River Song: The Doctor Who version of Marmite

When River Song (played primarily by Alex Kingston) was first introduced to the series as an experienced future companion of the Doctor in the series 4 episodes "Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead" I thought she was a fantastic character. One of Steven Moffat's coolest creations for the new show since it relaunched in 2005.
When the character was introduced, much about her origins remained a mystery with only little bits of what could happen in the future being shared. Personally I never thought we would see her again after these two episodes with the 10th Doctor and that she was a character to forever go down in Who history as one of these great unanswered mystery's.

But alas I was wrong.

When Steven Moffat took over as the main producer of the show the first thing he did was reintroduce her. In itself not a problem BUT if I'd known he was going to spend his first two years of the show dedicating most of it to her I would of given it serious thought about not bothering to watch again.
No. I'm kidding, I was never going to stop watching the show but I just found myself turning into one of the very people that normally get on my nerves.


Now before you point out to me that River really hasn't been in that many episodes I'd ask you to look below.

The following is a list of appearances by River Song. All appearances feature her final incarnation, with other incarnations specified.

Series 4

Silence in the Library / Forest of the Dead
Journey's End - Flashback only (archive footage).

Series 5

The Time of Angels / Flesh and Stone
The Pandorica Opens / The Big Bang

Series 6

The Impossible Astronaut / Day of the Moon (appeared as River Song and as a little girl)
A Good Man Goes to War / Let's Kill Hitler (appeared as a baby, Mels and River Song)/The Wedding Of River Song.

As you can see above she has had nearly a whole season of shows dedicated to her and if you go back and watch them it becomes more and more obvious (like I've been convinced for a while now) that Moffat is just making it up as he goes a long.
I was pleased to see that I wasn't the only one who thought this as well having read that The Daily Telegraph Journalist Neil McCormick also thought that her sudden introduction as Rory and Amy's childhood friend in "Lets Kill Hitler" proved to me that Moffat was making it up as he went along. This was obvious by the time we reached the season six finale"The Wedding Of River Song".


I had so much faith when Moffat took over the show I now long for the return of Russell T Davies because at least he didn't try to come across as smug and smart in his story arcs leaving a lot of people confused and frustrated in the process.

The sooner River Song goes the better. I would say hurry up and kill her off but we already know when that happens don't we.

One last thing. I think 2000AD Artist Christ Weston sums up the show at the moment very nicely.

"Doctor Who seems to be doing its best to alienate the casual viewer and frustrate the faithful... it's convoluted and complicated, but in much the same way a toddler's scribbles can be.
It's as if the creators can't trust the viewers to stay hooked just through quality... It's like having a kid screaming, 'I know something you don't know … but I'm not telling' in your face non-stop for 45 minutes."

Spot on.

Avengers Assemble is BRILLIANT!

*SPOILERS AHEAD - YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED*

Wow! I mean WOW!
When I first saw The Avengers I couldn't stop smiling from ear to ear. Annoyingly in the UK it was renamed Avengers Assemble because as British people we are all easily confused and might mistake it for The Avengers that had John Steed & Emma Peel in. Really?
It's not often a film leaves you on such a high you end up smiling for hours and hours but my word Joss Wheadon's film managed it. This truly is one of the best Superhero films I've ever seen. Some of you may think I'm overreacting. If you know me personally you will know I take my superhero love seriously so this isn't just a random statement from me. I've been waiting for this film ever since Samuel L Jackson's Nick Fury turned up at the end of 2008's Iron Man (starring Robert Downey Jr.) to tell him about his 'Avengers Initiative'. Since then we have had a new Hulk film, a sequel to Iron Man, A Thor film and finally a Captain America film all leading up to this ultimate moment and I was so excited when it finally arrived I'd been awake since about 4am waiting to see it the day I went.
 Make no mistake in thinking Chris Evans (Captain America), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow) and Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye)are overshadowed by Robert Downey Jr. as this just isn't the case. All of the team have their own little story going on and they all share equal screen time and have vital roles to play within the film.

The actor who I'd been most curious about since the film went into production had to be the new fellow to play Hulk. To be honest I'd not heard of Mark Ruffalo before but I'm glad to say he's great as Bruce Banner. You actually believe he is a genius who has his other persona under control until the moment he actually doesn't and becomes Hulk. The Hulk himself looks amazing and is a fantastic sight to look at.
 In my honest opinion it's the best depiction of the character on screen so far. I think it helped that Ruffalo himself did the motion capture work for Hulk as it made him even more realistic. It's also cool that Lou Ferrigno (a childhood gero of mine and Hulk in the tv series) did the voice like he did in The Incredible Hulk. When Thor and The Hulk stop smashing some Chitauri soldiers inside a building, and are standing side by side, The Hulk gives him a backhand, sending Thor across the room. Hilarious! I also enjoyed the smack down he gave Tom Hiddleston's Loki near the end of the film."Puny God!". It's funny how they got all the same actors back from the other films, and it's the new guy that walks away with the film.

This film also had an emotional kick to it. I always get choked up at Superhero films these days but Agent Coulson dying was heartbreaking for me. For a character that had only turned up in past films very briefly it was really a kick in the guts when Loki killed him. He was the last character I expected to die. I suppose that was the point really. Clark Gregg who played him created a memorable character. Strangely enough though I've read that he may be set to return in a possible Nick Fury film and even Iron Man 3. How true this is I don't know but for now I'll take it with a pinch of salt. I can't help but think this would cheapen the characters death.

Joss Wheadon's done a fantastic job as director. He's a huge fan of Marvel characters himself which as it turns out made this film even more awesome. I always find it a bit worrying when a writer, director or producer have a personal interest in the subject matter as they can be blinkered to what THEY want to see on screen and not what could be good for the story. I'm pleased to say this isn't the case. I've only ever watched his Buffy & Angel work but you can see his humour and style coming through in this. I'm glad he is set to direct the sequel.


And in case you were wondering  that was Thanos that appeared in the mid-credit scene of the film. His appearance according to Whedon is setting up the next block of films to star The Avenger cast. Exciting.

At the moment and in my opinion this is the second best comic book movie after Richard Donner's Superman. I change my mind about such things on a daily basis though so I wouldn't take it as gospel. It's definitely up there though as one of my favourites.

HULK SMASH!!!

The Governor is coming - What I think about him arriving in The Walking Dead

When it was announced earlier this year that the character The Governor would be featuring in season 3 of The Walking Dead and that english actor David Morrissey had been cast in the role of the comics most notorious villain I was completely gobsmacked. Not because I thought it was a terrible choice but I wondered how on earth they were going to bring the story of Philip Blake (The Governor) to the tv show without toning it down.

I'll come back to that in a minute though.

Regarding David Morrissey I'm really excited about seeing him take on the role. I know a lot of people have only seen him star alongside David Tennant in "The Next Doctor", the 2008 Christmas special of Doctor Who, playing Jackson Lake. But he's also been in many other hit shows and in films such as Some Voices, Captain Corelli's Mandolin, before he played the critically acclaimed roles of Stephen Collins in State of Play. He was also in... erm... Basic Instinct 2.
I know some of our American brothers are not happy with his casting as they seem to think he doesn't look "evil" enough but if you know the character and how he starts out then you will understand he isn't meant to look evil.

If you have never read the comics I don't really want to spoil it for you but if you are interested then take a look  at The Walking Dead Wiki's page for the comic book character. Put it this way though. It's one of the most brutal storylines I've ever read in a comic and that's not because it involves zombies either. I can't help but wonder how gruesome they are going to get with the Governor storyline on the tv show?
An American TV journalist and fan of the comic has pointed out that although AMC are pretty relaxed with what they allow in their shows they are going to piss a lot of people of either way by adding too much brutality or cutting it out near enough completely which would annoy fans of the comic. Lucky enough though I came across this quote from comic creator and producer of the TV show Robert Kirkman regarding what is coming up in season 3.

Can the dark tone of the comic be matched on the TV series? Some of the stuff with the Governor was pretty intense; how far can you take that on TV?

Kirkman: There are certain boundaries for different mediums. I think that having the month long break between issue to issue or the 6 month break between volume to volume — you can push boundaries to a certain extent on a regular basis, more so than you can on a television show. So there might be instances where we go as dark as the comic in the show, but then we cut short and try to do something else and try to shift gears. People on a couch want to be entertained, they don’t want to be completely depressed. That said, we’re definitely going to go to those places.

There are some things coming up in the 3rd season that I can happily and proudly say exceed some of the darkest things that we’ve done in the comic. I think people are really going to be pretty shocked with a lot of stuff that’s coming. The show is gonna have teeth, the show is not going to be a watered down version of the Walking Dead [comic].

After reading that I must say Kirkman has put my mind at rest.
If you are only a fan of the TV show though I'd suggest before season 3 hits screens you get hold of the novel which came out last year called 'The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor'. It depicts The Governor's struggle to survive the zombie apocalypse with his brother, his daughter and their friends before the events of the comic book and I'm guessing now the TV show as well.



Have faith people.

Daryl Dixon - Redneck Jedi and best thing about The Walking Dead

***This blog does contain minor and predicted spoilers for season 3 of The Walking Dead***

Cool Dude.

The Washington Post called him a "Redneck Jedi" and I have to agree with them. Daryl Dixon is without a doubt my favourite character in the TV adaption of The Walking Dead. For people that have never read the graphic novels it may or may not surprise you to know that the character never featured in them. He was created by original show producer Frank Darabont specifically for Norman Reedus after he auditioned for the role of Merle Dixon (which went to the great Michael Rooker). I think Norman Reedus does a great job as Daryl and the character has grown so much over the last 2 seasons I believe he will have an even bigger part to play come the return of the show in October.

Cool drawing of Daryl in comic book form.

We have seen Daryl go from an unpredictable outsider in season one to being Rick's right-hand man by the end of season 2. This made me wonder how exactly his character will grow in season 3. I've seen people say on line that with Shane's death, Daryl may fill the role as Rick's right-hand man similar to how Tyreese did in the comics. As I say above I think we already start to see this in the final episode of season 2.

So how will his character grow in season 3 I hear you ask?

Simple. His brother Merle has already been confirmed as returning. And we know the prison and the Woodbury township storyline will feature and David Morrissey has been cast as the evil Governor (I'll blog about that later in the week). As we know now Merle is an ally of the man himself.
I also find myself wondering if there will come a time in season 3 when Daryl has to choose between  loyalty for his brother and his loyalty for Rick and the group. Remember in the season 2 finale Daryl told Carol how he thought Rick had honor and that he trusted him. I can see this being severely put to the test when his and Merle's paths cross again.

Should we be preparing to gear ourselves up for Daryl's sudden betrayal of the group? I'd like to think this won't happen but knowing how unpredictable the show is it wouldn't surprise me if it did.

What do you think?

Dodger loved End of the Road Festival 2012...

So the weekend of the 31st August-3rd of September saw me and friends attended the End of the Road Festival 2012 for the second time. The End of the Road Festival is an annual music festival which focuses on alternative music. It is hosted at the Larmer Tree Gardens on the border of north Dorset and Wiltshire.
The festival is run over four stages: the Woods Stage, the Garden Stage, the Big Top Stage and the Tipi Tent, as well as a clearing in the woods around the Garden Stage containing a piano at which semi-secret sets take place. There are also children's areas and workshops, a healing field, a film tent, comedy, a library in the forest and a games area (ping pong, table football etc). Due to the nature of the gardens the festival is set in it is not unlikely to see peacocks wandering around the area and parrots in the trees.
The thing that I love about EoTR is it's virtually in the middle of nowhere. It's great how you really need a car to get there as it made it feel more private and special.
Camping isn't overcrowded either. There are plenty of room to just chill out.
In the main event areas it's relaxed and not overcrowded. There's a wonderful atmosphere and a real feeling of community. Compared to the other festivals I've been to this really is a family affair. All sorts of people are at EoTR. Parents with children, couples, people going solo and mates (the category I fell into) just chilling out listening to music. It's wonderful just to lay down on the grass and listen to bands.

Graham Coxon

Unfortunately there were a few downers for me. Nothing serious The longest gap between poos was 26hrs and the couple in the tent next to me who clearly didn't realise how loud they were while getting jiggy. It didn't help she made the strangest sex noises ever. Like a dying giraffe getting bummed.
The highlight's by far though were Graham Coxon, Alabama Shakes, Grandaddy, Comedians Tony Law & Patrick Monahan.
Of course there are other bands that I enjoyed over the weekend but I've only ever seen Coxon with Blur and there was something special for me about seeing Grandaddy. I also can't praise Alabama Shakes enough. A brilliant band I'll be checking out more in the future.
The best thing of all about this weekend after the music has to be that kids and drunken adults can share the same spaces without bloodshed and no one set fire to anything like at certain other festivals I don't care to mention. for anyone who’s never been grab a ticket for next year asap and enjoy a different festival experience. I'll be going back in 2013 for sure.