Diana: "Being with you I can't tell what's right or wrong anymore."
Doctor: "It's better that way." With basketball playoffs upon us, I have been extremely lax in watching programs I have recorded. Fortunately, both the Celtics of Boston and the Lakers of Los Angeles have dispatched their opponents early and I have a week to catch up before the NBA Finals begin. First up: Dr. Who. My DVR continues to record Who episodes even though Freema Agyeman (my favorite Ghanaian-Iranian) is no longer the program's companion of choice. I am not a fan of Catherine Tate, a big horsey woman who sort of clumps around eating scenery. That said, I found "The Planet of the Ood" to be both a great episode and a trenchant meditation on the nature of slavery - a pretty amazing accomplishment in a 50 minute teleplay. There were several elements about this episode that I found appealing. As usual, I like the multicultural cast which included both a black man and an Indian woman in prominent roles. I liked the Ood, a race of peace loving octopi-heads who have been enslaved in a particularly diabolical way. Teleporting to an ice planet also gives Tate an opportunity to do a bit of business that is actually funny. Lastly, I was struck by how pervasive the melancholy that has clung hung around David Tennant's portrayal of the tenth Doctor has become. The Doctor is weary and clearly ready for the eleventh Doctor to take his place. ~rave!
