Fastest Car in the WORLD Crashes

(Skip to 0:55 to get to the good part)

Oh Top Gear.  How do you manage to perform this miracle.  You take the fastest car in the WORLD (I can't help but think in it Clarkson's voice) and crash it, at the mind numbingly speed of 1 MPH.  Wankers.

[Top Gear via Twitter]

The Game is Afoot: Doctor Who Writer Gives Us Sherlock Holmes

'ello Children!  How's everyone feeling today?  Us poor Americans finally got to see the season finale of Doctor Who this last weekend.  No, not me, heavens no.  I have a tellyvision box, remember?  I have no idea why BBC America aired it a month behind.  Or why they cut Top Gear.  But I digress....

Steven Moffat, one of the Doctor Who writers, just premiered the new series Sherlock Holmes.  It. Was. FABULOUS!  It's set in present time London, Sherlock lives at 221B Baker St, and his "arch nemesis" has already made an appearance, as it were.  Sherlock  definitely reminds me of the Doctor, but it's not the same character. (Socially awkward man that can read between the lines and therefore seems insane to any normal person? Check.)  Watson reminds me of Hugh Laurie's House, but that just because he has a cane and a general disdain for others. You can't trademark that, can you?

I also like the way they share some information with the viewers.  It's strange to describe; for example, the local police are releasing a press statement about some "strange occurrences," to be spoiler free.   The police say that the cases are "unrelated," and suddenly every press agent in the room gets a text message that says "Wrong!" When they look at their phones, a little white text pops up that "shows" you what it says.  This continues throughout the episode, and I imagine throughout the series.  Later, Sherlock is investigated "something" (trying to be spoiler free!) and when he notices something -- "wet," "dry," "clean," "dirty"--the same little white text pops up.  I like it.  It shares his inner clockwork without spoiling it with forced monologues or conversation that "leads in" to a point. (I can tell when they're setting up a joke or punch line; it's annoying to me.) 

It's very witty, and I love the back and forth between the characters.  The episode itself, not including commercials or interruptions,  is almost an hour and a half.  The show is brilliant, cunning, and takes the edge off the Doctor Who withdrawals. 

Because what I really needed was another addiction. 

The 10 People of Britain

I'm quite convinced that there's only 10 people in Britain.  Every time someone tells me about a show, even though I've only been watching telly for about a year, there's at least one person I know.  Case in point: my sister in law put on some movie about Oscar Wilde ( I came in late and was throughly confused) and who's in it? Stephen Fry.

Anway, one of my favorite 10 British people has to be Gordon Ramsay. Okay, I'm no foodie, and I can barely boil water myself.  But Ramsay, especially on the F Word, makes food look soooo good.  I thought watching his show was going to make me feel horrid, refering to special ingredients and secret techniques, and feel embarassed at my own ignorance.  Instead I watch and say, I think I can make that!  Well, some of the time at least.  I just watched the episode with Graham Norton (another of the 10 people); they were talking about peaches and creams and other innuendos.                                                      

Speaking of funny gay presenter, I laugh at how many gay people are on telly.  It's not that there isn't gay people on our programs, but the character's main focus is about being gay.  Gay people on British telly are gay just because they are gay.  That doesn't make sense, does it?  Anyway, I just like to see people just get to be themselves.

I'm also amazed at the difference between British editing and American editing techniques.  I didn't notice it until I started switching between BBC America Top Gear to the DVDs.  The BBCA (new acronym, I called it) took more episodes and butchered out whole segments from the rest of the season.  But once we watched it from the DVDs, we realized that they were actually cut out  good parts.  You know, when the trio were being funny British men. It seems like BBCA thinks that the only thing Americans will watch are explosions (don't get me wrong, I love me  some good 'sploding) but I much prefer the more cinematic vignettes.

Anyway, everyone ready for the holiday season?  What's Christmas like in Britain?  The only idea I have is based off of Dr. Who, and you know how that goes!

Mandatory Viewing, or The Only Things on BBC America

No promises that I'm going to update every day, or even in any promised order. I want to beef up the blog for now, so in the future my posts might come a little more sporadic.

First of all, you must see Doctor Who. The show is about a Time Lord who travels through time and space and across the universe to save people/the universe/say witty things. When I say "Doctor Who," I'm referring to the new series that was restarted in 2005. Christopher Eccleston started as the 9th Doctor in 2005, but only stayed on for 13 episodes. He was succeeded by David Tennant, the 10th Doctor, who just recently stepped down. Some of my favorite episodes includes a generation of people trapped in a futuristic enclosed highway (for flying cars, of course); statues with malicious intent; ANY Christmas episode; World War I zombies; when they meet Madame d'Pompadour; and when they meet William Shakespeare. It's not all fun and games though. Early on the series explores the ramifications of changing the past. The writers pay attention to the space/time continuum "rules," but they keep them loose enough so it doesn't ruin the fun.

Next up, Top Gear is the funniest show about cars. At first I only watched it because my husband wanted to, but the more I watched the funnier it was. I have no idea how James May, Richard Hammond, and Jeremy Clarkson convinces the BBC to give them money. At times it seems like they do nothing but bicker with each other and argue with anyone that doesn't agree, but if you look closely, you'll see that...uh....a lifelong friendship....on screen magic....okay, all they do is bicker and argue. But it's hilarious. The show never ceases to pull amazing races and stunts. In one of the latest episodes they raced the fastest recorded car in the world against a super-special fighter jet (I forget the details, just read: awesome). The car had to race ONE mile, turn around, and then race back to the start/finish, while the fighter jet had to go one mile UP, in the air, and then come back down and cross the start/finish. Another season Clarkson raced across Japan, trying to beat May and Hammond on the Japanese Bullet Train. This is not your average train. It's pretty much the same formula over and over. One of the hosts races against crazy triple black diamond skiers/Olympic Luge team/another absolutely ridiculous thing. They also have guests on the show, called the Star in a Reasonable Priced Car, so expect to see the only other 10 people in Britain on the show.

Finally, for comedy, check out Little Britain. It's a sketch comedy show that features Matt Lucas and David Williams dressing up, acting silly, and generally making a mockery of everyone and everything. You can feel the Monty Python influence, but the sketches and characters are original. However, we watched this on DVD, and noticed that watching episodes back to back saps it of some of its humor. Try spacing it out if you haven't caught this show yet.

One more thing. Dear BBC America, please broadcast in HD, plzkthxbai.