Do Not Touch The Walrus

[alexsarll]

So there was enough to Friday that it got its own post, but there's been plenty of other stuff too. Impressive performances by Blood Angels and White Witches, the first semi-civilised sit in the park sociably reading the paper session of the season, and an attempt to celebrate Aug's birthday in spite of the birthday boy being incapacitated (hey, Jesus gets that treatment, and he wasn't even in Lifestyle). Plus - the Horniman Museum, essentially a massive collection of creepy stuff (and some peculiar musical instruments). It is famous for its impressively overstuffed walrus, but the taxidermy hall also contains the severed heads of several dogs and a spare fox for visitors to stroke - though the one item which really took me aback was the poor bloody passenger pigeon. They also had some mice which were still alive, or at least I really hope they were because they were definitely moving. Elsewhere, other items liable to terrify small children (and others) include ritual masks, instruments of torture, and quite the most lively/deathly statue of Kali I have ever seen. Oh, and there's an aquarium in the basement. Obviously. Where else would you keep the furry crabs?
Afterwards we sat in the sun with excitable doggies, and then I got to see how South and West London connect. I always presumed they did somewhere, I just wasn't quite clear on the details before.

Also - Doctor Who! 'The Time of Angels' is the first episode this series which I've seen twice, and the second time it's not just better, it seems shorter - no longer than an episode of the original show. Which is unusual, and brilliant. Rewatching it after the two multi-Doctor anniversary extravaganzas (and a couple of delicious sonic screwdriver cocktails) emphasises how much Troughton there is in Matt Smith's Mr Grumpyface performance, though what makes him truly magnificent is that he has elements of all his other predecessors in there too. And 'Time of Angels' itself...so far we've had Moffat writing an establishing story, simple classic Who. Then we had him writing an incoherent mess of a Rusty-style dystopia. But this is what we'd come to expect from his contributions - creepy, tense, potentially even better at giving kids nightmares than 'Blink'. He's mixed the Weeping Angels in with Aliens and Ring, shaken well, and run off cackling. I love it. But he still has space for mucking about as well, because if you know you can be scary you don't have to be po-faced about it. Hence Mike Skinner, masturbation jokes and that wonderful line about the brakes. I love it.

Comments

[suicideally.livejournal.com]

The weeping angels are properly creepy, probably the best new monsters of new 'Who.

I'm liking the grumpiness of Smith - when Tennant was down he was mopey, Smith instead is grumpy. I do wish he'd knock off the Tennantisms when he's coming up with ideas, though. Although perhaps that's just residual from the changeover, and it'll wear off.

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

I don't really see that much Tennant in him, simply because Tennant was cool in a fairly obvious sense and Smith is so emphatically not. There are odd little moments where the speech patterns remind me, but it's fairly low down in the mix compared to Troughton, Tom Baker or even McGann.

[suicideally.livejournal.com]

It's the speech patterns I notice - he exclaims in the same way.

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Tennant was already pulling a lot of that from Davison, though. Which is what I love, Moffat's insistence that there is only The Doctor, with eleven faces.

[obsessive-katy.livejournal.com]

Ah! The Horniman! Easily one of my favourite museums in London. :)

xx

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

And I like how Forest Hill in general seems to live up to its rather bucolic name.

[obsessive-katy.livejournal.com]

It's one of my favourite places in Lewisham. Although possibly a bit too full of buggies and toddlers.

xx

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

I think we may have had lucky timing to avoid the worst of that.

[mrs-leroy-brown.livejournal.com]

Oh so it really was The Streets dude and not just a dude who looked like him?

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

It really was, out of his gourd on 'hallucinogenic lipstick'. For a change.

[mrs-leroy-brown.livejournal.com]

ha, that was pretty funny.

What was also funny was that, the last few episodes being sorted out in the last 3 minutes or so meant none of us was expecting a two-parter, so we all shouted 'AHHHH!' when it ended and then burst out laughing. Good times, good times.

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

That's one of the things where being a fan can spoil it slightly, because I knew going in that it was a two-parter. Though thankfully I have no idea whatsoever of any details beyond that...

and he wasn't even in Lifestyle

[augstone.livejournal.com]

heh heh.

i'm glad you continued with it anyways.

Re: and he wasn't even in Lifestyle

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Though we made it nowhere near 47 pints, alas.

[sbp.livejournal.com]

The first two episodes of the series were longer, so it feeling shorter might not be an illusion.

[sbp.livejournal.com]

Just hoping part two isn't half full of Doctor angsty speechifying like in a typical RTD one and a half two parter.

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

Surely it would make much more sense to compare it to Moffat's two previous two-parters?

And I know the first episode was special-length, but if the second was longer at all it was only by a matter of a minute or two.

[darkmarcpi.livejournal.com]

I watched Dr Who whilst ill and (thus) have no idea whether I enjoyed it, what happened and whether it was any good or not.

[catbo.livejournal.com]

this, although I'm now considering watching it again, but I'm still ill! oh the dilemma!!!

[barrysarll.livejournal.com]

I don't think I could have coped with this one while ill!