You may recall that CBS were a bit slack putting out promos for Viva Laughlin when I was doing my preview a while back. There’s a few up on YouTube now: here’s one and you can view the rest after the jump.
US TV
First iPhone product placement
As we all know, it’s hard to move for Apple product placement in TV shows. In fact, it was actually possible to predict who was good and who would turn out to be a baddie during the first season of 24, according to whether they used a Mac or not.
The burning question among followers of this trend has been, “When will the iPhone first appear in the hands of a hero during the Fall season?”.
Worry not, my friends. The answer is here already. Kevin McKidd uses one in Journeyman. Keep your eyes peeled for corporate indoctrination.
Monday’s betting news
Doctor Who
- Daniel Radcliffe favourite to be next Doctor
- Eighth Doctor audios repeat every night on BBC7, starting tonight
- Pipes can’t do Rose any more
Film
- It’s the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull for Indiana Jones
- Now there’s a trailer for the trailer for Iron Man
- SiCKO third biggest documentary ever
- WB and Tobey Maguire adapting Robotech
- First trailer for John Rambo
British TV
- Wendy Richard signs up for Benidorm
- ABC1 axed
- Government responds to iPlayer demands
US TV
- Friends‘ Marlo Thomas joins Ugly Betty
- Eick and Ryan talk Bionic Woman
- McKidd and Falls talk Journeyman
- NBC goes for religious version of Heroes
- Pushing Daisies going over budget?
- Take a course in the law of 24
- Nick Hornby interviews The Wire‘s David Simon
- Prison Break‘s down a regular next season
Audio and radio play reviews
Review: Doctor Who – Frozen Time
Nicholas “I’m the voice of both the Daleks and the Cybermen, suckers” Briggs has been doing Doctor Who audio adventures for a very long time. A very long time indeed.
So it shouldn’t be absolutely surprising that despite the presence of Sylvester McCoy, the lack of any onscreen companion and the presence of former Bond girl Maryam D’Abo doing a really bad French accent, his latest writing project, Frozen Time, is actually a bit of corker.
I guess you could write a receipe of sorts about it: take one nifty sci-fi idea (Antarctica explorers unearth/un-ice a Police Box that’s been buried for millions of years and a mysterious man who starts to wake up), an old Doctor Who monster (not telling, so as not to spoil) and a healthy (not unhealthy) wodge of continuity, a relatively pacey plot, flashbacks and a tried and tested case of amnesia and you have a rather enjoyable way of spending your time.
Audio and radio play reviews
Review: Doctor Who – The Wishing Beast/The Vanity Box
There is a certain truth to the idea that what you can imagine is a whole lot spookier than what can be shown on-screen. With the minimal budget available to the Big Finish team, you’d have thought they’d have taken advantage of that simple premise to do their best trying to spook us with sound effects, rather than trying to pretend that battles between giant robot transformers sound good.
Hang on, they’ve tried spooky with Sapphire and Steel. I can understand their reticence now.
Anyway, they’re giving it another go with this slightly intriguing tale, in which two old ladies try to grant a wish for that amazing adventurer in time and space, Mel – and her companion, the Doctor – with the help of their pet dragon The Wishing Beast. There are ghosts. There’s a vacuum cleaner. And it alternates between silly and threatening.
Oh yes, it also comes with The Vanity Box, a one-episode play better described as Doctor Who: The Coronation Street Years.
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