@Kaila Hale-Stern: Well it's got a lot easier in the last few years. First time I tried it was in 1997 and I sounded like a complete dork (probably was...), but with forums and chats and virtual worlds entering the mainstream now, and all the user management that comes with it, I find that no-one bats an eyelid. Even better, is that the MUD I ran spawned Cheeseplant's House (for which I take no credit) which was evolutionary ancestor of instant messaging and second life. Government types just love it when you drop that in... ;-)
Ah, great piece and the memories that come with it. I worked my way up through a MUD at uni and eventually ran it for two years, which taught me everything you need to know about dealing with power-mad egomaniacs. I've since quoted that in job interviews as my earliest management experience (I was god - suck on that!). I also have a presentation I give on new technology (I'm an e-learning professional) and how there's nothing new in any of it, where I point out that MUDs were an early form of SL for those of us who prefer the written word and the creativity it enables. My MUD didn't have too many castles and monsters - but it did have a Cluedo mansion and Mr Benn's costume shop (which the UK folk will understand). Aside from the graphics, there's little in today's virtual worlds which wasn't in a MU* first.
Might be worth pointing out that this series of Torchwood will be airing first in the UK on BBC One (mainstream), not BBC Three (backwater), and that the BBC has different standards for each, as evidenced by the recent 'Little Britain' series which came with two different cuts for the different channels. I wouldn't be surprised if there's a link between moving it to BBC One and toning it down for the US.
It won't alter the fact that it's essentially a kid's show with added gratuitous sex and swearing.
For me, the show still has its moments, despite the dross in between. I've enjoyed Sylar and Elle's little affair and was looking forward to a bit of Natural Born Killers action in the future. Let's hope Sylar's stuck in the cretaceous or something and he can suck dinobrains from now on. The 9th wonders strand works for me too, and thankfully they've cleared up the 'posthumous publication' issue, though what the hell is this 'legend' business about another script?
So many issues though... two eclipses in under a year, and why didn't the medieval Japanese eclipse affect Hiro in season 2? And of course the longest... but we've covered that. My favourite has to be Matt successfully navigating from a cornfield to a comic shop which is clearly miles away (judging by H&As walk last week) without knowing where they were. Staggering guff. And why have Maya pop up for three seconds of screen time, and why would she even open the door, let alone look happy to see the scaly whining monster again?
Point of order - the Haitian's non-muteness was actually revealed in series 1, when he conspired with Claire after HRG ordered him to wipe her memory.
@HollywoodBob: He stopped though - just killed her and didn't do the brain thang. It struck me as odd that he'd stopped until I remembered he already had her powers.
You gotta love the fact that the effects guys have added the glow and reduced the contrast in an obvious attempt to tap into the Leia look - LOL. If they wanted they could have made him look like he was actually there, but no, it's cooler if he has that flickering feeling...
@jdalex178: Broke his neck using Peter's telekinesis which Peter had originally acquired from Sylar. All good fun.
For video, try here: [news.bbc.co.uk] and here: [news.bbc.co.uk]
I live in Sheffield, and I have to say the vast majority of locals are pretty cheesed off about this. Had they been a bridge rather than a post-industrial relic they'd have been saved and restored, but our southern overlords can't see past the 'grim up north' stereotypes and so they've gone. The towers were an iconic landmark; as closely identified with the skyline of their city as any great statue, bridge or abstract work is elsewhere. In my opinion - and that of many around here - they were beautiful works of art, curving gracefully up above the motorway and typifying the industrial heritage of the city. If you don't know the place, the photos miss the panoramic view, which they dominated, being situated mere feet from the elevated M1 motorway.
Ah well. Progress.
@Scooby-Doo-Underwear: Spot on - that was my no. 1 complaint after episode I - no Han, no wisecracking princess, no fun, no character... and this was supposed to be for kids! I always though Jedi were cool, but apparently they're just dull...
My issue with Annalee's original points though is that (with the exception of the last couple) they're all about *opportunity* not *delivery*. Lucas had plenty of opportunity with the prequels, but the delivery was woeful. I'm not getting my hopes up.
Well 2008 looks increasingly like 1984 in a way that in 1984 (when I first read it) would have seemed ridiculously unlikely. But the FUD served up by the press everyday is placing more and more power in the hands of the police state and as most politicians and journalists are arts graduates, they lack the healthy exposure to the fictional dystopias which taught us scientists how not to run a country...
And then there's Skynet of course - they'll be burning books next...
@Jay Elmore: At a guess, Group Access Database, based on what it does, but it's too late for me; not wasting my time with something that's so obtuse it can't even explain what it is properly. Clunky site too.
Totally loved Jack's reaction to the sister news - sold it 100% for me.
The pieces are falling into place for once - or so it seems. 4 of the six are pretty much back together, and the other two (Sun and Aaron) are co-located with the life-raft shown in the rescue picture at the press conference.
I'm expecting the boat to blow, with Sun having just left on the raft, and for her to think Jin, Desmond and Michael are dead (and she blames herself). Of course they're not (as they can't die off island), but she doesn't know that.
That would leave the focus of the last two hours to be the orchid, and some end-of-series-two-style purple vibrating sky moments which result in the helicopter crashing in the sea carrying the four plus Sawyer, who sacrifices himself for Kate in some heroic gesture at some point, though probably not permanently.
Bear in mind that the flash-forwards haven't yet caught up with the very first we saw, in which Jack says they need to go back. I'm totally expecting that the end of season 4 brings us back to that point and resolves it - ie shows us a flash-forward beyond that point and teasing a season 5 return.
Can't wait.
