My Top Ten Fannish Highlights of 2008
Dec. 21st, 2008 01:57 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selenakIn no particular order of preference.
1) Torchwood, season 2. Which came as a real surprise. I had liked individual season 1 episodes, but if it hadn't been a DW spin-off, I probably wouldn't have continued watching. Season 2, by contrast, wasn't perfect, but it gets a gold star for most improved show since the previous season, in terms of character dynamics (in s2, the TW crew came across as still dysfunctional but genuinenly liking each other), individual characterisation, and a balance between gloom and humour. Not to mention that as opposed to the evil-only aliens in s1, we got some sympathetic aliens as well as a sense of aliens embodying wonder instead of of threat (in A Day in the Death). If I had to single out individual episodes: Reset for best use of the entire ensemble as well as a good use of Martha as the guest star (I hope that wasn't Hammond's last episode for TW), A Day in the Death for Burn Gorman's most outstanding performance as Owen Harper (we got the extremes of Owen's character here, from the capacity for viciousness - in the scene where he lashes out at Tosh and breaks his fingers - to the capacity for compassion and the ability to hope again, in his scenes with Henry and Maggie) and for being the highlight and summation of the Owen arc, and Something Borrowed for being the funniest episode of the season, a great showcase for Eve Myles as Gwen (again, covering the full spectrum from comedic hormone-driven rants to bravery under pressure, when she rescues her mother) and a happy ending for my TW OTP, Gwen/Rhys.
2) The Shape of Things To Come, Lost, season 4. Lost's fourth season was cut short through the strike but as opposed to some other shows coped with this remarkably well. The third season finale had brought a big change via the first use of flashforwards instead of flashbacks, and season 4 employed them in full measure; one could even argue that by time it ends, the island stories are the flashbacks. Of the many combinations of looks into the future/present time and events on the island, my favourite episode wasn't the one singled out most fans, The Constant (though that was a fine episode, no question about it), but The Shape of Things To Come, which was a tour de force for Michael Emerson, as in the island scenes Ben's ability to predict and manipulate his opponents fails him in a fatal, fatal way and in the off-island future story the audience keeps switching between admiration and horror as we see the consequences he drew from this.
3) Iron Man: my favourite comic book adaption of the year (pace, The Dark Knight fans). It captured the essence of the comic book character while remembering it had to be a movie in its own right, not just an illustration, offered good acting, character exploration, fun, suspense and seriousness in a good mixture.
4) Doctor Who, season 4: has become my favourite New Who season, featuring my favourite New Who Doctor/Companion team. I've already written essays as to why, and why the buddy movie principle works better for this particular show than the two leads in a romance and/or unrequited love story structure, so let me just say briefly that Donna Noble and the Tenth Doctor just clicked with me both in terms of actor interplay and writing. There was no episode I didn't rewatch, or which I disliked (as opposed to s1 - The Long Game, grrr, arggh - s2 - Tooth and Claw, headdesk - or s3 - 42 is just dull, which is a pity since it's probably the episode which shows the Doctor's concern for Martha best. If I have to single out season 4 episodes: The Fires of Pompeii for best illustration why the DoctorDonna dynamic is so great, and for managing to get a historical catastrophe across in a non-trivializing and very real way (I've seen various movies using the end of Pompeii as their grand climax, but I always felt distanced; not here), Midnight (that was the big surprise of the season to me, in fact), which was experimental, taut, offered terrific acting especially by Lesley Sharp and David Tennant, and scared me more than any other episode this season, and The Unicorn and the Wasp for the sheer fun of it, which while being DW at its silliest nonetheless made its central guest character, Agatha Christie, feel three dimensional and gave her great character moments (not just for her but for our regulars) with both Donna and the Doctor.
5) Astonishing X-Men, Unstoppable: the fourth and final arc of Joss Whedon's run concludes. I stand by my claim that AXM is the best thing he did since Buffy (and Angel, but Angel was just as imprinted by first David Greenwalt and then Tim Minear), and better than any of his other comics efforts. It used the established X-Men characters - Scott Summers, Emma Frost, Kitty Pryde, Logan, Hank McCoy and Pjotr Rasputin - in an excellent way, with great interaction. (The outstanding inter-X-men relationships for me were probably Emma and Kitty, from their first encounter in Gifted, which made Emma's backstory as a villain very real via Kitty's reaction, to their last in Unstoppable where Emma was in telepathic contact with Kitty throughout Kitty's sacrifice; and Emma and Scott, who in all other incarnations by other writers never click with me as a couple the way they do when Joss writes them.) The new characters Joss invented - Kavita Rao, Hisako, Wing, Danger, Abigail Brand - all gained a life of their own while adding to the "regulars" via their interaction with them. In Unstoppable specifically, Logan's mentoring of Hisako is a great take on the tried and true "Wolverine and a teenage girl = win" formula, and as you may have noticed, trusted reader, Brand/Hank became a favourite pairing of mine. Seriously, I was surprised people were surprised when Brand propositioned to our Dr. McCoy in the last issue of Unstoppable because I had started to ship them from issue 2 onwards. So yes: Unstoppable was one of my absolute fannish highlights this year.
6) Battlestar Galactica, The Hub and Revelations: The fourth season had pacing problems and episodes that drove me up the wall (Sine Qua Non, I'm looking at you), but it also had some great aspects, such as yet another fascinating Six model, Natalie or the return of D'Anna. And two of my favourite episodes for the show overall, The Hub and the mid season finale, Revelations. The Hub is a Laura Roslin character episode in which scriptwriter Jane Espenson finally matches the standard of her BTVS scripts with something that manages to be deep, funny, scary and layered at the same time while also moving the overall story further in several crucial ways. Revelations by contrast is more an ensemble episode, as befits a semi-finale, with everyone getting outstanding moments, from Saul Tigh's talk with Bill Adama to Gaius Baltar asking Laura Roslin to let him talk to D'Anna on humanity's behalf and Laura agreeing (oh, and Baltar succeeding with this) to Lee Adama's "it happened before, but it doesn't have to happen again" to the punchline of a tag scene.
7) Hamlet as produced by the RSC in Stratford, co-starring one David Tennant and one Patrick Stewart. *waves at![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
bimo, who saw it with me* It was a great production in any case, but seeing two of my favourite actors excel in it didn't just make my summer, but my theatre-going year. (If you want details again, my review is here.)
8) Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: after a superb first season, the second season shows no sign of a sophomore slump but remains thoughtful, layered and fascinating tv which has yet to disappoint me. It never patronizes its watchers (and expects them to pay attention), develops its characters in believable ways, and lets them have their own stories instead of just using them to move the plot forward. Oh, and the season 2 opener, Samson and Delilah, remains the best non-pilot season opener I've watched in a long, long while, from the opening sequence and its outstanding use of music and image onwards.
9) The Sarah Jane Adventures: also had an excellent second season. Alas, there was one two-parter which I disliked, but there was more than enough goodness to make up for it, plus a great and improved ensemble use (not that the first season one was bad, but it became predictable in teaming Sarah Jane up with Maria in one subplot and Luke with Clyde in the other; in s2, everybody interacted with everybody else, and the Sarah Jane-Clyde interaction in particular was a welcome change). My favourite story of the second season was Mark of the Berserker (written by Joseph Lidster), followed closely by Enemy of the Bane (written by Phil Ford).
10) Kirschblüten (Cherry Blossoms): a wonderful, tender movie which should make it outside of Germany but hasn't so far; focusing on a decades long marriage, and loss and on connections, with great, great performances.
1) Torchwood, season 2. Which came as a real surprise. I had liked individual season 1 episodes, but if it hadn't been a DW spin-off, I probably wouldn't have continued watching. Season 2, by contrast, wasn't perfect, but it gets a gold star for most improved show since the previous season, in terms of character dynamics (in s2, the TW crew came across as still dysfunctional but genuinenly liking each other), individual characterisation, and a balance between gloom and humour. Not to mention that as opposed to the evil-only aliens in s1, we got some sympathetic aliens as well as a sense of aliens embodying wonder instead of of threat (in A Day in the Death). If I had to single out individual episodes: Reset for best use of the entire ensemble as well as a good use of Martha as the guest star (I hope that wasn't Hammond's last episode for TW), A Day in the Death for Burn Gorman's most outstanding performance as Owen Harper (we got the extremes of Owen's character here, from the capacity for viciousness - in the scene where he lashes out at Tosh and breaks his fingers - to the capacity for compassion and the ability to hope again, in his scenes with Henry and Maggie) and for being the highlight and summation of the Owen arc, and Something Borrowed for being the funniest episode of the season, a great showcase for Eve Myles as Gwen (again, covering the full spectrum from comedic hormone-driven rants to bravery under pressure, when she rescues her mother) and a happy ending for my TW OTP, Gwen/Rhys.
2) The Shape of Things To Come, Lost, season 4. Lost's fourth season was cut short through the strike but as opposed to some other shows coped with this remarkably well. The third season finale had brought a big change via the first use of flashforwards instead of flashbacks, and season 4 employed them in full measure; one could even argue that by time it ends, the island stories are the flashbacks. Of the many combinations of looks into the future/present time and events on the island, my favourite episode wasn't the one singled out most fans, The Constant (though that was a fine episode, no question about it), but The Shape of Things To Come, which was a tour de force for Michael Emerson, as in the island scenes Ben's ability to predict and manipulate his opponents fails him in a fatal, fatal way and in the off-island future story the audience keeps switching between admiration and horror as we see the consequences he drew from this.
3) Iron Man: my favourite comic book adaption of the year (pace, The Dark Knight fans). It captured the essence of the comic book character while remembering it had to be a movie in its own right, not just an illustration, offered good acting, character exploration, fun, suspense and seriousness in a good mixture.
4) Doctor Who, season 4: has become my favourite New Who season, featuring my favourite New Who Doctor/Companion team. I've already written essays as to why, and why the buddy movie principle works better for this particular show than the two leads in a romance and/or unrequited love story structure, so let me just say briefly that Donna Noble and the Tenth Doctor just clicked with me both in terms of actor interplay and writing. There was no episode I didn't rewatch, or which I disliked (as opposed to s1 - The Long Game, grrr, arggh - s2 - Tooth and Claw, headdesk - or s3 - 42 is just dull, which is a pity since it's probably the episode which shows the Doctor's concern for Martha best. If I have to single out season 4 episodes: The Fires of Pompeii for best illustration why the DoctorDonna dynamic is so great, and for managing to get a historical catastrophe across in a non-trivializing and very real way (I've seen various movies using the end of Pompeii as their grand climax, but I always felt distanced; not here), Midnight (that was the big surprise of the season to me, in fact), which was experimental, taut, offered terrific acting especially by Lesley Sharp and David Tennant, and scared me more than any other episode this season, and The Unicorn and the Wasp for the sheer fun of it, which while being DW at its silliest nonetheless made its central guest character, Agatha Christie, feel three dimensional and gave her great character moments (not just for her but for our regulars) with both Donna and the Doctor.
5) Astonishing X-Men, Unstoppable: the fourth and final arc of Joss Whedon's run concludes. I stand by my claim that AXM is the best thing he did since Buffy (and Angel, but Angel was just as imprinted by first David Greenwalt and then Tim Minear), and better than any of his other comics efforts. It used the established X-Men characters - Scott Summers, Emma Frost, Kitty Pryde, Logan, Hank McCoy and Pjotr Rasputin - in an excellent way, with great interaction. (The outstanding inter-X-men relationships for me were probably Emma and Kitty, from their first encounter in Gifted, which made Emma's backstory as a villain very real via Kitty's reaction, to their last in Unstoppable where Emma was in telepathic contact with Kitty throughout Kitty's sacrifice; and Emma and Scott, who in all other incarnations by other writers never click with me as a couple the way they do when Joss writes them.) The new characters Joss invented - Kavita Rao, Hisako, Wing, Danger, Abigail Brand - all gained a life of their own while adding to the "regulars" via their interaction with them. In Unstoppable specifically, Logan's mentoring of Hisako is a great take on the tried and true "Wolverine and a teenage girl = win" formula, and as you may have noticed, trusted reader, Brand/Hank became a favourite pairing of mine. Seriously, I was surprised people were surprised when Brand propositioned to our Dr. McCoy in the last issue of Unstoppable because I had started to ship them from issue 2 onwards. So yes: Unstoppable was one of my absolute fannish highlights this year.
6) Battlestar Galactica, The Hub and Revelations: The fourth season had pacing problems and episodes that drove me up the wall (Sine Qua Non, I'm looking at you), but it also had some great aspects, such as yet another fascinating Six model, Natalie or the return of D'Anna. And two of my favourite episodes for the show overall, The Hub and the mid season finale, Revelations. The Hub is a Laura Roslin character episode in which scriptwriter Jane Espenson finally matches the standard of her BTVS scripts with something that manages to be deep, funny, scary and layered at the same time while also moving the overall story further in several crucial ways. Revelations by contrast is more an ensemble episode, as befits a semi-finale, with everyone getting outstanding moments, from Saul Tigh's talk with Bill Adama to Gaius Baltar asking Laura Roslin to let him talk to D'Anna on humanity's behalf and Laura agreeing (oh, and Baltar succeeding with this) to Lee Adama's "it happened before, but it doesn't have to happen again" to the punchline of a tag scene.
7) Hamlet as produced by the RSC in Stratford, co-starring one David Tennant and one Patrick Stewart. *waves at
bimo, who saw it with me* It was a great production in any case, but seeing two of my favourite actors excel in it didn't just make my summer, but my theatre-going year. (If you want details again, my review is here.) 8) Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: after a superb first season, the second season shows no sign of a sophomore slump but remains thoughtful, layered and fascinating tv which has yet to disappoint me. It never patronizes its watchers (and expects them to pay attention), develops its characters in believable ways, and lets them have their own stories instead of just using them to move the plot forward. Oh, and the season 2 opener, Samson and Delilah, remains the best non-pilot season opener I've watched in a long, long while, from the opening sequence and its outstanding use of music and image onwards.
9) The Sarah Jane Adventures: also had an excellent second season. Alas, there was one two-parter which I disliked, but there was more than enough goodness to make up for it, plus a great and improved ensemble use (not that the first season one was bad, but it became predictable in teaming Sarah Jane up with Maria in one subplot and Luke with Clyde in the other; in s2, everybody interacted with everybody else, and the Sarah Jane-Clyde interaction in particular was a welcome change). My favourite story of the second season was Mark of the Berserker (written by Joseph Lidster), followed closely by Enemy of the Bane (written by Phil Ford).
10) Kirschblüten (Cherry Blossoms): a wonderful, tender movie which should make it outside of Germany but hasn't so far; focusing on a decades long marriage, and loss and on connections, with great, great performances.
