Sunday, April 06, 2008

Tellybox catchup: round two

So, after moaning about Gossip Girl last week, I watched the second episode yesterday and thoroughly enjoyed it. I don't know what that says about me and my fickle nature, but I do think this show could become a full-on guilty pleasure. Not one I'd rush out and buy the DVD boxset of, you understand, but one I'll continue to watch nevertheless. And buy episodes off iTunes if I miss them on telly. 

One that I do think I'd rush out and buy the boxset of, though, is Chuck.

I'd previously said that I was looking forward to seeing this show as I thought out of Josh Schwartz's two new series (Gossip Girl being the other), this one looked most like it might have captured something of The OC-ish like nature. Of course, I'd have to wait until April 7th to see the first episode and form an opinion. But then on Tuesday I clicked open iTunes and…

Ho, ho, ho, good times indeed!

So I downloaded it, and watched it. And I believe I summed up best what I thought of Chuck while having coffee with Yaz the next day:

It's like The OC with guns.

I can't think of a higher recommendation that that.

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One show I do feel I'm tiring of ever so slightly, though, is Doctor Who. The new season started last night on the Beeb, and quite frankly on the basis of episode one it was a bit rubbish. Not for the reasons I thought it would be, though.

This new series has Catherine Tate in it as the Doctor's new assistant, and as I'm not a massive fan of her brand of humour, I thought I might be put off it a bit. Tate, however, was quite good. My main problem with it was the fact that it's become apparent to me that the series has started to feel padded out by the use of the characters just running around while overly dramatic music plays in the background. Seriously, last night's episode would only have been about 20 minutes long if they'd cut all the running out. 

There were some really good, dramatic episodes last year, but this one seems to have descended into pantomime. And some of the visual effects were a bit ropey. I wasn't impressed… Although I'm just a little bit giddy at the prospect of Tate shouting "AM I BOVVERED!?" at some point. She has to, doesn't she? Right in a Dalek's sink-plunger.

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In other, unrelated matters, I thought Spring had sprung last week. My hoodies were almost put into hibernation - one day I even wore a shirt and light jumper combo! But then this weekend struck and I'm pretty sure I'll soon be back to hugging a hoody like Linus hugs his security blanket.

I popped to Kingston yesterday, and after deciding that the Starbucks in the Bentalls Centre was too busy, I headed out on to the high street to make my way to the other Starbucks - at which point the heavens opened and it hailed on me. Hails stones! Freakin' hail stones!! I had to take refuge in the doors of M&S until it passed.

A cinnamon dolce latte and a short walk later I got back to the car park and just about managed to dive into my car before this happened:

That's proper, full-on rain, people.

Anyway, it continued to do that for the rest of the night - and there's me without a hoody. Bah!

So this morning I wake up about 9am, and just doze about in bed for an hour or so. OK, two hours or so. When I finally sit up and look out the window I see that it's HOLY FREAKIN' HECK IT'S SNOWING! Snow - everywhere! What sort of merry hell is this?! 

I sat in bed just rubbing my eyes in disbelief then looking again. It was totally still there. Crikey.

It's pretty much all melted now, though; just a few bits here and there. Oh, and a snowman on my neighbour's lawn, which I'm totally tempted to go and boot the head off when I go for a run in a while. Talking of which - this is going to be a, um, unique run; I've just drunk half a carton of out of date cranberry and raspberry juice which potentially could've fermented, so not only will it be snowy-cold weather and icy, but I might also be tiddly. Oh, good times indeed!

*Hic!*

10 comments:

Dinah said...

We got a dump of show here too, and I am Not. Happy. About it. But your post does underscore the importance of always having a hoodie handy.

I tried listening to the George Lamb show and heard one Shabba but not your tramp. I did, though, get the feel of the Dr. Who promotion.

The listing of questionable things in your fridge reminds me that I need to go grocery shopping.

Miss Smuggersham said...

You totally need to write your name in the snow. Oh, and Chuck ONLY GETS BETTER! JUST WHEN YOU THINK IT IS AWESOME - IT GETS AWESOMER! I FUCKIN' LOVE THIS THING!!!!!!

Cinnamon dolce latte? Holy Saint God... that sounds mighty good.

WillowC said...

It's you, you know. You arrived last week covered in snow and it just wasn't bloody snowing. And once again: today it is NOT SNOWING. I think you might be surrounded by your own personal microclimate. Of course, 10 minutes after you arrived it did snow, so perhaps it was a weather premonition.

eroswings said...

It's either climate change or the carefully constructed virtual world you're in is having glitch since that last Windows Vista update...

Beware the men in black with the shades!

As for Dr Who, it's premiering next week here in the US with Kyle Minogue! Here's to hoping for a wardrobe malfunction!

P.S., the malfunctioning wardrobe belong to Ms Minogue, of course!

Tim said...

Dinah - I'm assuming you mean 'snow,' rather than 'show,' which initially caused some confusion when I was thinking you can never have too many good tellybox shows. But then I realised you meant weather - bad weather! I sympathise with your showbound plight.

I thought it was hilarious on Lamby's show when he kept referring to Catherine Tate as Tate Modern!

T-Bird - The snow is no more! Aside from a few dirty mounds and sorry-looking snowmen.

I totally expect Chuck to just get better and betterer!

Willowc - Did you not look out your window?! Oh, wait, don't you live in a windowless house? It totally WAS SNOWING. Did you even venture out yesterday - I've just seen dirty lumps of it in your part of the world on my way to work!

Eroswings - I think it's just massively messed up weather. It's insane!

I'll be interested to see what you think of the Kylie Doctor Who. I thought it was … "meh." I won't release any wardrobe spoilers before then, though!

WillowC said...

I've just walked to work and there wasn't a speck of snow. Are you sure you're not thinking of leaves? Or pavement?

Anonymous said...

There was some icing in my garden this morning but I bet it's gone now. :<
I will watch Chuck tonight! Cos you said so.
I was waiting for Catherine Tate to go into the old dear 'Whaaat A f**king Liberty!' mode. So I spent the episode chuckling away to myself so basically missed most of the story and the point too, of course.

Devine Dora said...

You should have booted that snowmans head...and left a stick or something in the place of it's head....

make some children cry...hehehe

Tara said...

Crazy, crazy weather. I'm glad you were able to grab a cinnamon latte before all weather hell broke loose!

Tim said...

Willowc - No, doofus - there were just little mounds of it in Old Deer Park; probably snowman remnants!

Watch*Paint*Dry – Yeah, I had ice on me car this morning. Most vexing! I hope you like Chuck - I was sold about 12 minutes in when he started doing the Vicki Vale schtick from Batman.

Tate Modern totally has to do some kind of catchphrase at some point.

Dora - I love it when you incite violence!

Tara - So am I! That cinnamon dolce latte was well worth it!