Things appear to be back on track with X-Men: Second Coming Chapter ø7 after the frustrations of last issue. After some time away, I can say that Chapter ø6 was decent despite its imperfections but this week’s installment is solid. Spoilers next.

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The way we watch television has changed so much.  Technology is crazy.  Now we DVR it, watch it on Demand, download it through iTunes, or rent the DVDs.  There are so many ways to avoid watching tv in the traditional way.

There is something that makes me so happy about being able to watch an entire season of a television series from start to finish in one day.  Such a sense of completion.  Half season shows make this even better (easier). Since HBO and Showtime follow different season schedules than most network shows, these have been the easiest shows to do this with.  DVD releases have helped to build premium channels to a whole new level.  HBO released the first season of True Blood on DVD before the second season had started.  The people who had heard about the show from their friends were hooked in time to order HBO before the next season began.

My latest favorite way is Netflix Instant.  Better than DVD’s since usually I can’t get the entire season in one Netflix shipment.  Better than onDemand because I don’t have to listen to loud obnoxious stuff in between episodes as I re-navigate through all the ridiculous of the menus.  Netflix Instant lets me have multiple shows lined up and rate them, maybe to discover a new show that I would think is amazing.  So far, unfortunately, I haven’t thought any of their suggestions are awesome.  To be fair though, I watch A LOT of TV to begin with, so there isn’t much left to suggest.

So!  With my new found free time, I will be making my way through some television.  I am starting with Weeds.  A show I tried to watch once, but clearly couldn’t jump into the middle of.  Expect season by season reviews coming soon.  Also on the schedule is Mad Men.  Any other suggestions are more than welcome.  Especially if they are available through Netflix Instant.

I find Doctor Who most enjoyable when it’s mysterious, full of accidental occurrences, and designed to frighten children (and you can include Angie in that). The Time of Angels has all of this going for it along with the added bonus that it’s part one of a two-part story. Spoilers to follow.

The action centers around one of the most fascinating of the recent additions to The Doctor’s rogues gallery, the Weeping Angels. First introduced in the episode Blink a few years ago, it seemed like it would be difficult to top some of the madness the Angels bring, but the inclusion of the mysterious River Song set the stage for a fantastic episode. From the dynamic and cleverly constructed opening to the seemingly inescapable conclusion, this is the type of episode that should make anyone love this show.

The mystery of River Song deepens as we see that she and The Doctor keep meeting in the “wrong order,” which is especially tragic as viewers saw her demise during her first appearance in the episodes Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead. While she was known as Professor River Song at that time, this River Song is actually a criminal trying to earn a pardon and is thrilled to know she’ll one day receive such a prestigious title.

We learn a great deal about the Weeping Angels from an ancient book about the creatures that is the only writing of its kind. Any image of an Angel becomes an Angel because of their unique nature in the timestream, and this threat includes any mental image. It’s also made clear that staring into the eyes of an Angel can give it influence over the mind of the observer. If the Angels weren’t creepy enough, these concepts add a whole new level of scary.

The inclusion of the military squadron of “clerics” as River’s escort while on work release made for a great dynamic and makes for a great commentary on the future of organized religion. There is a fun twist about the nature of the crash that brought everyone to the planet leaving them all in the gravest of danger.

The return of two of the most intriguing concepts from producer Steven Moffat required an exceptionally strong story and this one does not disappoint. It’s clear that there’s a larger story framework in place that is being masterfully revealed over the course of several seasons. Can’t wait to see what’s in store next week.

More on Doctor Who 2010:
Victory of the Daleks / Flesh and Stone

A new correspondent, Shawn, submitted the following exclusive:

I’ll start by saying I haven’t watched Toy Story 2 recently enough to do the Pixar rankings everyone likes to do. In Toy Story (1995), we met Woody, Buzz and the gang, and Toy Story 2 (1999) was a rescue Woody/Buzz Lightyear’s father story. They are all stories of friendship, loyalty and one’s place in a world of humans who don’t always maintain these traits. True to form, Toy Story 3 is a continuation of these themes. The movie is essentially answering the question of how different types of toys deal with their prime directive of be-played-with-and-make-their-owner-happy as times and people change.

So anyway, since the last movie ended Woody, Buzz and Co. have been concocting schemes to get now college-aged Andy to play with them. For example, they steal Andy’s phone and put it in their toy box so that when he calls it, they’re right there. While cleaning and storing for college, Andy’s mom accidentally puts the toys on the curb for trash collection. They eventually end up in a box bound for daycare, believing Andy abandoned them even though he actually intended to put them in the attic for safe keeping.

At this point, the plot is set in motion as their eventual conflict with Lot-so-Huggin’ bear is set up. Lot-so is the don of Sunnyside, a repository for older, once loved toys. At Sunnyside, toys fulfill their earthly wish for playtime. The rub is, Lot-so runs the place and puts newcomers with the 3 year olds in the Caterpillar Room. The Caterpillar Room is the AAA affiliate of Lot-so’s room of older, gentler children. When you first arrive, you’re put it in there and you can basically expect to get beaten up everyday. Whoever plays the game and survives Caterpillar gets called up. Once in the other room, one can expect to live out a sweet life with the elite. When the not so savory parts of Lot-so’s operation come to light, the gang needs to act.

In my opinion, the movie is another success for Pixar. It has the heart, but isn’t the least bit heavy handed sentimental, which it easily could’ve been. The introduction from the director before the movie talks about he made this movie with individuals my age in mind. I was 6 when this movie came out and it was one of, if not the first, movies I saw in theatres. His thesis was that Andy and the college students in the audience had almost parallel trajectories. Marketing gimmick? Maybe. I don’t much care because it is effective in enhancing how I frame the movie. It continues the Pixar tradition of making kid’s movies that don’t feel like kid’s movies.

The best part about the movie is that it assumes its audience has a connection to these characters and the universe they live in, thereby needing no introductory fluff. Standouts moments from the story include the opening train heist scene between Woody and Potato-head, the Sunnyside henchmen and factory reset Buzz.

Truly, the only gripe I had was a small one with the introduction of Ken, of Barbie fame. By any normal standard he’s a funny minor character and he works in the context of the movie, but I couldn’t help thinking that he was a bit Dreamworksian. I could see Ken in Shrek. If that’s my only problem with the movie I’m guessing I’ll call it a win. Randy Newman music is obviously present but only in “Friend In Me” form.

I guess it goes without saying that the animation in TS3 is fantastic and I can only imagine how much better the eventual 3D release will be. I didn’t notice any moments in the movie that were built for a pop-out 3D moment so I can assume that it will be well integrated into the movie.

But wait, Shawn, doesn’t any self-respecting reviewer always criticize endings? Well, the cut of the movie I saw was called the Cliffhanger Edition because they apparently weren’t done mixing the movie. I saw 70 of a possible 85 some minutes. Therefore, the movie cut to black right before the grand mission was about to jump off so I really can’t say whether they succeed in emancipating themselves from Sunnyside. I can, however, with my history of cinematic analysis, project the most likely ending.

Lot-so sees the writing on the wall and assembles all of his cronies to stop the exodus. Upon seeing Woody leading the charge, he pulls out his sword. Woody enters a Mecha and catches the sword just as it swings toward his head. Lot-so isn’t sure what to do, so he shoots his grapple and we’re led to believe he’s gone. Of course you were led to believe that, but the problem is that he jumps back into frame and is Robo-cop. Woody, knowing he needs to finish Robo-Lotso off before the place explodes, runs toward the top deck of the ship. He climbs the mast and drops a moon-rock on Lot-so. There’s lots of smashed toy blood. The end.

Thanks Shawn!