Doctor Who - Series 7 More Casting Information

Doing the rounds courtesy of the latest issue of DWM and of course, the usual sources on GallifreyBase.Like the picture of Rory, Eleven and Amy? Most people on Tumblr seem to and this week it's been confirmed through Spotlight that Mark Williams will be playing a character named Brian Williams. So, does this finally mean we're seeing Rory's dad? Here's a hoping.

Elsewhere casting for Toby Whithouse's Western themed episode seems to be coming in thick and fast. Not only do we have Adrian Scarborough (Pritchard from Upstairs Downstairs) as a character called Kahler Jex along with Rob Cavazos but also it seems that Farscape/Stargate SG-1's Ben Browder is also appearing in this story too. The first block of episodes are Chris Chibnall (7x02) and Toby Whithouse (7x03), directed by Saul Metzstein while the second block directed by Nick Hurran is two episodes written by Steven Moffat. Presumably the opener and maybe Amy/Rory's exits. This series is shapely up nicely so far.

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Doctor Who - Series 7 Rumours/Updates

Okay, it's not a huge update but little bits have been surfacing recently.

First off all, the delightful Sophie Aldred is on the cover of DWM, talking about her time on the series, the proposed plans for Ace to have guest appeared on The Sarah Jane Adventures, presumably Tree Fu Tom with David Tennant and also about John Nathan Turner/Russell T. Davies and Amy Pond. Well, to be honest Amy does seem a bit influenced by Ace when you think about it, doesn't she? There's also an interview with both Mark Sheppard and William Morgan Sheppard as well if the cover's anything to go by and Series 7 will be filming in Spain.

Elsewhere some rumours have surfaced that Benedict Cumberbatch is in line to replace John Simm as the Master and while I like Cumberbatch, I kind of feel that's a bit too obvious and maybe a less predictable choice would be better. Meanwhile Karen Gillan has made a few more cryptic hints about Amy's imminent departure (it'll have a big impact)and Toby Whithouse has admitted that he knows some stuff about the new companion. There's also rumours that the new series will start in November, that the new companion will debut in the Christmas special. I'm hoping this month's convention in Cardiff with the main stars and the Moff reveals more on the new TARDIS occupant.

Series 7 will air later in 2012.

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My Review of Being Human's 4x05: "Hold The Front Page"

Written by Tom Grieves
Directed by Philip John

Annie (to Adam): “She doesn’t know what you are, does she?”
Yvonne: “My point is that I do. Age is merely a number and what matters lies in the heart.”

Under normal circumstances, you can definitely argue that age actually does mean a lot and if this were not a supernatural show, then even I would probably have an issue with the pairing of eternal teenager Adam and prim headmistress Yvonne Bradshaw here but weirdly enough, I believe in them as a couple.

I was hoping at some point we were going to get another supernatural type on the show and after the success of zombies, I was hoping the type would be witches because I still want to know if magic has a place on this show or not. Until Hal spelled it out, I did actually consider the fact that Yvonne might have been a witch but the succubus angle was actually a lot better.

I think why it worked so well in this episode is that Yvonne was largely unaware of her abilities in attracting men the way she did and had chalked it up to rotten luck. Apart from Adam, she showed some visible apprehension and discomfort when her effects took place on both Tom and Hal and when Annie even tried to talk to her about her true nature, she did not want to consider it in the slightest.

For those reasons alone, it was a nice subversion to the usual succubus type of storylines we’ve seen in other shows and the only time Yvonne actually did attempt to embrace her powers was thankfully curtailed when Adam himself had managed to pull himself out of a potentially dark situation with a blonde stranger.

I guess it’s easy to see why Yvonne and Adam attracted each other (apart from the former’s abilities). Both of them were lonely and lacking in esteem and in each other found a safe haven of sorts. Yvonne repeatedly kept telling the gang of Adam’s kindness and he kept reminding them of how wonderful she was too by contrast.

That sort of dialogue repeated throughout the episode, along with the backdrop of the press trying to hound them inside Honolulu Heights and Tom and Hal being affected by Yvonne all could’ve worn thin but the balance between comedy and decent subversion made it all the more fun to watch.

I had to admit the scenes where Adam and Tom were constantly trying to best each other for Yvonne were amusing but then Hal had that dream sequence and it got just a little scary by comparison. Despite being under Yvonne’s influence and having that dream, Hal was able to get Annie into breaking Yvonne’s influence from everyone and preventing further disasters down the line.

As for Adam – I am really delighted they brought the character back. He was every bit as funny, immature, crass and sympathetic as he was in his previous episode and perhaps him and Yvonne will get to have the sort of happy ending, romance wise that none of our new regulars have so far. If this was another type of a show, Adam and Yvonne would be weird but on this show, it just works.

Also keeping with things that work rather nicely, can I just say how glad I am that Cutler was kept on this show in favour of Fergus? He’s by far one of the more interesting vampire villains we’ve had on the series and his slaughter of poor Pete and uploading of Tom changing into a werewolf has definitely proved that he’s not a threat to underestimate, though we do need to point him into Hal and Annie’s direction now.

Also, I have to admit that something else worried me in this episode. I wasn’t too surprised that if Cutler hadn’t killed Pete the journalist that Hal might have but I was surprised that Annie almost seemed to be encouraging Hal’s dark side as well as her own admission that she wants to kill again, following her despatching of Kirby last week. I wonder if that means Annie could be more of an inadvertent threat to Eve than Hal is at the moment.

I’ve also noticed that a lot of people were criticising Pete on his attempts of exposing vampires to the general public. Trapping Cutler in a room might not have been his best idea but considering that he lost a parent to vampires, I actually had a great deal of sympathy for Pete and it was a more interesting plotline than his pursuit of Adam and Yvonne as well. However, it was painfully obvious he wasn’t going to make it out of the episode alive as his altercation with Cutler more than proved.

Also in “Hold The Front Page”

A minor disappointment but I kind of wished that Adam had made some reference to Christa and Matt from Becoming Human but I guess maybe the episode didn’t call for it.

Adam: “I am chicka-chicka back and I brought with me, one sexy mother-,”

Selina Griffiths who played Yvonne in this episode is the daughter of Annette Crosbie. You can tell because she certainly has her mother’s voice.

Annie: “Adam, your friend can see me.”
Yvonne: “Should I not?”

Yvonne (to Tom): “Now how should we plead – guilty? I certainly feel guilty.”

So, anyone else surprised that Tom has a thing for barristers more than Hal’s thing for the virginal type? I also loved Hal singing and quoting Keats in this one too.

Adam (re Yvonne): “She thinks we’re nuts.”
Hal: “We’ve shattered her entire belief system. Let her process that in the way she chooses.”

Cutler (to Pete): “So, vampires are fine but werewolves are stretching it a bit.”

Cutler also took a body into the woods and made it look it had been attacked by a werewolf. I also swear he was flirting a tiny bit with Pete.

Hal: “Who sent you? Why are you here?”
Yvonne: “To remind you of who you really are. How extraordinary you can be.”

Hal: “Oh, what’s this? Does the hound want another whipping?”
Tom: “Try it.”

Hal mentioned that he had been trapped in a monastery cellar for nine months with crosses at the door but also that they don’t affect Old Ones. He also had a lover in Madrid in 1784.

Yvonne: “I can’t believe it, Annie. If I accept that, then I have to accept what I am.”

Cutler: “Sounds like you’ve got amazing things to show me.”
Pete: “You show me yours, I’ll show you mine.”

A scene between Hal and Adam in relation to self control has been released for this episode and can be found at the usual places.

Adam: “I hate being a vampire.”
Yvonne: “I hate being a succubus.”
Adam: “We’re both trapped. We should be trapped together.”

Chronology: A weeks since “A Spectre Calls” and also Adam/Yvonne have been together for six months.

This was yet another fun and odd episode to watch. “Hold The Front Page” could’ve just been a really lame episode but by trying to do something a bit different with the succubus storyline and a solid, sympathetic performance from Selina Griffiths, this is one of the best episode we’ve had.

Rating: 9 out of 10

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Elementary Has Cast It's Watson

I was meant to put this up the other day but here goes nothing.

First off all, Elementary has decided that John Watson should be Joan Watson and Lucy Liu is the actress to play that role opposite Johnny Lee Miller's Sherlock Holmes. The Watson in this version will be a former surgeon struck off due to the death of a patient in her care while further reports have alluded that Sherlock's addictions will play a bigger role than the current BBC version. I have to admit, the more I read about this, the less I can see why CBS are doing it. They have more than enough procedurals on their schedules as it is and even with a female Watson, this isn't coming across as a particularly enticing take on the franchise to be honest.

Elsewhere while production for the third series of the BBC version of Sherlock is quite a while off yet, one thing that can be confirmed for Series 3 is that Moriarty (played by Andrew Scott) will not be returning to the series. I love Moriarty but Moffat's making the right decision here and considering that he's recently mentioned wanting to bring out more villains for Sherlock and Watson to go up against, you can't really blame him either.

Elementary Casting: http://www.independent.ie/entertainment/film-cinema/lucy-liu-to-be-first-female-sidekick-to-sherlock-holmes-3034244.html

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Monsters And Ghosts

It's been nearly three weeks since my last TV jumble, so here's a rather big one for you.

Desperate Housewives: It's been a rather interesting set of episodes with the housewives at odds with each other over the handling and disappearance of Alejandro's body, Susan stupidly painting evidence of their crime and Chuck's constant harassment of them all but I think the scenes where Bree saw a familiar face and contemplated the act that an old friend once committed just shows how much this season has returned to form. It's saddening at this point that it's being ignored but perhaps that is the consequence of being on the air too long. It's a shame because the quality of the last few weeks has been sublime.

Glee: This show seems to be forever caught in a loop of being damned whether it does or doesn't. The handling of Valentine's Day/Brittany and Santana finally acting like a couple was a mixed bag but some fans weren't too thrilled with Sebastian's sudden turnaround, Karofsky's suicide attempt or even that pesky little cliff hanger moment with Quinn. It's going to be a rather interesting few weeks until the show returns in April but at least UK viewers can finally catch up with the 2012 episodes aired so far now that Sky1 is finally airing them.

Grimm: I wasn't really going to give this show a go but after catching up with the first three episodes on Watch, I have to admit, it's not that bad. Actually, apart from it being a standard cop show with a fairytale mixture, it's actually a lot of fun. Okay, Nick seems like a standard leading man/ordinary cop dragged into a supernatural world but I do like Monroe the werewolf quite a bit and they're setting up a rather decent mythology. Now I just gotta wait until Once Upon A Time winds up airing on UK screens to see which is the better show.

Homeland: Yes, this was a series I was going to watch and with a superb cast like Claire Danes and Damien Lewis, I can see why this show has become such a critical darling and award bait for Showtime. I still worry how Channel 4 will overall treat this show as most US programming doesn't seem to fare well on terrestrial channels nowadays but the first two episodes have been particular riveting stuff. Carrie Mathison might be one of the most compelling new female characters on TV (apart from Emily Thorne) and her constant attempts to see whether or not formerly imprisoned soldier Nick Bordy has been turned into a sleeper agent is fascinating to watch. If you're not watching this series, give it a whirl.

Skins: I'm beginning to lose patience with this series. The last three episodes might have had eventful stuff - Franky's rape, Mini's pregnancy and Nick resorting to desperate measures to try and get Matty home but the writing has been a bit too haphazard in parts and the sudden undying between Nick and Franky rings false to me. On the plus side, Liv and Alex are a fun double act and it's nice that Rich has finally returned, even if he hasn't done much. This show desperately needs to improve with it's final four episodes.

Upstairs Downstairs: Okay, so some of the cast and the writers might not like the comparison this show gets to Downton Abbey and while you can argue that they're unfair comparisons, I have to admit that if I had to choose between the Granthams and the Hollands, it'd probably be a rather easy choice. The first two episodes of the second series of 165 Eaton were a mixed bag and as much as I do love Alex Kingston, I'm still finding her character, Blanche as polarising as the rest of the cast. On the plus side, at least Beryl is likeable and Harry has improved. I can't say the same for Agnes and Persephone though or Pritchard and just no to any more dead monkeys.

The Vampire Diaries: It was the night of the ghosts and it was also one of the best and low key episodes we've had as well. The fact that the last two episodes were seemingly short on Klaus as well also helped matters but I enjoyed the returns of Anna, Pearl, Mason, Lexie and Sheila as well. Too bad that Elena still seems to be too fixated with trying to rehabilitate the ripper version of Stefan and that Jeremy and Bonnie broke up but either way, this show still knows how to deliver.

- David Morrissey will be playing The Governor in the third season of The Walking Dead.
- Revenge will feature both a time jump to winter, a former flame of Victoria's and an episode set in 2003 while a wedding will open up the second season.
- Both Zachary Quinto and Jessica Lange will remain as regulars for the second season of American Horror Story, however they will be playing different characters.
- Jennifer Love Hewitt's series The Client List will debut on Lifetime in April. Think Secret Diary Of A Call Girl and you're there.
- David Zayas will be playing a troll like monster in an upcoming episode of Grimm.
- Alan Ball will be stepping down from True Blood upon completion of it's fifth season.
- Adam Baldwin will be appearing an upcoming episode of Castle.
- Jessica Brown-Findlay and Katie McGrath's Labyrinth will air on Channel 4 as will World Without End, starring Cynthia Nixon, Miranda Raison and Peter Firth.

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My Review of Revenge's 1x16: "Scandal"

Written by Elle Triedman
Directed by Kenneth Fink

Satoshi: “You should’ve heeded my warning.”
Emily: “What did you do?”

Okay, I’m beginning to think this show is becoming like The Vampire Diaries because it’s knack for setting up mysteries, cliff hangers and bluffs and nearly resolving them at breakneck speed while adding more is actually quite staggering at this rate.

I was fully expecting the writers to wait until the finale to actually reveal that Satoshi was the one who murdered Tyler but not through flashbacks in this episode. I mean, it’s no shock that Satoshi’s method of taking care of Tyler involved shooting him in the back twice but revealing it right now was a wonderful move on the show’s part.

With Emily losing her focus and allowing things to descend into chaos, it’s no surprise that both Nolan and Satoshi actually teamed up to get back in gear but Emily wasn’t a happy bunny when Satoshi gave her the cryptic warning that she wouldn’t be able to save them both, especially her reaction was to smash the Infinity box was anything to go by.

The question is though – who is Emily supposed to be choosing from? Did Satoshi mean Jack or Daniel or was he referring to Jack or Amanda? Emily certainly has motive to save all three of them and given that Satoshi is more than mentor for Emily, she might have watch her back from the people that are helping as well as from the people she’s made designs to destroy all summer too.

I found her reaction to Nolan’s betrayal rather interesting. The Emily at the start of the series certainly would’ve been incensed with rage but this one seemed to understand why Nolan worked Satoshi to tamper with the security system prior to Tyler’s demise. It was also this Emily who paid attention to Nolan this week when he voiced his concerned about Jack and Amanda once again.

Speaking of Jack – Daniel may be in the slammer right now for Tyler’s death but if he doesn’t act smart and fast, it very well could be him doing time. The Graysons are looking for a scapegoat and if they can’t hand Amanda over to the cops, then they’ll do it with Jack the first chance they get.

I loved that this week Declan attempted to go out of his way in order to protect his older brother, whether it was giving him advice or trying to find any incriminating evidence to destroy, this episode made me respect Declan far more than I have done beforehand. Along with his attempts to help Charlotte, Declan really is a stand up guy after all.

Getting back to Charlotte, I am feeling bad for the girl. She can’t stand to be around her parents, she’s worried about Daniel’s future and she’s unable to connect with Declan when he tried to get her off the pills. The scenes she had with Emily where she lamented about having a half-sister and wanting to know about David Clarke certainly did a lot to make her more sympathetic in my eyes.

On the slightly less sympathetic scale – Ashley really did show her true colours in this episode, didn’t she? I suppose I should admire her craftiness (I bet Tyler does) but why did she bother getting Nolan’s team to figure out the identity of the person who leaked Daniel’s photos to the press when it was she who did it? It seemed like a rather stupid move on Ashley’s part but at least someone is openly entertaining the idea that Daniel might have been the one to kill Tyler.

After all, Daniel was the first person to shoot Tyler and while he didn’t kill him, he does have blood on his hands. I did like the moments in this episode where Daniel showed some doubt towards Emily and while he doesn’t deserve to be sent to Riker’s, it’s rather nice that there’s at least one judge in the Hamptons that cannot be bought by the Graysons though.

Ah, the Graysons – they had their moments in this episode. Victoria and Conrad actually tried to put their differences aside in order to support their children and Victoria even tried to play nice with Emily for good measure. Of course with their public life taking a hit and enemies everywhere, it’s really not a good time to be a member of that particular family.

Also in “Scandal”

Usually it’s Emily Van Camp who voices the previously on bit but in this episode it was Madeleine Stowe that did it.

Emily: “Tragedy and scandal it seems have an unique way of clarifying people’s priorities.”

As well as appearances from Tyler, Amanda and Satoshi in flashbacks, we also got another David/Victoria one where we learned that Aunt Charlotte lives in Kansas and one where Conrad confessed his involvement in Flight 197 to Victoria.

Emily: “What are you doing?”
Daniel: “Looking for answers.”

Charlotte: “Talking’s overrated.”
Declan: “And taking pills isn’t? Were you high last night?”

Prior to the airing of this episode, ABC aired a concept trailer for the rest of the season. Just type in Revenge Oscars Promo on YouTube and it should be there.

Victoria: “When you and Daniel decided to get married, you probably would have never dreamed your engagement would’ve included a murder investigation.”
Emily: “I don’t think anyone could imagine something so horrible.”

Emily: “You are blunt.”
Mr Brooks: “Your fiancé is facing a murder charge. This isn’t the time for subtlety.”

Both Victoria and Ashley made allusions to their former lives and their desire never to go back to them. Also Grandpa Grayson wasn’t here during the events of this episode.

Nolan (to Emily): “It’s a little late to put the genie back in the Infinity box.”

Declan (to Jack): “I don’t care who you’re protecting or why but as of now, I’m gonna start protecting you.”

Standout music: Bahamas’s “Southern Brawl”.

Victoria: “How the hell did we get here?”
Conrad: “I believe it’s called the Domino effect.”

Satoshi (to Emily): “The other boy you have feelings for. You cannot save them both.”

Chronology: From where “Chaos” left off.

Now this was certainly an interesting episode. “Scandal” may be the last episode we get for another six weeks but this show’s knack for leaving viewers wanting more isn’t waning anytime soon, especially now that Emily may have future problem with Satoshi in hand.

Rating: 9 out of 10

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My Review of Ringer's 1x15: "P.S. You're An Idiot"

Written by Robert Berens
Directed by Allan Arkush

Doctor: “Pardon me if this is forward but are you worried your husband is not the father?”
Siobhan: “I’m worried he is.”

I have to admit during that exchange, I ended up letting out a snort because in the space of six years, Siobhan has been determined not to get knocked up by Andrew of all people and now it seems like the babies she’s carrying could be his. Of course if they are, that also puts another dent between Andrew and Bridget as well, doesn’t it?

Siobhan’s reaction to the possibility of Andrew being the father of her unborn children seemed fairly typical – she lied to Henry. Well, she was honest to him about expecting twins but left out the bit where it was possible that he didn’t father them. Then again, she does need him on side so it makes sense that she would keep that piece of information to herself.

Also I just realised that when Henry is trying to be Mr Smart, he’s an even bigger jackass when he’s Mr Confused. Seeing him lording it over Bridget when the latter confronted him about emptying Siobhan’s office and trying to play Malcolm off made me dislike the character even more than usual.

Then again, Henry should probably enjoy the victory while he can because with any luck, things will go south for both him and Siobhan if Bridget and Malcolm continue to work together as a decent team. Henry didn’t exactly seem to like the idea of having to give Bridget those incriminating papers about Martin/Charles but seeing as he’s Siobhan’s pawn, he did it nonetheless.

I’m not sure if I care all that much about Andrew setting up a Ponzi scheme within his company because while the writers might be trying to give him a flaw, they’ll probably just turn it around so that it appeared that Olivia was coercing him all along and considering that Bridget and Malcolm widely suspected Olivia of the scheme, that would make a fair amount of sense.

Olivia is still a troubling character to me. I mean, she has the potential to be a real thorn in everyone’s side but I don’t know if the writers are utilising her enough and while I enjoyed her little scenes with both Malcolm and Bridget, I do feel they could’ve been a bit snappier. Maybe it’s time to get Olivia a bit more involved with the storyline.

Which is what the writers could be doing considering she was given that text to tell her that Malcolm wasn’t the mole at Martin/Charles. It’ll be interesting to see what her scenes with Tyler in Paris will add to up next week if the trailer for the next episode is anything to go by. Maybe it’ll do wonders for the character and Tyler himself too.

Elsewhere when we didn’t have the plotline of Andrew wanting to remarry the woman he thinks is Siobhan and having him confess to the Ponzi scheme, it’s nice that the writers are showing us Juliet’s remorse for the lengths she went to get her trust fun back. Of course, both Carpenter and Catherine are a little less remorseful than Juliet.

In fact, it wasn’t really that much of a shocker to learn that Catherine had actually been sleeping with Carpenter and had orchestrated the whole thing or that she was the one who had Tessa taken care of. That being said, as horrible as Catherine is, she’s become a far more enjoyable character because of it.

I mean, she might not have any problems with putting Andrew in a financial bind of sorts but similarly, I loved the way she screwed Carpenter over in the end and the fact that she ensured Juliet didn’t reveal anything. It’s amazing what a four episode stint can do to a character who didn’t start off so promising.

Also in “P.S. You’re An Idiot”

The title isn’t actually spoken but it’s what Catherine wrote in her goodbye letter to Carpenter, aside from her threat to ruin him if he goes near Juliet.

Andrew (to Bridget): “It’s getting harder to find ways to impress you, so I thought I’d recycle one from your past.”

Siobhan may be the cold hearted twin who likes The Notebook but the rather lovely Bridget is more into Summer Camp Slasher herself.

Bridget (to dress lady): “I’m not the same woman who married Andrew six years ago. If I’m gonna marry him again, he has to know that.”

Catherine (to Carpenter): “You’re gonna stop harassing my daughter and start harassing me.”

The episode gave us some appropriate guy candy this week with Jason Dohring in a towel. At least Carpenter has something going for him.

Siobhan: “Henry, it’s not our baby, it’s babies.”

Andrew: “Let’s both live to be a hundred, okay?”
Siobhan: “Asking a lot of the universe, aren’t you?”

This is the first time we’ve actually had an Andrew/Siobhan flashback and it seems the former is aware of Sean but doesn’t know who he is exactly. Siobhan wasn’t best pleased when Andrew tried to get her to open up about Sean, so I don’t think Henry knows either.

Olivia: “What’s your secret?”
Bridget: “Now if I told you, I’d have to kill you.”

Bridget: “I’m not the person I used to be. I’m still trying to reconcile myself.”
Andrew: “Am I getting the ‘it’s not you, it’s me’ speech from my wife?”

We revisited Pratt Street in this episode as well when Malcolm was digging about Martin/Charles’s scheme and this is the third episode in a row not to feature Victor.

Andrew (to Bridget): “The Ponzi scheme wasn’t Olivia’s idea. It was mine.”

Chronology: It doesn’t seem like much time has passed since “Whores Don’t Make That Much” left off.

There might be a slight improvement when it comes to the quality of the episodes and storytelling, but even with a solid episode like “P.S. You’re An Idiot”, it does seem to be a little too late for this show. Still, at least next week’s episode looks more tension filled.

Rating: 8 out of 10

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