Batman: The Animated Series- Mudslide

 "It seems that Clayface is losing his integrity."

"I wasn't aware that he had any to begin with."

So that's the end of Clayface? I may be wrong, but it's surprising. The character doesn't seem to have appeared much.

I have to say this episode, while structurally seeming to be well constructed (unlike Clayface himself!), doesn't quite work for me. Stella is quite sympathetic, yes, but she's just the trope of the girl who falls in love with a bad boy. And Hagen... well, he isn't sympathetic at all. Indeed, the moment where he smashes the telly even gives domestic violence vibes. So a tragic ending for him isn't going to work.

Still, the concept of his having to steal in order to fund the expensive business of staying alive sort of works, there are some good set pieces, and there's a sort of nice mini-mystery about Stella's identity. But the whole thing doesn't quite work, basically because it just doesn't really generate any pathos. 

And Batman sabotaging Clayface's cure... why? The stolen stuff is a sunk cost by then, anyway, and it's just plain immoral. Not only do we not have much sympathy for Clayface, but Batman himself is certainly no hero here.

A rare misfire.

Des: Episode 3

 "I could never have stopped..."

And it ends with a highly dramatic and entertaining courtroom drama, with twists and turns throughout until we reach the relief of the guilty verdict, a majority (but not all) of the jury rejecting Nielsen's claims of diminished responsibility.

Yet there's more to it that that. This is a deeply ethical episode of television that focuses heavily on the suffering of the victims, and those who mourn them. Neither we nor Peter Jay can fault the anger of the widow who's ex is not getting justice. Then there's Carl, a deeply traumatised survivor, who endures vile homophobic abuse not only outside the court but inside the witness box.

Also, though, it becomes disturbingly clear how Nilsen is controlling the whole narrative, despite the outcome, everything proceeding on his terms, including his acceptance of the verdict. And it's satisfying to see Brian Masters not only come to realise this, but to assert control in how he frames his biography, firmly stating that it's not about Nilsen's ego, but a "warning".

Nilsen may be charming when he wants to be, he may be unassuming. He may quote Cervantes. But he's also a deeply controlling monster who destroyed lives and caused untold suffering. This drama, and this final episode, examine this superbly and tastefully.

And, yet again, David Tennant is magnificent.

Dexter: Dex, Lies and Videotape

 "What step was that?"

"The naughty one!"

So... Dexter gets away with deleting the marina footage by the old fire alarm trick. Easy... and, perhaps, a bit of a cheat, given the weight put on this at the end of last episode. But not all problems are so easily solved. Doakes is getting very persistent in his suspicions now. Dexter can deal with this by partly confiding in LaGuerta, of course. And she has reasons to be concerned about Doakes' obsessiveness... and yes, it's confirmed: they're exes, with a past. Quite the conflict of interest in her being his boss, then.

I suspect Doakes will, in the long run, keep being persistent, and it won't end well for him. But, yet again, we ought to remember: he's right. And he may be the antagonist but he's not the bad guy. Dexter is.

And Dexter has another problem now: a vengeful ex-mother-in-law. Choosing the somewhat wild femme fatale Lila over decent, dependable Rita is certainly most unwise of him, to say nothing of the morality. He's been emotionally cheating on her for a while, confiding things to Lila and not to Rita. And now, after Rita gets the wrong end of the stick, he actually does literally cheat on her... and admit it. Wow.

Lila bonds with him much better. He can be a closer approximation of his true self with her. But... I'm full of foreboding.

We have more bonding between Deb and Lundy, who seems to be morphing into something of a father figure. And it's being made teasingly ambiguous that he may suspect Dexter. I suspect they'll string this out for quite a while.

Oh, and then there's the copycat killer, played by Monroe from Grimm. Dexter protests rather too much when he insists that his murders are "principled" and this man's are not. It's becoming increasingly emphasises that even Harry didn't actually have a "code", much less Dexter. But scenes like this are deliciously revealing.

Another excellent episode, with some cleverly nuanced scripting. And it's the perfect balance between having us accept Dexter as the protagonist while always reminding us that, if this show has a hero, it's certainly not him.

Skyfall (2012)

 "You were expecting an exploding pen?"

And so here we reach unexplored territory for me- until yesterday, I hadn't seen any James Bond films since Quantum of Solace because... well, you know. But this, the very next film, is an absolutely superb return to form, and I'm not only talking about the brilliant theme song.

One of the things you tend to notice at the start of a film, before you get "used" to it, is the artiness of the direction, the composition of the shots, the camera angles, that sort of thing. And yes, Sam Mendes shoots this film very creatively. And yet at no point does he forget that he's shooting an action film. The set pieces, the action sequences, they're particularly magnificent in this film and that's down to Mendes.

The script is superb too, though. This is a Bond who's getting older, past his peak, but determined to keep going. We have a new Q, more of a computer whiz than a purveyor of gadgets- nice idea, but let's see how long that lasts. This is M's swansong, of course, with Judi Dench doing a bloody good death scene and Ralph Fiennes taking over as the new M to whose name, shockingly, we are actually made privy.

Oh yes, and there's Eve. I like the reveal about her at the end... and it's a new spin on the character to have her be a former field agent. Even the villain has motives that are closer to home. Indeed, while this is in some ways a typical Bond film on the surface, with big action sequences in Istanbul and Shanghai, it's fundamentally more about character, with the climax being a siege in Bond's rather posh childhood home. And yet, still, it never forgets that it's an action film.

This is the best Bond film in a very long time.

Batman: The Animated Series- The Man Who Killed Batman

 "Without Batman, crime has no punchline."

We begin with rain, with night-time darkness, with interesting camera angles giving a very noir feel, matching the '40s fashions and cars for which the Animated Series is known. And a small time crook, one Sidney Debris, face drawn in that slightly cartoonish way of which the Animated series can be fond, seems to have killed Batman, in circumstances which he relates to Rupert Thorne, and to us.

This is one op those episodes that are "Batman-lite", and are told from a specific perspective. Such episodes are often among the best, and this is certainly no exception.

Debris, except in his head, is a hopeless loser. Set up to take the fall, he accidentally seems to kill Batman, but the fame proves too much for this mouse of a man. Violence, suspicion, a dangerous encounter with a fascinating nuanced and unstable Joker (by this point the character of the Joker, and his rapport with Harley Quinn, is very interesting), all drives him to desperately seek help from Thorne.

And here we have the two clever twists that really make the episode: Thorne doesn't believe him, thinking him a dangerous rival and, less surprisingly, Batman is not in fact dead (interestingly, not only Montoya but also Bullock must presumably have been in on it) but using Debris as a reward to get to Thorne. It's all delightfully clever, and the ending- Debris finding respect as a big man in prison- is perfect.

As is, perhaps, the episode itself.

Des: Episode 2

 "Death gives no refunds..."

Yes, I know, I don't usually blog the same programme on consecutive days, but this time I have, so nyeeer. Something different next time, though, I promise!

Another superb bit of telly here, and another superlative performance from David Tennant, adding further layers. Dennis Nilsen is still the paradoxical monster with principles from last episode, yet this time he's more sinister and controlling... indeed, a very controlling man, co-operating (or not) on his own terms. It was he who complained about his drains in the first place, wanting to be caught: he's been trying to curate the whole thing. And then the curveball at the end, as the trial begins and he unexpectedly tries to plead not guilty.

Yet at the same time he's... well, DI Peter Jay describes him to the press as "unassuming". And this is nevertheless a man who loves his dog. Brian Masters uncovers certain things about Nilsen's past for his book (a real book, which no doubt garnered many extra sales from this series), but quite rightly resists the urge to draw conclusions. And Masters' own motives eventually become clear: the definitive book on Nilsen's crimes must come from within the gay community in such deeply homophobic times.

The other cause of conflict here is Peter's desire to identify all fifteen victims and the reality that the police are a public service like any other and must justify their costs. With six victims identified... six murders will put Nilsen behind bars forever. It's the right decision, awful though it is, to end the investigation there. But, after they identify a seventh victim too late to prosecute, we see the human cost as Peter has to explain this to the devastated widow. This series refuses to glamorise the killer and puts the victims first, always.

If anything, this episode is even better than the first. Very impressive indeed.

Des: Episode 1

 "How didn't we know?"

The first thing to say about this dramatisation of the investigation into the appalling crimes of Dennis Nilsen is that David Tennant is utterly spellbinding as this calm, seemingly ordinary and unassuming, polite and even cultured man who committed fifteen violent murders. The character is, of course, fascinating- a disarmingly articulate, thoughtful monster, by no means without compassion for his victims ("This bloody government does nothing for them"), with an integrity of sorts and determined to assist the police in unearthing the truth as well as he can, even to the point of dismissing his solicitor. And yet... a monster.

Yet also at fault is the harsh, uncaring nature of London in the early 1980s. Far from its roads being paved with gold, it sucks in the young and vulnerable, exploits and abuses them... to the point where fifteen young men can disappear and not be missed.

Also interesting is DI Peter Jay (it annoys me that the programme has journalists address him as "detective" rather than "inspector", which didn't and doesn't happen in the UK, especially as the attention to detail seems very good), a very human copper whose wife won't let him see his kids seemingly for no good reason. And then there's Jason Watkins' interesting Brian Masters, who seems not only fascinated by this young serial killer but determined to understand him.

A promising start, then, very wisely showing everything from the point of view of the investigation. Yet the moment that lingers in the mind is one of deep humanity, as Stephen Sinclair's parents learn the unthinkable truth of what happened to their son. And that's this episode's big strength- that focus on humanity over sensationalism.

Dexter: The Dark Defender

 "Should we call the Super Friends for help?"

So... that was an actual armadillo. Wow! Very strange for this Brit to think of one of those as a creature that might find its way into one's home. A hedgehog it is not.

Anyway, basically another top episode, and as ever it's a fascinating one in terms of where this is all going.

Dexter likes a queue.... yeah, that fits. But we also have an interesting sibling chat: Deb really has it in for the "Bay Harbour Butcher". But others (naturally occurring overheard vox pops) approve of him, probably hangers and floggers and people who loved Chuck Dixon's run on The Punisher. But it's an interesting binary, the divided attitudes.

And then we get a murder in a comic shop, as Sophie Ellis-Bextor didn't quite sing. And this riffs on that very contrast- is Dexter the "Dark Defender", a kind of Shadow/Mr A figure straight from pulp fiction or the Objectivism-addled mind of Steve Ditko, or is he just the "Bay Harbour Butcher", a common or garden serial killer?

There are other sub-plots. LaGuerta and Doakes are having a bit of an arc, with her very much concerned about his developing habit of shooting people, and... is it implied that they used to be a couple? Then there's deb's trust issues with Gabriel, and her interesting dynamic with her eccentric widower of a boss.

But really, as was always going to happen, this is about Dexter, and his flashback to his mum's murder opens a couple of cans of squirming invertebrates. Firstly... Harry not only slept with his mum but used her as bait and got her killed! If even Harry is deeply flawed, can there be any stability in Dexter's world. And he confides not in Rita, but Lila, who understands him more... and is as abnormal as he is. And so she is involved in his need to confront the surviving killer and get "closure".

I'm sure there will be consequences in the aftermath of said confrontation... not least in him getting closer to Lila. Especially after her confession to, effectively, murder by arson, but of someone bad in the same way as Dexter's victims. So suddenly these two have even more in common... but Lila is dangerous. She's chaos. Calling it now: she's going to die. But not before she and Dexter break poor Rita's heart.

Poor Rita. All the loyalty she's showing, sticking up for Dexter with her mum... by the rules of television drama, she's going to end up sooo heartbroken.

And that ending... oh dear. Another utterly gripping episode.

Gen V: Justice Never Forgets

"Today, as you are inducted into our sacred brotherhood, our legacy, it would do you well to remember our three trinities: wisdom, honour and dignity. Now take off your pants."

A confession: it's taken me until the second episode of Season Two to work out that "Gen V" is a semi-pun, supposed to rhyme with "Gen Z", as my British brain thinks "Gen Zed" and not "Gen Zee". But I get it now...

Anyway, another top episode. Lots happens, of course, but the worldbuilding is superb, as ever, gloriously skewering MAGA with aplomb as the orange fascist runs amok in the real world. Firecracker's broadcast about Cate is chilling, but not as much as Modesty Monarch, a "trad supe." Brr. And all that Nazi and Klan stuff in the secret room within the archive... this is dark, but that's what MAGA is. And then there's Emma telling Marie, truthfully, that going back to uni and being very, very visible is her only real defence against being disappeared by some supe version of ICE.

We get revelations about Andre, who seemingly suffered from the same condition as his father, hence his death. We have a lovely scene with Marie and Jordan reconciling, mourning, forgiving and reconnecting... literally, and heartwarmingly. We get the Rememberer, a great little character. We get another reminder of how those American frat societies are creepy, weird and deeply, deeply wrong. We get the Deep spouting Lost Cause bollocks.

There are lots of little nuances and, yeah, a bit reveal at the end. But mostly it's the mood, the world, the grim humour and, most of all, the characters.

So what exactly is this with Marie...?

Silver Blaze

"That was the curious incident..."

This thirty minute curiosity is a one-off, produced in November 1977 under the auspices of an anthology programme, The Sunday Drama. It's an adaptation of what, I believe, is considered to be one of the more cleverly plotted of Conan Doyle's short stories featuring Sherlock Holmes.

I won't discuss the plot here- either it will be familiar to you, or I'll risk spoilers. I'll confine myself to saying that this is a very faithful, straightforward version, and very well done indeed, with some nice visual touches- the exposition at the start is done with an admirable economy, in particular. It's an excellent version of the tale.

Thorley Walters is a perfectly good Watson, if a little traditional. But the real standout is Christopher Plummer as Holmes. I've seen his only other attempt at the role, in the slightly later film Murder by Decree. But, unlike that film, this is a faithfully and straightforwardly written version of the character, and allows Plummer to show what he can truly do with the part. He doesn't disappoint, showing us a playful yet focused Holmes.

I had to roll my eyes at the predictable pipe and deerstalker, but I enjoyed this little curiosity very much.

Batman: The Animated Series- Off Balance

 "As you said, detective... this is not over!"

This is a magnificent episode. An exciting story, a clever twist, Helen Slater (Supergirl herself!) and a nod to the fact that Gotham City is a kind of fictional knock-off of New York City by featuring a knock-off Statue of Liberty in the opening set piece... this one has it all. 

The conceit is delicious- a kind of criminal cult called the Society of Shadows, with eyes everywhere, which kills anyone who spills its secrets and whose agents use a mind-erasing drug when captured. Already this is intriguing. But they are led by a chap called Vertigo, whose powers induce a particularly trippy version of just that, combined with a penchant for set piece booby traps. And naturally this shadowy organisation is after Wayne Enterprises' latest MacGuffin.

Even more intriguing, though, is a lady of ambiguous loyalties who eventually saves Batman, healing him, and seeing who he is beneath the mask, apparently a friend... but then she gives her name: Talia. And yeah, at that point I knew.

It was still enormous fun to see how the episode ending, though, with Talia proving to be loyal neither to the law nor to Vertigo... but to her father, Ra's al Ghul. About bloody time...

And I love the fact that the title is a pun.

Animal Crackers (1930)

 "Well, not all the jokes can be good. You have to expect that once in a while."

After forty-eight years on the planet, most of them having a vague idea of the Marx brothers, especially Grouch, I've finally seen one of their films and... I liked it.

That said, it's a strange beast for one experiencing the Marx Brothers for the first time, ninety-five years on. Apparently this is adapted from a hit Broadway play and, well, it shows. The film is also a semi-musical with some of the musical numbers not being comedic at all, which gives it a feel, to this Brit, of semi-variety or music hall.

I have to say that, of the four brothers, Groucho stands out hugely for me, with his gloriously absurd and vaguely cynical one liners. Harpo's physical comedy is, perhaps, not for me. Yet I adored the overall absurd plot, such as there is one, with the famous explorer and the absurd farce surrounding a valuable painting.

Interestingly, the verbal humour, contemporary references aside, hasn't really dated. And the fact that it hasn't, as well as the occasional pre-code risqué line, helps to bridge the cultural gap between now and then. Yet this is an age where there's still a social "season", there's a casual reference to "Abyssinia", and some of the musical numbers feel as though they might be there to show off the fact that sound is now normal for cinema, but it's still very new... hence, perhaps, the need to film a stage play so it's easier for the sound recording.

Old though this may be, fascinatingly so in places, the humour nonetheless feels very modern and the film is genuinely very funny. Well worth a watch.

Batman: The Animated Series- I Am the Night

"A weary body can be dealt with. But a weary spirit... that's something else."

The title of this episode reminds me of Audioslave's "I Am the Highway"... but I digress before there's anything to digress from. Anyway, contrived though Batman's depression may be, this is a good episode. And contains another instance of homages to creators as cops refer to the "corner of Adams and O'Neil", a nice touch.

It's the anniversary of the murder of Bruce's parents, so he's already out of sorts, but then we have the double whammy of Jim Gordon being badly hurt while Batman is elsewhere and... well, for me, the contrived nature of it all doesn't work. This kind of depressive episode seems out of character for someone like Batman who, while I'm certainly no psychiatrist, just doesn't seem the type to doubt his purpose.

Regardless, though, it's a good episode for developing Bruce's relationships with those around him- Alfred, Robin, Lesley Thompkins, Jim and Barbara Gordon, and it gets away with its flaws. It's just that I suspect this is a highly popular episode... and, for me, it isn't quite up there.

The Haunting (1963)

 "It was an evil house from the beginning- a house that was born bad!"

This may be the quintessential, the perfect haunted house movie. It's also a serious contender for the best and most terrifying horror movie ever made.

It won't satisfy fans of gore, of course. The fear is abstract and unseen, just sound and subtle but terrifying hints of something malevolent in this house with a long, evil past. The horror is conveyed by the performances and, especially, by the extraordinary direction of Robert Wise: few things in this world are more terrifying than the use of the camera in this film. And there's a nicely metatextual touch in that part of what makes the house so unnerving is the unnatural angles, a nice little nod to German Expressionism.

Yet, as with many such horror films, the focus is on one tragic young woman, Eleanor- naive, of limited horizons, spending her whole adulthood caring for her controlling mother in a dysfunctional family. No wonder she's attracted to the calm, urbane Dr Markway. He, on the other hand, seems to represent the veneer that is civilisation, which likes to think it is in control of the forces that truly shape everything... 

There's a lot going on here, thematically, behind the horror. Eleanor's background is complex, tragic and shown to us without didacticism. Yet it seems to me that, ultimately, the film is about the cycle of abuse, a truly terrible thing. This is a truly great film.

A couple of interesting points, mind. I was surprised to see the diminutive "Nell" for "Eleanor" used as late as 1963; it feels much more archaic than that, being a contraction of "Mine Eleanor". And then there's the dialogue about creepy statues moving when one isn't looking at them.. don't blink!

Twin Peaks: Beyond Life and Death

 "You and I have an appointment at the end of the world..."

Wow. That was extraordinary. And that final scene, with Kyle MachLachlan giving a very different and hugely unnerving performance... perfection. And so is the whole episode.

Oh, I suppose the end of the series feels rushed. Most of the side plot threads are resolved only perfunctorily, if at all. Nadine's sudden recovery of her memory, only to see her life ruined, is tragic. The sudden love between Lucy and Andy is adorable. Andrew's explosive comeuppance is delicious, and Audrey's act of civil disobedience is so very Audrey. And... is Ben Horne dead? Is Pete?

But the rushed nature of all that pales in comparison to the extended and delightfully surreal, indeed literally Lynchian, sequence in the Black Lodge, with image after image, event after event, all of which defies description. It's not really narrative as such, just David Lynch being a true master of mood, atmosphere, imagery and unsettling weirdness. Does it make sense? That feels like such a banal question.

So much to ponder, though. I realise the Log Lady intros were made later, but this one is gloriously weird, with the close-up into Margaret's eye, a deliciously Lynchian touch. But we're left realising that Earle arrogantly tried to control forces far greater than himself, and paid the price. We end with Bob, unleashed again...

Utterly superb.

Twin Peaks: Miss Twin Peaks

" I haven't been this excited since I punctured Caroline's aorta..."

Here we are, then: the penultimate episode. An awful lot happens, as we might expect. Some sub=plots approach their dénouement- Donna trying to work out he truth between Ben Horne and her mother; Lucy choosing Andy instead of Dick; that key inside the metal cube that was in turn within the metal box.

But really, it's about the secrets of the Black Lodge gradually unfolding, with Earle listening in as Dale Cooper solves a few puzzles via astrological mumbo jumbo. Leo pays a heavy price, involving teeth and tarantulas, for freeing a heavily drugged Major Briggs who ends up as an important source of clues... but perhaps we should remember that Leo is not a very nice man. And it's perfect that the final piece of the puzzle should come from an eureka moment had by, of all people, Andy.

Then there's the Miss Twin Peaks pageant, an opportunity for much weird comedy as Twin Peaks is much known for. But much else, too, not least of which is long overdue sex between Annie and Coop. Oh, and a sex scene in the dark between Lana and Dick, naturally, the Mayor suspecting nothing.

But the ending is both exciting and visually arresting, as chaos ensues and Windom Earle seizes Annie. It's a whirlwind of an episode, bonkers and fun.

Nearly there...

Dexter: See-Through

 "Ok, this is the first time I regret not being a bigger nerd..."

Dexter, this season, just keeps getting better and better, and it was already pretty darn good. The characterisation is getting pretty deep, and there are so many cleverly done scenes with dialogue at cross purposes.

Dexter, surely, is on borrowed time. Not only is he surely certain to get caught by Lundy's team (because of algae along, I'm sure, with other things!) but his pretence at addiction can't last, surely. He has to keep up the pretence with too many non-stupid people. Not least of which is Rita's mother, (Diane from the Poltergeist films!) introduced here, who can see both that he's a good actor and he's hiding something.

Then there's Lila who, we discover here, is an artist, and bonkers. Not only that... but she reacts calmly to being shown corpses, so is she perhaps, well, a non-standard personality type on top of that? Certainly Rita is jealous of her, and rightly so. She and Dexter have such chemistry... how much does she know? And could she handle the truth? Dexter is... clearly intrigued.

Lundy is interesting, too. A sphinx, but perhaps opening up to Deb... encouraging her to ask out the bloke she fancies at the gym, Gabriel... rather successfully. He's even ok with the fact that she wants to handcuff him to the bed during sex... not in a kinky way, but because the last man she slept with, well... definitely issues there. But what's this between her and Lundy? A spark? Or is he using her, suspecting her brother...?

Doakes' subplot is interesting, too. It's emphasised yet again that yes, he's flawed, but he has morals and integrity and, while not the protagonist, he's the hero of this show. Unlike Maria, who... wow, what a bombshell. That's cold, LaGuerta, so damned cold. This is a dangerous woman who will stop at nothing to get what she wants...

Taking a step back, it's amazing how far these characters have come, already, in the four episodes of this season. This could be a very special season if it keeps this up...

The Haunted Palace (1963)

 "One becomes accustomed to the darkness here."

Not many films have been made adapting the works of H.P. Lovecraft, writer of cult horror stories evoking the nameless, ancient horrors that lurk behind everyday reality... and, er, massive racist, by the standards of his own time, let alone ours. Imagine my surprise, then, that this- the first ever cinematic adaptation of a Lovecraft tale (his only full novel, The Case of Charles Dexter Ward)exists... and was helmed by Roger Corman himself in the style of the Poe films he was also busy making. 

Naturally, the title is pinched from Poe, we end with some verses from Poe, and the style absolutely evokes the Poe films, with Lovecraft very much downplayed. Yet this is, nevertheless, full-on Lovecraft, full of delightfully overwrought existential dread, and explicit mentions of not only the Necronomicon and the Great Old Ones but specifically of Cthulhu and Yog-Sothoth.

And it's really rather splendid, with Vincent Price hugely entertaining as both the eponymous Ward and his depraved warlock of an ancestor. We have unspeakable horrors from the past; unfriendly locals in a tavern aside from one scientifically minded individual; "satanic" rituals"; disturbing body horror with the mutated locals (particularly the girl born with no eyes!) and a perfectly paced horror movie that ends up feeling very similar indeed to Corman's Poe films.

There is an extremely uncomfortable scene featuring attempted marital rape, which is not exactly the right kind of disturbing. But there are angry villagers with torches. There's a snake and a tarantula. There'sa creepy old portrait with terrifying eyes. And the whole things just so damned entertaining.

Twin Peaks: The Path to the Black Lodge

 "

Well, it seems love is in the air... along with weird hand tremors, Windom Earle being a first class baddie, and signs that we may be feeling our way towards some kind of explanation for all this Black Lodge stuff. it's the pre-penultimate episode, and there's an awful lot going on.

But ah, there's love in the run up to Miss Twin Peaks. Bobby straight-up declares his love for Shelley after weeks of being something of a ****. Jack has to fly back to Brazil for a long time, just as Audrey has fallen in love with him... the desperate drive to intercept him at the airport may be a cliché, but Audrey's insistence on losing her virginity to him first is actually rather sweet. As is everything to do with Coop and Annie, both of them delightfully eccentric intellectuals whose flirting casually references both St Augustine and Heisenberg. Less sweet, though, is the Mayor's exploitative girlfriend. 

We also get lots of delicious manipulative evil from Earle, not the least of which is having the Mayor literally kidnapped by a pantomime horse. And he is, of course, running rings around everyone, discovering the map to the Black Lodge. Which, we learn, is an evil place connected with "evil sorcerers called "Dugpas". Groovy.

Excellent stuff, and not long to go now...

Doctor Who: El Mundo Imperfecto

 "Pablo, if you say again that my chin was the inspiration for Cubism, I'll stop talking to you..."

A Doctor Who fan film, for the 50th, by a particularly awesome group of Spanish fans, set in Barcelona- the city, not the planet, and shown off in all its considerable glory. And... it's in Castilian. I suspect the locals might not approve!

Anyway, I won't discuss the delightfully witty and metatextual plot here as, more so than most of my blog posts, I suspect most of my readers won't have seen it... spoilers! But this fantastic, forty-five minute fan film is on YouTube for anyone to see, courtesy of the No-Nose Dog Project.

Suffice to say, though, it's a love letter to fandom. As well as a meditation on the nature of fiction and reality, and lots of fan-pleasing little character moments during a carefully curated selection of the most popular Doctors and companions spanning all fifty years of the show.

Some of the performances are exceptional, particularly those of Jordi Armengol as the First Doctor, Mat Cruz as Ten, and Rebeca Sanchez as Rose. But the entire cast is magnificent, as is the script, which fizzes with wit but also with heart. A fan film of the very finest calibre.

Batman: The Animated Series- What Is Reality?

 "A pixel is worth a thousand words..."

It's 1992. Of course there's going to be a virtual reality episode. And, the zeitgeist back then being what it was, we get a Neuromancer-style Cyberspace experience with the Riddler controlling his own virtual world in an episode that's fun and fascinating in and of itself, in its use of the character of the Riddler, and as a product of its time, the year when Snow Crash was published and with the Cyberpunk genre changing all around it.

The Riddler begins by erasing all references to Edward Nygma, eager to embrace who he now is and forsaking a past of betrayal and nominative determinism. But much of the fun is seeing how quickly and easily Batman, Robin and even Alfred deal with some really rather difficult riddles.

Ultimately, though, the surreality and sheer spectacle of the thing is quite simply a joy- the chessboard scene, in particular, is such a delightful riff on Alice in Wonderland. And if, in a cartoon made in 1992, and episode like this did not exist, that would be deeply and profoundly wrong.

Gen V: New Year, New U

 "Nothing good will come of this..."

Gen V is back, and this time it's a very different status quo following the last season of The Boys. Victoria Neumann is dead and the new, intriguing, sinister dean, "Cypher" seems very much to be a staunchly anti-human "supe supremacist" who hates humans. Lovely. He seems very likely to be this season's Big Bad.

But we begin with a flashback to 1967, the origins of Compound V, and the kind of gore we've come to expect from the, er, Boysverse, if "Boysverse" is a thing...?

The new status quo has Emma and Jordan released, exonerated and back in uni. Marie is on the run. Everybody hates Cate. Andre is still dead. So, you know, all is sweetness and light...

It's all very well done, though, reminding us immediately of the characters and what's going on after all the time that's passed. And lots of hints of the MAGA-tinged dystopia we're in, with Cypher talking of the "deep state" and "race traitors". Plus, of course, the targeting, and paedophile accusations, against Starlight's supporters, which is a key plot point, causing Marie to be found first by Starlight (at first, she's refusing to investigate all these new experiments at uni, but we all know that won't last) and then by Jordan and Emma... and with dramatic results for a desperate, distraught Cate who is, in the end, still loyal to Vought... hence the dramatic ending.

So far, I have very high hopes for this season.

Batman: The Animated Series- Birds of a Feather

 "Society is to blame..."

Batman: The Animated Series is, by this point, quite well-established. We've seen lots of different types of episodes, but none quite like this one, a focus on a villain that is just... sad.

It's very much a Batman trope that Gotham only ever sentences the villains to hilariously short prison sentences and, sure enough, Penguin is about to be released from what feels like yet another five minute stretch. Yet, upon release, he finds himself strangely lonely and abandoned.

And he finds himself, well... mocked and bullied by an upper crust couple with loadsamoney and zero heart. He's catfished, falls in love... and betrayed. Even worse, he seems to have genuinely intended to go straight until motivated to punish the couple. Batman has no choice to stop him and... off goes the Penguin to prison, again. 

At least he'll only be there for five minutes.

Squid Game: Humans Are...

 "We are not horses... we are humans."

Well, that finale was good... until it wasn't! I can see what they were going for... but the finale needed more drama, not for the suspense to end early and the rest of the episode to consist of a postscript, however satisfying it is to see Gi-hun's daughter, and Jun-ho, become rich, showing that the Front Man has some ethics. 

It started well, though, with the suspense of the final game. The baby's father, in threatening to kill his own child, made sure that he deserved to die, as indeed he did. It was more of a surprise to see Gi-hun die, but on reflection it makes sense. He's a terrible father too, in parallel... and for him to win twice would stretch credibility. The whole scene played out brilliantly and with maximum suspense, and was positively vertiginous at times. Heights are really not my thing...

No-eul, after being on the verge of suicide, gets a nice little hint of hope. But it's not an entirely happy ending. The bad guys get away, and THAT final scene...

This is a flawed final episode. But it has its good points, and at least the characters are well-served.

Twin Peaks: Variations on Relations

 "When I talk to you, I get a tingling sensation in my toes and in my stomach."

The plot certainly looms large here. Most of younger women in the cast seem set to enter Miss Twin Peaks. The plans of Windom Earle unwind apace, with him getting perhaps the best lines from a particularly dialogue-rich episode. Yet Cooper admits he can no longer predict what his old foe will do.

And so the foreboding mounts, as Major Briggs agrees to look into the relevant details of his mysterious project, footage abounds of the likes of owls and a mysterious hooded figure in the woods. Earle's latest stunt is particularly macabre. Oh, and there's Catherine's little puzzle box. And yet...

This episode is really  all about establishing the character stuff before we head into the final straight. Cooper and Annie have a date on a boat, connect... and kiss! Gordon kisses Shelley... and Bobby sees! Dick presides over a rather amusing little wine tasting. Mike points out to Bobby that, yes, Nadine may older... but there are, er, benefits being with to a woman with sexual maturity and superhuman strength!!!

It's all enormous fun. And not long now until the end...

Dexter: An Inconvenient Lie

 "You're a terrible liar..."

So Dexter begins the episode with what seems to be a huge problem. Rita thinks he's a junkie and enrols him on one of those dodgy twelve step programmes (Just saying, Alcoholics/Narcoholics Anonymous DOES apparently work if you commit to it but, well, it's just one of many ways, and there are less intrusive organisations that don't exclude introverts or non-theists. Also, its world view is just wrong; an ex of mine was a former alcoholic, yes, a former alcoholic, who ended up drinking moderately. Anyway...) and this is going to be a massive time sink, all as Doakes is still watching him. However will he find time for, well, his actual addiction?

But, of course, the whole thing turns out to be a blessing in disguise. He can talk obliquely about his REAL addiction. Even better, he's got Doakes (who gets it wrong for once) off his back, satisfied at the "explanation" for Dexter's secretive behaviour. For now, anyway. I can't see Doakes being fooled for long.

But there's more. There's a very perceptive fellow addict, a girl, with whom he seems to connect... a potential rival for Rita, more on his level? And, from the programme and his current victim (whose lying skills he is in awe of!)... Dexter begins to realise that perhaps he does care about people, and perhaps even loves Rita...

In other threads, Maria continues to bond with the struggling new Lieutenant, even defending her to the Captain.. playing a long game, perhaps, but I think also genuinely just doing the right thing. And then there's the FBI bloke, picking Deb for the investigation into the Bay Harbour Butcher... and turning out to be quite a positive mentor figure, or so it seems. But he also picks Dexter, and the dialogue between them is pointedly ambiguous... does he know, or suspect...?

This is taking a fascinating turn, and I've no idea where it's going. Excellent.

Scream 2 (1997)

 "How do you know that my dim-witted inexperience isn't merely a subtle form of manipulation, used to lower people's expectations, thereby enhancing my ability to effectively manoeuvre within any given situation?"

SPOILERS, in case it needs saying when discussing a slasher that is also a sort of whodunit.

I suppose this film isn't quite as good as its predecessor. But when a sequel is this good, who cares? And, naturally, the film is sufficiently self-aware as to tackle this very subject in the film class discussion scene. Sequels to slashers abound: indeed, one might say that they infest. So it's a joy to see all the knowing references to the specific tropes of slasher sequels.

The plot may be less original than the, er, original, but the narrative is dripping with witty commentary on how the plot is going to unfold. We have a much-maligned red herring in Derek, and a reveal that is a nod to Mrs Vorhees in Friday the 13th.

Yet we also have a cast that shines, and genuine chemistry between Gail and Dewey. The set pieces- the one with Sarah Michelle Gellar as Cici especially- are magnificently done, as one might expect from Wes Craven.

Most of all, though, we have a witty and highly literate script that, at one point, riffs heavily on Aeschylus' Agamemnon. We also get a reminder of how deeply unsettling and weird those American sorority and fraternity things are. Can't they just, like, lower their drinking age to something less insanely puritanical and have their students just drink in bars on campus as happens in every other country?

As sequels go, this may not be an Aliens, or a Godfather: Part II. But it's bloody good, and makes Scream a proper franchise.

Jekyll and Hyde (1990 TV Film)

 "'Evil' is not a scientific word!"

Adaptations of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde always have a bit of a problem in that you can't just adapt the source material- the novella is entirely framed around the big reveal at the end that Jekyll is Hyde, rather than being blackmailed and controlled by him. And... we've all been spoiled that surprise for 139 years. Any adaptation therefore has no choice but to craft its own tale based around the duality of Jekyll and Hyde, overemphasising the difference between them in terms of personality, and sometimes crowbarring in other characters from the novel in another context.

So it is here. There's no mystery; Jekyll transforms for the first time fairly early on in what is a rather good effect. Utterson appears, in the person of Ronald Pickup, but the excellent Joss Ackland gives us a very different Dr Lanyon, not a friend of Henry Jekyll but a true antagonist.

And this antagonism between them grows into a complex love tragedy between Jekyll (Michael Caine may be phoning it in a bit but he can't ever fail to be excellent) and Sarah (Cheryl Ladd is rather good here, and her accent never slips) which takes up a huge amount of screen time.

However, this is a cut above most adaptations in that it shows Dr Jekyll's deep moral flaws rather than using his two selves as representing good and evil. In particular, Jekyll gives a deeply chilling speech on what is essentially eugenics during a lecture and this, rather than anything Hyde does, is easily the film's most chilling moment.

Well, aside from the shockingly clever ending!

Squid Game: O∆□

 "You are not that kind of person..."

Wow, that's quite the penultimate episode. Yes, we can see the pieces moving together for the finale, as Jun-ho, No-eul's erstwhile companion and, most dramatically, No-eul herself all get closer to their goal. Meanwhile, the VIPs continue to act as an evil chorus, hopefully leading to their much-deserved comeuppance.

But the game... oh boy! Last episode the remaining six players formed a pact against Ji-hun, the baby and its father... but it's not so simple. The game consists of having to push at least one person off each of three pillars, which sounds simple... but the six can't afford to push more than one other person off per pillar, or one of them must die. And that means problems. How to separate Ji-hun and the baby? How to push someone off without being taken with them? It's truly gripping drama.

Interestingly, Ji-hun's rather successful divide-and-conquer tactics all derive from his morality- shown here as a strength, not a weakness. He won't kill during the night, when he can. He recoils with disgust at the violence shown by the amoral players to the "lunchbox". And he'll do anything for the baby... perhaps somewhat counterbalancing the fact that, let us not forget, he's a terrible father.

And so the six perish. And then there were two men and a baby...

Ji-hun morals. Won't kill at start, protect baby good father, 

Batman: The Animated Series- Almost Got 'Im

 "Smaller words, please. Your losing Croc."

As an idea for an episode it feels trite, lazy, low effort. A bunch of Batman's foes- the Joker, Two Face, Poison Ivy, the Penguin and, er, Killer Croc all play poker and compete with stories (and flashbacks) about which of them came closest to killing Batman.

Except... it works, by subverting the very premise. Not only is an episode from the villains' POV a success in practice, it further fleshes out the villains' characters. The way they interact is fun. It's wryly acknowledged that Harvey Dent and Pamela Isley are exes. Everyone mocks Killer Croc for his limited intellect ("I threw a rock!"). Between the others, there's a kind of mutual respect... although the Joker is certainly the alpha male.

However, the twist at the end is delicious- it's all a trap. And, all the more intriguing, it's yet another riff on the fascinating pseudo-romance between Batman and Catwoman... however, they can't keep the "will they, won't they?" simmering forever.

Nevertheless, a strong episode.

Dexter: Waiting to Exhale

 "Just dropping somebody off..."

This is another good episode, although primarily it consists of wrapping up last episode's main plot about Dexter losing his mojo. But this time around he finally manages- eventually- to secure his victim, looking visibly relieved as he makes the kill. His dead brother appears to him, but Dexter seems to let go. He also finds a solution to where to drop the bodies- the good old Gulf Stream, launching those lovely little cadavers towards the vicinity of my own native island. How delightful.

Yet he still has problems. The bodies from his previous kills cannot be un-discovered, and an FBI prosecutor is on his case, played by the same actor who plays Wild Bill Hickock in Deadwood. This character seems competent, and decent... but, interestingly, he rebuffs Doakes' request for a secondment. Why, and where is this going?

And Doakes is still stalking Dexter. Surely Dexter is underplaying the risk of being discovered...?

Elsewhere, Deb is not coping well with her PTSD, understandably, and the police are being somewhat unreasonable, to put it mildly, in expecting anything else. She may earn a feather in her cap from some drug arrests, but that stems from some disturbing behaviour. At least Dexter, trying to be a good brother, is now willing to let her stay.

LaGuerta continues to slowly get the upper hand with the new Lieutenant, in a rather interesting little arc. But we conclude with a real bombshell... Rita has been a little off with Dexter all episode, processing her feelings about Paul. And, having found the shoe, she inevitably demands answers from Dexter. And.... things go in a very unexpected direction!!!

This season is starting off a little bit bonkers. And I'm here for it...

Clash of the Ninjas (1986)

 "The rebels have been sent to the organ grinder, you see? Ha ha!"

Yesterday was a bit deflating at disappointing, so a hilarious B-movie seemed a good idea. And this film is, let us make no bones about it, terrible. Hilarious, yes, but terrible. If you're the kind of person who enjoys so-bad-it's good type of cinema you may enjoy this... but I'll not be held responsible for that eighty-four minutes of your life. This blog accepts no liability for any displeasure incurred...

I've blogged a couple of Godfrey Ho's films and... well, this is another one! He made incredibly cheap Hong Kong films that, in the mid-'80s, tended to crowbar in references to the then-current ninja craze. Frequently he would buy the rights to films that had never been finished and splice them together into a whole which, as here, makes no sense whatsoever.

Where shall we start? I love the grand guignol of the premise- a Triad that kidnaps people and gruesomely operates on them to remove eyes and kidneys for onward sale. But, well...

I mean, naturalistic dialogue and decent characterisation? Ha! This is the crudest melodrama possible, and magnificently so. It's basically just set piece after set piece, with fight after fight. And ninjas, yeah? They're magic, they can apparently teleport, set stuff on fire and, er, make people explode. I mean, that ending...

Still, the baddie ninja is suitably moustache-twirling and I, for one, was entertained by this rubbish. If you must watch this, though, alcohol is highly recommended.

P.R.O.B.E: The Devil of Winterborne

 "I'm Gavin Purcell, not Dennis Wheatley!"

The first episode was good, if cheap. The second instalment is, I think, even better... if cheap. It is, as the above quote suggests, a very low budget riff on Dennis Wheatley devil worship cult stuff, is very cleverly written as the revelations unfold and (SPOILERS!) ends up having no apparent supernatural elements in the end.

It's not just the very well done plot, though. Mark Gatiss again gives us some superb dialogue. The ending is horrifying. Caroline John once again excels at a rather nuanced portrayal of the pipe smoking, older Liz Shaw... and is there a mild hint, as the two of them get a bit pissed on wine, that she and Patsy may be old flames? Are we also going to get Terry Molloy's semi-sceptical detective as a new regular?

The other standout performance is, of course, from Peter Davison, whose character we are kept guessing about until close to the end. His "confession" is truly chilling and shows how bloody good Davison can be when given the chance to play a baddie... although in this case, of course, things are not quite what they may seem...

There's some nice indications of evolving social attitudes here, as well as towards mental health with the character of Georgie, although admittedly this is outsider drama from the younger generation. Overall, though, this is a highly impressive second instalment. 

Twin Peaks: On the Wings of Love

 "Will you please ask the lady with the log to speak up?"

We may begin the episode with Jones (aided by some kind of lip-applied hallucinogenic?) trying to kill Harry... but sure enough, as predicted, he's superficially over Josie's death and back in action, as predicted. Plus Gordon Cole is back, Cooper is suddenly reinstated in the FBI, and suddenly things are moving extremely fast as the series enters the final stretch.

We have more obvious hints that Coop and Annie, a delightfully eccentric character, are to be romantically linked. Gordon Cole and Shelly... well, we'll see how that goes. A deaf character being able to hear the woman with whom he's besotted is possible only in a series with the relationship to realism that Twin Peaks has, to put it mildly.

Earle has links to that shady air force UFO group that Major Briggs is part of. He discusses Shelley with Audrey in another disguise. He's always one step ahead. Meanwhile, Ben is his old plotting self, plotting new things. Audrey and Wheeler really need to get a room. Ben and Donna's mum are old flames. And, of course, there's the revelations at the Owl Cave, with Earle, again, several steps ahead...

Things are speeding up and getting more exciting as we approach the end...

Batman: The Animated Series- Terror in the Sky

 "Who wants to live with a monster?"

These episodes are twenty minutes long, not a long time. So, by now quite a way into the first season, with the Animated Series no longer being new, we've seen which types of storytelling works for such short episodes. And this episode may well be the poster child for the type of episode based on a twist.

I suppose some may have guessed the twist- that this new Man-Bat figure was not in fact Kirk Langstron and- after all, we had an early clue / bit of misdirection that it had to be either Langstrom or Francine- but the most ironic candidate possible. But I certainly didn't, and found the episode to be hugely satisfying in terms both of plot and character. There's a bit of romance, a bit of intrigue, a bit of old fashioned Dark Knight Detective stuff from the Batman.

All this, and lots of great visuals in the snow, peril with a plane, and a heartwarming final scene. Great stuff.

Squid Game: 222

 "Do you still have faith in people...?"

This episode so so clever, so full of mind games, drama, agony, from start to finish. It's utterly gripping, and one can almost forgive the cartoonishness and scenery chewing of the "VIPs", which is rather out of place. But everything else is so damn good that all is forgiven.

The game continues from last episodes, and it's an edge-of-one's-seat bloodbath, with players now openly killing each other for advantage in an example of rather poor behaviour from most concerned, with the exception of Ji-hun... and the admirable Jun-hee realises her situation is hopeless and sacrifices herself, nobly, for her baby...

And so we're left with nine men and a baby, with most of the men being nasty pieces of work, made to vote to continue by means of mind games, and plotting to kill Jun-ho and the baby... until Jun-ho is subjected to mind games in turn by the Front Man... who reveals himself to a shocked Ji-hun as Jun-ho's brother. Oh, and more mind games cause No-eul to return to the island.

But it all comes to a head as Captain Park realises he's discovered, all hell breaks loose, and Jun-ho makes a final desperate search for the island. This season may be a little uneven, but when it's good... it's very, very good. The drama, the tension, the mind games... it's almost as evil as a real reality show!

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1920)

It's strange to think that when this film was released, in 1920, it was the first cinematic version to the best of my knowledge, or at least the first full length one. And, as such, it had a problem to navigate: Robert Louis Stevenson's original novella, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, is possibly the most spoiled novel of all time, through no fault of its own. Yes, the fact that Jekyll and Hyde are one and the same is the twist at the end... and the novel's very success has ruined that twist for all subsequent generations.

So how to handle this? By 1920 the twist was known to everyone, so the telling of the story is changed. We're introduced to Dr. Jekyll as a paragon of virtue, but Jekyll is in turn introduced to the vices of, er, the music hall(!) but his prospective father-in-law. Tempted to indulge these vices, he invents a serum to change himself into Hyde as a means by which he can do so. Unlike later adaptations, Hyde and Jekyll are not distinct personalities- although I think, unlike in the novella, there is a difference- but Hyde is merely a means for the "virtuous" Jekyll to knowingly indulge his vices. The film therefore, despite its changes, preserves from the book the concept that this is a tragedy, one springing from moral flaw's that are fundamentally Jekyll's.

I confess I was driven to frown at the changing of the setting from Edinburgh to London; the original novel is very redolent of the capital. I also frowned at some intertitles early on that mocked the vowels of the Cockney accent- "accentism" is not cool. But it can't be denied that this is a profoundly thoughtful and inspired adaptation, closer to its source than most or perhaps all of its successors.

Antigone (1986 TV Film)

 "When the state becomes one man, it ceases to be a state."

And so we come to the third and final iteration of Don Taylor's translations of Sophocles' Theban plays, made for the BBC in 1986. I was vaguely aware of Antigone by reputation, but this is the first time I've experienced the play. It packs quite a punch, to put it mildly.

The production retains the form of classical Athenian theatre, as with its predecessors, hence the slightly odd sight of the Chorus, with a number of very familiar British character actors speaking in unison. The costuming works well, evoking a dictatorship in the modern age, appropriately for the autocratic hubris of Creon who, this being classical Greek theatre, awaits his certain nemesis.

As with other plays, the visually dramatic moments (especially the deaths) happen offstage, with most of the drama consisting of an utterly enthralling dialogue of ideas. The premise is well-known- Antigone insists on giving her brother a proper burial despite Creon's newly enacted law making this a capital offence. And Creon is allowed to make some valid points- Antigone's brother was not only fighting against Thebes but wanted to destroy it and enslave its inhabitants, so Creon is entitled to feel aggrieved.

Yet his arrogance, his sheer insistence on his absolute power, is devastating and way over the top: at one point he tells the soldier who reports the illicit burial to either find the culprit or be tortured to death, which is a bit harsh! And the way he speaks to his son again shows such tyrannical hubris.

 In the cosmology in play here, the laws of the gods may not be overridden by the laws of men (yes, men- the dialogue makes the inevitable misogyny very, very clear!), and the arrogant Creon is doomed. His final downfall is almost as terrible as that of Oedipus.

The staging is, yes, a little flat, but that's the nature of the beast. Above all, the play is carried by extraordinary performances from Juliet Stevenson and John Shrapnel, who truly excel in a production that is devastatingly effective.

Batman: The Animated Series- Day of the Samurai

 "Sayonara, Batman!"

I wasn't expecting a sequel to Night of the Ninja, to put it mildly. But this follow-up, set in Japan, with Bruce interacting with a present day Sensei Yoru, nicely deepens the world-building, which The Animated Series tends to be very good at. I like the subtle hints that the Sensei may know Bruce's secret... and, let's face it, the fact that Batman is openly operating in Japan during Bruce's visit is a dead giveaway. Secret identities are a dead giveaway.

It's a nice little tale, based on the concept of an ancient, forbidden martial art that includes a fatal touch. Naturally, of course, the only copy of this secret is hidden in a mountain cave and the Sensei is the last person who knows the secret, conveniently enough. But the story works well, right up to the dramatic final conflict beneath an erupting volcano, and the clever revelation as to how Batman survives.

It's unusual to see an episode set in Japan... but this really works.

Twin Peaks: Wounds and Scars

 "I guess the world's just caught up to us..."

Inevitably, Harry is deeply affected by Josie's death in a way we've never seen him before. But he gets his moment of reflection (and catharsis) with Coop, and I assume he'll be back to normal next time.

Soooo much happens, though. The Log Lady reveals that, when she was seven and in the forest, she had a similar experience to Cooper and the Major, receiving a tattoo on her leg. Cooper and Pete struggle with the stalemate game against Earle... it's impossible to play so as no pieces are taken, so people will die. Earle, meanwhile, is angry at the stalemate game, and the fact that Cooper is clearly being helped... so he delivers his own move in a particularly creepy and scary manner. This is brilliant stuff.

So is the sparring between Ben Horne and Catherine, towards the end, just before the inevitable farce (the scene involves Dick, after all) with the pine marten. Like most episodes, there are lots of plotlines moving forwards, there are the guest celebrity appearances we've come to see of late (Heather Graham appears as Norma's sister) and there are a selection of entertaining set pieces. And, as ever, it's utterly compelling. Five episodes to go, and I've absolutely no idea how this will end.

Leo as bullied butler figure, though.... brr!

Dexter: It's Alive!

 "Don't forget, tell the universe what you need..."

So Angel, after recovering from his stabbing, is into all this cosmic ordering nonsense that Noel Edmonds (not an individual I'd expected to be mentioning in relation to Dexter!) was into at probably the same time. Oh dear. But he also feels totally comfortable around Dexter at all times, as does everyone... except, of course, Doakes who, let us recall, is right and will not be hornswoggled. Some kind of clash is coming.

And, indeed, being watched by Doakes is doing far more than cramping Dexter's style- it's limiting his opportunities to kill. So is the fact that Deb, unable to sleep in a house alone, is staying with him. And, in not killing, he's losing his mojo somewhat. In bed, at work, pertaining to... donuts. And, forebodingly (I'm not sure whether that was a word, but it is now!) his only "successful" killing is of a macabre, blind, voodoo serial killer (not a phrase I particularly expected to type) who.... curses him. And, whether by this or not, he's cursed.

Because his next attempted killing goes wrong in every way, just as in other areas of his life. And, worse, the sacks of body parts of his victims have been found. And, after Paul dies in prison, Rita now has cause to start to question the nature of the man she's with. Still have no sympathy for Paul though. The worst person in this show, and that's saying something.

There's more, though. Maria LaGuerta and the new lieutenant... connecting? Then there's Deb clearly not coping as well, deep down, with her experiences last season as might be apparent on the surface. as we see a few times, and will no doubt see more and more….

This is a VERY exciting start to a very interesting second season. They’ve adapted the novel, so where to go next…?

P.R.O.B.E: The Zero Imperative

 "This is a hospital, Miss Shaw. Not Scooby-Doo."

It says a lot about me was that tonight's viewing was a choice between a 1980s BBC TV production of Sophocles' Antigone and this, a straight-to-video Doctor Who spin-off from the wilderness years. My geek side just won out against my pretentious git side... this time!

Thing is, though, this may not be Sophocles but it's a very impressive script from a young Mark Gatiss, a tale of dark, otherworldly forces, possession and family tragedy that is perfectly paced, well characterised and unfolds in a deeply satisfying way, with revelation after revelation. Bill Baggs' direction, too, is impressive, using stylistic camerawork to cover what must have been a tiny budget.

The dialogue is great, as is Caroline John as Liz Shaw, now running her own outfit investigating supernatural weirdness in contrast to "another acronymic organisation from my salad days"- love the pipe.

Nevertheless... although Jon Pertwee, Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy (especially towards the end) are all great, I tend to feel that the inclusion of so many former Doctors (although I love Sylv's "Trust me, I'm a Doctor") perhaps undermines Caroline John in what's supposed to be a starring role. Still, that isn't the script's fault, and the overall impression is of a compelling thriller that, very wisely, leads with mood and character as opposed to anything too expensive-looking....

The Difference Engine by William Gibson and Bruce Sterling

 

I found this novel to be... fine. Admittedly the ending is very well done indeed, but I'm nit inclined to use any superlatives. It was good, that's all. Which is... not how I was expecting to feel after reading a novel which is not only one of the most famous works of alternate history ever written but also an absolute pioneer of the Steampunk here.

Might this, though, be an example of the "Citizen Kane problem"? Said film pioneered so much in the way of cinematic technique yet, in a world where such technique has long been commonplace, the film looks unremarkable? Could this be the case here?

There is a plot, yes, or rather a few broadly linked narratives. Yet the plot is merely a pretext for the real point- the worldbuilding. I cannot comment on its riffing of Benjamin Disraeli's "Sibyl", but I can certainly be impressed and, indeed, dazzled by the cleverness and complexity of the alternate history that is built here. We have Babbage, Byron, Keats, Ada Lovelace as sort of Victorian versions of Steve Jobs and Woj.

Victorian mores, too, social and sexual, are well sketched, alongside a convincingly Victorian kind of radicalism.

In 2025, though, a world beginning to fear the possible consequences of AI, the ending of the novel is enough to make one shudder. We can, perhaps, be grateful that Charles Babbage did not in reality build his Difference Engine.

Squid Game: It's Not Your Fault

 "Everyone here is a player..."

Before I get on to the episode, I have a bone to pick with Netflix as a hard of hearing person who prefers to watch in Korean with English subtitles: the VIPs speak English, and there are no subtitles available unless you're watching it dubbed. Not cool, Netflix.

However, this gripe aside, this is a powerful and moving episode, as those in-between games often are. Plot threads are advanced- suspicions increase surrounding Captain Park; Jun-ho locates the island where he was shot; No-eul arranges her exit; Min-su gets his satisfying revenge against his tormentor in drug withdrawal. 

But the real meat of this episode is the character stuff between Jun-Hee, Mrs Jang and Ji-hun. Mrs Jang, fresh from killing her son, focuses on looking after Jun-lee and the baby, helping the new mother and begging everyone, fruitlessly, not to vote for the games to continue. Then there's her deep and fascinating conversation with Ji-hun, begging him to look after the baby (which the baby's father is notably disinclined to do). And then, shockingly, after she confides her guilt about her son, she dies by suicide. And Ji-hun decides to look after Jun-lee and the baby, giving him a sense of purpose and bringing him out of depression.

Meanwhile we have the VIPs, rather over-the-top in manner and utterly, gleefully amoral, as a kind of Greek chorus. It is they who suggest the baby be considered a player, having to take part in the game... which is particularly evil. Ji-hun is positively heroic... but another player, right at the end, most certainly is not.

This episode may not quite match the last one, but it's bloody good.

Batman: The Animated Series- Moon of the Wolf

 "Thinking of acquiring a new pet, Master Bruce?"

This episode- a straightforward tale with a one-off villain, doesn't seem to be well-regarded. Perhaps that's understandable: fans don't want one-off villains, they want the rogues' gallery. Plus this episode, quite noticeably, gives most of the screen time to the guest characters and relatively little to the Batman, although we get more development of Batman's relations with Alfred, Jim Gordon and Harvey Bullock.

And yet... I rather like this clever little script from Len Wein, about a werewolf on the surface but, in reality, about someone who gains fame and fortune from using drugs to achieve success at sport, only to end up controlled and used by the provider of the drug. The ending is very nicely done- it's left open whether or not Milo will ever face justice, there being very little evidence, while Anthony Romulus (nice bit of nominative determinism there) is ruined. One thinks of the likes of Florence Griffiths-Joyner...

This episode has a real subtext and is about something. And art, even if it doesn't claim to be great art, should be appreciated for such things.

Dexter: Born Free

"You know, hypothermia can easily sneak up on you."

"So can hypochondria..."

Despite a couple of plot holes that, I confess, had to be pointed out to me, this is an excellent, clever and nuanced season finale, providing real closure and pointing towards next season.

Dexter has to try and save Deb from... well, I'll still call him Rudy... while avoiding the suspicions of Doakes, as Rita resists the attempts of Paul to turn her against Dexter, seemingly unsuccessfully. Yet at the end, she finds the shoe, which is a very blatant "to be continued".

Doakes, though... the more I watch Dexter, the clearer it becomes how clever the set-up of the show is, how it makes the viewer complicit, and how essential Doakes is to that. Because the show is pretty much in Dexter's POV, every episode starting with a monologue, and his monologue continuing throughout. Yet Dexter is a monster, not someone we should be rooting for. Doakes is the character that exists to occasionally remind us of that, and have us internally rebuke ourselves. Because, while Doakes may function as an antagonist... he's right, in all that he says and does. Indeed, the one exception, his shooting of a member of the Tonton Macoute, is motivated by a social conscience, quite the contrast with Dexter. It looks as though the animosity with Doakes will really be ramped up next season...

There's also a twist in the LaGuerta storyline. She's been demoted, but there are hints that the new Lieutenant may not be entirely on the Captain's side. Another thread for next season.

But... damn, it all wraps up so neatly, in terms of both Rudy and Dexter's past. Rudy being Dexter's brother was a twist I really didn't see coming, and adds depth to the parallels between them. There are clever twists- Deb saving Dexter from suspicion, and Dexter's bait-and-switch trap for Rudy. Above all, perhaps, the way the visuals of the flashbacks are done. The final monologue, and Dexter's daydreaming. This finale may not be perfect, but it delivers, and satisfies.

Black Flag- Damaged (1981)

This is a very odd debut album for Black Flag. Oh, of course, it's an excellent collection of songs, despite the occasional tiresome exhortation to teetotalism with songs such as "TV Party" (banger though it may be) and "Six Pack"- I, for one, will most certainly be enjoying a bottle of red tonight, and I'd urge you to do the same. And Henry Rollins too...

But yes, a good number of classics on here- "Gimme Gimme Gimme" leading the pack. And yet... by this point, we'd heard many of them before, with earlier singers, and most of these songs had been around a while- 1981 really was awfully late for Black Flag's first album, showcasing a style that they'd sort of already moved beyond by this point.

Then there's Henry Rollins. Not the most technically brilliant singer (Freddie Mercury he is not, to state the bleeding obvious), but this is punk, and he's a magnificent, charismatic frontman- the fact that he's bloody good at stand-up says a lot. He's great. But... many of these songs weren't written for a singer of his style, and it shows.

Still, despite those caveats, this just IS a great collection of songs. Much as this album would've been better if it had been recorded a little earlier, it's undeniably a classic.

Update

 Don't worry, things will get back to normal! The delay is that I had a bit of blood spurt from my artery a couple of weeks ago and I'm waiting for the scar to heal enough that I can comfortably write without worrying about reopening the damn thing- and, when I'm blogging films or telly, I write it all down by pen. Hopefully not too long now...

Update

Life is happening (nothing to worry about!) so any blog posts will be thin on the ground this week. Back to normal from the weekend though.

Dexter: Truth Be Told

 "That ain't no little thing..."

Wow. That was quite the penultimate episode, setting everything up for an explosive finale.

There are other plot threads- LaGuerta seemingly losing her power play with the Captain and vowing his revenge, the recovered Angel finally coming to terms with the fact that his marriage is over, and an interesting resolution to the Paul story- Rita's son is not taking his father's absence well, and Dexter is right that the kids need to know that he deserves to be in prison (and he does, despite Dexter's little subterfuge!), much as Rita may not like it. And her solution is perfect: visit Paul and make him tell the truth to the kids or never see them again. Nicely done.

But, well, the main event is all about the setting up of Dexter vs Rudy, as events play out with grim inevitability. The witness from last episode is killed, the first time we see, in person, how he operates. Brr. And the wheels turn inexorably until he has Deb in his clutches, cruelly breaking her heart after proposing to her, using her as bait... and Dexter works out the truth, but too late.

And then there's the mystery of what happened to Dexter's mother, with Harry ordering the records destroyed. Something tells me that Rudy knows something, and we'll find out next episode. Let's see.

One prediction, though- Deb won't die. Because this hint of a thing between her and Doakes, with Rudy out of the picture, is setting things up nicely for friction next season, with Doakes very much having Dexter's number- especially noticing his reaction to the revelation that Angel is going to live.

The Beatles- Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)

This is a really difficult album to review in 2025. With this more than any other Beatles album, historical context (especially when it comes to the technology, means everything. And likely goes much of the way towards explaining why, after traditionally topping those lists of best ever rock albums, it's now started to be eclipsed by other Beatles albums.

As a collection of songs, this is extraordinary. We have "She's Leaving Home"; "A Day in the Life"; "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds". Even deep cuts like "Fixing a Hole" and "Good Morning, Good Morning" are capable of burrowing their way into your brain. And yet... strictly as a collection of songs, is it really better than Revolver or Abbey Road, what with filler songs like "When I'm Sixty-Four" or "Lovely Rita, Meter Maid"? I'd say not. But that isn't the point.

A few years ago, I read of younger listeners criticising Abbey Road for what they saw as an awkward gap in the middle, not understanding that this was because of the need to change the record to Side 2! Context is everything. And this album, despite some earlier achievements with Revolver in particular, utterly revolutionised what a band could do in a studio, especially without the need to reproduce those studio effects live. In 1967, the soundscapes of "For the Benefit of Mr. Kite" and "A Day in the Life" would have utterly wowed people, whereas these days we take those studio effects for granted.

So yes, perhaps it is correct to use hindsight and judge this as a collection of songs- certainly great, but not quite the Beatles' best. But we would do well also to remember how utterly innovative this album was in shaping what could be achieved within a studio.

Dexter: Seeing Red

 "It's your wet dream in there..."

Yet another great episode this week as we get closer to the finale, as the story of Rita's despicable ex (using children as weapons to manipulate your former spouse is one of the most evil things you can do, and let's just say I have reasons for feeling that way) and the main plot of the Ice Truck Killer continues, with Rudy manipulating a clueless Dexter... and a crime that really conjures up past memories for Dexter; how come Rudy knows so much about him?

Rudy is in full control throughout, despite his ostensible faux pas with Deb (incidentally, Doakes definitely likes her), getting Dexter under his control while driving a wedge between him and Deb, although with the latter definitely being Dexter's fault too. And the crime- all the missing blood from earlier crimes deposited into one hotel room- has such repercussions, partly in its effect on the ongoing feud between LaGuerta and the Captain in proving the suspect in custody to be a mere fantasist, but also in its awakening a deeply buried memory for Dexter- of witnessing his birth mother's death. And I'm sure that much will be revealed over the coming season over what exactly happened.

Also, we have Angel starting to come to terms with his divorce at last... only to find a lead in the case that causes Rudy to try and kill him. The crime was interrupted, but will he survive...? This episode is just quite simply crammed with stuff.

And, most shockingly perhaps, as Paul goes too far in his persecution of Rita, Dexter feels able to bend the rules... after all, Harry did so with him in lying about his birth father. So yes, he doesn't kill Paul but rather ensures him life without parole by injecting with heroin... but, despite what Dexter thinks, the code of Harry has been bent for the first time. And, I'm sure, not the last.

Excellent stuff, yet again.

Metallica- ... And Justice for All (1988)

This album is strangely overlooked, having been released between Master of Puppets and the Black Album, both of which get much more attention. And that's odd, because it contains "One", the only song on the album that truly ranks as one of the band's best known. "One" is, of course, a truly great song about something truly horrific, at one the band's first music video and the reason why Metallica ended up owning the rights to the film version of Johnny Get Your Gun.

Yet, that one song aside... this album is strangely unloved. The first album with the painful absence of Cliff Burton, the first with Jason Newsted desperately trying to fill his shoes... and, by all accounts, being given a rather hard time. And, while remastered versions now abound, the album is rather oddly mixed.

And yet... if we consider the songs themselves, they're as good as any collection of songs that Metallica did in the '80s. "Blackened", the title track, "Harvester of Sorrow". This is the last album the band would make with their trademark long songs with a Sabbath-esque structure and all those superbly done transitions before adapting their style towards shorter and simpler songs. And... it deserves more love!

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

 

I read Jonathan Strange and Mr Norell many moons ago, before this blog was ever conceived of. I won't say too much, as I'm quite likely to reread it at some point, and inevitably blog it, but suffice to say that it made a huge impression on me. Sadly, Susanna Clarke hasn't written much- I understand for health reasons- but a few years ago she graced us with Piranesi, and I understand a third novel is underway. Let there be much rejoicing.

This novel is shorter, less epic in length than its predecessor. Yet it is nevertheless a triumph, quite as good as everybody says it is. We begin with our eponymous narrator, living in a seemingly endless and seemingly impossible labyrinthine structure which is, for him, the world entire.

The novel is a wonderful puzzle, unwinding at the perfect pace to enthral us. It is complex, beguiling, yet in no way a difficult read. The puzzle, and the resolution, are not only deeply satisfying but deeply so.

And yet, there's an emotional heart to this. The narrator is innocent, good, intelligent yet naïve and as we slowly come to discover, much sinned against, a painful realisation for him. While this book is, yes, a puzzle, it has a heart. And it also has, I think, a subtext. That there are dangerous, manipulative individuals out there, most of them men, and that we succumb to their dubious charms at our peril...

Green Day- Dookie (1994)

 

It's a little odd, with thirty years of distance, to look back at what was a rather formative album of my teenage years.

Yes, I know it wasn't Green Day's first album, or their second, but it's their major label debut (and "selling out" to major labels was much agonised over back then- how times change) and so the album most of us heard first. And... looking back, it made a huge impact. Grunge was in its death throes (despite much good stuff to come) and Californian punk, spearheaded by Rancid, the Offspring and especially Green Day, felt like the ideal replacement. For a few years (after earlier bands like X, the Dead Kennedys, Black Flag, Agent Orange etc had been awesome but not quite mainstream), Californian punk ruled the roost.

And... well, then came Blink 182 and all that pop punk crap, mixing punk with chart pop, literally the least punk thing ever. And... yes, in hindsight, in a certain light this album might seem like a bit of a harbinger of that, full of the laddish angst of a trio of still very young men. Yet, unlike anything Blink 182 ever did, it's awesome. There's not a single bit of filler on here and, even if we ignore the singles, we have songs like "She", "Sassafrass Roots" and "F.O.D."

With thirty years of hindsight, then... an even better debut that it would have seemed at the time.

Update

 No TV or film blog posts for a few days... broke a glass while washing up and blood spurted out of an artery in my thumb. It took ages of pressing on it, but I'm fine. It's hard to write, though, with a plaster on the tip of one's thumb, without pressing on the affected area!

Normal blogging will resume once I'm confident that it's healed sufficiently for me to be able to write my notes as I view.

I may still blog the novel I'm reading rather quickly, however, or albums, which don't need me to write. We shall see!

Squid Game: The Starry Night

 "Hang on in there just a bit longer...."

Wow. What an episode.

We begin with No-eul showing a ruthlessness that many of the players in the game of hide and seek do not- and the rest of the episode is dedicated entirely to said game. 

My only slight criticism here is that the point is that anyone could die (and does die!) in the games... except Ji-hun, whose plot armour is impervious. He spends the episode being simply unable, mostly decent chap (though terrible father) that he is, to kill anyone. But we know he has to survive, and so it's inevitable that he ends up killing in self-defence. And his deeply felt guilt... yeah, we get the point. Let's not push that too much further, shall we?

It's an interesting dilemma: how to most effectively use the only player with plot armour, and for whom there can be no real tension...?

Ji-hun aside, though... this episode is devastating.

Myung-gi, with his sense, and Nam-gyu, with his total lack of conscience, make a gruesomely efficient team, working out the best strategy- collaborate and jointly kill two people. But Nam-gyu- it bloody would be him- also works out that it's in their overall interests to keep on killing, reducing the opposition on both teams to their long term advantage. Wow. Fortune favours the sociopath, it seems. I'm sure he'll get his delicious comeuppance.

Speaking of comeuppances, Seon-nyeo, that cynical quack, gets hers. Good. As a direct contrast to this, we have the solidarity of Jun-hee (who of course goes into labour at the worst possible moment), the old Geum-ja and the heroic Hyun-ju, who gets a heroic, selfless death here. Yes, one may raise an eyebrow at the only trans character being killed... but it's a very heroic, noble death, saving the two other ladies with whom, pointedly, she bonded while they were all in the ladies' loo.

Geum-ja, though... oh! Her tragedy, inevitable though it begins to seem by the end, hits hard.

As does the episode. Wow.

The City & the City by China Mieville

Cliché though it is to say, this novel blew my mind. It is, in the best possible Borgesian way, an absolute mindfuck.  At first it seems to be a standard, if vaguely weird, little murder mystery, but with the odd word like "crosshatched" or "grosstopical" thrown in. But then the good Inspector Borlu receives a certain phone call, and we suddenly get something of an idea of what's going on.

I won't spoil anything here. I often do in this blog, but the slow reveal of the weird reality is this novel's big genius thing, and spoiling things really, really would be a crime. Spoilers are things that, shall we say, one cannot unsee.

Let's just say that the opening words of the novel, "I could not see..." take on a very different meaning once the fundamental principles are revealed.

There's so much to praise here. This is generally seen as weird fantasy, but the presence of fantasy elements is, very carefully, never overt. Breach are sort of implied to have supernatural powers, but a certain line is never crossed.

Most admirable, though, is how the concept of the novel is carried through, played with, explored and treated with consistency. Importantly, the backstory as to how Beszel and Ul Qoma are how they are is hinted at but not dwelt on. The lack of a full explanation is a feature, not a bug.

Perhaps the ending could have packed more of a punch, but that's outweighed by the sheer genius of the worldbuilding here. I'm certainly going to explore more works by China Mieville after this.