effex | Stuff about things (Reply)

And now, some random commentary on:

(Note: There Be Spoilers Here)

How to Train Your Dragon

Several people on my flist/rlist and also my brother were really excited about HtTYD, so I was looking forward to seeing it. Now that I have, I've gotta say:

* There were some amazing, amazing sky sequences (when the dino!dragon was flying up into the clouds and we pull waaaaaay back and just, guh) and everything looked great and moved well and it was generally a good example of quality computer animation.

* There was not a drop of original storytelling in this film. It was paint by numbers/cookie cutter/fill in the blanks/a million other cliches that appropriate because the film was, itself, a giant cliche. White/straight/boy is ~different~ and outcast and also the son of the leader, blahblah meets dragon, blahblah training sequence, blahblah sudden popularity and acceptance by father but it's not real you guys, he's living a lie, blahblah discovery by love interest, discovery by general population, fight with dad, rushing to save the day and prove himself and so on and so forth until he saves the day, wins the girl, and sways the hearts and minds of the populace. And then it closes with a rephrase of the opening monologue because it's cyclical you guys.

None of the characters were allowed to be anything other then their archetypes, no one was allowed to do anything interesting or new.

I appreciate that the genders were more balanced then normal in the background - some men and women left to fight, some men and women stayed behind, the village elder was a woman, the Object of Sentimental Value and Symbolic Fatherly Approval was passed down from Hiccup's grandmother, etc. But our main character was still a dude who got the adventure, the prettiest dragon, the mad dragon-whispering skillz, and the day-saving while his love interest was the girl who couldn't quite match up.

Castle

Castle, I love you - I love your characters, I love your actors, I was mostly okay with the relationships you were building - but you've got to do better then this. It's like someone gave you a cliche hat for Christmas and you decided to replace your writers with it. I rolled my eyes at the Sexy! Deviant! S&M! episode, I rolled my eyes at the Serial Killer! Obsessed with Beckett! Mind games! two parter, I said unkind words regarding the Mayan Mummy! ANCIENT CURSE! episode, and actually the Late Night Host episode was okay (except for the bit with the actress sleeping around to get work. And Castle checking to see if Alexis 'really means that' when she said she missed him because obviously all women are liars. Perhaps 'okay' is too high a rating).

But last weeks episode was fucking ridiculous. I mean, we finally get some background on Esposito and 'my last partner was killed by the mob but we never found the body OMG he's alive and working for the mob OMG WAIT he's innocent and living undercover to clear his name' is what you go with? Really?

Also, I'm tired of the UST between Castle and Beckett. I was tired of it when the show started (because it's been done over and over and over, Castle, have you never seen another cop show?) and it hasn't gotten any better. Castle and Beckett do not actually have any chemistry, they don't, and hamhanded hints at jealousy, everybody being 'you two are totes together/why aren't you together' (subtle!), and now this attempt at a love triangle isn't going to make things work. Be daring! Let them be best friends!

I did have a fun shipper moment at Ryan's >:( face when Esposito was introducing Mr. Love Triangle, though.

And what was up with Esposito saying 'This is my partner, Ryan, and this is my other partner, Castle' to his old partner?

And why the hell did they go out of their way to tell us 'no, Ryan totally has a girlfriend, look here she is' if they're never going to show or mention her again?

All that said, yay, new Castle tonight! [crosses fingers]

Doctor Who

* I love, love, love Dr Who - it's one of my it fandoms, the ones that make you happy just by existing. It's also the only fandom that's made me cry on multiple occasions (although I'm unsure as whether or not to include the crying I did at the end of Children of Earth). Which is not to say I am unaware of it's flaws - it has many! It's never handled race particularly well, for one, and also Donna and Martha got fucked over. But we're here to talk about season 5.

* I'm totally behind Matt Smith as Eleven (Ten's extended swansong rid me of any lingering apprehension. 'Just die, Ten, this is not a fucking opera!') and I'm really happy with the job he's done so far - he's really nailed the 'ancient being in a young man's body' thing. I love that he's kinder, that he makes mistakes and then learns from them, and that he seems to have found some peace.

* I also a fan of Amy Pond - I love that the Doctor screwed her over multiple times before she even became a companion, I love that she still went with him, that she's using him to run from something, that she's whip smart and clever, and that their budding relationship seems to be along grandchild/grandparent lines (thank you, Moffet. So much).

* I have enjoyed all the episodes so far! Yes, even the Dalek Power Ranger episode (WW2 fighter planes in spaaaaaaa~ce). The most recent one was fantastic - I did not think the Weeping Angels could be as scary the second time around but I WAS WRONG, SO WRONG. My chat window with

nepenthe basically looked like ghruepgurpwbgHOSHITshiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiitfspgbureipgbrueiAAAAAH the entire time.

* Although, show - there were only two black dudes in the entire episode? And you sent them off to die first? And neither of them even got to be Angel Bob? That is fucked up.

* I don't like River Song - I disliked her in the Library episode and I dislike her now - and I'm torn as to why. Is she actually awesome and I'm just having an internalized misogynistic reaction to a woman who is 'too good', 'too married to my Doctor,' and 'too good at putting him in his place'? Or is it a genuine dislike for a character that's badly written and is being used to tell me things about the Doctor Who mythos I'd rather not know? [sighs] It's probably somewhere in between.

Hayate x Blade v6

* Was awesome!

* Seriously, I was just :DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD all the way through both read-throughs.

* Have I mentioned you should read Hayate x Blade?

Ooh,