dalesramblingsblog

[dalesramblingsblog]

it's getting so fucking bad you guys, this kid walked up to me on the street and said he'd give me a cow if i gave him some magic beans, like c'mon

stay safe out there folks

[dalesramblingsblog]

It's now up for public reading. Knock yourselves out. Tell me if it's garbage which, hey, who knows? I mean, also tell me if you think it's any good. I do need to cut down on the self-deprecation, I'll admit.

Hey, so, remember when I said I was going to do a series of critical essays on The X-Files? Well, I finished the introduction. It's not technically about The X-Files, sure, but I still think it's about it indirectly, or at least the general cultural moment into which it slots.

The piece will be Ko-fi exclusive for the next week, but it will go up on the WordPress after that. Still, as with most of my pieces, you can get early access for five dollars. You'll also get access to my Placebo Effect and Zeta Major reviews. So. Y'know. Make of all of that what you will.

[dalesramblingsblog]

Hey, so, remember when I said I was going to do a series of critical essays on The X-Files? Well, I finished the introduction. It's not technically about The X-Files, sure, but I still think it's about it indirectly, or at least the general cultural moment into which it slots.

The piece will be Ko-fi exclusive for the next week, but it will go up on the WordPress after that. Still, as with most of my pieces, you can get early access for five dollars. You'll also get access to my Placebo Effect and Zeta Major reviews. So. Y'know. Make of all of that what you will.

[dalesramblingsblog]

Also for all that The Reality War and Empire of Death have their faults, I just... don't think that that undoes every good thing the era had going for it?

Like, I know it's trendy to say that Russell T. Davies should be sent to the Hague for war crimes committed in Bosnia or whatever hyperbolic bullshit we're saying this week, but c'mon. An era that has episodes like Wild Blue Yonder, Boom, 73 Yards, Dot and Bubble, Lux, and The Story and the Engine is a complete irredeemable failure? I mean I guess that makes sense, after all, Last of the Time Lords does retroactively make Blink utter garbage, doesn't it? Right? We're going to be consistent on this point, aren't we?

I know finales take on an outsized importance in fan minds but come on.

About a month and a half on from my post about liking the Gatwa Era and being put off by the vitriol with which it often seems to get discussed, and I remain pretty firm in that conviction, especially post-Reality War. I mean yeah I don't think it was a masterpiece, it was flawed in the ways that Davies' finales have been flawed for decades at this point - even though I still think it had some interesting and worthy ideas - but Christ above the way some of you lot carry on it's like the man was a judges' favourite at the So You Think You Can Drop Kick Orphans? 2025 competition.

I'm just exhausted, I'm sick of the discourse, I'm sick of it all. Yes my own personal affairs play a big role in my decision to drift away from the main body of the blog for a little while, but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't also just motivated by a general sense of fatigue. In a very real sense, talking about Doctor Who has stopped being fun during the Gatwa years, and until the fandom stops feeling like such a bleak and hostile place, I really think I just need a break.

[dalesramblingsblog]

About a month and a half on from my post about liking the Gatwa Era and being put off by the vitriol with which it often seems to get discussed, and I remain pretty firm in that conviction, especially post-Reality War. I mean yeah I don't think it was a masterpiece, it was flawed in the ways that Davies' finales have been flawed for decades at this point - even though I still think it had some interesting and worthy ideas - but Christ above the way some of you lot carry on it's like the man was a judges' favourite at the So You Think You Can Drop Kick Orphans? 2025 competition.

I'm just exhausted, I'm sick of the discourse, I'm sick of it all. Yes my own personal affairs play a big role in my decision to drift away from the main body of the blog for a little while, but I'd be lying if I said it wasn't also just motivated by a general sense of fatigue. In a very real sense, talking about Doctor Who has stopped being fun during the Gatwa years, and until the fandom stops feeling like such a bleak and hostile place, I really think I just need a break.

[dalesramblingsblog]

Very tentatively beginning work on this, and actually sticking to the "no timetable" proviso, so don't expect much in the way of regularity. I'll probably post the introductory essay as a bit of a preliminary teaser, future pieces will probably be Ko-fi exclusive though.

Again, I am very much on hiatus, but I do want something to idly dabble with in the meantime. That's what this is. I might also write some musings on gender, and especially my own personal philosophy of gender anarchy that I've been developing of late. This will be a slow thing, without anything like the churn (/pos) and steadiness of the main blog, but it will also, I'm hoping, be a lot more personal, and allow me to branch out and try more things. The book reviews will return. But, again, I keep saying I'm going to take a break and then fail miserably.

This way, I get to take a break and decompress, while still giving those of you who like what I do something interesting to hold your attention.

Thank you as ever for your support, I wouldn't feel able to do this if I didn't have such a patient audience. There's always a part of me that feels guilty whenever I have to slow something down, but I'm very proud of what I've managed to build over the past seven and a half years.

(And we just passed two years on Tumblr, too. Surreal.)

In honour of my 666th post, I'm going to throw something out into the ether: I have been considering returning to my roots and writing a three-volume book of critical essays on The X-Files and its attendant shows. I am not giving myself a timetable for this, if anything comes of it it probably won't be for years, and knowing my track record there won't be anything now that I've announced my intentions.

So, in short... uh, disregard this message, nothing will be happening. Unless it does. Potentially.

We'll see.

[dalesramblingsblog]

Alright then, folks, the *actual* last post I'm going to be making for a while, since I'm going to be on hiatus for at least the next few months. Zeta Major, by Simon Messingham, reviewed and accounted for, now available to anyone who donates as little as five dollars on Ko-fi - along with the review of Placebo Effect - or who signs up for a monthly membership.

As ever, there's no obligation to donate, especially in light of the hiatus, but by the same token any support would be greatly appreciated.

[dalesramblingsblog]

OK well, about that "still writing." I'm officially on HRT now - well technically it's just bicalutamide monotherapy, so ADT would be the more appropriate acronym, but you get the idea - so that's good, buuuuut I'm putting a moratorium on my writing until my body adjusts. Frankly just two days in and I'm already quite tired, so... still learning the ropes on this stuff. Expect the Zeta Major review to go up on Ko-fi in a couple days, and after that... look, radio silence is entirely possible for a while.

As ever, ko-fi.com/dalesramblings if you don't want to wait however long until I make the Placebo Effect/Zeta Major reviews public for everyone, or even just to show appreciation for the blog. I'm frankly terrible at actually sticking to hiatuses, but I have a feeling this one is different because I physically don't know if I can push my way through this wall, at least for the moment.

But look, the amount I've written, it was bound to catch up to me eventually. I'm giving myself permission to take a break. And I'm actually sticking to it. Part of me, I'll admit, is pleased by the relatively clean symmetry in books I have read/reviewed while in a physically cis male body and the books I have left (141 vs. 149).

Mostly I'm just kinda sleepy, though.

(Oh yes, and while we're on the topic of "amusing synchronicities," I do kind of like that I'll next see you in the course of reviewing a book entitled Another Girl, Another Planet. I've been Special Agent Dale Cooper, but who I'll be the next time you see me, well, frankly, that's anyone's guess. But I definitely know that you've all been a great audience, and I hope you'll stick around even if I have to slow down for a little bit.)

[dalesramblingsblog]

Zeta Major might end up having the widest gulf between the amount of stuff I have to say about the themes and aesthetic of the novel and my actual opinion of it as a piece of narrative fiction.

But then these reviews are only half about the latter anyway. Still, it's funny, because I definitely deeply dislike this book and don't think it's all that successful as a novel. Yet, I can't lie, there's a lot of ideas here that seem lovely in the abstract and gesture at some interesting things.

[dalesramblingsblog]

Still writing. Probably going to be doing it very slowly. But I'm doing it. The brainworm must be fed. Here's a review of Placebo Effect, generally quite happy with it.

The review.

The book is kinda abysmal, frankly.

[dalesramblingsblog]

You know, 2001: A Space Odyssey is one of the most visually stunning films of all time, and every time I watch it I really am filled with a sense of awe and wonder. It really expands the possibilities of what you can even conceive of doing with cinema as a medium.

anyway unrelated but here's what the dvd menu looks like

[dalesramblingsblog]

A Brief Look at Judge Dredd Novels, Part XVIII: Psykogeddon by Dave Stone

And so we end the full-length Judge Dredd novels in the same way we began, as Dave Stone returns for his first contribution to the series since 1995's Wetworks, bringing along one of his most enduring contributions to the mythos of 2000 AD in the form of Treasure Steel and even including a small appearance from her erstwhile curmudgeonly partner, Detective Judge Armitage.

For the most part, the effect this has is largely to throw into sharp relief just how conventional the past eight Black Flame novels have been in comparison to the nine Virgin books that came before. Stone is, after all, only the second author to make the jump between the two publishing companies, the other being the far more conventional David Bishop, who was very much the definition of an establishment writer owing to his stint as editor of both 2000 AD and the Judge Dredd Megazine, at least in comparison to oddballs like Stone, Stephen Marley and even John Grant.

Accordingly, the writers who *did* contribute to the Black Flame line were rather safe, dependable choices. We've already talked at length about James Swallow's status as a veritable powerhorse of the world of licensed science fiction tie-ins, and while Gordon Rennie certainly has some legitimate creative credentials that should not be downplayed, there simply exists an upper ceiling on how innovative one can be in their novelisation of a largely forgotten first person shooter game. Matt Smith, like Bishop before him, also falls into the category of being an editor first and foremost.

Simon Jowett and Peter J. Evans' Black Atlantic may remain the best Black Flame novel to date, but even then, it wasn't necessarily successful for its off-the-wall concepts as much as its solid exploration of a specific setting and characters. The one wild card, appropriately enough, is Andrew Cartmel with Swine Fever, but as we've already discussed, it's not as if that can realistically be counted among the highlights of his career, being weird in a way that was largely just muddled and chaotic rather than compelling or captivating.

What, then, of Psykogeddon? In truth, to call it the best Black Flame novel bar none would probably be unwarranted. It takes far too long to actually reveal the meat of its premise, with the bulk of the novel's middle section languishing in a protracted trial scene that doesn't quite manage to sustain enough of a satirical spark to justify its own length, and although Stone has seen fit to bring back Efil Drago San to provide some symmetry with Deathmasques, he seems far more interested in the character's appearances in the roughly concurrent Big Finish audio dramas.

This, naturally, has a rather dissonant effect for someone like me who's reviewed Deathmasques but has heard none of the audio dramas, and it consequently means that Drago San fails to ever entirely cohere into the kind of known quantity that one expects from a returning villain, which would almost be compelling if I thought it was intentional. Granted, it was probably a wholly sensible decision to make in 2006, with Deathmasques being nearly twelve and a half years old and out of print, while the Big Finish plays were a much more recent and accessible commodity, but in 2025 the situation has, rather ironically, pretty much been entirely reversed.

And yet for all that it would be inaccurate to call Psykogeddon the best Black Flame novel, the temptation is still present. More than any other book in the line to date, this feels unmistakably like a product of its author's very particular voice, which makes sense given how distinct Stone's voice has historically been.

(Indeed, at times it's almost *too* unmistakably a Dave Stone novel, especially when there are several passages that are noticeably lifted almost verbatim from some of his earlier novels. I spotted bits of Sky Pirates!, Burning Heart and Oblivion but I'm sure there are others I missed.)

And while Psykogeddon isn't completely successful 100% of the time, there are still enough moments where it does work to make it worthwhile. There are several points at which I audibly laughed, especially with Drago San and Dredd making quite a fun double act. It's also interesting to see Stone's typical thematic concerns about fungible reality and the malleability of our perceptions of the universe filtered through a post-9/11 world. To a certain extent, yes, this is just the same stuff he's been writing about for well over a decade now, but there's still an appreciably greater sense of urgency to these ideas in the age of the War on Terror and the modern surveillance state, where every event is often observed by countless CCTV cameras as if to create a myriad of little pocket realities.

If this isn't the best Black Flame novel, then, how does it actually stack up at the end of the day? Well, probably a little something like this...

The Ranking So Far:

Dreddlocked

Deathmasques

Black Atlantic

Wetworks

Psykogeddon

The Final Cut

Kingdom of the Blind

Bad Moon Rising

Silencer

Eclipse

Whiteout

The Medusa Seed

Dread Dominion

Dredd vs Death

Cursed Earth Asylum

The Hundredfold Problem

Swine Fever

The Savage Amusement

So even if the Black Flame novels didn't quite go out on a high, they certainly can't be said to have flubbed the landing. That is, frankly, perhaps the most appropriate way for the series to end.

(BTW although this is the last full-length Judge Dredd novel, do not fret, it's by no means the end of the series. We've still got the three Judge Anderson novels, for one, not to mention a bunch of novella collections to go over.)

[dalesramblingsblog]

As the latest season of Doctor Who comes to a close, we venture sideways into the realm of comics as the late lamented David A. McIntee provides us with the first and only Sixth Doctor/Frobisher novel, Mission: Impractical.

Like what I write? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi!

(Originally I had another whole big spiel here asking for donations and elaborating further on my situation, but as ever I had momentary second thoughts about it. But what the hell I'm putting it back here, you know the drill, I'm a chronically ill, unemployed trans lesbian, and frankly I've been really struggling to stay motivated lately. Part of it, I suspect, is just the general hell of dysphoria, but I've also just been generally demoralised by the state of fandoms' capacity for critical thinking and the way I'd argue that's reflected in our general political status quo. Anyway. I'm still doing better than a lot of people, and I know I'm likely to be on hiatus for a while - I might look at writing some Ko-fi exclusive pieces but then I always say that don't I, so no promises - but any support is always appreciated. If the past 139 reviews have been at all interesting or entertaining, and if you can spare it... yeah.)

[dalesramblingsblog]

Whoops this ended up breaking containment. Um... if you like overly lengthy, elaborate discussions of Doctor Who, check out the WordPress blog? There's a Ko-fi, too, if you really feel like it. I'm chronically ill and hoping to start HRT soon and this is currently the closest thing to my job, so... any little is appreciated.

IDK, is this kind of self-promo really done on this site? I always feel slightly cheap doing it but oh well.

IDK man, as someone who actually has quite enjoyed the Davies/Gatwa years to date, there's just something so fucking exhausting about the way people talk about it, and it's really flared up this season. The sheer level of contemptuous glee with which some people seem to welcome the possibility of cancellation is just really, truly getting me down. I'm not even talking about the people who are being tiresomely racist, because they're just an extension of the same people who have been being tiresomely sexist for nearly seven years now.

But just, like... I dunno, man, there's a level of vicious meanness to fandom's present discourse that's really been bad for my mental health all around, and has honestly played a big part in my slowing down my writing, because any time I want to write something earnest and heartfelt about how a given piece of media affected me I end up second-guessing myself because I feel like nobody wants to read anything like that. Instead they'd much rather just pounce on the latest rumour drummed up by vile publications like the Sun, where like... even if the cancellation goes through, do you really want to be on the side of the Sun?

I think the hatred of Wish World broke something in me, because I really liked it, I thought it was a surprisingly barbed little number that picked at nostalgia and conservatism. Plus, like a lot of RTD2 its earnest engagement with what it means to be queer genuinely means a lot to me as someone who started realising they were queer right as The Star Beast hit (and eventually ended up realising they were trans) and who has been grappling with a lot of fear and uncertainty as a result.

So, y'know, going online and just seeing everyone be all "Oh it sucks," "It's garbage," "RTD L," "Wow they really betrayed the character integrity of the Rani" (what the fuck are you even talking about with that one, what character integrity did the Rani ever have, for Christ's sake?). My point is never that one should just be a blind, mindless consumer. Far from it. If anything, I would rather people actually pause to think "Hmm maybe this piece of media is trying to say something." And I mean I get if it doesn't resonate with you. I get if you think it's crashingly unsubtle, or if there are aspects of its commentary that you find lacking. I've had some criticisms of the Gatwa Era as well, and I can acknowledge them.

But on the whole, I've had a great time, and I dunno, it just... makes me feel like shit to see so many people so violently disagreeing and dismissing any possibility that any of these stories could have any kind of resonance with people.

[dalesramblingsblog]

IDK man, as someone who actually has quite enjoyed the Davies/Gatwa years to date, there's just something so fucking exhausting about the way people talk about it, and it's really flared up this season. The sheer level of contemptuous glee with which some people seem to welcome the possibility of cancellation is just really, truly getting me down. I'm not even talking about the people who are being tiresomely racist, because they're just an extension of the same people who have been being tiresomely sexist for nearly seven years now.

But just, like... I dunno, man, there's a level of vicious meanness to fandom's present discourse that's really been bad for my mental health all around, and has honestly played a big part in my slowing down my writing, because any time I want to write something earnest and heartfelt about how a given piece of media affected me I end up second-guessing myself because I feel like nobody wants to read anything like that. Instead they'd much rather just pounce on the latest rumour drummed up by vile publications like the Sun, where like... even if the cancellation goes through, do you really want to be on the side of the Sun?

I think the hatred of Wish World broke something in me, because I really liked it, I thought it was a surprisingly barbed little number that picked at nostalgia and conservatism. Plus, like a lot of RTD2 its earnest engagement with what it means to be queer genuinely means a lot to me as someone who started realising they were queer right as The Star Beast hit (and eventually ended up realising they were trans) and who has been grappling with a lot of fear and uncertainty as a result.

So, y'know, going online and just seeing everyone be all "Oh it sucks," "It's garbage," "RTD L," "Wow they really betrayed the character integrity of the Rani" (what the fuck are you even talking about with that one, what character integrity did the Rani ever have, for Christ's sake?). My point is never that one should just be a blind, mindless consumer. Far from it. If anything, I would rather people actually pause to think "Hmm maybe this piece of media is trying to say something." And I mean I get if it doesn't resonate with you. I get if you think it's crashingly unsubtle, or if there are aspects of its commentary that you find lacking. I've had some criticisms of the Gatwa Era as well, and I can acknowledge them.

But on the whole, I've had a great time, and I dunno, it just... makes me feel like shit to see so many people so violently disagreeing and dismissing any possibility that any of these stories could have any kind of resonance with people.

[dalesramblingsblog]

Rejoice, EDA fans! I'm actually saying something nice for once. Join me for Seeing I as we discuss fanfic, shipping, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and how it all ties back to what is unquestionably the best Eighth Doctor novel of 1998 so far.

Somehow I don't see it getting dethroned any time soon.

Like what I write? Consider supporting me on Ko-fi!

[dalesramblingsblog]

OK I've been dying from RSV for the past seven days but my throat has recovered enough for me to do a verbal read-through of my Mission: Impractical review, so it's now up for early access on the Ko-fi. As ever, if you can, please donate, I'm sick as fuck at the moment so even one donation would honestly make my day, but if not, fair enough, I recognise there are more important things to spend money on.

Thank God I just barely managed to finish this block of reviews so I can publish it in conjunction with Series 16.