Fandom Randoms

[firthgal]

I mean, it was inevitable, really. At least, Paul/Echo was inevitable, but I always felt like the show was pushing Boyd/Claire too, so their scene didn't really come as a surprise to me, just... it CRUSHED MY SOUL. HE'S ONLY SUPPOSED TO LOVE ECHO WITH THAT KIND OF DEVOTION! OKAY? AND WHY DIDN'T BOYD AND ECHO SHARE ANY SCENES TOGETHER? WHY WHY WHY? All through season 1 their relationship was the heart of the show, and then in the would-be series finale they get nothing? Not even a mention of Boyd when Echo returned to the Dollhouse? And, you know, I'm sure Claire waiting for Boyd at the Dollhouse all those years would have affected me had the romance actually been developed rather than just shoved in there, so if this ends up being the actual finale somewhere down the line, hopefully when I see it again that will have the affect that I think it was meant to have.

Caroline. Typically I don't mind her, but I kind of really despised her in this one, until she was imprinted into the little girl. How SAD that the little girl makes such a better Caroline than Eliza Dushku. I AM SORRY, ELIZA! NORMALLY I LOVE YOU! But in this episode I really didn't. It could be the fact that she has about zero chemistry with Paul and all of her scenes were with him. BOYD WAS SUPER AWESOME AND MANLY AND HANDSOME AS EVER, THOUGH. I LOVE BOYD. A LOT.

TOPHER! OMG, TOPHER! I LOVE THAT BOY SO HARD! GAH! He was so distraught over what had come of his inventions! The guilt! The turmoil! And the only person who is able to soothe his pain at least a little bit is Adelle. HOW BEAUTIFUL IS THEIR RELATIONSHIP? GOOD GOD! THEY MADE ME CRY! Seriously. I was actually thinking at one point that maybe Topher actually was Adelle's son and they just never came right out and said it during the course of the show. Or possibly he was her nephew or something. But I guess not. She just has a major soft spot for him.

DEWITT/DOMINIC! HOLY CRAP ARE THEY HOT! GAH! I've loved them for awhile now, not with the ferocity that I love Boyd/Echo or Boyd/Topher, but they really kicked ass in this episode and showed why they're the best romantic relationship on the show (even though the romance has never been confirmed, but the UST is very canon, so... I'm considering them canon). Dominic was one of my original favorites, even in his uber douchey days, and he was just so epic in this episode, and it made me realize how much I missed him in the last few eps of the season. He just brings so much hilarity and subtle emotional turmoil and I love him for that. Plus, he's hot. I'm not gonna lie. The man's easy on the eyes.

The filming of this episode was magnificent, and the post apocalyptic feel was quite reminiscent of The Terminator (T4 and TSCC), so I enjoyed that. I liked the no name characters, especially the smartass one that kind of looked like James Marsters. The action was wonderful, the little girl was awesome, but overall, the character stuff just didn't do it for me. We hadn't seen all the stuff they've been through, so it was hard to care, you know? Topher and Adelle got the most development in the series, and that's probably why their story was the only one that moved me. So, I'm happy we're getting another season, because this finale just wouldn't have been satisfying for me. I definitely need more Boyd, that's for sure.

OH! Question, was that little girl originally Adelle? Or Dominic? Or was she just someone completely different that we've never heard of? Ooo, I hope it was Paul! That would be a sweet justice for making me suffer through Paul/Echo ickiness. PAUL! STOP MAKING ME HATE YOU! Seriously, I don't know why I randomly hate him. I used to love him. Then I hated him. Then I loved him again. Then I really hated him. And now he makes me shudder in a bad way. Oh, Paul. *sigh* Still, he's not as bad as Owen from Torchwood. *barf* Sorry, I can't resist hating on that douche. Ever. Even when he doesn't deserve it (which is rare, but I'm sure it's happened at some point). Oh, Owen. I think I liked him when he was a nerd for that one episode, but even then I was like, "Ugh, Owen. Whatever. Serves you right."



Oh god, this pilot made so much SENSE, and it made other things make sense. Like Paul's obsession with Caroline. THEY ACTUALLY INTERACTED! AND SHE SHOT HIM! WOOHOO! It also explains Paul's white knight complex (something that he utterly fails at being). This pilot made me fall in mad love with Claire/Topher, and now I am even more angry at Epitaph One for making Boyd/Claire canon. UGH. Anyway, the Boyd/Topher in this episode was simply epic. MANFRIEND! THEY ARE MANFRIENDS!!! TOPHER IS IN LOOOOOVE WITH BOYD! OH GOD! Seriously, why is this ship not more popular? It has so much canon fodder that I am just baffled as to why the slashers haven't jumped on it. I'm still not convinced that Topher is straight. Gay? Possibly. Bisexual? Most likely. MANFRIEND! COME ON! They were so the OTP of this episode. And had I initially seen the Paul/Echo scenes in this episode, I probably wouldn't despise Paul/Echo so thoroughly. I still think they'd get on my nerves, but at least I'd understand Paul's motivations. Man, this pilot was so magnificent, and I love it for showing all the good things that Dollhouse does along with the bad, instead of just focusing on the hooker aspect of it. The pilot was way too focused on the sex, and this ended up turning people off of the show, and to this day people still mock it for being about a whorehouse, but it's NOT. It's about the human soul, human connection, the flaws of humanity. And this pilot explained all that very succinctly and entertainingly and it KILLS me that this didn't get to be the pilot. The show would be far more popular if it had been. Also, I noticed they used quite a few clips from this in Epitaph One. And the girl that Echo stayed with in the hospital was the same one that Alpha imprinted with Caroline. MANFRIEND!

So... yeah, this episode kicked ass. So should have been the actual pilot. There was less focus on the Boyd/Echo connection though, so I am a little torn on whether I would have loved the path that the show could have gone down after this ep, or if I'm happy with the way things actually went, because the Boyd/Echo bond moves me more than any other relationship on this show. But oh how I loved all the Boyd/Topherness! And Echo being awesome instead of hookery! I don't know.



So, I know the fandom is all in a tizzy over the death of Ianto, but honestly, Ianto was never quite a favorite of mine. I like him well enough, but I don't love him (not like I love Jack and Gwen and Rhys), and this is mostly the fault of one Owen Harper taking up way too much screentime and not allowing any of the other supporting characters to get proper development. OWEN! *shakes fist* Seriously, without Owen, Ianto FINALLY got development. And then they killed him off. BASTARDS! ARGH! They finally make me care, and then they take him away from me. But... as long as Jack Harkness is still there, Torchwood will always be watchable for me. Well... when he's not being emo, because Jack doesn't wear emo well. It's just not in his nature, and I hate it when the show tries to make him all glum and super serious. But anyway, Jack still rocks my world, so if there's another series, I am so watching. I love Gwen too, but honestly, all I need is Jack and his coat.

But anyway, I thought the miniseries was well done. And, as much as I loved the development of Ianto (he totally made me melt when he was talking to his sister about Jack and said, "It's only him. Not men, just... him." *dreamy sigh*) I feel like the John Frobisher dude got more development than Ianto got throughout the course of 3 seasons, therefore his big death scene seemed to have a bigger affect on me than Ianto's. Man, the gunshots made me jump even though I knew they were coming. That was just brilliantly done with the music and the closed door, and then the secretary giving her little speech about John. That was pretty awesome. The bit that really got me though was when Jack decided to sacrifice his grandson. Good god, that was awful. And, judging by fandomsecrets, it looks like people are pissed at Jack for his actions in this miniseries, but he saved millions by sacrificing one child. Who happened to be his grandson. This is why actual heroes don't really get the glory. He had to make a tough decision, and he lost all he had left in order to save the rest of the world. GUH. JACK. The worst part was that Jack's daughter had all this confidence in him, she was the one that got the military people to involve Jack, but all of her son's life she's been avoiding Jack because she was afraid her son would get caught in his crossfire, and... that's exactly what happened when she brought Jack back into her life. Oh man, that scene was so harsh. And Jack has to live with himself after that. Forever.

Alright, back up to the scene where Rhys, Gwen, Jack, and Ianto are all back together again in the Torchwood 1 warehouse and Jack is giddy after getting on Rhys's nerves. I LIVE FOR SCENES LIKE THAT. And Ianto looks so miserable there while Jack is so satisfied about causing trouble for Gwen/Rhys. Speaking of Ianto, I love how vulnerable he was in this series, but still totally kickass. He was so devoted to Jack, and Jack was trying to push him away, but at the same time, he was totally accepting him as his life partner. Like, you could tell that Jack didn't want to go through loving Ianto and not being able to grow old with him, but Ianto was so persistant and emotionally open and IN LOVE with him that Jack couldn't really turn away from him. I'm not quite sure if Jack loved Ianto with the same devotion that Ianto loved him, but Jack needed him, and he certainly cared about him, and he was the closest thing to family that Jack had left, and... just... guh, that was tragic. And I love that Gwen mourned for him, too.

So, the ending. Jack left. So... where does that leave Gwen? Is she going to form a new Torchwood team while Jack is off trying to run away from his tragedy? Will he come back because he missed her and realize that he has no place there anymore? Will he form a new Torchwood in a completely different universe? Was the end of the show since alomst everyone is dead now? I NEED MORE. IT CANNOT END LIKE THAT. I NEED JACK TO COME BACK AND BICKER WITH RHYS. If I can't get more Torchwood, then I at least need Jack to appear on Doctor Who every now and then and hit on the new Doctor (and his new companion. They are totally his type).



Okay, Harry Potter. It was... okay. See, the sixth book is my absolute favorite HP book, so naturally the movie would only leave me disappointed. It seems like most people are liking this movie better than the book, which I just don't get. I LOVED THE SIXTH BOOK! WHY AM I THE ONLY ONE? The one that I didn't like was the fifth one, and that movie ended up being awesome. The seventh book is my least favorite, so hopefully the movie will fix everything that I hated about that book. But anyway, my biggest problem with the movie is probably that Dumbledore just doesn't ring true for me. So much of the sixth book relies on the warmth and understanding that Dumbledore shows Harry, along with his high expectations and how much Harry is crushed when he disappoints Dumbledore (or when Dumbledore refuses to listen to Harry's theory about Snape). The movie pretty much took all that away and just made Dumbledore look like a general commanding his soldier. I don't know, Michael Gambon's Dumbledore just has never worked for me. He's too cold, he doesn't quite catch the eccentricity and childlike quality of Dumbledore. He gets the commanding presence just fine, but he's kind of distant rather than intuitive. This may just be the movie's writing and not Gambon at all, but he's just not the Dumbledore that I love in the books. And Snape is kind of the opposite. I despise him in the first few books, he's so slimy and pathetic and kind of cruel, but in the movies I really love him (and the seventh book. I don't think I fully appreciated him until the seventh book. Snape/Lilly FTW! Hush, they were awesome, okay?). Anyway, the problem with Snape in this film was that he was too obviously good. I remember reading that tower scene in the book and being completely convinced and I was like, "THAT BASTARD! I KNEW IT! I KNEW HE WAS EVIL!" But in the movie, no, way too obvious that he was on Dumbledore's side. Surely the other Death Eaters heard that quiver in his voice? Anyway, this film made Snape too lovable, I guess. Which isn't exactly a complaint, it just deviates from the suspense caused by not ever truly knowing what Snape was up to.

Shipping wise, my OTP has always been Ron/Hermione. There was never a doubt in my mind that they were the intended romantic pairing, which is why I've always been baffled as to the venomous anger that seems to come from the Harry/Hermione camp. Not once did I ever think of them turning romantic in the books, especially since Hermione has always had a bit of a crush on Ron (much to her frustration). But... in this movie? I was totally shipping Harry/Hermione. In fact, it got to the point where I was actually wishing the movies would change the romances and have them end up together in the next movie. WHAT? WHAT IS THIS CRAZINESS? I was in love with Ron/Hermione for who knows how many years. The sixth book is the epitome of their hilarious, angsty romance full of miscommunication and jealousy, and the movie just... crushed my soul and somehow made them more angsty than the book. I hated that they made Hermione look so insane over Ron, while in the book it was a two-way street. Ron only started his thing with Lavender to get back at Hermione in his own twisted way, whereas in the movie he was just plain clueless and had no idea he was hurting Hermione, which... I guess is partly better because it makes him look less jerky, but on the other hand, it makes Ron/Hermione look more one-sided than it actually was. Bah, I don't know. But I found myself shaking my head at Ron and swooning at Harry/Hermione. Craziness. As for Harry, in the books I never really cared who he ended up with, but I always kind of hoped for Luna, so I loved the Luna/Harry-ness of this movie. Harry/Ginny doesn't bother me, but it wasn't my first choice. I suppose the film handled it well, but it came out of nowhere even worse than it did in the book. I know that Harry/Draco and Harry/Snape are HUGE in Potter fandom, but... I found myself shipping Snape/Draco instead. Only in the film though. I don't know what it was, but they had some creepy love vibes going on there. Also, I found myself delighted at the prospect of Snape/Bellatrix. Good lord, the unintentional UST there was glorious.

Things this movie did right:

1. SLUGHORN! Oh, how I adored him in this movie. He annoyed me in the book, but in the film he was so beautifully endearing. Didn't look a thing like the description in the book, but I'm cool with that. I love this version of Slughorn so much more than the one in the book. This Slughorn was so vulnerable and well-meaning while still retaining that superficial air and wanting to make himself more important than he actually was. And oh, how his story about the goldfish got me. So darn beautiful, quite possibly my favorite moment of the movie. Basically, anything with Slughorn was made of so much win (unlike the book, where I kind of wanted to punch him in many of his scenes).
2. They made Harry less emotional and more... happy. This I was thankful for. Book Harry gets on my nerves, while the Harry in this film was funny and confident and sweet and obsessive and shallow and wonderful. Book Harry just tends to be shallow and ridiculously emotional.
3. Harry and Ron fighting over the Potion book with the good cover. This was just so very high schoolish and normal, such a great touch. Along with Harry and Ron standing on the wall and shouting across the hall to passing students. Another very highschoolish thing. Basically, all the little touches that reminded us that these are immature high school kids who fool around just as much as we did when we were in highschool. Also, Seamus burning his eyebrows again. That will never get old.
4. The bit in the cave where Dumbledore does his fire spell. That was wicked badass and AMAZING.
5. The Burrow getting burnt down. A scene completely unique to the movie, and it totally worked for me. Probably the most emotional scene of the movie.
6. The opening sequence of the film was simply AWESOME. I love how they showed everything happening rather than having the Prime Minister and Fudge talking about it all happening. The bridge bit was wonderful.
7. The kids that played Voldemort were pretty good.
8. Cormac MacLaggen. Oh, good lord did I love him. Hate him in the book, love him in the film.
9. LAVENDER BROWN! Oh god, she was utter perfection.

Things the movie did wrong:

1. Dumbledore. He just doesn't make me care the way that Book Dumbledore does, therefore his final scene didn't affect me the way it should have.
2. The cave scene where Dumbledore is drinking the potion. Not traumatizing enough.
3. I kind of hated the fact that Harry so willingly played into his hero status and kissed up to Slughorn, and that Dumbledore told him to do this. In the book, Harry has too much integrity to do that until he gets desperate, and Dumbledore never encourages him to be a part of the Slug Club. I don't know, this just didn't sit well with me. Dumbledore is already manipulative enough, but throwing that in there makes him look even worse.
4. The Ron/Hermione subplot ending completely different than the book. *huff*
5. Remus and Tonks suddenly being a couple without any explanation whatsoever. Although, the book kind of did this too, only the movie skipped all the sad-sackness of Tonks and cut her down to one scene that wasn't even in the book. I guess people aren't fond of Remus/Tonks, but I kind of liked them in the book. Although, my Tonks pairing of choice was always Tonks/Mad Eye Moody. They had awesome banter, were probably the only thing I initially enjoyed about the fifth book. Anyway, that was just silly because Mad Eye is really old in the books, but still...
6. Narcissa. Oh, Damian Lewis's wife, why do I have such an aversion to you? And why didn't they give you blond hair? All you did was confuse my parents immensely. I had to explain to them about five times that you were the blond boy's mother. *sigh*
7. The tower scene. TOO OBVIOUS, MR. SNAPE.

I'm sure I had more complaints, but I'll stop there.

I had more fandomness to talk about, but I think I am all tapped out for today. One thing, though. IN PLAIN SIGHT! OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG!!!!!!!! I will probably picspam this baby, because I need some way to express my giddiness. It was AWESOME IN EVERY WAY IMAGINABLE! OH GOD! MARSHALL!!! I'm even kind of tempted to write a fanfic, which I haven't done for this show since... jeez, mid season 1? AAAAAH, MARY/MARSHALL, YOU ROCK MY WORLD!