Reading/Watching Log #97

Whew, I’m finally finished. Getting laid low with Covid was one thing, but after the monthly deadline passed, I found it difficult to get motivated in finishing up this post. Plus, I still have my Recommendations of 2023 and Women of the Year posts to make, and I’ve no idea how long they’re going to take me.

It’s a little strange looking over this log and seeing it divided into what I watched before, during and after Covid. More than that, there are some crazy coincidences in what this material contains, including a. a small, almost throwaway, scene in which a person of colour deals with a passive-aggressive comment on where they were born (Doctor Who and Dial of Destiny), a skeleton that is animated by sentient bandages/rags (Zita the Space Girl and an episode of Legend of the Seeker), two social climbing women (The Crown and Dangerous Liaisons) and actors who looks like Eddie Redmayne, who are not actually Eddie Redmayne.

So here it is, better late than never.

Links and Updates

So what did you get for Christmas? I got Covid, which meant I didn’t get a Christmas. I’ve finally dragged myself out the other side of my sick bed, though I still feel like crap and barely have the energy to type this (the post you’re about to read was written about a day before the symptoms really hit).

I’m ticked off, as I was able to avoid the virus for this long, but I suppose I knew deep down it was going to catch up to me eventually. In any case, I hope your Christmas was better than mine.

My last Links and Updates post was a bit miserable, as there’s been so little to look forward to this year and so much more that has been unceremoniously cancelled. And then, in the past couple of weeks, something happened – the promise of good stuff!

And yes, a lot of it is prequels and sequels and remakes and continuations, but they appear to have a level of care and quality involved that piques my interest...

Legend of the Seeker: Desecrated

We start with another of those patented camping scenes in which the characters are ribbing each other over the fire (it’s a staple of this show by now) when Kahlan emerges from the forest and announces that gars are attacking a nearby village. They all race off to lend their assistance... only for it to turn out to be a surprise party for Richard’s birthday.

Aww. But also – enjoy it while it lasts.

Legend of the Seeker: Creator

Ah, it’s a good old clip show episode. This should be an easy one.

With the advent of short-form television, in which a season gets approximately eight to ten episodes at most, the use of the Clip Show has pretty much disappeared. Their purpose back in the days of twenty-two-episode seasons were obviously to fill in a bit of time and save a bit of money by showcasing footage of the show that had already been shot, usually under the guise of catching the audience up on events, or demonstrating how much a character has grown.

For my money, the best justification for a clip show was “Past Imperfect” from Xena Warrior Princess, in which the story involves Gabrielle literally revisiting her memories leading up to a particular life-altering choice, with a twist on what was actually occurring in that moment.

In this case, Legend of the Seeker goes for more of a Courtroom Drama, where our characters are forced to defend Richard’s integrity as a hero to a mysterious figure who confronts him with the prophecy that he’ll end up helping the Keeper by giving him the Stone of Tears.

Woman of the Month: Zita the Space Girl

Zita from Zita the Space Girl

I feel like I’ve been waiting forever for my reserves of these graphic novels to come through the library system, but it turns out it was worth the wait.

Having read the afterword in the final book, the genesis of this character is its own little story: originally conceived by a girl called Anna in high school, Ben Hatke began to expand the character’s adventures (presumably with Anna’s permission) in a bid to impress her. The gambit paid off, and the two are now married with four daughters – one of whom is called Zita.

The fictional Zita is a young girl hanging out with her friend Joseph in the fields behind their houses when a meteorite crashes close by. Naturally they investigate, and discover a strange device that looks like a big red button. And as it happens, Zita is exactly the type of girl who – on finding a big red button – presses it immediately.

A portal opens in the crater, and tentacles drag Joseph through. She runs away in terror, hesitates, thinks for a bit, and then rushes back to follow him to Who Knows Where. That’s a pretty good summation of Zita’s character: a girl whose impulsiveness makes trouble for others, only for her to then try her darndest to get them out of it.

The adventures that follow regularly have Zita use the phrase: “don’t tell me who I can’t save!” as she’s very much a big-picture-comes-last kind of hero. If someone is in immediate danger, then their life is prioritized before any world-saving shenanigans, which naturally creates for her a very tight circle of loyal friends.

The stories are pretty fun space adventures for the most part – though this underlying theme of Zita’s choices and what she deems most important provide an interesting look at a very popular moral equation that comes up a lot in fantasy/sci-fi: her thirst for adventure often comes across as selfish, and yet she’ll put her own safety and happiness on the line every time to help someone in need.

So she’s deeply flawed, and yet truly inspirational at the same time. It’s nice to see a story get that balance right in a female character.

Reading/Watching Log #96

It’s been a busy month, filled with Christmas parades, Christmas ballets, Christmas markets and Christmas decorating (and it’s only just December now!) But I feel like I’m on top of it, especially concerning my Christmas shopping. Parents, sister and nephew are all accounted for regarding their gifts, and of course I bought my presents to myself ages ago (The Daughters of Ys illustrated by Jo Rioux and The Mabinogion illustrated by Alan Lee – yes!!)

Reading wise, there are more graphic novels, a very strange Babysitters Club book, and some Slavic fantasies (I’m finally getting to the end of that massive TBR pile). Watching wise, there was a more eclectic mix, including my sister’s favourite movie, some leftover werewolf films, the end of Disenchanted (and my Netflix subscription) and a return to season four of Doctor Who to catch up on Donna Noble’s history before getting to this year’s Christmas Specials.

I have also been sporadically watching episodes of the BBC’s Robin Hood with my friend, though I’m still working on a much longer review for the show as a whole, so there are no comments on it here.

Legend of the Seeker: Bound

It’s taken me this long to notice that Legend of the Seeker doesn’t have any opening credits, just a quick montage of the main characters set to Zed’s voiceover (and the clip they chose for Cara is just awful). Does anyone else miss the art of the opening credits? With a tableau of clips and cast credits played to a proper theme song that set the tone? Nobody does that anymore.

In any case, this episode starts with the Sisters of the Dark standing in their trademark circle and engaging in a little chanting. They do that a lot, though it never seems to do them much good. A mutiny against Nicci is a-brewing (even though they brought her back from the dead only last week) as well as some backstabbing when the ringleaders enhance their own power (or Han) by stealing energy from others as part of a predetermined plan.

Now they have the strength to take on Nicci, though – still in possession of Richard’s Han – she disappears before they can kill her with their increased odds, and clocks in some facetime with Rahl through a campfire to get advice on what to do next. To redeem herself, she must find the Stone of Tears (I’ve totally forgotten what this does by now) and bring it to the Keeper, though she points out the compass that leads to it only works in the hands of the Seeker.

Therefore, she must find a way to control the Seeker. The exposition is a little clunky, but it neatly lays out Nicci’s objectives for this episode: control the Seeker, find the Stone, and kill the Mother Confessor (as you’ll recall, there’s a prophecy that states the Keeper is doomed to fail while Kahlan’s “pure heart” still beats). And that’s this week’s set-up!