Review: Dr Who Season 6; Part 1

In the nearly 50 years since it first broadcast there have been 11 different men to play the mysterious Doctor Who.  For me, at the end of last year’s Fifth Season, Matt Smith’s Doctor ranked second to last, only above Paul McGann’s 8^th Doctor and that’s because McGann only had the one two-hour movie.

I don’t lay the blame for my dislike of Smith’s Doctor on the actor, but instead what he was given to work with.  Matt Smith has taken the best parts of all the previous Doctors and come up with something new. 

The Doctor is over 900 years old, has had dozens of companions (mostly human) and has spent the bulk of his known life not only on Earth but defending it from all sorts of invasions, yet, this Doctor seemed to be baffled by even the most simple of human interactions.  I felt as though I’d spent a dozen episodes watching the really smart kid in school, who had a kind of book smarts, but not an ounce of common sense nor the first clue how to relate to the other students. 

After watching Season 6, Part 1 on DVD (on sale now by the BBC) Matt Smith’s 11^th Doctor is now in my top 5 incarnations, somewhere between Colin Bakers criminally too-short run as the 6^th Doctor and Christopher Eccelston’s lonely, tortured 9^th Doctor.

So what’s changed between the two seasons?  Well, The Doctor has settled into his new regeneration for one thing.  Gone is the Doctor who jumps up and down in the middle of the room screaming at the top of his lungs, “Look at me and how wacky and strange I am!”  That has all been replaced with a man who might still be all of those things, but has learned to temper that side of himself.  He is man who feels comfortable with his two companions Amy and Rory.  For the first time that I can remember the Tardis feels like a home and The Doctor has a family.

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Review: Batman: Brave and the Bold Season 1; Part 2

Comic fans are an extremely fickle lot.  Look on any message board and you’ll see page after page of concern among comic readers about the monthly decline in comic sales and how the reading demographic is gradually getting older and older and how we’re not grabbing the younger readers. 

Look a little further down on the same message board and you’ll hear those same fans complain about the latest Batman animated series Batman: The Brave and The Bold.  There will be a chorus of people complaining that it is too campy, that the stories are too light-weight, that Batman is too jokey, that he should work alone for the most part, and that *gasp* Kevin Conroy isn’t doing Batman’s voice! 

Is the dark, gritty, and oft-times depressing Batman: The Animated Series really the best way to introduce new younger readers still in single digits age-wise to Batman?  Wouldn’t a show with a lighter tone and brighter palette that pairs him up with characters from every corner of the DC universe be a better way to go?  Give the kids a taste of what DC has to offer in a fun way and like crack dealers where the first taste is free, the kids will come back and pay for the comics.

Even though this series is aimed at kids, I love it.  The 9 year old in me is has a towel pinned around his neck while jumping on the couch with joy when he hears the theme song and he cannot wait to see who the guest star is that week so getting my copy of Batman: The Brave and the Bold-Season One; Part Two made me a very happy 9 year old.  The adult in me who read the original comic series this cartoon is based on loves not knowing who the guest star that week will be and how Batman interacts with the different characters.  The mentor/apprentice relationship with Blue Beetle, the friendly rivalry with Green Arrow, or his exasperation with the over-enthusiastic Aquaman are all great.

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Preview: Superman/Batman: Apocalypse

Based on the DC Comics series/graphic novel “Superman/Batman: Supergirl” by Jeph Loeb, Michael Turner & Peter Steigerwald, Superman/Batman: Apocalypse is produced by animation legend Bruce Timm
and directed by Lauren Montgomery (Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths) from a script by Academy Award-nominated screenwriter Tab Murphy (Gorillas in the Mist).

In Superman/Batman: Apocalypse, a spaceship splashes down in Gotham City Harbor — leading Batman and Superman to encounter a mysterious Kryptonian with powers as great as those of the Man of Steel. The Kryptonian is soon revealed to be Kara, cousin of Superman, who takes her under his wing to educate her about the ways of Earth. However, the villainous Darkseid has other plans. Seeing an opportunity to finally defeat Superman, Darkseid abducts and gains control of Kara, utilizing the powerful Kryptonian to do his bidding. It’s up to Batman and Superman to save Kara, but they’ll have to take the fight to Darkseid within his hostile world – where unknown, deadly threats lurk around every corner, including a brainwashed Kryptonian able to match Superman blow-for-blow.

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Dark Knight DVD Review

Originally released this year on July 18, The Dark Knight quickly rose to box-office heights dominating at the box office as the undisputed biggest movie event and top grossing film of 2008. Breaking at least two dozen box-office records it eventually settled into a comfortable spot as second-highest grossing movie (at least domestically) of all time. Now set to be re-released on January 23, 2009 the film will set-out to earn more than 1 billion dollars worldwide and gather some well deserved Oscar season buzz. But before all of that, the Bat-signal has shined upon all of us this holiday season with a highly anticipated DVD release especially given the holiday shopping season release.

Let me just say, all of the hype listed above is just window dressing to me. My personal reasons for looking forward to owning this film on DVD is because it is the best Batman movie ever, the best comic book movie ever, and the best movie of any kind I saw in 2008. I don’t think I am alone with those feelings as Apple has recently announced that on the presales alone, The Dark Knight is the biggest selling movie for 2008 on I-Tunes. But enough about how awesome the actually film is (and how we can never be friends if you didn’t really enjoy it) and let’s take a look at what the DVD release is going to have to offer consumers.

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