Year: 2006

Glasgow’s first superhero comes to the Web

17 November 2006 Rob Buckley 5 Comments

Fraser Coull of Silly Wee Films has asked me to mention his upcoming new TV series, Night is Day. Since he’s actually been nice enough to comment on this blog about the crapness of Torchwood, I’m happy to oblige. Says Fraser:

Okay, so “Night is Day” is an internet drama series about Glasgow’s first superhero, and the first 6 episodes (each lasting 10-15 minutes, except for episode 6 which will last 25 minutes), the first episode will be shown on Sky channel Propeller TV at somepoint in the near future. Episode 1 which is completely free to watch, will be made available online on the 25th of November, and each following episode will be released monthly for only £2 each.

Inspired by the likes of “Doctor Who”, “Spider-Man” and “Angel” and not at all like “Torchwood”, you can find out more at http://www.nightisday.moonfruit.com.

There’s a YouTube trailer for the series below and you can also read an interview with the Silly Wee Films people at Channel 4’s IdeasFactory.

Ronald D Moore to write new version of The Thing

17 November 2006 Rob Buckley Post a comment

Battlestar Galactica exec producer Ronald D Moore is to write the script for a new version of The Thing, according to Variety (via SciFi Wire). The classic John Carpenter movie isn’t going to be remade: instead, the new film is to be a ‘companion piece’ to the original (itself a remake of 50s film, The Thing From Another World, which was based on a John W Campbell short story, Who Goes There?).

I have high hopes for it. If there’s one thing RDM has demonstrated in the last three years, it’s that he’s the king of remakes…

Fox – the network of variable taste

17 November 2006 Rob Buckley Post a comment

Good old Fox. It commissions series that are evidently rubbish and keeps them going for years (cf Married with Children). It also commissions really good series that it cancels in mere minutes (cf John Doe, Firefly – I’m told). And sometimes it commissions pure rubbish that it cancels almost instantly (cf most of its output for the last 20 or so years). Which sides of Fox are we seeing in the latest news?

  • ‘Til Death and Standoff have been picked up for full seasons (more or less). Both are awful. Standoff cranked up an impressive four on the Carusometer while I turned off halfway through the last episode of ‘Til Death, which managed to achieve a five, a full Caruso on the Carusometer, it was that bad.
  • Vanished, previously off the air for a couple of weeks but scheduled to return in December, is now going to air only on the InterWeb and has officially been cancelled.
US TV

Review: Day Break 1×1-1×2 (US: ABC; UK: Bravo)

16 November 2006 Rob Buckley 4 Comments

In the US: Wednesdays, 9/8c, ABC
In the UK: Bravo, starting in the Spring

Groundhog Day is one of those movies that has entered the vernacular. We all know what someone means when they say they’re having a “Groundhog Day”. It’s so all-pervasive and clever an idea, virtually every science fiction and fantasy show of the last decade, from Stargate SG-1 to Xena: Warrior Princess, has had its Groundhog Day episode, in which the lead keeps waking up on the same day, over and over again, until something’s fixed.

I’ll tell you one show that hasn’t though: 24. Until now that is. Because in the great 12-week lull until Lost returns next year, ABC has given us Day Break, something that marries the excitement and tension of 24 with a day that just keeps repeating.

Continue reading “Review: Day Break 1×1-1×2 (US: ABC; UK: Bravo)”

Audio and radio play reviews

Review: I, Davros – Purity

16 November 2006 Rob Buckley 1 Comment

I, Davros - PurityAnother month, another Davros play from Big Finish: I, Davros – Purity. Okay, fair dos: it’s part two in a four-part mini-series that started last month with I, Davros – Innocence. We’ve moved on a bit now.

Ostensibly, the narrative link between the various plays in the series is that Davros has been captured by the Daleks to help them out of a hole. Apparently, Davros thinks talking about his personal life is the best way to do this. I like to think he’s sitting in front of an open fire, with the Black Dalek next to him, sucking up mulled wine through a special attachment. I’m not sure why the Daleks are humouring him so far, but they are.

While Innocence saw Davros eulogising about his childhood and how it taught him to be a man (ie sociopath), Purity takes us to Davros, aged 30, stuck in weapons testing, wishing he could be something big in the science corps.

Continue reading “Review: I, Davros – Purity”