlanta, Galleria 5
Our friends at Earth Station Who are back to discuss the return of the Cybermen, and half a century of their menacing adventures!
Panelists include: Michael Gordon, Mike Faber, Sue Kisenwether, Robert Lloyd
7:00p: The Good Place: The Current Hereafter
American Science Fiction and Fantasy Media
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M301
The afterlife never looked like this before! Comedies are tough and comedies about life after death are even tougher! This one pulled some surprises with some excellent writing and performances.
Panelists include: Ryan Guthrie, Gary Mitchel, Henry Hanks
(Note: I am listed in the app for “Classic Sci-Fi Legends: West, Landau, Paxton & More” at this same time. I’m in the market for a clone.)
11:30p: Star Wars Holiday Special: May the 4 Wookiees Be With You
American Science Fiction Classics/Star Wars
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M103-M105
We could not let the 40th anniversary of Star Wars pass & let our pals at Star Wars Track have all the fun. Check out the glorious madness of Chewie’s Wookiee family, Bea Arthur & Princess Leia singing, & Boba Fett’s debut!
(I’ll be in the audience for this one.)
Saturday
8:30a: Classic Sci-Fi Court: Defending Batman & Robin, Superman IV & More
American Science Fiction Classics
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M103-M105
Bring your grievances before the Classic Sci-Fi Court, & we will defend movies or TV that unsavory elements have brought criticism upon. Batman & Robin…Superman 4…Highlander 2, perhaps?
Panelists include: Michael Bailey, Kevin Eldridge, Debbie Viguié, Geena Phillips
(I’m not on the panel for this one.)
10:00a: Roll-a-Panel: 1982 and 1992
American Science Fiction Classics
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M103-M105
Dragon Con does not last a full year (yet), so Classic Track does not have time to tribute all the movies from the best year of movies ever. Roll-a-Panel is an audience-participation revolution in convention panel technology–20 panels in one hour!
Panelists include: Pretty much all of the American Science Fiction Classics Track regulars
4:00p: Remembering Carrie Fisher and Kenny Baker
Star Wars Track
Hyatt, Centennial Ballroom I
Our world is dimmer now, but our icons left such a legacy for us. Join other fans as we remember our Princess & our favorite Droid and the impact they had on Star Wars & the world.
Panelists include: Bryan Young, Sarah Dempster, Sue Kisenwether, Christy Morris
8:30p: The Flash: Flashpoint and Godhood Conundrums
American Science Fiction and Fantasy Media
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M301-M303
As Flash brings in one of the classic storylines from the comics, we see how the show handled it & how one more speedster reaches for godhood at the expense of Team Flash.
Panelists include: Jim Griffin, Beth Verant, Cammien Ray, Yvonne McDowell
11:59p: The Dirty Dirty Con Con Game Game Show Show
Main Programming
Hyatt Regency, International South
Miss Lady Flex, Phantom Troublemaker, Rad Ranger, and Popeye the Sailor Moon return to Dragon Con! Come and bear wetness to the love child of Wheel of Fortune, The Price is Right, Jeopardy, Pictionary, Match Game, Twenty Dollar Potato Spin, Anata No Zubon O Shutoku, and any and every game show you’ve ever heard of, but DIRTY. YOU are the contestants in the wildest, sexiest, nastiest game show around! Laugh, cry, be slightly uncomfortable in the presence of hundreds of strangers! Big prizes! Big fun! There’s nothing else like The Dirty Dirty Con Con Game Game Show Show!
18+ only – IDs will be checked at the door
Limited capacity, line forms one hour prior to showtime
Following DDCCGGSS: Saturday Night Classic Track Irregulars Party!
American Science Fiction Classics
Sunday
7:00p: DC Universe
American Science Fiction and Fantasy Media
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M301-M303
Has the DC Cinematic Universe finally broken its curse? Many question the trend from Superman and BvS, but then we get Wonder Woman, and yet gloomy talk about Justice League. More hints are teased out and Joss Whedon gets his shot at this hero team.
Panelists include: Jeff Burns, Wayland Smith
11:30p: Spaceballs – Thirty Years of Combing the Desert
American Science Fiction Classics
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M103-M105
Revel in the glorious silliness of 1987’s ludicrous-speed Sci-Fi sendup. We are not just doing this panel for the money.
Panelists include: Mike Faber, John Hudgens, Chace Ambrose, Elizabeth Jones, Tegan Hendrickson
(I’ll be in the audience for this one.)
Monday
10:00a: Buffy the Vampire Slayer: 20 Years of Saving the World (A Lot)
American Science Fiction Classics
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M103-M105
From Welcome to the Hellmouth to Chosen, from Beer Bad to The Body, celebrate the classic show about the heroes that monsters have nightmares about.
Panelists include: Melinda Mock, Michael Williams, Sue Kisenwether, KC Ryan-Pierce, Wayne Hutchinson
11:30a: Wonder Woman: Life beyond Themiscyra
American Science Fiction and Fantasy Media
Marriott Marquis, Marquis Level, M301-M303
A look back at the film: what they took from the comic history & where they could go from here. A moment of silence might be offered for Steve Trevor’s sacrifice.
Panelists include: Will Nix, Yvonne McDowell, Beth Verant
(Note: I am listed in the app for “Classic Sci-Fi Roll-a-Panel: 1977 & 1997” at this same time. I’m still in the market for a clone.)
Doctor Who: Arc of Infinity
(4 episodes, s20e01-e04, 1983)
A Time Lord is fooling around with the bio-data extracts of the Doctor and communicating with a mysterious holographic figure, an act that only a High Councilmember can perform. When he is discovered, he kills the security guard and disables the console. On the TARDIS, the Doctor and Nyssa are performing a little maintenance when they start to lose control. The mysterious being that received the Doctor’s biodata attacks the TARDIS and attempts to temporally bond with the Doctor. The attempt fails, and Nyssa discovers that the creature is made from antimatter and is shielded by an area of space called the Arc of Infinity.
On Earth in Amsterdam, two backpackers squat in a crypt at the Frankendael mansion (which is actually a real world place). In the middle of the night, they are awakened by the lights and sounds of a TARDIS materializing. When one of them investigates, he is attacked by a bird-like creature, and the other backpacker runs in fear. He ends up at a hostel where he has a reservation and discovers that his friend was expecting company: His cousin is arriving the next day.
The Time Lord High Council, led by new Lord President Borusa, are investigating the antimatter being and its link to the Doctor. The commander of the Chancellery Guard, a man with a familiar face named Maxil, orders the Doctor’s TARDIS to be recalled to Gallifrey. When it arrives, Maxil arrests the Doctor and Nyssa, and when the Doctor resists, he is shot. Luckily, the gun is set to stun.
What a welcome home. At least the one computer technician is friendly enough to help behind the scenes.
The Doctor and Nyssa are taken to the TARDIS, which Maxil powers down to prevent it from leaving, as the High Council discusses how they could have handled things better than meeting one of their own with guns. Of note, Councilor Hedin is played by Michael Gough, previously the Celestial Toymaker and soon to be Batman‘s butler. He doesn’t seem to age much.
Our remaining backpacker, who we shall call Robin (for that is his name), arrives at the airport to greet his friend’s cousin. His hypnotized friend is named Colin, and the new arrival is none other than Tegan. Robin and Tegan adjourn to a local café to discuss Colin.
Maxil retrieves the Doctor and Nyssa, escorting them by gunpoint to the council chambers. Nyssa, despite being an alien, is welcomed by the High Council. (Speaking of aliens, where are Leela and K9 in all of this?) They discuss the Doctor’s tumultuous history (including Romana’s conspicuous absence, although they don’t use her full name) before detailing the antimatter being’s threat to the universe and how to solve it. Since it is being drawn to the Doctor through his bio-data extracts, the obvious solution is to execute the Doctor. As the Doctor is led away to await execution, Nyssa pleads with the High Council. En route to the TARDIS, the Doctor meets up with Damon, the friendly computer technician, who slips him evidence of a traitor on the High Council.
Damon teams up with Nyssa and arranges to meet with the Doctor. They compare notes (including a mention of Leela) before Commander Maxil shoos the pair away. The order is given to execute the Doctor, and we discover that the antimatter being is in the TARDIS on Earth with Colin. Under the sound of a cloister bell, the Doctor is taken before the High Council and, despite a last minute appeal by Nyssa, given the same treatment as only one Time Lord before: Destruction.
At the exact moment of dispersal, the antimatter being attempts to bond again, and unbeknownst to the High Council, the two are directed into the Matrix. The Doctor’s body, on the other hand, was shielded and hidden by the traitorous councilor. The antimatter being reveals that his is a renegade Time Lord, but leaves the Doctor before explaining further. Meanwhile, Maxil and the Castellan discover that the Doctor survived and begin a search of the TARDIS and the Citadel.
On Earth, Tegan and Robin investigate Colin’s mysterious circumstances. They find the bird creature (an Ergon) and are transported inside the renegade’s TARDIS where they are scanned. The renegade uncovers Tegan’s connection to the Doctor and uses her as leverage to gain the Doctor’s cooperation. The Doctor resists at first, but relents as the renegade tortures Tegan. The Doctor is rematerialized in the Citadel, and the renegade releases Colin as a reward for Tegan’s assistance.
The Castellan analyzes Damon’s evidence, then assembles the High Council to reveal the traitor: Lord President Borusa. As the Castellan weaves a tale of treachery, the Doctor finds Damon and Nyssa in the computer room and makes plans to return to Earth. Meanwhile, the real traitor is revealed through communication to the renegade to be Councilor Hedin.
Oh, Alfred, how could you?
The Doctor and an armed Nyssa race to the TARDIS as Maxil and his guards pursue them. Our heroes come across Hedin, who has Borusa at gunpoint and is demanding access to the Matrix, and are captured by the traitor. Hedin reveals that the renegade is Omega and is going to be transferred to our universe. They are interrupted by the Castellan, who inadvertently kills Hedin and takes aim on the Doctor before being called off. They are all too late, however, as Omega takes control of the Matrix.
The Doctor enters the Matrix and uncovers Tegan’s location. He and Nyssa slip away undetected, return to Earth, and after a lengthy search, they find the crypt. They defeat the Ergon but fail to stop Omega’s transfer into normal matter, revealing an exact duplicate of the Doctor’s appearance. Unfortunately, the transfer was incomplete, and the Doctor, Nyssa, and Tegan chase Omega into the city as the renegade slowly deteriorates. The chase ends at the end of a dock, where the Doctor reluctantly expels Omega back to the antimatter dimension, ending the threat.
After checking on her cousin, Tegan reveals that she has nowhere else to go, and she rejoins the crew of the TARDIS as a willing passenger.
This story got a bit long in the tooth during elements of the chase and the return to Gallifrey, but much of that was absolved in the otherwise solid plot and characters. Definitely a good start to a new season.
Rating: 4/5 – “Would you care for a jelly baby?”
UP NEXT – Doctor Who: Snakedance
The Timestamps Project is an adventure through the televised universe of Doctor Who, story by story, from the beginning of the franchise. For more reviews like this one, please visit the project’s page at Creative Criticality.
Creative Criticality Programming Notes for Dragon Con 2017
Dragon Con approaches, and with that comes some time away to both prepare for and attend the convention. The following programming notes are in effect through Labor Day weekend.
The Weekly Podioplex: The Weekly Podioplex‘s August 22 edition will cover two weeks in releases. The show will return to The Chronic Rift Network for the September 5 edition.
The Timestamps Project: Timestamp 124: Arc of Infinity will publish on August 23. The Timestamps Project will return on September 6 with Timestamp 125: Snakedance.
Fortnight Philosophy: Fortnight Philosophy will be unaffected. The next publication is on August 28.
My Dragon Con schedule will go live right here on Creative Criticality after the convention schedule is made public. T-minus ten days and counting.
Doctor Who: Nineteenth Series Summary
From second best to last place in the span of seven stories.
The Eighteenth Series was remarkable in how it essentially redeemed the Fourth Doctor’s run, coming in tied for silver and even besting that era’s premiere season. The Nineteenth Series saw that high bar, tried to vault it, but face-planted on approach. There were two high points – The Visitation and Earthshock – and one that only appeared high because of the regeneration handicap. In reality, Castrovalva joined Kinda and Time-Flight as average, and the highs were pulled down by Four to Doomsday and Black Orchid.
Unfortunately, that drags everything right back to average.
I have some hope for future series with the removal of Adric (who has been a thorn in my side from his introduction) and the rise of Nyssa and Tegan as proactive companions. I am also optimistic based on the Fifth Doctor’s continued evolution. I’ve liked what I’ve seen from his character, and I’m eager to see how he grows (provided that he is given room to run).
I wish there was more to say, but there’s not much more beyond my already apparent disappointment. This series ties the Third for last place.
Castrovalva – 4
Four to Doomsday – 2
Kinda – 3
The Visitation – 4
Black Orchid – 2
Earthshock – 4
Time-Flight – 3
Series Nineteen Average Rating: 3.1/5
UP NEXT – Doctor Who: Arc of Infinity
The Timestamps Project is an adventure through the televised universe of Doctor Who, story by story, from the beginning of the franchise. For more reviews like this one, please visit the project’s page at Creative Criticality.
Creative Criticality 