Advent Calendar, Day 14

Today's activity: Go see "A Klingon Christmas Carol." Qapla'!

Jason and I had such a fun time! This has been going on in Chicago for four years now, but neither of us knew about it until last year. We were unable to go last year, so I was very excited to be able to go this year. We got our tickets through the Chicago Nerd Social Club, who had a meet-up last night with discounted tickets. We met some great people. The people running the show were very nice--they let us take a group picture on the set after the show. Unfortunately it's not up online yet.

The show itself was very well done. The stage was tiny, so they only had a few basic set pieces that were moved around between scenes. The play itself was performed entirely in Klingon, with the English translation projected on the wall behind the stage. There was also a Vulcan narrator; her lines were in English. The basics of the story were the same, but some details were changed to fit the Klingon "culture": in addition to being a money lender and a man without honor, Scrooge (or SQuja') is a coward. He must learn that a Klingon never backs down from a fight.

There were also tons of Trek references thrown in: SQuja' and the Ghost of Kahless Past travel from place to place by "transporter" (shining a spotlight on them with the transporter sound). He is also dressed like the original Klingons, before their makeup included forehead ridges. The Ghost of Kahless Future had the Klingon helmet from Star Trek: Into Darkness. And the opening narration informed us that "Marley was dead. As dead as a redshirt."

If you like Star Trek and you find yourself in Chicago, this is a definite must-see!

"The Day of the Doctor" Review

This first part is going to be spoiler-free. I know some people are waiting to see it in theaters on Monday or streaming it whenever it's available, so if you didn't watch it live, no worries. Read on! Spoilers will be after the giant picture of River Song.

The Internet is abuzz with Doctor Who-related stuff. The Google game is fantastic (Jason says it's easier to navigate by clicking rather than with the arrow keys). Cake Wrecks has their Sunday Sweets feature up a day early, with a baker's dozen of AMAZING Doctor Who cakes. 

Jason and I have been re-watching key episodes to get ready for the 50th anniversary. Our normal Friday tradition is to order pizza and watch Doctor Who online, so last night we watched Remembrance of the Daleks, with the 7th Doctor and Ace, which ran at the beginning of season 25 of the original series. Then this morning we decided to do a crash-course review of the Time War, so we re-watched The End of Time with David Tennant (sob!) and this season's The Name of the Doctor. 

We got to the sports bar hosting the meetup around 12:15, with the special starting at 1:50. More than half of the place was taken up by fellow Whovians. Jason and I sat down at a table of complete strangers wearing Doctor Who t-shirts and struck up a conversation. There was a college football game playing on some of the screens, with the sound on, and BBC America on the rest, with the sound off. We were assured that all of the screens would turn to BBC America after the game or at 1:50, whichever came first. The game was still going on as the countdown started, and they must have changed the sound exactly at 1:50. Our side of the restaurant was full of cheers.

I had very high expectations of this episode, and I have to say it was even better than I expected. Seriously, The Day of the Doctor can only be described as epic. I loved the way everyone interacted, all of the stories within the episode meshed very well, and I'm looking forward to the new direction the show is headed in.

10/10. If you haven't seen it, DO. Then come back and read the rest. xD

Mmmmkay. As Professor Song would say, "SPOILERS!"

Here are some of my favorite moments from the special:

I loved that they opened the show with the original 1963 opening. The original theme song is one of my favorite versions and it was a great way to tie it in to the beginning of everything, especially since the episode begins in the same place as the beginning of An Unearthly Child. 

I'm so glad they didn't give away all of the jokes in the trailers and clips. My favorite bit was when John Hurt meets Ten and Eleven for the first time. "Are you his companions?...My God, did I have a mid-life crisis?" And when Ten denied any knowledge of the phrase "timey-wimey." Their character arc--initially uncertain and sharp with each other, then deciding to work together, then coming to respect each other--was reminiscent (in a good way) of The Three Doctors. One of the things I love about Doctor Who in general is that, with all of their problems with keeping continuity straight, it's very self-referential. And even the continuity problems can be chalked up to that wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey stuff.

And the biggie: 

My initial thought when they were getting ready to press the button was that it reminded me of Ten and Donna from Fires of Pompeii--they're stuck in a bad situation, and there's no way around it, but they can get through it together. I was actually kind of annoyed when I realized they were going to Take A Third Option, because pressing the Reset Button on the Time War undoes a major part of the Ninth and Tenth Doctor eras. Not to mention that the Doctor did it to stop them from wiping out all of time itself. And, as John Hurt pointed out, his guilt over the Time War serves as a motivator. 

Still, they managed to pull it off very well. Doctor Who has always been set in a universe that is inherently optimistic: bad things happen, but the universe overall contains more good than bad. And really, to celebrate half a century of Doctor Who, there was no other way this could have gone. Everybody wants the Doctor to win and find a way to end the Time War without wiping out his entire race. It just took three of him to do it. As for the Time Lords wiping out all of time, the Doctors used their Third Option on that problem too. They wanted to end the Time War no matter the cost, and they've got an ending that costs significantly less than their original projections. An eternity in a pocket universe should give cooler heads a chance to prevail.

As I said, I'm very excited about what this means for the future of the show. I would love to see Romana return, for example, or the Master, or even some new Time Lord characters who weren't in the classic series. It gives the Doctor something new to search for. He's found his redemption; now he needs to go and find his people.

And now we are only one month and a couple days away from the Christmas special! They had already turned the sound off by the time the promo aired, but from what I could see it looks like the whole rogue's gallery of monsters will be there. It will also be time to say goodbye to Matt Smith and hello to Peter Capaldi. All in all, I would say 2013 was a great year to be a Doctor Who fan. Now I'm off to make pasta for dinner--bow tie noodles, naturally.

Allons-y!

Movie Review, Pac-Man Crochet, and Doctor Who Excitement

Today's post comes to you in three parts. Part one: Ender's Game review.

Jason and I went to see Ender's Game on Sunday. We had both read the book in the past, though Jason admitted he only remembered the basic plot. I remembered more of the details.

For those of you unfamiliar with the story, Andrew "Ender" Wiggin is a teenage boy who is part of a military program to fight a war against the Formics, ant-like aliens who invaded Earth half a century ago. The Formics nearly wiped out the human race before a sound defeat that sent them back to their home planet. Ender is sent to the elite outer space Battle School to become a great military leader.

As a book-to-film translation, it works very well. The biggest change they made was to condense the story time-wise. Ender is older when he leaves for Battle School, and the entire course of events takes place over no more than a year or two. In the book, Ender is seven or eight when they ship him into space and the book takes place over four or five years. There are many reasons for making Ender older, and overall I think it makes the movie better.

I do think they could have either made the movie longer (it clocks in at just under two hours) or even broken it into two parts. The subplot between Ender's brother and sister, Peter and Valentine, is cut out entirely even though it is a significant part of the book. The other big omission, and my biggest disappointment with the film, was the most of the zero-G battles were cut out. We get to see a few scenes, and they look fantastic. I definitely would have wanted to see more, especially since they take up a good portion of the book as well.

Overall, I would give Ender's Game 4/5 stars.

Part two: My latest crochet project!

I found both of the patterns on Ravelry. The ghosts were originally a Halloween decoration in white. In addition to the color change, I eliminated the original bead eyes and the finishing mouth stitches. I attached the googly eyes with my trusty hot glue gun. Pac-Man was originally all in yellow, but I thought he would look better with a black mouth. This was a quick, easy project. The ghosts take about half an hour, and Pac-Man was probably an hour start to finish. You can find the (free!) ghost pattern here. If you're on Ravelry, you can find the (free!) Pac-Man pattern here.

Part three: OMG THE DOCTOR WHO 50TH ANNIVERSARY IS A WEEK AWAY!!!1!

The Day of the Doctor is coming, people. Next Saturday. And I am so. Flippin. Excited.

Can you tell?

Jason and I have plans to see it with the Chicago Nerd Social Club. They're having a meet-up for lunch and viewing. This is great, because we don't have cable. We don't even have an antenna--our big-screen TV is used exclusively for DVDs, video games, and Netflix. Of course, it makes no sense to get a cable subscription just for one show.

So since we're going to be out and about, in the lovely Chicago winter, I decided that I needed to knit myself a TARDIS hat. I started on it last night and I will post pics when it's all done!

Disney Princesses: Heroes or Villains?

I grew up in the 1990s, which meant that something I looked forward to every summer was the new Disney movie. The Little Mermaid was my first "favorite" movie, and I still have the often-watched VHS tape my parents bought for me as a tyke. As I grew older I started looking at different perspectives on the "Disney Princess" brand, and how they are supposedly ruining today's generation of girls.

I will say right off the bat that today's toys are being marketed in a manner that is far too gender-specific. Also, the "Disney Princess" brand takes a lot of liberties with the characters. There was a lot of noise back when Merida joined the official lineup and was made to look more "cute and feisty" than, well, brave. Oh, and apparently Disney princesses are contractually obligated to wear clothing that is 50% glitter by volume.

But what about the actual movies? What kind of messages are they sending to girls? As it turns out, there are two sides to every princess. I'll give my quick summary of each movie, from a positive and negative perspective.

Cinderella
Positive: This movie has more female characters than male; the plot is driven by a memorable villainess and the heroine has a literal fairy godmother looking out for her. It easily passes the Bechdel Test (Cinderella talks to her stepmother and fairy godmother about going to the ball).
Negative: The heroine and title character does NOTHING to save herself from her situation. Literally nothing. The birds and mice make her first dress (without her knowledge); fairy godmother makes the second. Even at the end, when she's locked in her room, she doesn't try to escape. The mice have to save her again.

Sleeping Beauty
Positive: Like Cinderella, this movie has a mostly female cast. Maleficent stands out as one of the most memorable villains, male or female, from the Disney animated canon. Can any of the other villains turn into a FREAKIN' DRAGON? I didn't think so. Also, in the final battle, the fairies are the ones leading the charge. Prince Philip would not have gotten nearly as far as he did without their help. This movie passes the Bechdel Test, as the fairies talk about Aurora often. As does Maleficent.
Negative: Once again, our heroine is completely passive. The only thing she does on her own is sneak out into the woods, where she winds up in Love At First Sight (R) with her prince.

The Little Mermaid
Positive: Ariel is the first princess who decides to go after what she wants--and originally, it's not "a man." Even before she lays eyes on Eric, she expresses a desire to be human and be free of her father's rule. Also, we have another strong female villain.
Negative: This movie fails the Bechdel Test; Ariel and Ursula have a long conversation, but it revolves around becoming human so she can be with her prince. She also needs to undergo a dramatic physical transformation so she can be with him.

Beauty and the Beast
Positive: Belle is smart, brave, and caring. She is a favorite among nerd girls for preferring books and the eccentric company of her mad scientist father over the all-looks-no-personality Gaston. She is not afraid to stand up for herself, first to the beast, and then to Gaston.
Negative: Belle stays with a man whose behavior borders on abusive, at least in the beginning. She believes that she can change him, and it works. Girls, DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME.

Aladdin
Positive: Jasmine knows what she wants, and is not afraid to tell anyone. She is determined to marry someone she chooses, rather than let her father force her into an arranged marriage. She escapes from the palace to experience life as a commoner--without magical intervention.
Negative: Name one other female character in the movie. There isn't one...unless you count the genie in drag. Jasmine has to stand up for women's rights, because she could very well be the only female in all of Agrabah.

Mulan
Positive: Mulan is driven by a desire to save her father and prove her own worth. She goes undercover as a soldier and ends up saving the whole country. She is a definite action hero. Also, she is the first Disney Princess to have a mother and grandmother who are still alive and present at the beginning and end.
Negative: They just had to throw a romance in, didn't they?

Brave
Positive: Merida does not wait around for anyone to solve her problems. She is not afraid to try different solutions when she dislikes her options. The central plot of the movie revolves not around Merida and a love interest, but her changing relationship with her mother. Both Merida and Elinor come out of the movie as stronger, and their relationship has reached a new level of understanding. She is also determined, like Jasmine, to avoid arranged marriage...and unlike every other princess on this list, is happily single at the end of it all.
Negative: They just had to make her a princess, didn't they? Also, Pixar has been making movies for almost 20 years now (yup, Toy Story came out in '94) and it took them until 2012 to make a movie with a female protagonist.

I skipped over some of the movies because I'm not really familiar with them (Tangled, Princess and the Frog, Hercules). I also excluded Pocahontas, because even though she's included in the "princess" canon, I'm not sure if she qualifies (her father is a chieftain, not a king). Mulan is technically not a princess either, but she appears more often than Pocahontas in official Disney Princess merchandise. If anyone wants to offer their analysis of the movies I missed, or a new perspective on one I've covered already, please do!

In conclusion: Watch the movies with your kids. Ask them what they thought the moral of the story was. Talk about the messages they picked up on, and how those lessons apply (or don't apply) to the real world. Media literacy is an important skill for kids to learn, and how they watch is arguably more important than what they watch.

Movie Review: Star Trek Into Darkness

Star Trek Into Darkness opened this weekend! Hubby and I saw it last night. We had wildly differing opinions about Star Trek (2009). I loved it; he hated it. I went into this one excited, and he went along, by his own admission, for my sake and because he wanted to point out all the flaws afterwards. Into Darkness does have some flaws, even big ones, but we both agreed that it is overall a good movie. Well, Jason said it was "okay," but he also said it was "way better than the 2009 movie."

I'm going to begin my review with my spoiler-free observations, and then head into a discussion of the plot.

First off, this movie is shot much better than ST09. The lens flare is toned down quite a bit, where it is no longer the main camera effect. The camera shots themselves are also much more stable. It's good to know J.J. Abrams can keep the camera still for longer than half a second. I also like the continuing nods to the original series (though I'll discuss that more in the spoiler section). We got mention of the Gorn, Tribbles, and Harry Mudd, as well as Section 31 from Deep Space 9.

The acting was excellent. Jason pointed out Noel Clarke in an early scene, also known as Mickey Smith from Doctor Who (side note--season 7 finale this weekend!). Benedict Cumberbatch is excellent as John Harrison, the main villain. IMDB gives his character's real name, so go there if you want spoilers. Peter Weller as Admiral Marcus has some great scenes too. The main cast is just as good as they were in ST09. I especially enjoyed Chris Pine's performance. It was good to see Kirk get some actual character development. It was nice to see Nyota (Uhura) have some action scenes. Infinitely better than, say, dancing around in a skimpy costume to cause a distraction.

I'm looking at you, Star Trek V.

Oh, and this is a minor spoiler, but I was glad to see that someone at Starfleet finally decided the chairs on the bridge of the Federation flagship should include seat belts. Seriously, I know they have artificial gravity, but with all of the times we see people on the bridge getting knocked around, they needed seat belts badly.

Jason and I agreed that the opening scene was needlessly stupid. If a submarine can't go into space, why should a starship be able to go underwater? My other complaint about the movie was the way they handled things at the end, which will be discussed in the next section.

Overall, I'd give Star Trek Into Darkness 4 out of 5 stars.

HERE THERE BE SPOILERS

You have been warned.

I can understand why they decided to put Khan into the movie. He is the most iconic villain from the original movie continuity and, as Spock Prime points out, he was their biggest foe. They handled his character very well, both in terms of writing and acting. I can even buy that Kirk sacrifices himself to stop Khan and save the ship.

But did they really need to create the exact same circumstances from the end of Wrath of Khan? There were just way too many similarities. It went from feeling like a nod to the original movie to saying, "We couldn't think of anything original. Watch Wrath of Khan with Kirk dying instead."

And then they didn't even follow through with it! I'm still not sure whether I think this is good or bad. On the one hand, it undermines Kirk's sacrifice and shows that Abrams is still playing it safe. Plus, it would be very interesting to see how everyone goes on without Kirk. On the other hand, I didn't actually want to see him dead. Spock's death in Wrath of Khan is ultimately undone as well, so maybe they're combining the endings of II and III? I suppose what I would have wanted was for someone (probably Spock, to tie in with the opening) to save Kirk after he has shown he is willing to sacrifice himself. I would also have created an entirely different circumstance for Kirk to put himself in.

I am very intrigued by the idea of the militarized, possibly evil Starfleet. Admiral Marcus was such an evil slimeball that I almost wasn't sorry when Khan snapped his neck. I felt bad for Carol, though. Good to know she's made of tough stuff. I suppose the next movie will have to feature this "inevitable war" with the Klingons. Maybe they'll bring the Romulans in, too. I would love to see the Federation and the Romulans team up; ever since I read Diane Duane's Rihannsu series I thought it would be great to see some ties established. Maybe they can even bring in Ael. Wishful thinking, I know. I would love to know what Diane Duane thinks of the new movies.

Here is another unlikely prediction: the Borg. They have shown up in every series but TOS; they even appeared in the prequel series, although they were never named as such in order to preserve continuity.

Book Review: Dianne Duvall's Immortal Guardians series

I have been a fan of the vampire genre since I was in high school. It started out with Angel (and, shortly thereafter, reruns of Buffy) and quickly spread to encompass a wide array of books, movies and TV shows featuring the undead. Basically, if it's got fangs, I will read it. Or watch it. I may not like it, but I will give it a shot.

Dianne Duvall's Immortal Guardians series has three books so far, plus a novella included in a collection called Predatory. The fourth book comes out later this year. I picked up the first book on a whim and was immediately struck by the complex world created in this story. There are normal humans, obviously. There are also "gifted ones," or humans with supernatural abilities and "advanced" DNA. But vampirism is completely unrelated to the abilities of the "gifted ones." In fact, it comes from a virus that turns a human into a vampire and turns a "gifted one" into an immortal. The thing about the vampires is that they tend to go crazy after a few years. Crazy as in "homicidal." So the job of the immortals is to hunt down the vampires and stop them from killing people. The immortals, due to their already differing genetics, are protected from the insanity that eventually kills any human-turned-vampire.

Then we have Ami and Zach, who are...none of the above. We don't find out Ami's secret until halfway through book 2, and still don't have an explanation for Zach. Though to be fair, Zach has only shown up in a few scenes, and we don't even learn his name until the third book. Usually a world that starts out with vampires will add other supernatural elements, such as werewolves, demons, and magic. Duvall takes the scientific approach instead, which I find pretty cool. 

So we have complex characters. We also have tons of action. There is no shortage of fighting, death, and bloodshed. We get descriptions of all of the characters' weapons. The male main characters are all Immortal Guardians, so they have centuries of experience with fighting and killing vampires. But the women are no slackers, either. Sarah (from book 1) is a college professor who is thrown into the world of immortals and vampires by accident and is more than capable of holding her own. Ami (from book 2) kicks some serious vampire ass, despite being tiny and seemingly vulnerable. Think River Tam with Merida's red hair. And Dr. Melanie Lipton (from book 3) is smart and fearless. She knows what she wants and isn't afraid to stand up for the vampires she's trying to save. Makes me wonder if Duvall is a fan of Buffy herself.

There is just so much I love about this series. The characters are well-rounded, and Duvall does a great job of dropping subtle world-building hints and raising questions that are left unanswered at the end of each book. At the same time, the main story itself in each book is resolved so that each novel stands on its own. And I'm not gonna lie, the steamy scenes are pretty good.

Oh, did I mention these are paranormal romance novels?

Nine times out of ten, you would not find me defending bodice rippers. Usually the plot is thin, the women need saving, and any "foreshadowing" is just setting up two minor characters for their own love story. If you remove the relationship between Alice and Bob, most romance novels fall apart completely. I've read a few Harlequins in the past, and they were all pretty forgettable. The Immortal Guardians books are the first romance novels I've read (primarily) for the plot, and actually cared about the overall story. 

Make no mistake, the Immortal Guardians books are romance novels, complete with naked torsos on the cover. If you removed all traces of romantic relationships, admittedly, the series would be a lot thinner. Still, that's true of nearly any series. If you have enough characters, eventually some of them are going to get together (in fanfiction if nowhere else). But you could remove all of the sex scenes and still have an exciting, compelling story in a complex world. Which makes me wonder why they were written and marketed as romance novels in the first place.

The one quibble I have with the series is a minor one: all of the immortals are literal vegetarian vampires. They need blood, but they also eat normal food, and they are all health food nuts. We get loving descriptions of vegetarian meals, prepared with organic ingredients. But it never rises to true Author Tract levels and the story is still definitely enjoyable even if you don't happen to share her passion for salads.

Overall, I would give the series 4.5 out of 5 stars. If you like action, supernatural creatures, and a dash of hot romance, definitely check it out.

30 Days of Doctor Who, Day 7

Today's topic: Favorite Episode(s)

As I mentioned yesterday, this was incredibly difficult. Therefore, I will list my favorite episodes from Series 1-6 of the new Who. I have not seen enough of Classic Who to really name favorites.

Series 1 (Christopher Eccleston): As much as I enjoyed "Father's Day," I will have to go with the two-parter "The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances" for introducing us to Steven Moffat, Evil Genius and Creator of Nightmares. It also gave us a line to quote whenever we see someone with a gas mask: Are you my mummy? Oh, and this is also the first time we meet Captain Jack Harkness.

Series 2 (David Tennant): I am really torn between another pair of back-to-back episodes, but in this case they are two separate stories. I suppose I will have to go with another Moffat creation, "Girl in the Fireplace," because I covered "School Reunion" pretty thoroughly a couple days ago. The clockwork demons are some of the creepiest Who villains I have ever seen. It must be their empty eyes and jerky movements, straight out of the Uncanny Valley. I loved the scene at the end where the Doctor comes bursting in to save Reinette on horseback. Through a mirror. Oh, and I recognized the actress who played Reinette from the underrated, unfairly cancelled Moonlight.

Series 3: Another two-parter: "Human Nature/The Family of Blood." I loved seeing Human!Doctor. I thought it was cleverly plotted, and because they had twice as much time, I was really able to get a sense of the historical atmosphere. I know some fans are not too crazy about Martha, because of the whole unrequited love subplot that ran through the series, but I have nothing against her. I thought it was handled particularly well here. Oh, and this scene was done so that they would have something for Martha to fast-forward through while watching the Doctor's video. I find it absolutely hilarious.

Series 4: So many good episodes here! For a lighthearted favorite, you cannot beat "Partners in Crime," which I discussed when explaining why Donna is my favorite companion. I actually really liked "Turn Left." Although it is one of the darkest episodes of the whole show, I am a sucker for alternate realities (see "Father's Day" in s1). Jason and I were watching it together, and he pointed out that the problem with alternate continuities is that they are always solved by pushing the Magic Reset Button. Of course, if you make your alternate reality as horrible as the one shown in "Turn Left," the reset button comes as a relief.

Series 5 (Matt Smith): New series, new Doctor, new companions...my favorite episode is, by a wide margin, "Vincent and the Doctor." I have always been intrigued by Van Gogh, and I love the historical facts thrown in along with the invisible monster and time travelers. It reminds me of the original intent of Doctor Who, which was to be an educational program with fantasy/sci-fi elements thrown in. Kind of like a live-action version of The Magic School Bus, but British. And in 1963. Anyway, the characterization in this episode was magnificent. The ending nearly made me cry. Beautiful and tragic, like the painter they focused on.

Series 6: We are only halfway through s6, so my answer may change by the time we get to the season finale, but as it stands right now, my favorite is "The Doctor's Wife." You can read the review from a couple weeks ago for more info.

Tomorrow's topic: Favorite series/season. Hmm... will this be easier or harder?

30 Days of Doctor Who, Day 5 AND Who Review

Today's Topic: Favorite Guest Star

As I said yesterday, this is easy for me: the double whammy of Anthony Stewart Head and Elisabeth Sladen in "School Reunion." Doctor Who fans recognized him as the guy who did the voiceover for "Doctor Who Insider." Buffy fans recognize him as Giles, Buffy's mentor and trainer. Though I was not fully aware of it at the time, "School Reunion" featured a much more notable guest star for the Who fans: Elisabeth Sladen's first appearance on New Who as Sarah Jane Smith. As I mentioned a few days ago, this was one of the first Who episodes I ever saw, and I tracked it down specifically because of Anthony Stewart Head. As soon as I saw her, Sarah Jane became one of my favorite characters. I was so glad to see her return several times through David Tennant's run. Naturally, I was shocked and saddened when she passed away earlier this year.

Tomorrow's topic: Least Favorite Character. Hoo boy.

Now for the review of The Almost People.

MAJOR SPOILERS!!

Wow. What a tight, action-packed episode. I liked it much better than the first part, actually. Loved the interaction between the two Doctors. Oh, and I totally called that Jenn had two gangers. What tipped me off was when she put Rory's hand on the scanner.

Depending on exactly when the Doctor and Ganger!Doctor switched places, Amy may have told him that he is going to die. Whoops.

Creepiest moment: the eyes set into the wall. Eeew.

Favorite moment: the Doctor's phone call to Jimmy's son. And at the end when ganger!Jimmy came home, though in a bittersweet way. I guess I am just a sucker for touching family scenes.

Well, I guess Amy being a ganger explains how she can be sort of pregnant. Though, this being Steven Moffat, we have one answer and about a dozen new questions. How long has she been there? Actually, probably about 9 months, so moving on. Where is "there?" My guess: in the clutches of the Silence. Just to tie everything together. Whose baby is it? Will the baby be okay? Is it a boy or a girl? I actually have the answers to those questions, because Jason tracked down the preview for next week's episode, "A Good Man Goes to War," which has already aired in Britain. If you want to know, scroll down.

Rory is the father. The baby is a girl named Melody. Melody Pond.

Ready for one more crazy revelation?

Melody Pond=River Song.

Ten points if you guessed that.

Who Review: The Rebel Flesh

Why is this review almost a week late, you ask? Well, I shall explain. The problem was twofold. Part of it can be blamed on Jason's job and part of it can be blamed on iTunes. But mostly on iTunes. See, Doctor Who runs on Saturday evenings on BBC America. This means that they are usually available on iTunes for download on Sunday morning. This week, for whatever reason, it was not available until Tuesday. To top it off, Jason got stuck working nights all week, and we always watch Doctor Who together. We finally had some time together yesterday. And now I can finally review The Rebel Flesh!

As always, SPOILERS! Once again, just for this episode.

Incidentally, the title is much more intimidating than the working title for Curse of the Black Spot: The Rebel Fish. Yes, I just made that up.

So I guess I was wrong about the Sontarans showing up. Ah, well. Jason and I both called that the Doctor was going to get a "ganger." Not too much of a shock when he showed up right before the credits.

I really like the concept of the Flesh, and the complex moral questions that it raises. What if there was someone running around with your memories, thoughts, and feelings, who looked exactly like you? It actually reminded us of a miniseries called Jekyll, which was also written by Who showrunner Steven Moffat. Especially the scene were the one man was talking with his ganger about the day his son was born. Incidentally, I noticed that the "original" was wearing a chain with a ring on it around his neck, but the ganger was not. Continuity error? Or will this become important? Were any of the other gangers missing something? I may have to re-watch.

Once again, the TARDIS is in danger. That seems to be a thing this season. Put the TARDIS in peril, and kill Rory. Now we just need to be watching for scenes where Rory is left alone in the TARDIS...

The good thing about not getting to watch last week's episode until yesterday is that we only have to wait until tomorrow for the next one. This is especially nice with it being a two-parter.

Also, starting on June 1, I will have 30 Days of Doctor Who! Found this online and decided to do it.

1. Favorite incarnation of the Doctor
2. Favorite companion
3. Favorite villain
4. Favorite character
5. Favorite guest star
6. Least favorite character
7. Favorite episode(s)
8. Favorite series/season
9. Least favorite episode
10. Favorite scene/moment
11. Favorite scene or moment that makes you cry
12. Favorite scene or moment that makes you giggle
13. Favorite era visited by the Doctor
14. Favorite Doctor moment
15. Favorite Rose moment
16. Favorite Martha moment
17. Favorite Donna moment
18. Favorite Amy moment
19. Favorite relationship
20. Prettiest scene
21. Favorite location
22. Something silly
23. Something epic
24. Favorite accessory of the doctor's
25. Favorite TARDIS team
26. Scene or moment that makes you go "aww"
27. Scene or moment that makes you go "argh"
28. Favorite series arc
29. Favorite music or song
30. Why do you love Doctor Who?

Who Review: The Doctor's Wife

SPOILERS!

Again, just for this episode.

Jason and I thought it was hilarious that the title character is supposed to be...the TARDIS. In a weird way, I suppose it makes sense. They have been together for 700 years. Fans had suspected for years that the Doctor did have some sort of "relationship" with the TARDIS. I expect this episode spawned some interesting fanfiction. Or disturbing, depending on your personal feelings on that sort of thing. I loved their last conversation. Very poignant, that the last thing she wanted to tell him was, "Hello."

It was great to see the old control room set! Jason spotted that in the preview. Amy, Rory, and Eleven looked right at home. Unfortunately, if House really did delete it, that means it will not be returning again. Unless the TARDIS made a backup. One of the many things I love about Doctor Who is that anything is possible. Even the impossible. Especially the impossible, perhaps.

Now to begin dissecting clues from her final message! "The only water in the forest is the river." Jason pointed out that "river" probably refers to River Song. When I heard "forest" I thought of the Vashta Nerada. In case that fails to ring a bell, they were the shadow monsters that live in the forest, featured in River's first appearance in "Silence of the Library/Forest of the Dead." Honestly, I think Jason has a better chance of being right than I do. While the Vashta Nerada creeped me out to no end, they will probably not be making a return appearance.

The only thing I would have changed was giving the Ood a little more screen time. They seemed to have struck a chord with the fans; they are one of the few creatures from the new series who have appeared more than once. Overall though, this was an excellent episode. Cleverly plotted, very well written...I loved the actress who played Idris!TARDIS. I have a feeling this one is going to become a series classic.

Next week: Sontarans? Maybe? That is my Official Prediction.

Who Review: Curse of the Black Spot

SPOILERS!

But only for this episode; no arc-wide shocking revelations this week.

Hands up if the title reminded you of "Curse of the Black Pearl." Probably intentional, because of the whole pirate ship thing. I loved the Doctor's first line: "Yo-ho-ho! Oh...does no one actually say that?"

I thought this was a pretty good episode, but there were a lot of twists and turns and not all of them were fully explained. I thought the Doctor shouted, "Completely forget my previous theories!" a couple times too often. Still a good episode, though. I think shows that only do 12 or 13 episodes a season (rather than the more common 22) have a higher percentage of good shows. The writers presumably have more time to work on them, and each episode has to count.

I did think it was clever that the Siren is summoned through reflections because she is from the mirror universe (hands up if you immediately thought of Spock with a goatee!). I like how the pirate crew all decided to stay there. I loved how the captain immediately knew what everything was on the TARDIS. Oh, and I figured out that they would find the TARDIS if they allowed the Siren to touch them, because I recognized the disappearing effect. Once they got there, though, the ending seemed...rushed? I guess that is the best way to explain it. The Doctor was able to immediately work out exactly what was going on. "Hold on! She's not evil! She's a computer! This is a hospital! Amy, stick your hand in the circle and then you can take Rory!" After all of the Doctor's incorrect theories, I would have been hesitant to trust him on that one.

I was convinced that Rory had actually died...for about two seconds. I was already wondering, "If he dies, how are they going to bring him back THIS time?" Of course, if he had died, it could have given the Doctor and Amy an excuse to shack up. In other news, the Doctor is still going to die in the future and Amy is still sort of pregnant.

Next week: Neil Gaiman's episode! He has trailers and minor spoilers up on his blog. I cannot wait!

Side note: Read this article that I found out about from EPBOT. If you are/were a geek in high school, congratulations! You are more likely to be successful than the popular kids. Geeks for the win!

Who Review: Day of the Moon

SPOILERS!!

Seriously, I think Steven Moffat is trying to give all of the Who fans a heart attack. This review assumes you have seen the ending. You have been warned.

Naturally, instead of answers, we end up with more questions. Only Doctor Who could have a character who is sort of pregnant. Time for more predictions! First, I think the Silence are going to continue as major villains in this arc. Even money on that one; they spent too much of last season building them up for just one appearance (even a two-part episode). Second, I think Amy's sort-of pregnancy is not connected to the junior Time Lord we saw regenerating at the end of the episode. I think the setup is a red herring, to make the audience believe that Amy and the Doctor got it on/will get it on. I am predicting this partly because you would get more mileage that way--two mysteries instead of one--and partly because I do not ship Amy with the Doctor. So where did the kid in the spacesuit come from? My guess: the Doctor and River. The "River is his wife" theory is looking a whole lot more likely now that they have kissed. Jason suggested (before we saw this episode) that River IS the girl in the spacesuit. It sounded intriguing at the time. Now we both hope that one is wrong, especially if she is Doctor/Amy's lovechild. Last week's predictions are all still unconfirmed.

I loved the idea of hiding the TARDIS inside the Doctor's prison! It was a brilliant plan. Good to know that Canton is still on their side. It is still strange to see him as a good guy, because his character on Leverage is such a slimeball. Matt Smith is almost unrecognizable with all that facial hair. In fact, until he spoke, I did not realize it was him. Oh, and parking the TARDIS on the side of the building to catch River after she jumps out of the window? Awesome!

The Doctor's explanation of the Silence was effectively creepy. The best horror stories provide a sinister origin for something people see every day. You thought you saw something out of the corner of your eye? Yeah. You did. You forgot where you were a minute ago? You encountered a horrible monster that makes you forget it even exists the moment you look away. You have probably seen it before. Maybe hundreds of times...but you always forget.

Good night, kiddies! Pleasant dreams...

As ancient conspiracy theories go, this one is pretty good. But the Doctor's sabotage was brilliant. Now the human race is programmed to rebel against the Silence, and they will still not remember a thing. Of course, our alien overlords will not be that easy to stop.

And underneath the story, we have all of the character interactions. I think the Doctor and Rory have a really interesting dynamic, and they are actually developing mutual respect for each other. Which will, of course, make it all the more painful if the Doctor turns out to be Amy's baby-daddy. The look on River's face at the end, when she realizes she will never get to kiss the Doctor again, was almost too painful to watch. Their relationship reminds me of Claire and Henry from The Time Traveler's Wife. As the title implies, Henry is a time traveler. Unlike the Doctor, he has absolutely no control over when he will leave, where he will go, or how long he will stay there. He is always popping in and out of Claire's life, although for once Doctor Who actually has the less complicated timeline. The book does a surprisingly good job of explaining things, though.

Season six is shaping up to be the most infuriating season yet.
What do we want?
Answers!
When do we want them?
NOW!

Who Review: The Impossible Astronaut

SPOILERS!

Seriously, if you watch Doctor Who, watch the episode before you read this. You have been warned.

Jason and I finally got a chance to watch the first episode of season 6 yesterday. I wrote in my last post how excited I was to finally watch it at the same time as everyone else, instead of waiting for the DVD. I was reminded of the disadvantage of that: WE WANT THE NEXT EPISODE NOW! Darn you, Steven Moffat.

I am just going to get my predictions out of the way right now. First, River was the astronaut in the lake. Second, the Doctor had this all planned out. That is why he told them very strongly not to interfere. Third, the kid that Amy shot did not die, because this is a family show and we cannot have characters shooting children to death. Fourth, we are not going to find out what the hell was going on with Future!Doctor getting shot until the end of this season at the earliest. And one more for good measure: Amy's baby is evil. We shall see how accurate those predictions are as the series continues.

I really like the new aliens. Jason recognized their creation from last season's episode The Lodger, where the mysterious forces were trying to build a TARDIS. I think the idea of a monster that you forget as soon as you stop looking at it is brilliant. How would you fight it? How would you warn anyone else about it? I just hope it shows up in that photograph on Amy's phone. Apparently their name is The Silence or The Silent. Very cool.

I love that the episode was set in America. They actually filmed most of it in Utah. I do think they are trying to draw in more of an American audience now, which is excellent. It is interesting to see how a British show portrays Americans. Especially when they first show up in the Oval Office and are met with all those guns.

Interesting bit of trivia: British actor Mark Sheppard is in a British show with an American accent. He is also a recurring character in several American shows (including Leverage) with a British accent.

I WANT THE NEXT EPISODE NOW! Oh, right, I said that already.

Question for the comments: Which is cooler, a fez or a Stetson?

Book Recap: BSC #32 (part four)

Missed parts one through three? Start here.

Chapter 10: The girls are at school (for once) and Kristy is dismayed to hear that there will be a school assembly. Kristy thinks, "Thank goodness we don't have to sit with our classes during assemblies." Really? Wow, I wish I had gone to their school! This policy actually makes no sense; allowing students to sit wherever they wanted would lead to more confusion while people find their seats and more distractions during the assembly. I mean, the students all want to sit and talk to their friends, but teachers and administrators are actively trying to avoid that. And they are the ones making the rules. We also find out that the students ARE segregated by grade at lunch. Go figure. Maybe the real-world schools are better after all.

Anyway, the assembly seating policy is an excuse to have the BSC members all sit together. Coincidentally, they end up right behind the special ed class, which consists of a grand total of ten students. Their various problems are all briefly explained. Three kids have Down's Syndrome, which is explained thusly: "Down's syndrome people have sort of slanted eyes and flattish faces, and are usually docile, affectionate, and friendly." Find me a thirteen-year-old who can define "docile." Interestingly, Down's syndrome is discussed more in-depth in a later book, when Dawn is hired to sit for a girl with Down's. The complication there is that the girl is only a year or two younger than she is, and does not know that Dawn is being paid to spend time with her.

There is also a boy whose unidentified problem sounds a lot like ADHD. Did that really qualify you for special ed twenty years ago? Yikes. Kristy wonders how the teachers are able to teach these kids in the same classroom, with all of their various issues and different learning methods. It is obvious here that Martin has great respect for special ed teachers. And she probably knew what she was talking about (as much as was known) when describing autism. At the end of the book, there is an author note where she talks about basing Susan on real-life kids with autism she worked with while she was in college.

Kristy notices that one of the boys in the special ed class is similar to Susan in many ways: clapping for no reason, waving his hand in front of his eyes, and staring off into space. However, he is more advanced than Susan; he talks to himself, and at one point even talks with a teacher. Kristy figures that if this boy could learn to carry on a conversation, Susan can too.

Her thoughts are interrupted when some kids across the aisle start teasing the kids in the special ed class and throw spitballs. See, administrators? This is why seventh graders should not be able to sit with their friends during assemblies. Kristy realizes that this is a drawback to sending a handicapped child to a public school.

Today, things are different. The goal of special education is to place kids with challenges in what is known as the "least restrictive environment." This is basically "as close to 'normal' as possible, while still giving them needed support." The boys with ADHD and autism would probably be in regular classes, though one or both of them may need an assistant. There is a push to integrate kids with special needs as much as possible into the mainstream environment, probably to stop exactly this sort of teasing from happening.

After the assembly is over, Kristy goes to talk to the special ed teachers. They confirm that the boy who reminds her of Susan is autistic, and invite her to come to their classroom during a study hall to see how they run things. Kristy agrees, but sadly, this is never mentioned again. The chapter ends on a positive note as we find out that Ben Hobart is no longer being ridiculed because his family is from Australia.

Chapter 11: Kristy is at the Felders' house again. No sooner does Mrs. Felder leave than the other half of Bob-or-Craig comes to the door. We find out that his name is actually Zach, and he wants to hear Susan's calendar trick again. He stays for about five minutes and then rushes out. As soon as Zach leaves, a girl named Kathie comes to the door with dates for Susan to tell her. As soon as she leaves, another child comes. Kristy is excited that three children have come to see Susan all in the same day! This girl, named Gina, has a song request for Susan: "Sheik of Araby" from the Roaring Twenties. Kristy thinks, "Whatever the Roaring Twenties are." Really, Kristy? Not even a guess? Anyway, Susan has never heard the song before, so Kristy has to play the (vinyl) record that Gina brought. On a turntable. Near the end of the song, the record starts skipping. Some would argue that this dates the book far more than any outdated "facts" about autism.

Susan is able to not only play the song, she comes in singing right on cue. To Kristy's dismay (and Gina's amusement), she even plays the skips at the end. For Kristy, this means that the words really do not mean anything to Susan. To Gina, this means that she really got her money's worth.

Yes, the reason that so many children have been coming to see Susan is because Mel is charging money like she is a sideshow attraction. He is even advertising her as "the incredible retard who can memorize dates and music. The amazing dumbo who can sing but not talk." This is probably the strongest language the book could get away with, and it sounds like an oddly unrealistic insult. I am not sure exactly why; it just does not strike me as something real kids would say. Maybe I am expecting something more creative.

Kristy yells at the kids and tells them she never wants to hear them say "retard" or "dumbo" again (all right, so I guess "retard" was an insult back then). Then she says that Mel owes at least half of his money to Susan. Mel ignores this and runs away, and that is the end of that. The whole situation is never mentioned again. If what these kids are doing is so awful, why are there no consequences? Even for the sake of poetic justice. Kristy mentally kicks herself for being so naive. Obviously nobody wants to be friends with Susan. The message that this book seems to be sending is that kids with autism do not make good friends. Kristy realizes that she could use a friend herself right now, so she and Susan go to hang out with Claudia, who is babysitting the Hobarts.

Chapter 12: Claudia is sitting the Hobart boys for the first time. The youngest has become very wary of strangers since the strange American kids started teasing him for being from Australia. His mother bribes him with the promise of the "telly" and "lollies" if he will let her leave. Perhaps not the ideal strategy, but I am sure every parent has used it at some point. Points for realism!

The boys opt against watching the telly, partly because it is really boring to read descriptions of people watching TV and partly because this will move the story along. Oh, and also because it is a nice day outside. The older boys are swinging on their tire swing when Zach comes into the yard and begins teasing them. He calls them babies, which James protests because he is in "advanced maths" at school. Silly Australians, there is no "s" in "math"! Where did it come from? They probably stole it from the end of "Legos."

Of course, people in Britain and Australia wonder why Americans do not say "Lego" and "maths."

James decides that the best way to prove himself to Zach is to punch a wooden crate in with a boxing glove. Is this a "guy thing" or an "author makes no sense thing"? Zach is impressed and a bit intimidated. Five minutes later, James is loaning Zach his brother's skateboard so they can go skateboarding together. Personally, I would be a bit hesitant before deciding that a kid who had mercilessly teased me was my new best friend. Even if I could break his face. Actually, I would be hesitant about deciding a kid who could break my face was my new best friend. Especially if I had teased him mercilessly. Then again, maybe this is how boys bond.

Kristy shows up with Susan. James decides to go skateboarding instead of hanging around with Susan, and Kristy fills Claudia in on Susan's short-term career as unwitting sideshow performer. Here we have Kristy's conclusion about Susan: "I really don't think she hears us. I don't think she knows who we are. I don't think she even knows where she is. Worse, I don't think any of that matters to her." In other words: Susan is an outcast, and there is nothing anyone can do to fix it. You see why I pegged this book as one of the more depressing ones? Kristy and Claudia conclude that Susan's parents are right after all: she really does not belong at home with them.

But at least James Hobart and the neighborhood bully are friends now.

Coming soon: Part Five (In Which The "Feel-Good" Ending Is Even More Depressing Than The Rest of the Book).

Book Recap: BSC #32 (part three)

Chapter 7: Kristy has planned on taking Susan over to the Hobarts' to make friends with the boys. She finds out that Susan has been stubborn all day, refusing to come away from the piano or eat lunch. Mrs. Felder assures Kristy, and not for the first time, that Susan does not get violent. Well, if you are leaving her with a thirteen-year-old, I would certainly hope not.

Kristy asks why Susan did not eat lunch; her mother explains that it is a common problem among autistic children. The likely explanation (unknown 20 years ago) is because autistic children frequently have sensory issues. It affects everyone differently, but one of the characteristics of autism is being oversensitive to certain smells or tastes (or other senses, but that has nothing to do with Susan not eating lunch). My own brother, who has Asperger's Syndrome, will gag if he smells pickles. This goes way beyond "I hate the way they smell." It actually can make him physically ill. He definitely has a stubborn streak, too. Not when it comes to food, but when his mind is made up about something, nobody can change it. I foresee that he will get some very good deals on cars one day.

Kristy gets Susan to stop playing the piano by putting her hands on top of Susan's. Fine. Then she gets Susan away from the piano by picking her up. I find this hard to believe. Kristy is thirteen; Susan is eight. I take care of a seven-year-old, and I would not be able to lift him. I can lift his five-year-old brother, but just barely. Kristy carries Susan into the kitchen and opens up the refrigerator for Susan to look inside. Yeah, good luck with that. Predictably, Susan ignores this. Kristy gets her to eat a couple of cookies on their way to the Hobarts'.

The kids are unsure how to react to Susan. They try talking to her, but there is no response. Then they try to teach her to play tag, reasoning that you can play tag without talking. Of course, Susan's real problem is her inability to pay attention rather than her inability to speak. Susan just wanders around the yard. Their game is interrupted by two of the neighborhood bullies, referred to as "Bob-or-Craig" because they both claim, "He's Bob and I'm Craig." Kristy concludes that the teasers were actually really interested in learning about Australia, and they were only teasing because they wanted to feel superior. Well, which is it? Do they think the Hobarts are interesting, or do they think they are better than them? When Bob-and-Craig turn on Susan, James Hobart steps up to protect her and declares that she is his "mate." I know "mate" often means "friend" in Britain, but I am not sure about Australia. This would have been the perfect opportunity for Bob-and-Craig to inform James that "mate" means "girlfriend" in America, but there is no mention of that. Kristy gets Susan to perform her calendar trick, and all of the kids are amazed.

Chapter 8: Stacey, one of the other club members, is baby-sitting at Kristy's house. Seven-year-old Karen talks the rest of the kids into playing a dress-up game called "Let's All Come In." Apparently this game shows up fairly often in the books, but it is one detail I had forgotten about entirely. It leads to a lot of filler description of the expensive dress-up clothes, because their dad is a millionaire. From my experience, kids are just as happy with their parents' old clothes or cheap costumes. Then again, their dad may not have known that. Kristy comes home early from her job at Susan's and talks with Stacey about how she is still determined to convince Mrs. Felder that Susan can stay at home. Stacey warns her not to go overboard, and Kristy admits that Susan is "one of the most handicapped" children she has ever seen. Again, if Susan is so hard to manage, why are her parents leaving her with an inexperienced middle-schooler?

Chapter 9: Kristy is sitting for Susan again. Susan is wrapped up in her piano playing when half of "Bob-or-Craig" comes to the door. Kristy finds out his real name is Mel. He is astonished when he hears Susan playing the piano. Kristy grandly proclaims that Susan takes requests, so Mel suggests a few songs. Susan knows them all. The odd thing, though, is that Susan responds immediately to his song requests, but needs several prompts to respond to her own name. There is no logical explanation for this, other than it moves the plot along. But in-story, there is no reason why Susan should do this. Anyway, Kristy explains that Susan can memorize songs in one try. Mel says that Susan is even more amazing than the piano-playing chicken he saw at the circus. He finds out when Kristy will be at the Felders' again, and then abruptly leaves.

Shortly afterward, James comes over to play. Kristy pulls Susan away from the piano. James is a bit uncomfortable about this when Susan protests, but Kristy reasons that it is more important for Susan to make friends. They sit and talk in the Felders' backyard. Kristy fails to realize that when James says "pen friends" he means "pen pals." That seems like a pretty easy colloquialism to translate there, but what do I know? James talks about how he wants someone to ride bikes and go to the park with, and someone who can teach him "what American kids say." Yeah, because if they are confused by "pen friends," he might have to have an interpreter. Kristy knows that something is wrong, but cannot quite put her finger on it. Well, Kristy, does Susan fit James' description of what he is looking for in a friend? There you go.

Coming soon: part four (In Which Kids Are Jerks And Kristy Makes a Decision).

Book Recap: BSC #32 (part two)

Continuing from Part One. On with the show!

Chapter 4: Kristy goes to the Felders' for their first meeting. Kristy has done her research, such as it was. She looked up "autism" and found a reference to "schizophrenia," which led her to an explanation of schizophrenia as "withdrawal from reality." Then, I guess, she was too confused to look up anything else. Good grief, how did people do research before Google? Anyway, at first glance Susan is a collection of autistic stereotypes. She wrings her hands, clicks her tongue, and does not respond immediately to her mother.

Mrs. Felder gives Kristy a Cliffs Notes explanation of autism. Most of it is still thought to be true today (symptoms vary from person to person; it is more common among boys; symptoms show up by age three), but then Mrs. Felder tells her that the syndrome is rare. The much-touted statistic today is 1 in 150. Of course, this does not necessarily mean that more people have autism, just that more people are diagnosed with autism. And the definition has broadened. People with Asperger's Syndrome (on the mild end of the spectrum) are included in that "1 in 150" statistic, which was actually unheard of in the US until several years after this book was written. There is also no mention of the "caused by vaccines" theory, which was not suggested until 1998. By the way, there is no proven link between autism and vaccinations.

Mrs. Felder goes on to explain that, while Susan may improve if she learns some meaningful language, she will never be "normal." Kristy thinks, "I understood what Mrs. Felder wasn't saying: Susan's future looked bleak." Congratulations, you have established this as one of the most depressing books in the series. We are on page 38. I will not say this is the most depressing book, because I have read Mary Anne and the Memory Garden, AKA "let's retcon a new character as everyone's best friend, only to have her killed by a drunk driver."

Anyway, Mrs. Felder goes on to say that Susan may be autistic, but at least she is a savant. In this case, this means she is a piano prodigy who can play any piece of music after hearing it once. She can also name the day of the week for any date in the past hundred years, a talent which she demonstrates to an astonished Kristy.

Mrs. Felder laments that Susan never initiates conversations and does not communicate. Sigh. There is a difference between "does not speak" and "does not communicate." She may not communicate with her parents as often as they would like, or in the way they prefer, but "communication" is a broad range of actions. And anyway, Susan does speak. We just heard her speak.

Kristy agrees to take the job, secretly resolving to prove to the Felders that Susan does not need to be shipped off to her new boarding school at the end of the month. Mrs. Felder comments, "Don't worry. Susan won't be upset when I leave. She never is. She has no connection to me or to anyone."

I find myself feeling very sorry for Mrs. Felder. Although she is from after the time when autism was thought to be the mother's fault for not showing enough affection (seriously!), in the book it is still considered nearly a death sentence. Today, there are many special education teachers and other professionals who love and even prefer working with autistic children. They would help her see that Susan is not a lost cause, even as different from the "neuro-typicals" as she is.

Kristy is surprised by the "babyish" toys in the backyard, which include a sandbox, swing set, and tricycle. First, how did they find a tricycle sized for an eight-year-old? Second, since when are eight-year-olds too sophisticated for swing sets? But Susan ignores her toys and decides to gallop around the yard instead. Kristy takes the opportunity to spy on the new neighbors, the Hobarts From Australia. The boys are being teased because they like "fairy floss" and do not know that here in America, we call it "cotton candy." They are also taunted about "Crocodile Dundee stuff." All right, I realize that kids will tease people for just about any reason. But the "prejudice=bad" Aesop gets an awful lot of coverage throughout the series. I always used to wonder if Stoneybrook was particularly bass-ackwards, or if I just grew up in a town where people were more accepting than normal. Not to say that my school was free of bullying, just that the kids chose different reasons to pick on people.

Chapter 5 is a babysitting chapter. Jessi and Mallory, the two club members in 6th grade instead of 8th, are babysitting Mallory's seven younger siblings. After the kids declare there is nothing to do, Mallory suggests going to play with the Hobarts. We find out that their cute new nickname is "Crocs," as in "Crocodile Dundee." Of course, now I immediately think of those trendy rubber shoes. Mallory points out that this name-calling is not very nice, and reminds her siblings about how they used to hate being called the "Spider" kids (because there are eight of them). Jessi, the Token Black Chick, points out that she has been called a lot worse.

Jessi's status as Token Black Chick is brought up in every single book she appears in, just to point out that it does not matter that she is black. Oddly, Claudia's status as Token Asian Chick is not mentioned nearly as often. I guess only the really prejudiced in Stoneybrook have problems with people from Japan...

Anyway, the kids all head over to the Hobarts' as Mal and Jessi point out that people from Australia are not that different after all. They even wear "jeans and stuff." So the kids all start making friends with each other. This includes Mallory, who has a crush on the oldest Hobart boy (also in 6th grade). The Hobart boys are taunted by more neighbors and chased of by Ben, "who is tall." Thank you so much for that helpful bit of information.

Chapter 6: Kristy tells the other club members about Susan. Jessi and Mal compare her to the Hobarts, because they are outcasts too. The other girls tease Mallory for having a crush on Ben. Not much else happens.

Coming soon: Part three (In Which Everyone Babysits And Both Plots Are Advanced).

Book Recap: BSC #32 (part one)

In the interests of keeping the title of this post a reasonable length, I decided to go with the abbreviated version of the book's title. The full title is "Baby-Sitters Club #32: Kristy and the Secret of Susan."

The Baby-Sitters Club is a long-running series of books first published in the 80s, written by Ann M. Martin (and later ghostwritten by one or more people who sometimes had trouble with continuity). The series follows a group of middle-school babysitters who...well...form a club. I was obsessed with the books growing up; by the time I discovered them they were readily available at discount bookstores, where my parents would let me buy a whole stack of them for a dollar or two each. I had half of a bookshelf crammed full of BSC books by the time I finally donated my collection to the library's book sale. The books were different from what I usually enjoyed reading, even back then, because there are no supernatural elements. I was thinking about why they captured me so much, and realized that the thing I remember best about the books was the way the girls always had each other's backs. No matter what happened, they were there for each other. I was painfully shy in grade school, and the idea of a large group of good friends seemed as improbable to me as the interstellar adventures of A Wrinkle in Time or the Community in The Giver.

These days, the BSC books are mostly forgotten, except by bloggers who write snarky reviews. I do not plan on getting started with that. I wanted to track down this particular book because it is more relevant to me than it was when I first read it...good grief, could it possibly be 15 years ago?? Okay, I feel old. Anyway, Susan's secret is that she has autism (SPOILER!!). I took some classes on teaching special education in college, and I have also known several people with autism. I wanted to see how much this book got right. Of course, a lot more is known about autism now than when it was written in 1990, so I do not know how much of the misinformation was lack of research and how much was Science Marches On. I also remembered how much I disliked the ending...but more on that later.

And now, on with the recap!

Chapter 1 begins with the introduction of one of the title characters. Kristy is the president and founder of the BSC; here she is looking after her brother and sister before heading off to a meeting. One of the other things I enjoyed about the books was the little pieces of babysitting advice, such as this gem from page 3: "it's much more helpful to tell [children] what to do instead of what not to do." It seems obvious, but seriously try it sometime. There are times when it is very hard to state the rules in a positive way.

We get more character introduction as Kristy heads to the meeting. In addition to the usual suspects, there is a new family in town: the Hobarts, who will be the subject of this book's subplot and continue to feature as minor characters. Their main attraction, in addition to having four kids, is that they are from Australia. Kristy also sees Susan Felder and her mother, who are not new, but have never been mentioned before and will never be seen again after this book (SPOILER!!). Claudia mentions that Susan has been away at a special school, which at least explains her absence up until this point.

Chapters 2 and 3 are the standard info-dump section, where Kristy explains who all of the club members are and gives a brief summary of the series up to this point. Every book in the series follows this format. It is a good way for new readers to jump in without having to read books 1-31. On the other hand, those who have read the other books can skim this part or skip it entirely. To be honest, none of the girls' backstories have much to contribute to this book plot-wise, so I will spare you the introductions. The one thing I noted is that all of the girls are described as "beautiful" or "pretty." On the one hand, it seems unlikely that all of the girls could be underwear models. On the other hand, would you call your best friends ugly? Even if other people think they are? Me neither.

The plot starts cooking when Mrs. Felder calls the girls looking for a sitter for Susan. She explains that Susan is autistic, but none of the girls know what this means. Claudia suggests that it means "retarded," a term that is used several times throughout the book. I realize that this is the correct use of the term, but today it has been misused so much that I can not keep from cringing a little when I read it. This shows how things have changed in 20 years; I guess "retard" was not a common insult in the '80s. Side note: I find it interesting that Claudia is the one making this suggestion, because it is heavily implied throughout the series that she has some sort of learning disability. Was this a conscious decision on Martin's part, or is this a throw-away line that could have gone to any of the girls? The world may never know.

The girls look at their schedules. It turns out that Kristy is the only one available for the job, which is supposed to be three days every week for a month. They call Mrs. Felder back to let her know, and she tells Kristy that she wants her to meet Susan before committing to the job. Kristy is, understandably, curious and a bit worried about this.

Well. I think I will leave it there for today. Coming soon: Chapter Four (In Which We Meet Susan And Learn About Autism In One Hundred Words Or Less).