Author Archive: Shaun

If you’re tired of hearing about the boatload of awards the talented folks involved with Doctor Who continue to win, skip this article. 🙂

The Official Doctor Who Website reports that Steven Moffat came up big at the Royal Television Society Programme Awards earlier this week, winning a prestigious Judge’s Award for his “outstanding contribution to television” and “incredible range” for show running Doctor Who.

The RTS panel said a few words about Steven Moffat’s accolade, noting, ‘The Judges’ Award is given for an outstanding contribution to television, and there are few screenwriters in the world whose work boasts the same incredible range as tonight’s recipient. Equally at home with horror, detective stories, situation comedy, action adventure and sci-fi, this year’s winner is an author in the truest sense of the word… Channelling all that he had learned about structure into shaping mind-bendingly brilliant sci-fi and thriller plots, as well as placing a funny man/straight man pairing at the centre of extraordinary and impossible circumstances, with his friend Mark Gatiss he invited an entirely new audience to claim Holmes and Watson as their own. And in his downtime reinventing Doctor Who to overwhelming critical and ratings success from the get-go.

There are few writers who would trade Steven Spielberg and Hollywood to work with the Daleks in Wales but this man did. Indeed, with a seemingly inexhaustible resource of utterly distinctive plots and the ability to use comedy liberally to form a devoted connection with the audience, our winner is living, typing proof of why television remains THE writer’s medium.’

Moffat’s “Sherlock” took home the prize for best drama, while Doctor Who spin-off “The Sarah Jane Adventures” won for best Children’s Program. The CBBC series stars Elizabeth Sladen as the Doctor’s former companion. The RTS panel said, ‘The winner was emotional and incredibly engaging – a wonderful drama that stands on its own as a terrific piece of storytelling. The cultural diversity of the cast, its high production values and creative storyline made it a joy to watch and kept you intrigued.’

Congratulations to Steven Moffat, the entire team behind The Sarah Jane Adventures and all the winners at this year’s RTS awards.

Just noticed that several Doctor Who DVDs are sporting lower prices. I hadn’t heard of a scheduled price drop, so this may be a temporary sale, but check out the Amazon store to see what’s what. I personally just snagged the Tom Baker introductory story, “Robot” and the Sylvester McCoy epic “Remembrance Of The Daleks” and paid $26 for both! (Not bad considering the MSRP for Remembrance is normally $30!) Happy shopping!

I’m taking a quick break from homework to give you, valued reader, a glimpse inside the workings of my tortured mind. I’ve always joked that if a human can have a train of thought, my train is the one from the end of BACK TO THE FUTURE III. I’ve gone over the trestle, left the tracks and am in a constant state of free fall. That’s my train of thought. I’m pretty sure I have ADHLAS. That’s Attention Deficit-HEY LOOK, A SQUIRREL!

– Hurray for tax return money! I finally ordered the “Key To Time” box set I’ve always wanted to order, but never have.

– And “Genesis Of The Daleks“

– And I pre-ordered “The Seeds Of Doom” (Which releases here in the states on Tuesday, 3/8/11.

– and then I saw the Borders store in Lawrence was going out of business and had a discount on all their stuff, so I picked up “The Invasion Of Time” and “Black Orchid”.

– I am sad to see a book store close.

– I am not bothered all that much that it was a conglomerate mega store, since Lawrence has many small, independent book stores I enjoy browsing in.

– Also hit up BRITS in Lawrence, a shop that does nothing but import items from the British Isles. Bought some more Jelly Babies.

– Mmmmm… Jelly Babies.

– I’m thinking that perhaps I need to curb my Doctor Who spending a bit.

– Did you know that Jelly Babies are actual JELLY BABIES? I mean, they’re shaped like little kids!

– Suddenly that joke with Leela saying the evil one eats babies makes a lot more sense.

– Mmmmm…. Leela.

– Did you know that “The Daleks” with William Hartnell is like, 7 episodes long? Cause we didn’t when we started watching it at midnight!

– Kansas City Planet Comicon, the area’s largest comic book convention is coming up at the end of the month. We have made plans to go and drum up some local support for Traveling The Vortex. I wonder how much Doctor Who stuff they’ll have?

– I want to build a Dalek.

– I really should be getting some homework done.

– Speaking of homework, I have 2 more episodes of “The Dalek Invasion Of Earth” to finish before we record the podcast tonight.

– I wish I understood twitter better.

– Then again, if I understood it, I probably wouldn’t get much homework done.

– I think I need a sandwich.

– Of course, “need” is relative.

– Kinda like time.

– So if the translation circuitry in the TARDIS can translate any language for you during your travels with the Doctor, does that mean that companions who have left the ship suddenly have access to Spanish and Greek and Russian and all the standard “Earthbound” languages? Is it like a Rosetta Stone, only cooler?

– Oh, I picked up “Destiny Of The Daleks” too.

– Whoops, I should have said “Is it like a Rosetta Stone, only more bow tie?” We’re starting a movement to replace the word cool with bow tie. Cause you know, bow ties are cool.

– Okay, back to homework. Homework is so NOT bow tie.

A beautiful video tribute was posted recently on YouTube.com.

It’s is by BabelColour, and really captures the essence of Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart the much loved roll played by Nicholas Courtney in his many years on Doctor Who.

From BabelColour:

A personal and affectionate tribute to a wonderful man who sadly passed last week and to the timeless character he created. A huge presence in my childhood – the Brigadier was just as much a part of me as the Doctor was. And with the death of Nicholas Courtney a little bit of my childhood died with him. God bless Nick and a heartfelt salute to the Brigadier. Lest we ever forget….

Taking our “Doctoring Rock Band” idea one step farther, the folks over at www.teefury.com bring you this much awesome. But hurry, this is available ONE DAY ONLY!

and over at www.shirt.woot.com present this fun… ALSO ONE DAY ONLY and time is running out for both shirts!

Since the Academy Awards are tonight, I’d thought I’d make mention that earlier this week, The Doctor Who News Page reported that “Vincent And The Doctor” has been nominated for The Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation in the 2010 Nebula Awards.

The episode, is the only television episode in this category, but is in good company, up against the films Despicable Me, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, How To Train Your Dragon, and Best Picture Nominees Inception, and Toy Story 3.

The winners are selected in March, and announced at the Nebula Awards Banquet, taking place on 21st May.

Hot on the heels of the Nebula nomination this week, the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films have announced the nominations for the 37th annual Saturn Awards. “A Christmas Carol” is nominated for Best Television Presentation.

The episode, penned by Steven Moffat, is up against his own Sherlock which he co-wrote with Mark Gatiss. Other nominees include the Kung Fu Panda Holiday Special, The Walking Dead, and two series from new Torchwood co-producer Starz, The Pillars of the Earth and Spartacus: Gods of the Arena.

Last year, Torchwood: Children of Earth won the award for Best Presentation on Television, (and rightly so) which beat fellow nominee Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead.

The Saturn Awards take place in June.

Here’s a few sneak peaks of other Doctors I’m working on constructing in Rock Band 3. Please note these are “not quite ready for prime time” and still need a lot of tweaking in my humble opinion. But as first drafts go, they’re not too shabby.

#3 – Jon Pertwee: This is the one I was most excited about, because of all the Doctors, Pertwee dressed the most like a rock star, (I cant help but think Elton John or Liberace) and Rock Band 3 has some great costumes to match. I chose the crushed purple velvet look here, complete with the puffy frilly shirt. I am less happy with his hair, but there don’t appear to be good Pertwee options at all. Again, this is a rough draft.

#4 – Tom Baker: This was a no brainer from the moment I boot up my first Rock Band disc and saw the “Doctor What” costume. I think my Tom needs a little facial reconstructive work, and wow, is that a LOT of hair. But the idea is solid.

#8 – Paul McGann: There is a totally rocking outfit that will match McGann’s “The Movie” costume nearly perfectly, but I have to perform 50 “big rock finishes” to unlock it. In the mean time, may I humbly present him with his “new” outfit, that McGann himself unveiled at a convention. Blue leather, very militaristic, just the thing for fighting a Time War. His hair looks a lot more blond in this photo as opposed to the brown, nearly ginger look he sported in the movie.

Next up, I have designs on doing #9, Christopher Eccleston as well, there’s a pretty sweet looking Leather Jacket hanging in that digital closet. Oh, and we have to get Keith to get his PS3 versions posted, he made a totally rockin’ Amy Pond, who sings vocals for his Who group, the Sonic Screws!

Action Shot –
“The Four Doctors”

Okay, I’ve shown you mine…

I love LEGO. I imagine most kids do. Perhaps it’s the creative process of assembling something from scratch. There is something very imagination freeing about sitting in front of a pile of bricks and beginning to BUILD. I love playing the LEGO video games. Some have been better than others (LEGO Batman has been particularly frustrating compared to the ease of LEGO Star Wars) but they’re all fun and enjoyable.

Earlier this month, we reported on the new Doctor Who building sets that came out, and that got me to thinking about the potential for a Doctor Who game. Then it came to me in a dream last night. A man appeared on a flaming pie. He took my hand and led me to a grove of LEGO trees. In the middle of the grove was a blue box. A LEGO TARDIS. The doors opened, and the secrets of the cosmos spilled out. Admittedly, this is fan boy day dreaming, BUT this is what I saw:

1) LEGO tie-ins feature an exciting and fun universe. – What could be more exciting and fun than Doctor Who? Just think of the backdrop this game would have!

2) LEGO games are not just about smashing things and re-building them (although that makes for a good chunk of it), they also feature puzzles to solve. – The Doctor taught Sherlock Holmes everything he knew. Think about the type of problems and puzzles the games put forth. As the universe’s greatest problem solver, the Doctor’s a natural.

3)LEGO games have a wide and impressive group of colorful characters who have special abilities. – I can see them now. Obviously we have all 11 Doctor’s, with fun costumes and the sonic screwdriver could be used to change computer polarities or open doors (minus Doctor’s five, six and seven) but, he wouldn’t resort to hand-to-hand combat when challenged by the bad guys. The companions would have to do that. And think of the list of companions and what they could do! Healers like Harry Sulivan and Martha Jones could restore hearts, K-9 (eee! Just think of a little LEGO block K-9!) could access computers and stun people, Captain Jack could have a ray gun and be invincible, Leela could find and track otherwise invisible footprints, Ace and her baseball bat could smash stronger bricks and The Brigadier and U.N.I.T. family could all have guns (which of course would be highly ineffective against most of the monsters.)

4) LEGO games have a wide and impressive group of enemies to go against. – Who has a better “Rogues Gallery” of villains and monsters than a show that’s been on for 40 plus years? Daleks (would of course be mobile shiny metal and impervious to bullets, they have to be destroyed with explosives), Cybermen (when broken, all their individual parts continue to attack!), The Master, The Rani, The Autons, The Weeping Angels (which like the ghosts in the Super Mario Brothers haunted houses, can only attack you from behind), The Yeti, the list is practically endless!

5) LEGO games features several multi-part story arcs that make up the adventure. – This is perfect format for Doctor Who, imagine a story that starts with William Hartnell and progresses all they way up to Matt Smith, each chapter giving you different villains to fight, a different Doctor and companions to champion.

6) LEGO games have gone the route of Super Mario World, with “Hub Worlds” that access different adventures. – What could possibly make for a better hub than the TARDIS console room, a nexus point with access to all of time and space?

7) LEGO games have a quirky and fun sense of humor. – Um, hello, it’s Doctor Who. Douglas Adams used to submit scripts, remember?

8) LEGO games are family friendly. – Doctor Who started (and in some ways maintains) it’s position as a “kids show”.

I am beyond jazzed for this project, and it doesn’t even exist. It’s probably not even a glimmer on Traveler’s Tales horizon. I know coming up next for the LEGOverse is LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars, and I’ve heard rumors that Superman, Lord of the Rings, and Pirates of the Caribbean are all potential next projects. But how do we get Doctor Who added to that slate? Time to chime in fans! Time to start bombarding LEGO and Traveler’s Tales and BBC and anyone who will listen with requests for this game!

Having spent a large portion of my adult life as a retail manager, I can attest to the fact that sometimes all people need is a pat on the back. It’s a small gesture that makes a big impact. This week we got not one, but two bits of feedback, both of which amounted to a pat on the back.

In the first, a listener from Utah mentioned us in her blog. She too, is like Keith, a relative newbie with a passion for Doctor Who, wanting a podcast in her life. She found us, and apparently liked what she heard.

That my friends, is music to a creator’s ears. We do Traveling the Vortex because we enjoy it, and likely would do it anyway because we enjoy it. But it’s a whole-nother thing to be told that someone else likes your work, and likes it enough to comment on it. That is the icing on the cake. It feeds the ego and make you feel like whatever it is you are doing is worthwhile. I personally have gotten positive remarks on things I’ve done, stories written, scripts, (hell even the Myrka poem), and each time someone goes out of their way to compliment me, I cannot help but to swell with pride.

Thank you for that!

The second piece of feedback comes from a fellow podcaster from across the pond, in the UK. IN THE UK!!! HOW COOL IS THAT!?!? He’ll have to forgive me for not having listened to the message he left on our Google mail (I’m the technological neanderthal of the group, and haven’t figured that bit out yet) but I hear from Keith that it was very positive. It’s one thing to have someone tell you they like what you’re doing, it’s another when a respected member of the community you’re involved in does it. I imagine its like a writer being told by William Shakespeare “Good job”. (And even if it isn’t, it is to me, so allow me my delusions!)

Again, thank you!

A pat on the back. Such a small thing, and yet so impactful. I challenge each of us to leave that small thing on someone today, be it a friend, co-worker, or even a podcaster. Just a note to say, “good job.”

Bolstered with a new sense of confidence, I march forward ready to do good works.

Related Links:
cj’s notebook
The 20mb Doctor Who Podcast

This week, a very old and dear friend of mine lost his brilliant wife to breast cancer.

Steve Hylton and I have been friends since I worked at Suncoast Motion Picture Company. Like so many of my friends, he started off as a customer, a regular, someone who you looked forward to seeing because you knew they’d stay and shoot the breeze with you a while and help time pass. Steve is a fellow geek (and he knows we relish the label). STAR WARS will always be his lifeblood, but as with so many of us, his spheres of influence converge across the spectrum of sci-fi, including Doctor Who.

Steve is a good friend, someone to chat with about everything and nothing, about the importance of things going on in the world, about new movie trailers and about nothing at all. Steve might just be the best kind of friend, because he wasn’t afraid to call me out over some bullshit. He was truthful when he said that I was not an easy person to be friends with, because I expect everyone else to do the work. And he was right. I am the worst kind of friend, and I respect him all the more for being able to say it to me. I like to think I try harder, that I got better, but I’m not sure I have.

Steve met Shari, and found a quiet soul who mirrored his own. They were married in 2006, and have a lovely daughter, Laniey. Shari was an amazing woman, a good wife and mother, a true friend, and she was one of us. She was a geek. She was so like Steve in so many ways, and I regret not getting to know her better. I am reminded of how short and precious and fragile our lives are. Her loss diminishes us all.

“We will sing to you, Doctor. The universe will sing you to your sleep. This song is ending. But the story never ends.” – Sigma Ood, “The End Of Time, Part 2”

I have been sick this week. Nothing major, (started as a cough, but now in my third day of missing work I of course am beginning to wonder if I’ve contracted Captain Tripps) but it’s laid me low. I cant help but think of the times the Doctor felt a little down and out. Most of those came as the result of a wonky regeneration, (I wonder if the Time Lords allow for sick days? “Sorry Lord Chancellor, I simply cant come in today, I’ve just regenerated and gone insane and tried to kill my companion.” Surely that falls under FMLA or something?)

Regenerations can be simple (Hartnell to Troughton) or nightmarish (Davidson to Colin Baker). As established in Peter Davidson’s debut Castrovalva, the TARDIS was equipped with a Zero Room, which is supposed to aid in keeping the Time Lord sane during the process, (but of course, plot demands caused the ejection of the Zero Room in that story). If only he’d had it for his next regeneration in “The Twin Delima” he might not have throttled Peri. The TARDIS is also equipped with a sick bay, (“The Invasion Of Time”) though we’ve never seen the Doctor use it. The ninth regeneration into David Tennant kept him in a coma for the better part of a day (cured by a cup of tea). Where as most recently, the regeneration seemed to do little to Matt Smith other than cause some interesting food cravings.

Cravings, memory loss, schizophrenia, mood swings. These almost sound more like the earthly symptoms of PMS than cellular regeneration.

At any rate, as I lie here in bed sipping my tea and hoping this damned cough will leave me, I cant help but hope for a regeneration. Maybe I’ll come back as a Ginger…