Doctor Who Special 3, “The Giggle”, Review!

“The Giggle” is more than a laughing send off of David Tennant’s Fourtneeth Doctor, it is a clever twist on Doctor Who, horror, humor, and history! “Wild Blue Yonder” Re:cap - The Tardis ends up in a spaceship and then dematerializes!  The Doctor and Donna explore the ship and then discover that they are at the end of the universe. They encounter the Not-Things, Not-Doctor and Not-Donna, which have their memories! 

Their limbs extend Mr. Fantastic-style, the Doctor’s jaw droops like Imhotep in The Mummy (1999), and swell up to giant size! The Doctor realizes that the ship’s captain had sacrificed himself to set up the robot, Jimbo, was slowly moving after three years to activate a bomb! The Tardis appears and The Doctor takes in the Not-Donna! The Tardis dematerializes, the ship begins to explode, Donna stands there waiting for the end. Then, the Doctor slides the Not-Donna out of the Tardis to save Donna Noble!   

He had detected that the Not-Donna was nearly perfect except an extra 0.06 milimeters in her wrist. The Doctor tries to avoid telling Donna what happened after he had left her on his adventures. They return to Camden Market and see Willfred Mott, Donna’s grandfather and also friend to the Doctor. The reunion with The Doctor calling Willfred his “old soldier” is cut short. 

Willfred says he hoped The Doctor would save them, Donna’s family is bunkered down, then there is an explosion! People are fighting with each other, then they see an airliner crashing down! Doctor Who Special 3, “The Giggle”, is written by Russell T. Davies and directed by Chayna Button. She also directed episodes of the thriller series, The Killing Kind, based on the Jane Casey novel. 

We pick up on a dark street of “Soho, 1925”, a man, Charlie, comes out of the rain to the Mr. Emporium shop. He is greeted by the shopkeeper (Neil Patrick Harris, NPH!) with a German accent, he reminds me of Baron Bomburst from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968). Harris returned as Barney Stinson for the comedy series, How I Met Your Father. His performance makes me think of him as the villainous Count Olaf in the series, A Series of Unfortunate Events. The man becomes fascinating with a ventriloquist dummy, Stooky Bill. 

The shopkeeper wraps it up and notes that it is real hair from a woman who will not miss it! Suddenly, the shopkeeper changes to an American accent, a trickster! The man has bought the dummy for his employer, John Logie Baird, whom the shopkeeper knows is an inventor. He is currently working on inventing television. The Scottish engineer created the first television in 1926. The shopkeeper says, “What a wonderful game” and gives a short laugh. Baird (John McKay) rips off Stooky Bill’s head and readies his new invention.Um, the dummy head looks as creepy as Billy the Puppet from the Saw movies. 

Under the lights, the dummy starts to smolder, Baird says it looks like a photograph. Stooky Bill’s hair burns and it’s mouth falls! Baird says “Imagine if he could talk” and then we hear the laugh repeating! In the smoldering apocalypse of Camden Market, The Doctor walks the chaotic streets. He finds angry citizens, cars pushing cars, and a man about to fight a car! The Doctor stands between them and the man says he can’t drive. He says it started two days ago with “everyone thinking they’re right.” I think this ep is reflective of today’s world! 

The jeep races past The Doctor and he bumps into a man in a tuxedo (NPH). An announcement overhead tells The Doctor to stand still as U.N.I.T. vans discharge soldiers. One of them orders The Doctor into the van, but Donna orders him to take Willfred. The Doctor stares at the man in the tuxedo who waves to him. Helicopters take The Doctor to the helipad at the U.N.I.T. building around London in flames. They are met by Shirley Anne Bingham whom we were introduced to in “The Star Beast.” The Tardis is lowered to the helipad. 

DOCTOR WHO - - “The Giggle” - -  JOHN MCCAY - - James Pardon/BBC/Bad Wolf/Disney.

The Doctor welcomes Kate Lethbridge-Stewart (Jemma Redgrave). She first appeared in the direct to video, Downtime (1995) which did not feature The Doctor.  appeared formally in “The Power of Three” (2012) with the Eleventh Doctor. The character is the daughter of Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart (Nicholas Courtney) who first encountered The Third Doctor in “The Web of Fear (1968). She gives him a hug and asks how they can fight the human race. 

The Doctor gets a report from, it seems all of the Doctor Who series are combined in this one ep, Melanie Bush (Bonnie Langford)! She was the Companion of the Sixth and Seventh Doctor! She first started her Tardis travels with “Terror of the Vervoids” (1986). I have no idea how Davies is able to bring back the actors! The Doctor recognizes her and gives her a hug. Donna is surprised she is not the first ginger Companion! 

Shirley reports the violence started around the world two days ago! U.N.I.T. soldier says the plane crash had the pilot demanding to land whereever he wanted! The government has also gone mad, Donna says that’s normal, lol! U.N.I.T. is kept sane by the Zeedex which Kate points out the armband to The Doctor. The device was invented by The Vlinx, a robot with cables spilling from its lower half, love the designs! He is voiced by Nicholas Briggs who also voices the Daleks. 

Kate notes that the Zeedex calms the wearer from the Spike. She demonstrates and Shirley deactivates the Zeedex. The Doctor questions Kate who becomes angry that she has to take advice from an alien and rips off her Zeedex! Kate also gets angry that there are too red heads, kinda funny and kinda disturbing at the same time. The Vlinx says the Spike originates inside the mind. 

Donna is unaffected as is Melanie. The Doctor theorizes that traveling on the Tardis puts them out of synch. 

DOCTOR WHO - - “The Giggle” - -  JEMMA REDGRAVE - - James Pardon/BBC/Bad Wolf/Disney.

Donna asks about Zeedex for everyone and a newscaster, Trinity Wells (Lachele Carl), is anti-Zeedex. Yup, a jab at current social hysteria. Wells was first seen in “Aliens of London” (2005). 

The Doctor tries to work out the signal, Shirley says the signal peaks seven times, and Donna starts to work on a pad of paper. Kate notes that a South Korean satellite, KOSAT,was launched two days prior. It was the final link to covering all of Earth! Donna has worked out that the seven peaks are musical notes. 

Melanie says it is a classic arpeggio, a broken chord, I love that these women are so important in stopping the villain. She sings it and this is familiar to everyone, Shirley finds the notes in the giggle of the Baird recording. This is why Doctor Who is superior to any time travel story, weaving in history and science. The Doctor realizes that the image has been in every image on a screen! Wait!, you are seeing it now! 

The Doctor uses his sonic screwdriver to show the Stooky Bill recording on every computer and cell phone screen! The Doctor says it is laughing the human race. They are looking for the puppeteer and that something is coming back! The Doctor angrily says to all of them, “All of the anger out there in the streets, the lies, the righteousness, that’s human, that’s you, that’s who you are!” This is on the mark and needed more than ever today. 

The Doctor asks if the satellite can be destroyed, Kate they can use the Galvanic Beam, but says this would have “international consequences” with the leaders affected by The Giggle. She was waiting for permission and the word is given by The Doctor! He has a moment with Melanie and she updates him that Sabalom Glitz, another Companion, played by Tony Selby died slipping on a whisky bottle! She returned to Earth, but found herself without her family. 

DOCTOR WHO - - “The Giggle” - - NEIL PATRICK HARRIS - - James Pardon/BBC/Bad Wolf/Disney.

Kate meets with Donna and offers her a job with U.N.I.T. Donna asks for £120,000 and Kate agrees! Shirley gives The Doctor the exact time and place of the Baird recording and he heads to the Tardis with Donna. They appear in SoHo, 1925 and Donna asks about Melanie. He says she’s brilliant and Donna wonders why he never mentioned her. She says she saw his mind and that he is “staggering along.” The Doctor bypasses her and brings up where was Stooky Bill. 

They head to Mr. Emporium. The Doctor sees the shopkeeper through the window who moves to the side to play with him. They enter the shop, the keeper juggles balls, he says it was the first game. He throws them at The Doctor who deflects them. Donna catches the last one and the shopkeeper recognizes her. The Doctor tells her to return to the Tardis. This never happened before and the shopkeeper knows The Doctor finally knows him. Images flash of the past. 

The Doctor says it is the Toymaker! The villain first appeared in “The Celestial Toymaker” (1966) taking on the First Doctor! He was played by Michael Gough who later played Alfred in Batman (1989)! The Toymaker bows and says the second game was hide and seek, laughing as he retreats behind curtains! They chase after him to an endless corridor, Donna closes the door, and The Doctor opens it to see the corridor repeating infinitely, a trap! 

The Doctor says the Tardis to the Toymaker is a toy. He tells Donna when he was young, he made a mistake taking the Tardis to the realm of the Toymaker, “where science is a game.” The Doctor says the Toymaker returned because of him. He blames himself playing a game at the end of the universe. The Doctor says to Donna without the sonic screwdriver, the Tardis, the toys, “What am I?” He says he can’t save Donna and she says she may save him. 

The Doctor says since he beat the Toymaker the last time, he will lose this time, Donna tells him her dad, Wilfred, said, “Games don’t have a memory.” They are separated and The Doctor hears a plea. It is Charlie wrapped up on a wall and saying that he paid the price for buying the toy. The Doctor takes him down and starts to unwrap him. Then, finds out that his body is a toy, strings appear from a night sky to lift Charlie up. 

The Doctor looks up to see the Toymaker with the puppet control bars. Then, he shows his favorite puppet, The Doctor, who says, “I thought I was clever”! Donna enters the room of a clocktower and hears crying. Out of the darkness is Stooky Sue, the other puppet, who walks and talks in a rhyme. Stooky Babies descend to attack Donna! Stooky Sue also climbs on Donna, but faces a very tough Companion! Some of the best horror in Doctor Who! 

She reunites with The Doctor and they find themselves in the theater of The Toymaker. A bench sweeps them up to see The Toymaker’s puppet show. He performs for Donna showing what happened after The Doctor left her with the puppet of Amy Pond. The Toymaker says she died from a Weeping Angel. The Doctor quietly corrects him that she died of old age. 

The Toymaker then brings in the Clara puppet and then Bill, cutting their strings and then the planets with the Flux. The Doctor stands up and challenges The Toymaker to a game. They sit next to each other. The Toymaker expertly shuffles cards, NPH’s skill, and says in a British accent, playing with the universe. He says he made a “jigsaw out of your history” and then trapped The Master in his gold tooth. 

DOCTOR WHO - - “The Giggle” - - DAVID TENNANT - - James Pardon/BBC/Bad Wolf/Disney.

The Toymaker says he ran from the One Who Waits. Is its other name, He Who Remains? The Doctor asks why does every human think they are right. The Toymaker says it is the game of the 21st century. The Doctor says the game is cut for high card. Donna says he will cheat, but The Doctor says The Toymaker is bound by his rules. This is the same with The Master, honorable for a villain. The Doctor cuts for an 8 of spades. The Toymaker turns his card, King of Hearts, he wins! 

Still, the Doctor says he won the first time so it is Best of Three. The Toymaker disappears with the flourish of a red curtain and says, “Best of 2023.” Donna and The Doctor run as Mr. Emporium folds up into a suitcase, great effect, and they travel back to U.N.I.T. headquarters. The KOSAT is destroyed and there is celebration, but The Doctor puts the suitcase on Melody’s terminal. He has Donna use the U.N.I.T. mainframe, The Vlinx, can detect the energy signature to find a door that the Toymaker entered and make it an exit. 

Then, they hear Spice Girls’ “Spice Up Your Life”! The Toymaker suddenly appears in a red and white parade leader uniform; dancing with Kate and slamming her into a wall, and spinning away Melanie, and turning soldiers into balloons!  A mad reality of Jobu Tupaki from Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022) at Harley Quinn levels! The Joker tricked Mister Mxyzptlk into giving him reality twisting powers in the Emperor Joker storyline! The confrontation of course leads to the end of the Fourteenth Doctor and the surpising introduction of the Fifteenth Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa), which is incredible with emotional moments. The best regeneraton ever! I can’t wait to see more travels with the Fifteenth Doctor! 

Five+ Sonic Screwdrivers out of Five! 

#DoctorWho, #TheGiggle, #DavidTennant, #CatherineTate, #NeilPatrickHarris, #RuthMadeley, #JemmaRedgrave, #CharlieDeMelo, #JohnMacKay, #LacheleCarl, #YasminFinney, #JacquelineKing, #KarlCollins, #NcutiGatwa 

The Sequel Plans of Lucas and Possible Clues

George Lucas’ plans for the next trilogy may reveal not only what could have been, but maybe hints at the future of Star Wars! I found out that this was discussed in Star Wars Archives: 1977-1983 by Paul Duncan. The red book, Star Wars: Archives: 1999-2005, also by Duncan, provides info on Lucas' plans. Highly recommended above any making of book. Of course, this changed with the sale of Lucasfilm to Disney. 

I still maintain that Star Wars is Lucas' vision, anything that doesn't align with it, is not Star Wars. He made a mention, November 1994, "The original notes and outline for the new trilogy are something like 15 pages... There is drama inherent in it because there is a lot of betrayal, but the subtleties and intricate weaving of the story haven't been done at all.” Lucas comment on Stormtroopers after the clones, "They fought, but they weren't good at what they did." 

He continued, "Then after the Rebels won, there were no more stormtroopers in my version of the third trilogy." This may contradict what is in The Mandalorian and Ahsoka. Lucas continued, "I had planned for the first trilogy to be about the father, the second trilogy to be about the son, and the third trilogy to be about the daughter and the grandchildren." 

Very different than what is in the "Sequel Trilogy" with new characters and propping up a new female character rather than Leia. "Episodes VII, VII, and IX would take ideas from what happened after the Iraq War... The stormtroopers refuse to give up when the Republic win. They want to be stormtroopers forever, so they go to a far corner of the galaxy, start their own country, and their own rebellion." I wonder if this is like Thrawn in Ahsoka. 

"There's a power vacuum so gangsters like the Hutts, are taking advantage of the situation, and there is chaos. The Key person is Darth Maul, who had been resurrected in the Clone Wars cartoons - He brings all the gangs together." Interesting since it would be difficult to bring Maul from Clone Wars when non-Star Warriors saw him "die" in The Phantom Menace (1999), LC-PT1.  There may be a character to take his place. 

Plus, he was killed by Obi-Wan in Star Wars: Rebels, ”Twin Suns" (2020), FC-3/20. A violation of Lucas' intent? Again, a complication with audiences from TPM, so it would be entirely fine to bring in a new Sith. The gangs that Maul would gather like his Shadow Collective? It was found in Clone Wars, “Eminence” (2013), LC-CW5/14. It was made up several organizations. This includes the Pyke Syndicate which we saw in The Book of Boba Fett. 

The Shadow Collective included Black Sun, an organization that was introduced in the novel, Shadows of the Empire (1996) by Steve Perry, EC-SE. It entered canon with the Clone Wars (2008) film, LC-CW. Death Watch, a group run by Pre Vizsla, was also in the Shadow Collective. They first appeared in The Clone Wars, “The Mandalore Plot” (2010), LC-CW2/12. Paz Vizla, from The Mandalorian, was part of the Vizsla clan. 

We did see the Hutt Twins in The Book of Boba Fett, “The Tribes of Tatooine” (2022), FC-BF1/2. Also, Gorian Shard in The Mandalorian, “The Pirate” (2023), FC-TM3/5. It could be the Shadow Collective is reformed or its successor takes over. Lucas picks up the story, “Darth Maul trained a girl, Darth Talon, who was in the comic books as his apprentice. She was the new Darth Vader, and most of the action was with her." Darth Talon as mentioned by Lucas was introduced in the Legends comic book, Star Wars: Legacy #2 (2006), EC-SWL2. 

She was created by John Ostrander and Jan Duursema. Talon is a red Twi’lek with Sith tattoos. Darth Talon has not appeared in the canon and recent series like Ahsoka. She would be a new, main antagonist in these new films. Lucas explains, “So these are the two main villains of the trilogy. Maul eventually becomes the godfather of crime in the universe because, as the Empire falls, he takes over.” 

The trilogy story continues from Lucas, “It starts out a few years after Return of the Jedi and we establish pretty quickly that there’s this underworld, there are these off-shoot stormtroopers who started their own planets, and that Luke is trying to restart the Jedi.” First, “off-shoot stormtroopers”, would they be like Ahsoka’s Night Troopers? I'm not certain with the age of the actors and the current storylines that it will take place after RoTJ. It may fit in with The Mandalorian and Ahsoka. 

"He puts the word out, so out of 100,000 Jedi, maybe 50 or 100 are left. The Jedi have to grow again from scratch, so Luke has to find two-and-three year-olds and train them. It’ll be 20 years before you have a new generation of Jedi.” We saw Luke begin to start his Jedi Academy in The Book of Boba Fett, “From the Desert Comes a Stranger” (2022), FC-BF1/6. Grogu may be his first attempt at training a new student. It will be interesting if Mark Hamill will return in some form, a voice in a holographic projection, or holocron. 

The holocrons are cubes containing Jedi information. It first appeared in the Legends comic book by Tom Veitch and Cam Kennedy, Star Wars: Dark Empire (1991-1992), EU-DE. Lucas finishes the story, “By the end of the trilogy Luke would have rebuilt much of the Jedi, and we would have the renewal of the New Republic, with Leia, Senator Organa, becoming the Supreme Chancellor in charge of everything. So she ended up being the Chosen One.” This is what the last trilogy should be, but then there is the grandchildren, plural, mentioned by Lucas. It could be the young Ben Solo. There doesn't seem to be other grandchildren so let's look elsewhere.  

In the current storyline, I think the important character is Jacen Syndulla, played by Evan Whitten in Ahsoka. It seems that there needs to be a trio and I sense that the other will be female. So I'm thinking back and what about Winta (Isla Farris)? She was the little girl who was in the village that was raided in the "Sanctuary" (2019), FC-TM1/4, episode of The Mandalorian. There was a Winter, an older aide to Leia, she first appeared in Heir to the Empire (1991), EC-TT1, by Timothy Zahn. She could be a Jedi youngling. 

There may be other younglings, but I think this will be the Jedi twins, Jacen and Jaina Solo, that starred in the Young Jedi Knights novels by Kevin J. Anderson and Rebecca Moesta. The other apprentices are Lowbacca, the nephew of Chewbacca!, and Tenel Ka, the daughter of Prince Isolder. He was about to marry Leia in the Legends novel, The Courtship of Princess Leia (1994),  EC-CPL, by Dave Wolverton. They are both introduced in the novel. It could be that the younglings of the Skeleton Crew will be part of the Jedi Academy. Jude Law is said to play a Force user. 

Dave Filoni discussed what he learned from Lucas working on the Clone Wars in an August 19, 2022 interview with Entertainment Weekly. This was before season 3 of The Mandalorian, “Honestly, that’s probably my biggest responsibility now: to try to explain to people what George explained to me about why this all works why it’s different and unique from any other fantasy series or fiction out there. George lent it a unique point of view, and it’s something that we have to take care of and work on to improve again and again and again.”

Filoni's recent appointment as Lucasfilm's Chief Creative Officer in November may bring Lucas' vision of Star Wars back to canon. It would be cool if we had an announcement of Leia as Supreme Chancellor, giving hope for galactic government. Maybe at the conclusion of Dave Filoni’s movie, we can get a HoloNet transmission of Leia Organa taking the head of the New Republic position. It doesn't violate what is in the "Sequel Trilogy" that can happen after Filonie and Favreau's plans. This is a better story than any of the recent stories, a great tribute to Carrie Fisher, restoring George Lucas' vision, and hopefully what will be the culmination of the latest Star Wars. 

#GeorgeLucas, #StarWarsArchives, #PaulDuncan, #TheMandalorian, #Ahsoka, #Thrawn, #DarthMaul, #CloneWars, #ThePhantomMenace, #StarWarsRebels, #TwinSuns, #ShadowCollective, #Eminence, #TheBookOfBobaFett, #PykeSyndicate, #BlackSun, #ShadowsOfTheEmpire, #StevePerry 

#DeathWatch, #TheMandalorePlot, #HuttTwins, #TheTribesOfTatooine, #GorianShard, #ThePirate, #DarthTalon, #StarWarsLegacy, #JohnOstrander, #JanDuursema, #ReturnOfTheJedi, #NightTroopers, #FromTheDesertComesAStranger, #MarkHamill, #TomVeitch, CamKennedy, #StarWarsDarkEmpire, #JacenSyndulla, #EvanWhitten, #Winta, #IslaFarris, #Sanctuary 

#HeirToTheEmpire, #TimothyZahn, #JacenSolo, #JainaSolo, #YoungJediKnights, #KevinJAnderson, #RebeccaMoesta, #LowBacca, #TenelKa, #TheCourtshipOfPrincessLeia, #DaveWolverton, #SkeletonCrew, #JudeLaw, #DaveFiloni, #LeiaOrgana, #CarrieFisher  

The Boy and the Heron Review!

The Boy and the Heron is a gift. Hayao Miyazaki announced his retirement after The Wind Rises (2013). He has returned to craft The Boy and the Heron. If this is his retirement, this film is a treasure like all of the Studio Ghibli movies. The film is written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki. The visuals are stunning with the hand-painted cel animation, a beauty in its world building and fantastic inhabitants. The music by Joe Hisaishi is gentle and also reflects the wonder of the film. 

We are introduced to Mahito Maki voiced in the English version by Luca Padovan. Leo B. Stoker was also played by Padovan in Nickelodeon limited series, Are You Afraid of the Dark? A siren fails in the morning. There is a fire at the hospital and Mahito says, “Mother’s still there.” He races towards the fire, pushing through the cinders. Then, we hear Mahito say, “Three years into the war, mother died.” 

His father, Shoichi (Christian Bale), takes him to Sugimura Station in the country. Bale starred in the mystery film, The Pale Blue Eye (2022). He previously voiced the wizard, Howl, in Howl’s Moving Castle (2004). Shoichi operates an air munitions factory. He introduces him to the woman he remarried, Natsuko (Gemma Chan), his former wife’s sister. Chan starred in this year's sci film, The Creator, and voiced Namaari in Raya and the Last Dragon (2021). 

Mahito notes that she looks exactly like mother. Natsuko is his mother’s younger sister. She is brought by pedicab to the station and brings Mahito for the ride. Shoichi heads to a van. Natsuko has Shoichi touch her pregant belly. This made me think of the Guillermo del Toro's movie, Pan’s Labyrinth (2006). They stop in the city for a recruitment parade to pass. The pedicab takes them to Natsuko’s country estate. Shoichi notices a grey heron. Natsuko points out Shoichi’s new factory in the distance. 

She takes Mahito up steps and into the estate and a heron flies past him. He comes to land on the pond. They eventually find seven old maids huddled around Shoichi’s suitcase. One of the madis is Kiriko voiced by Florence Pugh. The actress stars in this year’s bio drama, Oppenheimer, and voiced Goldilocks in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022). Barbara Goodson voices the maid, Aiko, she is the voice of Robo Rita in Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always (2023). The maids are gathered for the salmon, beef, and sweets in the suitcase. 

Natsuko takes Mahito to his new room and he drops asleep on his bed. The heron knocks at the window. Then, Natsuko brings in a tea tray for Mahito. We get a closeup as Mahito has a nightmare of running to the fire. He sees his mother’s face wrapped in flames! Mahito cries in his sleep. The next day, Mahito sees the heron flying over to an old tower and follows him. The bird slips into the window and Mahito sees lamps light a lower entrance and wanders inside. He finds heron feathers and is about to push through a grate. 

The maids call for him and Mahito returns to find the feathers are gone. Later, Natsuko tells him that her mother’s uncle built the tower. He had lost his mind building a maze of tunnels. Her grandfather sealed off the tower. At night, Mahito sees his father hug Natsuko and crawls back to his room. The next day, he is taken to school with agricultural workers. We later see at hillside, without dialogue, he gets into a fight with another student. On the walk back home, Mahito bashes the side of his head with a rock and blood drips from the wound. His father knows Mahito had no accident and wants to know who bullied him. 

Five+ Heron Feathers out of Five! 

#TheBoyAndTheHeron, #HayaoMiyazaki, #LucaPadovan, #RobertPattinson, #ChristianBale, #GemmaChan, #MarkHamill, #FlorencePugh, #KarenFukuhara, #WillemDafoe, #DaveBautista, #BarbaraGoodson  

Doctor Who Special 2, “Wild Blue Yonder”, Review!

“Wild Blue Yonder”, the second Doctor Who special, takes The Doctor and Donna Noble to a mysterious spaceship without the Tardis! The Fourteenth Doctor has regenerated into the likeness of the Tenth Doctor! He has an adventure that reunites him with Donna Noble who had merged with a Time Lord. The Doctor had wiped out all of her memories together to spare her. They are caught in the plans of The Meep, though lil’ and furry, he is being hunted by the insectoid Wrath Warriors. 

The Doctor, Donna and her family, help The Meep escape the Wrath Warriors and U.N.I.T. soldiers in a two way battle! The Doctor bring the Wrath to hold an impromptu trail with The Meep. The Wrath explain that the living sun went mad and turned The Meep into maniacs. The Meep is the last of his kind and the leader. The Wrath are killed by The Meep and they are captured by the possessed soldiers. The “double-bladed dagger drive” of The Meep’s ship will destroy London to launch into space!

The Doctor, Donna, and family are saved by U.N.I.T. scientific advisor, Shirley Anne Bingham, with her weaponized wheelchair! The Doctor and Donna enter the engine room of the ship. The dagger drive is about to tear apart London sending chasms of magma through the streets! The Doctor begins reciting the code words. Donna says the final code word, “Binary!” This has her burst with Time Lord energy! Donna shuts down the engine and the chasms close. Then, she collapses. The soldiers are about to shoot them, but the psychedelic energy dissipates. 

Donna revives! It is Donna’ daughter, Rose, who has saved them. The Doctor realizes that the Time Lord energy is split between mother and daughter! The Wrath Warriors take The Meep away to prison for ten thousand years. The Meep threatens to tell “the Boss” about the Doctor. The Doctor and Rose release the Time Lord energy. He takes Donna for a last trip on the Tardis to see her granddad, Wilfred. The mystery of the return of the Tenth Doctor’s face is ongoing. Donna with her coffee cup and accidentally spills it on the Tardis’ controls! 

It sends them dematerializing and the control room on fire! “Wild Blue Yonder” is written by show runner, Russell T. Davies. It is directed by Tom Kingsley. He is the director for the supernatural comedy show, Ghosts. It is a peaceful country house in England, 1666. Under a tree is young man (Nathaniel Curtis) who is struck by an apple. The Tardis flies into the tree and the man is pelted by apples! The Doctor explains the situation and realizes he is seeing Sir Isaac Newton. Donna and The Doctor have to chime in with the “gravity of the situation”! 

Newton ponders this and calls it “mavity”!  Director Tom Kingsley. The Tardis suddenly appears in a spaceship and The Doctor throws Donna away as a torrent of fire bursts from the Tardis. They hear “The Wild Blue Yonder” The Doctor has a peek into the damaged Tardis. He takes out his sonic screwdriver and a non-sonic screwdriver. He uses the screwdrive to reconfigure the Tardis. Donna says that the song was the military going to war. The Doctor puts the sonic screwdriver in the doorway for the Tardis to rebuild itself. 

DOCTOR WHO - - “Wild Blue Yonder” - - CATHERINE TATE, DAVID TENNANT - - James Pardon/ BBC Studios/ Bad Wolf/ Disney.

They enter the rounded corridors of the ship and The Doctor wants to investigate the ship. They hear the Tardis dematerialize and rush to see it leave! Donna panics and The Doctor promises that he will get her back. He brings up the HADS, Hostile Action Displacement System, introduced in “Cold War” (2013) with the Eleventh Doctor. Donna is ready to confront whatever scared away the Tardis. They are being observed by something hidden. 

The ship reconfigures itself with a word spoken in the corridor, “Fenslaw.” An unknown language to the Doctor who usually relies on the Tardis to translate. The Doctor activates a panel to bring up a hover vehicle. They drive over to a robot, a rusted, rounded type with several eyes. Donna drives the hover craft to the end of the corridor and a door. They enter and find an empty room, a cockpit, The Doctor works out ten numbers on the console to translate the rest. There is no other lifeform aboard and an airlock was opened three years ago. 

The Doctor says that the ship entered a wormhole and then says they are the edge of the universe! He says he has never traveled that far, a silent, dark universe. They hear, “Corliss”, before the corridor reconfigures, repairing itself? The Doctor takes Donna to computer room and opens a drawer to replace filaments, a memory card like a gold, thin, license plate holder covered with a honey-like substance. The Doctor has entered a room with several tubes. Donna speaks to the Doctor about what would happen with Rose. 

We see the Doctor at the watery room when Donna sees him. There are two Doctors and two Donnas. The ship might react to their presence with duplicates. At the other room, The Doctor tells the other, silent Donna about the Tardis ending up over the ages with a city built around it and then falling. He says it is the only thing he has left! Donna is starting to get hungry and The Doctor clone says his arm is too long. The Doctor hears Donna clone repeat that her arms are too long. She shows him her long, giant arm that flops down. 

DOCTOR WHO - - “Wild Blue Yonder” - - DAVID TENNANT, CATHERINE TATE - - James Pardon/BBC Studios/ Bad Wolf/ Disney.

Donna sees that the Doctor now has two long arms and hears her Doctor shout for her. She runs to find him and they are confronted by their duplicates. The other Doctor retracts his arm and then his jaw drops to the floor. They say that they come from nothing, the Not-Things. The Doctor races for the hovercraft and they take off pursued by the Not-Things! Donna realizes that the Not-Things have grown massive crawling in the corridor. 

The Not-Doctor reaches for the hover craft, but Donna bashes his hand with a pipe! Not-Donna bashes the hover vehicle and it spins! The Doctor has torn off the steering wheel and they come to stop. The Not-Things have grown too much, squished in the corridor. It is a surreal ep with touches of horror, a time twist, and a cameo by Bernard Cribbins who died after filming the specials. We have not seen him since the second part of “The End of Time” (2010). The ep is dedicated to him.

Four Sonic Screwdrivers out of Five! 

#DoctorWho, #WildBlueYonder, #RussellTDavies, #TomKingsley, #DavidTennant, #CatherineTate, #BernardCribbins, #NathanielCurtis   

Godzilla Minus One Review!

Godzilla Minus One is the best Godzilla film! The franchise is celebrating its 70th anniversary with the 1954 original film co-written and directed by Ishiro Honda. The franchise has endured several eras and decades; Showa (1954-1975), Heisei (1984-1995), Millennium (1999-2004), and the Reiwa era that began with Shin Godzilla (2016). The Toho franchise was joined by Legendary’s Monsterverse that started with Godzilla (2014). It is written and directed by Takashi Yamazaki who also directed from the sci fi horror manga, the films; Parasyte: Part 1 (2014) and Parasyte: Part 2 (2015). Noteworthy is that he is also director of the anime adaptation, Space Battleship Yamato (2010). He also the film's visual effects supervisor. It begins with a closeup of the sea water rushing past until getting to an island. A Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighter plane heads to the island as we see that it is 1945, at the Odo Island air field, in the last days of the world war.

Ensign Koichi Shikishima is the pilot, played by Yunosuke Kamiki, who starred in the dramatic series, Ranman. The lead mechanic, Tachibana (Munetaka Aoki), tells Shikishima that he left his duty as a Kamikaze fighter and that his plane has no faults. Shikishima walks to the rocky shore and is told, “We need more people like you.” The water churns and deep sea fish are seen. At night, Shikishima is wakened by thumps and a siren. The mechanics are told to get the guns. Another mechanic is told to light the beach with his spotlight from a tower. Godzilla appears from the sea, a vicious Kaiju, the design is very feral. Odo Island is where the King of the Monsters was first seen in Godzilla (1954). So the film has a nod to the original movie, but is fresh in its approach to characters and plot. The Kaiju tears up the tower and Shikishima says that locals told him that it is called Godzilla. 

Everyone takes cover at a trench, Godzilla leans down seeing them, and starts reaching to snatch up men to his jaws! It is violent. Shikishima is told to use the 20mm gun on his Zero. He runs to his fighter and Godzilla jaws are seen by the cockpit. Shikishima draws the target on Godzilla who leans down so its snout is in line. Godzilla’s tail destroys the outpost. Shikishima’s hands shake in fear and he runs from his fighter plane. Godzilla tosses the Zero which explodes! The vision of horror blurs for Shikishima and he goes unconscious. Shikishima often falls unconscious after his encounters which may be a dream-like look for the film. Shikishima wakens the next morning to see the wreckage and bodies of the mechanics. Tachibana drags another body wrapped in cloth, he stumbles, with a bloody leg. He tells Shikishima, they are “dead because you didn’t shoot.” 

On a troop transport, Shikishima is given discharge papers. This moves to December 1945, Tokyo. This was after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima, August 6th, and Nagasaki, August 9th. Also, the surrender on September 2nd. The city is a mass or rubble. Shikishima goes to his family’s house and sees his neighbor, Sumiko Ota (Sakura Ando). The actress starred in the family fantasy movie, The Great Yokai War: Guardians (2021). She tells him he is disgrace for not dying as a Kamikaze pilot and blames him for the death of her children. Shikishima reads a letter that his parents left for him that urges him to “come back alive.” There are refugees eating and Shikishima is sitting when a woman, Noriko Oishi (Minami Hamabe) runs up to him to push a bundle in his arms. Hamabe starred with Kamiki in Ranman and also starred in Shin Kamen Rider (2023). 

Then, she runs from the police. Shikishima sees that it is a baby and is about to walk away, but then carries the baby. He sees Noriko and hands her back the baby. At night, they are eating bowls of rice and Noriko introduces herself. She explains that a dying mother begged her to take the baby girl, Akiko. This is an incredible relationship, refugees trying to rebuild into an orphan family, the heart of this film. The challenge of G-films is that the humans have to be interesting even with Godzilla off-screen. In this case, I was less interested in Godzilla and wanted to see more of this improvised family. March 1946, Shikishima was looking for work and found one that is government approved. Shikishima joined a boat crew to clean up mines left from the war. I really like the aftermath of war that these people risk their lives to make the sea lines safe. 

The next day, he meets with the crew, it is a rickety, tug boat, the Shinsei Maru. There is a sister ship, the Kasinmaru, that uses a chain to cut through the tethered mines. The captain, Yoji Akitsu (Kuranosuke Sasaki), explains that the mines are magnetic so Shikishima realizes the advantage of the wooden boat. Sasaki played the second in command in Aircraft Carrier Ibuki (2019) based on a manga. The rest of the crew includes Kenji Noda (Hidetaka Yoshioka), who was a weapons developer. Yoshioka starred in Yamazaki’s family comedy/drama, Always: Sunset on Third Street (2005), and its 2007 sequel. The youngest member of the crew is Shiro Mizushima (Yuki Yamada) who wants to prove himself. Yamada was in the anime sequel, Fullmetal Alchemist: The Revenge of Scar (2022). The crew are all identified by nicknames; Captain, Doc, and Kid. They sail out to find the mines and use a gun to shoot the mines. Shikishima proves his accuracy as a gunner. 

Shikishima finds himself back at the Odo Island camp seeing the people he had known and wakes up screaming. Noriko finds him and he grabs her not certain that he is real. She throws him back. July, 1946, we see the nuclear tests at the Bikini Atoll in Operation Crossroads. This was to develop bombs in the arms race with the Soviet Union. It mutates Godzilla. Shikishima rides his motorcycle back to his home, it is now comfortably suburban, and he invites his crew to his house. During dinner, he admits that Noriko is not his wife. Later, Akiko (Sae Nagatani) calls him, “Daddy.” This moment is another reason why the characters overwhelm the Kaiju action which is also impressive. The next morning, Noriko tells Shikishima that she has found a desk job in Ginza. May 1947, news reports come in about a giant shark or whale, the first part hints at what comes next, but the last part hints at the origin of the name of "Gojira", gorilla and "Kujira", whale. 

The Shinsei Maru is sent to check out a warship. It is a scuttled U.S. battleship. The destroyer, Takao is on the way from Singapore, but Doc says they have to somehow delay what destroyed the battleship! Shikishima explains about his encounter with Godzilla. Doc says that the Japanese government is trying to keep Godzilla secret. Deep sea fish again appear! The captain says the plan is to drop mines. Godzilla crushes the Kashinmaru with its jaws! They see approach of Godzilla from its spines cutting the water and the captain sets his boat full throttle. This is the best homage to Jaws (1975) though no one brings up needing a bigger boat. The tiny tugboat is a plaything to Godzilla’s claws! A mine is dropped in the path of Godzilla and Kid sets it off. It explodes, but Godzilla continues on. Godzilla roars! Shikishima opens fire with the boat’s gun, but Godzilla shrugs off the rounds. Another mine is dropped, but the cable to detonate the mine is broken! 

Shikishima uses the gun to fire upon the mine caught in Godzilla's mouth, it tears apart Godzilla, but it regenerates causing bulbous welts to seal its wounds! Godzilla rises up to its pull height and then is pummeled by the cannon fire of the Takao. The spines of Godzilla cut towards the Takao and then we see it underwater swimming towards the destroyer! Godzilla lifts the Takao, the crew slide down the deck, then the cannon hits it point blank! The Kaiju falls to the sea, but then there is a blue glow underneath the destroyer, and it is destroyed in a massive explosion!  

#GodzillaMinusOne, #RyuosukeKamiki, #MinamiHamabe, #SaeNagatani, #SakuraAndo, #HidetakaYoshioka, #KuranosukeSasaki, #YukiYamada, #MunetakaAoki