"Journey's End"? Fucking awful. I barely got through the bloody episode. 👿

UPDATE: Since I expanded upon an even more concise forum post voicing my displeasure with the episode -- "That was fucking retarded." -- I'll go ahead and augment this entry with some of those thoughts as well. I've made an effort to avoid spoilers, so feel free to read on even if you haven't seen the episode yet! Well, the picture above is sort of a spoiler, but you knew the Daleks were coming back and you knew at least one of them was going to get blown up... so yeah.

I haven't been this disgusted with an episode of a show that I'm supposed to like since "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" Season 7 -- even "Heroes" Season 2, as terrible as it was, didn't come close to the sheer awfulness on display here. But in addition to disgust and anger -- while watching this episode, I flipped my monitor the bird at least 14 times -- I also felt a certain sadness. Not because of anything that was happening onscreen, but because it fully hit me that whereas I've enjoyed episodes of the new "Doctor Who" in the past, and whereas I continue to enjoy the classic episodes even when they are obviously bad (hooray for fat-headed minotaurs with platform hooves!), this new show really is not intended for me at all.

Seriously, I might as well have been watching "House" or "Desperate Housewives" or "The Oprah Winfrey Show" or some other program that I can't bloody stand and should not be watching for sanity's sake. Whereas no show that I like has been without bad episodes, at least those still felt like subpar episodes of a show that I liked. With "Journey's End," I felt like I was watching a particularly abysmal episode of a show that I dislike to begin with -- it's like Davies somehow accessed my brain, downloaded everything that I find hateful about television shows, and packed as much of it as he could into this script. Are there no checks and balances in production? You'd think someone would have read this script and just. said. NO. This episode makes me want to completely give up on the Doctor.

"Journey's End" is like the licorice jellybean in my packet of Skittles -- because I do not like licorice and would be like "WHAT THE HELL?!?!?" if I found one. When they start sticking licorice jellybeans in Skittles packets, that's when I'll stop buying them.

</end rambling rant>

UPDATE: At one point early on I'd refreshed the page to view the first comment, then forgot about it among my many, many tabs. But now, looking at it again, I've noticed that a very appropriate image had appeared in the random DVD screencap box! Random Daleks are the best. 🙂

Inspired by Mickelodeon's current LOL capshunz kick. 🙂

So I wasn't too keen on the first part of the most recent 2-part "Doctor Who" serial, but Steven Moffat managed to almost completely redeem himself in the second by focusing less on creepiness and confusion and more on intrigue and resolution. Granted, there was little about the episode that was particularly clever or unexpected -- apparently I'd guessed correctly regarding pretty much all of the "mysteries" of last week, though there were a few pleasant surprises and one interesting revelation that was never really a major concern in the first place (and that may make studying alone in the stacks even more unsettling for you students out there) -- but I'm a total sucker for happy endings. Talulah Riley even got her adorable face back! Everyone wins.

There was, however, one line that I found to be especially noteworthy:

I have the two qualities you require to see absolute truth: I am brilliant... and unloved.

I'm even tempted to make it the heading quotation of Wesoteric (or at least one of several; I've been thinking of randomizing the display there as I do with the DVD screencaps on the sidebar), since it's a pretty concise summary of my experience in life.

In other news, as I mentioned in the latest Scary-Crayon piece, I did receive the replacement item from that seller this week -- so I enthusiastically recommend Treasure Island Sports, Inc. to anyone in the market for some toys. I was initially drawn by the great prices on the figures of my affection (pictured above), but the unexpectedly fantastic and accommodating customer service are what will make a repeat customer of me. Granted, I reserve the right to change my opinion if future orders go less smoothly, but right now I'm singing nothing but praises for TISInc. Many thumbs up. 🙂

Seriously. I loved "Blink", but this latest episode was just too fucked up for words. Isn't this supposed to be a children's show? I draw the line at shadows eating the flesh of pretty women and the faces of not-so-pretty women ending up on freakish modern art sculptures, thanks.

I miss "The Sarah Jane Adventures". 😐