A Sunday Review

TV this week:

• The Prisoner: "Arrival" - The opening bit with the tribute to the old series was neat. If I thought of this as a remake of the original series, I think I'd probably be very disappointed. As it is, I consider it more of a tribute based on the original.
• The Prisoner: "Harmony" - Convincing Six he belongs by producing his brother. The soap opera is pretty funny. This show is very different than the original. Children, for example.
• The Prisoner: "Anvil" - Dreamers and holes. Lots of symbolism there. I thought the pace was as slow as it could get, but it somehow is getting slower in this episode. Nice bit of a subplot involving 2's son.
• The Prisoner: "Darling" - The woman in New York is matched with Six in the Village. This story is actually getting intriguing. Very odd and stylish. Almost as incomprehensible as the original, but I'm beginning to see glimmers of sense.
• The Prisoner: "Schizoid" - The opening to this episode provided the clues needed to figure out what the Village is. I think I've got it. And there's two of six. Er. Now I'm confused again.
• The Prisoner: "Checkmate" - Ok, I know for sure this isn't The Prisoner, because it actually makes sense at the end. Morally ambiguous, but there is definitely some sense there. To sum up my reaction: If you compare it directly to the old show, you may be disappointed. If you take it as a tribute, you may enjoy it if you can handle the exceedingly slow pace during some parts.


• Ghost Lab: "The Blue Ghost" - Pretty cool that one of the Klingons actually served on the USS Lexington. I don't know that it gives him any special access to the ghosts, but I'm sure the ship itself is less daunting to him. The second location looked like fun, but was definitely less impressive as a place. But then, how do you beat the USS Lexington in sheer scale? Ah well, fun episode.
• Robin Hood: "The King Is Dead, Long Live the King..." - This is a very funny version of King John. I admit, after seeing the previews from the last episode, I looked up the succession to find out how Richard had died... and when. So I wasn't surprised at what this episode turned out to be.
• Robin Hood: "A Dangerous Deal" - No king in this one, but Isabella gets to show lots of true colors. Admittedly, I don't really blame her for going crazy with a husband like that. This show is getting interesting as it comes to an end.
• Doctor Who: "The End of Time: Part 1" - No spoilers, but this wasn't what I was expecting. I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't this. I was slightly disappointed by the pacing and the *ahem* hammering home of the theme. The action, when it happened, was fine. And I'm really squicked out by the cliffhanger. Euuwwww!

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Regarding comic books... I've been informed by DCBS that, due to Diamond's change of schedule that is putting Previews out late, I won't be getting my next shipment of comic books *sent* until the week of Jan 6th, which means I won't have my hands on the books until the 12th at the soonest. My last shipment arrived on Dec 15th, so this is going to be almost a month without comic books! Unusual for me, to say the least. While it's tempting to blame DCBS, I've opted for twice a month shipping and they are determined to make sure I have Previews in time to do orders for January. So December's second shipment, which should contain Previews, will contain Previews. But it's really rather annoying.

So here's a moral quandry for you. I have already purchased and paid for the comic books in the shipment. Would it be immoral for me to hunt down scans of those comics from the nasty scan traders and read them on my computer ahead of receiving them at my house? I'm not inclined to do so because it hurts my eyes to read comics on my computer, but I wonder how many think it would be moral versus immoral?

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My library book this week was Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot and Other Observations by Al Franken. I was mildly interested in this book when it came out about 15 years ago, but the title put me off reading it. Now that Franken is a Senator, I thought I'd go back and take a look at it. I've read one Franken book before, I can't remember which one, and was very impressed by the sheer amount of research he'd done. The book substantiated every fact with notes on where it came from, and made clear when Franken was joking versus when he was serious. This book is the same. Franken has a lot to dish out, and makes sure you know the sources of his tidbits. While he may take things out of context, it's impossible to tell, he usually gives enough that the evidence he presents seems fairly damning to those he's quoting. There's an index in this book, and footnotes that aren't all silly (although a lot of them are). The jokes are mildly funny, even being a decade stale. And I'm surprised at just how much of the book applies to what is happening in politics today. Again, this book is silly. It's a comedian's take on politics... but then, jesters were said to be the only ones who could speak the truth. I think Franken proves it here. I may just have to seek out more of his writing, and probably will have to look up some of the quotes he includes in here to see if he gave enough context. But then, some of those quotes are pretty damning in any context. Note: Yes, I am aware that he made up some quotes, but he's pretty clear on which ones are fake and which are real, if you have an IQ over 10 and any level of reading comprehension.

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Past Sunday Reviews -- Comics at Amazon.com -- Previews -- My Wishlist