quick sundries

[rm]

Last night we went to see Cheri which I thought was uneven and minor and at it's best when it was amusing. Good performances, though. Then we had a nice dinner and headed home. Less of an exciting night than we had hoped (we'd had tickets for a party on a boat that got canceled) and I've been just exhausted lately as I recover from this cold, but it was still very nice.

TORCHWOOD HAS (we think) BEEN RENEWED FOR S4 (this is possibly confirmed; this is possibly unconfirmed (see comments). I think it's unconfirmed officially, I think I now have it from a source other than that article (which is unconfirmed) most of us first got it from, so kinda, sorta, maybe, but not quite? ANYWAY). This is scary if we move immediately forward in the timeline, as the show will have to be emotionally responsible in a way it hasn't always been in the past. Ianto and Stephen are both things that have to get acknowledged, probably more than a little, no matter how much Jack compartimentalizes stuff. And I hope the powers that be understand how even something very small and not explored, such as a moment of seeing Jack at Ianto's grave or something, would go a long way to appeasing folks all over the spectrum of reactions to Ianto's death. If S4 takes place further down the timeline -- even if it's still 2010 for the setting -- if it's 5 years or a 100 years later for Jack (an idea which makes a lot of sense to deal with the fact that Barrowman is aging), even if he's done processing those events in an immediate way... the audience is still going to need something there. So who knows what's going to happen. But I for one, who could really use seeing Jack allow himself a moment of grace, am glad it's happening.

From the department of funny, but not okay: I just caught myself in 3/4 profile in the bathroom mirror at work and my hair is all shaggy and grown out and curling right now and I was like "woah, I could totally cosplay Alice." And I could. And it would be eerie. But talk about things from the department of no way on earth. More incentive to get my hair cut before WriterCon. Christ, that was weird.

Am not enjoying the current fluxiness of Dragon*Con schedule, both in terms of where I am needed when and whether it will conflict with stuff I really want to see. And I need to set up some actual meetings this year. It's like everyone has 50% of their schedule and has been told that it's probably wrong -- so it's like trying to read tea leaves to figure out if it's a good schedule or a bad schedule.

Comments

[better-late24.livejournal.com]

TORCHWOOD HAS BEEN RENEWED FOR S4.

I have no idea how I feel about this. Honestly, I think I'm just not going to even attempt to process it. It'll be forever until it airs, anyway.

I do agree, though, on how a little bit of reaction over Ianto would go a long way. Hell, I'd be thrilled to see him in a flashback or something equally cliche.

[svollga.livejournal.com]

I hope they will address a lot of emotional and factual issues CoE raised. RTD mentioned that the events of CoE won't be addressed in Doctor Who specials, which dissappoints me, really - thought they are different TV series, but they are in the same universe, and there were too many questions on why the Doctor didn't come to save his beloved Earth from 456.
There is a tradition of leaving emotional issues unsolved in Whoniverse, or address them in a hurry, in several light strokes. I like it, actually - it's not a soap opera, it's a sci-fi show. But these strokes are needed. RTD has a talent to paint emotionas with several words or phrases, so I hope he'll deal with those issues in 4th season.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I won't care if CoE doesn't get addressed in Who if we have vagueness about where we are in the timeline.

That said, clearly no one at BBC thinks much about dates, because no only is the timeline for Torchwood wonked beyond all (that's not including any timey-wimey, but just linearly when it's supposed to be happening), some idiot had a prop newspaper on Day 2 of CoE that dated the day as September 9th. Which means Ianto died on September 11th. And yes, days are just days, but I live in New York, and I'm waiting for fandom to get stupid about this, and I don't want that.

Torchwood: Season 4 unconfirmed...

[sarantha.livejournal.com]

So in scoping the Comic Con bits, this news is unconfirmed, just one guy at the con without a named source...

On the up side, there is now a video from the Con of David Tennant and John Barrowman in a kiss... Very cool :)

Re: Torchwood: Season 4 unconfirmed...

[rm.livejournal.com]

Yes (see edits) and yes... Jack and Ten are awesome ex-bf superheroes, and I thought that shit was adorable.

Re: Torchwood: Season 4 unconfirmed...

[eumelia.livejournal.com]

Is there a link to this video, by any chance? Or would be okay to Tube!search it?

Thanks!

[http://users.livejournal.com/peasant_/]

I'm really hoping the BBC decides it can't afford a S4 of Torchwood (which is thankfully quite likely) because wrack my brains as I can I can't think of a way to avoid the two ghastly alternatives:
Either we have to watch Jack cope with his grief, which will be boring and horrible if done accurately, and excruciating if done badly. Or we have to cut to a time when he has recovered to some extent, which will not give the audience a chance to go through the necessary grieving. I just hope the writers are cleverer than me and can come up with a third alternative.

There is also the problem of what will they do about a future love interest. Have another man - it's betrayal of Ianto. Have a woman - it's betrayal of the queer themes. Have nobody - it's not going to be very plausible. That pretty much only leaves Captain John's poodle.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I don't believe Jack would view being involved with another man as a betrayal of Ianto. And if, the writers were smart, they would have someone say something to him about this, so he could shoot this down. I do agree that Jack is such a queer icon, that eventhough he's omnisexual and that's part of what's awesome about the character, it would be better in a lot of different ways if his next significant relationship in the series was with a man. Ideally, this gets navigated by him having a fling or a flirt with a female character and then very, very, very hesitantly, trying to have a thing with a guy (or vice versa). If you go into the novelizations and all the other random quasi-canon stuff attached to the show, Jack has a lot more relationships with men than women as a rule, so it would be consistent with the characterization to navigate it that way.

[thessalian.livejournal.com]

See, I always figured that the point of Jack (and, later, Ianto, given his "It's not men; it's just him" was that sexuality is not a radio button thing but a sliding scale. Jack's preferences are just wider, and Ianto had his horizons broadened. I'm not sure how (for lack of a better term) "HoYay" is a better theme for a series than "acceptance of alternate lifestyles and ways to love and live", which is the message I always got.

Personally, I always sort of wondered if Rhys would warm up enough to Jack to get them into a poly relationship. I think it would have worked well. *g*

[eumelia.livejournal.com]

I wonder if Jack is planned to appear in the Doctor Who Christmas special.

If something is acknowledged there, that would also go a long way, I think.

Wow, S4 is scary stuff. I'm really not sure how I feel about this. Will it be the Gwen and Jack show? Will it be a "reboot" and have a whole new team, which includes a new love-interest and if so, is Jack going to remember the (sorta) epic he had with Ianto (well, it ended epically).

So much that needs to be done right so that it actually has a shred of integrity post-CoE!

*whimpers*

[rm.livejournal.com]

We know Jack will be in the regeneration episode of DW and we've been informed by RTD that CoE isn't getting a mention. We don't know where that episode falls in anyone's timeline though.

[laughingacademy.livejournal.com]

I for one, who could really use seeing Jack allow himself a moment of grace, am glad it's happening.

If S4 happens, I’ll be chanting “Please don’t let them fuck this up again, some more.” I hope we do get a visit to a grave or a commemorative plaque at Thames House, or a vigil, or something. (My throat is closing up as I type this.)

I doubt it’ll ever happen within the context of Doctor Who, but I really would like an explanation for the Doctor’s absence during CoE. Right now all we have is Gwen’s video monologue with its unfortunate implication: that the venality of those in power made the Doctor abandon millions of innocent children and the people fighting to save them. Tell me the Doctor didn’t know, or tried to help but failed because [timey-wimey pseudoscience babble], or had to let it happen because that’s just how the timeline plays out.

And I still want Jack to punch Ten in the face.

[fragiletender.livejournal.com]

It's a very big universe, especially when you add in the time element. The Doctor is only one single Timelord. He can't possibly be everywhere at once. The Doctor was probably just knee deep in alien alligators somewhere else at the time. Yes, theoretically he could go back in time to sort it out but he'd have to know about it first - it's not like anyone phoned him up and asked him to drop by.

[msp-hacker.livejournal.com]

Could you explain further on the funny but not okay aspect of cosplaying Alice? I know it has something to do with your identification with Jack, but my mind isn't putting two plus two together.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Honestly, it's less that and more mundane things, but it did still take me aback.

For one thing, it's not my scene -- not too costumey. For another, I rarely look my age (which is to say, Alice's age), so it was actually pretty startingly to see myself looking very much like I'm not about to be mistaken for ten years younger than I am. Three, Alice has no canon narrative other than something terrible happening to her, and that just strikes me as yucky and creepy to cosplay.

[eleish.livejournal.com]

I was thinking something similar: they can do "Torchwood, 80 years later", recruit Gwen granddaughter (starring: Eve Miles) and make the love story between them without touching the Rhys' issue.
I'm not sure I will like it, but it make sense, even if in that way they will lose the contemporary-Cardiff thing that was always so important in the first two series.

A brief, mute scene with Jack on Ianto's grave would be really lovely.

[isil-helyanwe.livejournal.com]

I don't know if someone else has mentioned this, in comments or in the article or whatever but... is it a definite that Jack is coming back at all? I know it's unlikely, but couldn't they keep only Gwen as an old character, and maybe bring in James Marsters or someone?

[rm.livejournal.com]

They could, but I think that's pretty unlikely. Certainly, whatever the current news status is, papers have not yet been signed (or at least press releases haven't come out yet), so these are things we probably won't know for a while.

[kel-reiley.livejournal.com]

i'm actually rather hoping neither jack or gwen are in it, and it's all new ppl a couple years down the line - the more i think about it (and have been doing so since this morning) the more i think that that's what i'd prefer

a whole new team, a whole new show

[lefaym.livejournal.com]

And I hope the powers that be understand how even something very small and not explored, such as a moment of seeing Jack at Ianto's grave or something, would go a long way to appeasing folks all over the spectrum of reactions to Ianto's death.

Yeah, this. The only thing Ianto wanted in the end was to be remembered, and if they don't show that, then they're doing both the character and the fans a huge disservice. Frankly, I'm gutted to hear that CoE won't be acknowledged in Doctor Who -- it would be so easy to do in a small way, like Jack refusing to take coffee or something (meaningful to Ianto fans, but not getting in the way of the narrative). Tosh and Owen got acknowledgement in The Stolen Earth/Journey's End, and it's completely slack if they don't do the same for Ianto in this finale. I see what you're saying about how it might be somewhere else in the timeline, but really... I think we NEED that acknowledgement right now (and besides, Jack did promise to remember him for a thousand years).

[stardragonca.livejournal.com]

How fast does Jack age, at what rate, and how and why does it vary. That's a problem, mostly because of his having to be played by actors.
Fortunately Time Vortex generated immortality is a unprecedented event, so there's no a priori rule to go by. But some one should figure out a workable rule, as the problems not going to go away.

[elionwyr.livejournal.com]

Random:

Mike's Comics is having a sale on DW/TW stuff:
http://www.mikescomics.com/TOYS2S.html

[bodlon.livejournal.com]

The more I think about it, the more keen I am on a S4. I'm so curious about it. I'm worried they'll get around to writing it before I do, mind, but I can live with that. Mostly.

The D*C schedule and I are not talking on account of the fluxiness. I'm in denial about the issue until mid-August, I think.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I sorta have to be, or I'm going to start freaking out very badly. I was really zen with this year's con being big for me professionally and not that interesting personally. That's now changed, and if the shit comes into total conflict, I'm not sure how I'm going to process. Right now, I'm pretty much counting on Brittrack having to redo their entire schedule because of GDL, since he doesn't strike me as the sort who wants to be stuck on panels during the 8pm - 10pm social whirl start-up window.

[adjovi.livejournal.com]

And I hope the powers that be understand how even something very small and not explored, such as a moment of seeing Jack at Ianto's grave or something, would go a long way to appeasing folks all over the spectrum of reactions to Ianto's death.

that would satisfy me, but i read on afterelton yesterday, which leaves me little hope for that: "Davies strongly stated that while Captain Jack will be forever affected by the death, that storyline is pretty much wrapped up."