Thursday, December 26, 2013

Downton Abbey & Doctor Who Christmas Specials

Watched two Christmas specials today...

First up is Downton Abbey Christmas special 2013. I know this won't be airing in the US until next year so tread lightly as there may be a few slight spoilers. Synopsis: Set in the summer of 1923. Rose's coming out ball will be at Buckingham Palace, with Cora's mother Martha and brother Harold in attendance. Martha has expressed a desire to, in Robert's words, "see another London Season before she dies".

The Crawley family is implicated in a scandal threatening to engulf the royal family, and Robert must go to great lengths to protect his family and the monarchy. Edith is struggling with a moral dilemma of her own, while Isobel has attracted an admirer. Daisy receives an unexpected invitation, while Carson treats the staff to a day out at the beach.

After last Christmas' shocking and upsetting ending, this years Christmas special was the complete opposite. I thoroughly enjoyed this episode. But like with this past season it wasn't as crazy or dramatic as previous seasons but still entertaining. And this feeling continued with the Christmas special. Lot's of focus on Rose, who I have to say isn't a favorite character of mine. Some fun stuff with Daisy. Not much with Anna and Bates, which was nice since they have been such a huge focus of the last few seasons. Lot's of Mary stuff and a nice conclusion/beginning to her next storyline. I always love Maggie Smith's, Dowager Countess. She is so set in her ways and the new world is scaring her. My favorite part by far was the end with Carson and Miss Hughes holding hands and walking into the water together.. I always hoped those two would get together and I hope this is the beginning of something special.

The second Christmas special I watched today was Doctor Who: Time of the Doctor. Synopsis: The Doctor's worst enemies, The Daleks, The Cybermen, The Angels and The Silence, return, as the doctor's eleventh life comes to a close, and his twelfth life begins. Orbiting a quiet backwater planet, the massed forces of the universe's deadliest species gather, drawn to a mysterious message that echoes out to the stars - and amongst them, the Doctor. Rescuing Clara from a family Christmas dinner, the Time Lord and his best friend must learn what this enigmatic signal means for his own fate and that of the universe.

Another enjoyable Christmas episode. The past few seasons of Who have been good.. not great but good and this was a nice conclusion to the 11th Doctor and beginning of the 12th or 13th.. it's all very confusing. I liked that this episode answered some of the questions they have been playing with since the beginning of the 11th Doctor's run. It was great seeing Amy again one last time. I don't know if I quite understand how they are getting around the limited regeneration but somehow they have. I'm sure will learn more when the new Doctor Who episodes start in the fall of 2014.

So we say goodbye to the 11th Doctor, Matt Smith. When he first showed up I took to him in the first episode... alot faster then I did for the 10th Doctor. He was everything that I thought of when I thought of Doctor Who. I loved his new companion Amy and the fifth season was amazing, but the sixth season was just okay. About halfway though season six the "great" episodes were far and few between and that trend continued in the seventh season. I'm not saying that I didn't enjoy all the episodes..as I did.. very much. But if I had to choose a season to watch over again it wouldn't be six or seven. Overall Matt Smith was an great addition to the Who family and will have a lasting impression on the fandom.

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