Cyberclogs

Well I've been off all week with the dreaded chickenpox so I've not really set foot out the house much since Tuesday, spots everywhere on me body, luckily I haven't got any down my throat or anything, which I've heard you can get with cp, also its apparently worse when you are an adult. Its also a double bummer (or tripple) because I've missed the last week of my acting class, my acting class night out and also tomorrow its my birthday. Awwwwwww (huge self pitying pat on the back from myself there). The upside is most of the spots as I type this have dried up a bit more so their not as angry looking or itchy as they were before, so since I've got a two week sick line I might aswell chill out at home while I can.

Now onto other news, the penultimate episode of Doctor Who season 3, was a bit of a corker, bit cheesey in places maybe, but what the hell this series has had it fair share of edam moments. The Master posing as John Saxon, the prime minister of Great Britain announces his plans for something new coming, which basically really means he's looking to invade and destroy the planet and its up to the Doctor, Martha and Jack to stop him.

John Simm owns the screen in his time as the Master, and if there was ever an actor who ever ate up villainy as a main course, he licks it up like no other actor. I loved his "happy" and "sad" faces as he spoke to his soon to be gassed cabinet members. It was also really good to see a modern revisulisation of Gallifrey (albeit with only one TimeLord!) back when it existed. The only downside to this episode was John Barrowman was already sidelined in this episode after his highly amusing banter in the last episode, although he did provide an amusing one liner when the Doctor says about the perception filter "Its like you fancy someone and they have no idea", he runs off and Martha looks at Jack who says "You too, huh?".

Plot spolier now!: The climax of the story was also visually quite impressive with the little probe things (or drums) covering the planet and the Doctor having been aged (which was very unexpected). Looks like the season finale will be very intruiging.

Well as I said its my birthday tomorrow so guess I'll just sit around the house as usual while eating bits of birthday cake and putting on some calamine lotion.

Well I haven't really commented much on it at all so far really, but the third series of the Apprentice finished last week, and to me it was the best slice of reality I'd seen for quite a while, far better than the turgid Big Brother ever could do be (well of late).

The candidates this series have mostly been very entertaining to watch, and yes there are a few calamities in there as well such as Andy, who got fired in the first week for his poor management of a team, and Adam (or Mr Pinot Grigiot), a young car salesman who fairly rubbish at well everything lol. Then of course there was the nasty Nick character of the series, Katie, who not only bad mouthed the other contestants frequently but also had a "relationship" with one of the other contestants too, and in the end she chose to stand down and resign her post rather go on to the final, as it would mean a massive relocation of her family which she didn't take into account fully.

But I was somewhat dissapointed by the outcome of the show when Sir Alan picked Simon Ambrose over Kristina Grimes. Simon was by no means a poor candidate but he couldn't manage a team very well, and in some previous tasks he couldn't decide what to do and left it to others to help him. Kristina on the other hand solidly lead a team and knew how to make people work for her. But this goes back to the point of the show I guess, the Apprentice has always been someone around the 25-28 age mark who still has alot to learn, and is looking for a way in, and isn't necessarily a great leader with a lot of experience. Just a shame that Sir Alan doesn't always pick the right one eh? Although i was surprised to learn on Wikipedia that the scene where Sir Alan tells the contestants which one is hired, is actually shot both ways with both contestants being told they are hired, both giving a different reaction, and in reality they were told later on.

Sir Alan has signed up to do another two series so I'll look forward to next year's series for more firings and hirings.

Episode 11, Utopia, introduced us back to the long awaited return of Captain Jack Harkness in Doctor Who, and it was great to see him back. When the Doctor returns to the rift in Wales to refuel the TARDIS's energy supplies, Jack spots him and runs after him and holds onto the TARDIS just as it dematerialises, which causes them to travel toward the end of the universe. Once they land the Doctor, Martha and Jack are reunited but the Doctor isn't too happy to see Jack (for morality and (im)mortality reasons as its soon revealed). But they have bigger problems as humans being hunted by strange scavanger like beings who are cannibals and looks to wipe out the remaining normal humans. Also the Doctor meets up with a Professor Yana (Derek Jacobi) who is trying to reach Utopia the last home for the human race. And there's something not quite right with the Professor.

This episode marking the return of Jack, definitely has its moments but I felt the episode did kind of fall flat on its face somewhat. The background story didn't really grip me and I felt the Futurekind (the cannibal baddies) were a bit lame. Nonetheless Derek Jacobi was quite entertaining and his somewhat startling revelation at the end of the story makes up for any of paucity that went before. The banter between Jack and the Doctor of course provided the main highlights, at any rate its good to see him back in the TARDIS saddle for now. Sadly though they weren't quite able to relive the glory days of the new Series 1 when Jack blended effortlessly into the crew.

Anyway the cliffhanger of the episode leaves open the possibilities for ending of the season as being a very interesting one. But I must admit this season despite several very enjoyable episodes has been a bit hollow and lacking in any good substance and I haven't found myself being glued to the screen with it as much as I have in the past. Regardless of that I will carry on watching it.

Episode 10, Blink, was in fine tradition a pretty solid, entertaining departure from the norm Doctor Who episode as the Doctor served more as a background character in this one. The plot deals with a young woman, Sally Sparrow, who keeps receiving cryptic messages from the Doctor, on her TV set (or multiple TV sets) about time, about other things and mostly about blinking, i.e. don't do it! A set of weird eerie statues are the main enemies as they are after the TARDIS and they will kill any one who will either blink or turn away from them. Through some recorded video messages the Doctor gives Sally what she needs in order to try and save the TARDIS from their stoney clutches.

This story was kind of fun, the "departure from the norm" stories usually are quite entertaining and this one certainly echoed last year's highly enjoyable Love and Monsters in that sense, with the Doctor serving as a background character. The young cast were fine and although he provides a background role in this one, David Tennant still reminds us he is still the Doctor.

So next week's Utopia sounds very intruiging as we finally see the return of Captain Jack Harkness, its been a while, and hopefully it will be better than Torchwood.

The second part of the latest two parter, Family of Blood, was I have to say a pretty darn good episode and one of the more emotionally charged episodes there has been for quite a while in the show. Written by Paul Cornell who wrote the excellent Father's Day episode in the 1st series, has written an equally poignant story as the Doctor who has made himself human, as John Smith, falls in love with Jessica Hynes (nee Stevenson) and in the face of an alien invasion, or war, he must now sacrifice his humanity and become the Doctor again.

I feel the two parters can be a bit hit and miss but this one has been pretty consistent in its quality and it features some of David Tennant's best acting so far, I also thought Jessica Hynes did pretty well in her role too. Although (plot spoiler coming! sort of!) once he comes the Doctor, he wraps up the whole conflict pretty quickly, and its a bit like the Christmas Invasion, the Doctor has gone missing, when he comes back everything is swiftly taken care of. That's the only kind of minus point of this episode for me, but other than it was pretty good stuff.

Next week's episode, Blink, looks like another "concept" one where what little I saw, the participants aren't to blink or they will die. Kind of echos the idea of the film Crank, where Jason Statham needs to keep up his heart rate or he will die. Sounds fairly intruiging all the same.

Tonight's acting class was for me one of the most entertaining classes I've had so far of Art of Acting 2 (this was my 5th class already!). We did improvs of an advert which we did in groups of four (or five) and we had to present the advert really big and loud in an operatic way. Also we did some fun exercises involving telling someone to come over to some place and we had to do it really enthusiastically, in fact I nearly dislocated a shoulder doing that one! And we also did a scene from a bizzare historical comedy, of which I could barely understand a word, but it was fun away.

But the most unexpected moment of the night was when one of our group, Omar, had to get up and do a two minute exercise (which almost came 10) involving dressing, or undressing as the case was, as he proceeded to take off his t-shirt and then he dropped his undies too, baring his arse to everyone in the class!! (His back was turned thankfully, so no frontal view!). It was almost too mortifying to watch and this guy is pretty quiet and soft spoken most of the time, perhaps this was his way of coming out of his shell (certainly his keks). Its certainly something most of us wont forget in a hurry (or at least we'll all try to!!).