Ignore the typo in the title please :)

For those who are into Dr. Who but have only seen the new seasons (i.e. Christopher Eccleston and later) there is a smattering of old school Who.

The package Classic Dr. Who contains four story arcs (old Who had half hour episodes organized into 4-6 episode, occasionally longer or shorter, serials).

The Three Doctors is a Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) story that has him joining forces with the previous two regenerations (William Hartnell and Patrick Troughton) against Rassilon's former partner (ie. another renegade Time Lord). Significant in The Doctor's overall story arc as it marks the end of his exile on Earth.

The rest are classic Fourth Doctor arcs:

Ark in Space - The Doctor and Sarah Jane (and, I think, Harry Sullivan) visit a far future space station containing the last remnants of humanity to find it under assault from wasp-like aliens.

The Pyramids of Mars - The Doctor, with Sarah again, arrives in the 1920s at the property that later houses UNIT headquarters and confronts a powerful alien with connections to ancient Egypt

The City of Death - a rather bizarre story about the Mona Lisa set in Paris with connections to other places/times (esp. Renaissance Florence) and marking the only one of Douglas Adams' Dr. Who scripts that was actually produced (he was story editor on the series at the time). Companion is the second regeneration of Romana, the lady Time Lord (no, they are not called TIme Ladies) who accompanied Baker's Doctor for two or three seasons, regenerating part way through.

A few more are available as standalones, including Tomb of the Cybermen (the second appearance by the cybers and a damn good Patrick Troughton story that really illustrates how they were quite possibly the inspiration for Star Trek's Borg), Robots of Death (The Doctor and Leela caught up in a robot rebellion), as well as Pyramids.

Mendalla

Thanks Mendalla.  We've downloaded some of the very originals in the past.  Doctor Who keeps showing up for me, but I haven't actually watched any from Netflix yet.

Oh, and speaking of Douglas Adams, another not bad view that got added earlier this year is The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy movie. I wish they would get the old TV show as well, which is a better adaptation of the story. Overall, the movie is my least favorite incarnation of Hitchhiker (which has been, over the years, a radio drama, a series of 5 novels, a TV series, and an early text-based computer game) but still manages to hit some of Adams' high points (Adams died after turning in his draft of the script so was not involved in the final product). I'd say you should hit the novels first unless you can somehow get your hands on the TV show, but the movie is still a fairly entertaining couple hours. Martin Freeman (Bilbo in The Hobbit and Watson on Sherlock) plays the hapless protagonist Arthur Dent very well.

And, speaking of Martin Freeman, Netflix has the first two seasons of Sherlock and should be getting the third before too long now that it has finished its run on PBS. Sherlock Holmes updated to the Internet age with engaging portrayals of Holmes and Watson by Benedict Cumberbatch and Freeman.

Mendalla

Hi Mendalla,

It is better by far.  Though the yarn doll Dent vomiting was absolutely pricesless and when normalcy was restored and Freemen is holding a waste basket up to his mouth and there is that yarn hanging from his mouth.  I almost peed myself.  That was brilliant.

I liked the movie version of Marvin much more than the television one.

The best parts of both are the actual entries from the guide.

I saw an episode for the first time the other evening and found it very engaging.  I liked the devices where the frame freezes on a character and we see Holmes analyzing everthing from the number of dogs the character owns to their breed and sizes.

One seen has Holmes provoking Watson to hit him which of course Watson finds absurd and refuses to do.

Until Holmes hits him.

Then Watson goes ape.  The two of them are struggling with Holmes telling the enraged Watson that it is good enough, meaning you can stop now.  And a livid Watson growling, "I was in the army, I'll kill you."

I had tears in my eyes when Holmes corrrects him and says "You were a doctor in the army."  To which Watson fires back, "I had bad days!"

That exchange still makes me laugh just thinking about it.  They two make a great pair.

Grace and peace to you.

John

I keep thinking Murdoch Mysteries is Sherlock Holmes.  I don't seek out either, although I've caught MM a few times just because I was busy and it came on after something else.  I don't think I've ever caught an episode of Sherlock, although I've seen other versions years ago - movies I think?  I'll have to give at least an episode a try/  I doubt I would dislike it, I just think there are other shows I would prefer to watch.

One interesting feature of Sherlock is the handling of Watson. In the original stories, he is also an army doctor, invalided out after being wounded in ... yep ... Afghanistan. So, they just took that backstory into the modern version. Different Afghan war, same outcome for poor old Watson. Except they also gave him a nasty case of PTSD (which was not really an issue in the original) which working with Holmes does seem to be helping alleviate somewhat.

And another recommendation: they just got the entire run of Star Wars: Clone Wars, the TV series that chronicles the events between Episodes II and III of Star Wars. This includes the unbroadcast final season episodes (which were in the can when Disney took over Lucasfilm but Disney decided to cancel it and start up a new series set a couple years prior to Episode IV). I've seen the show sporadically over its run but plan to watch it through now that it is readily available to me. It is what I wanted the prequels to be - the story of Obi Wan, Anakin, and various other Jedi and Senate characters during the Clone Wars, and is far better written and acted than the sorry excuses for films that are the Star Wars prequels.

Mendalla

I've never seen the British version of Sherlock Holmes, but I really like the American version called "Elementary" with Lucy Liu as Dr. Watson.

I've actually enjoyed The Walking Dead on Netflix. Never been much into the whole zombie scene, but it's a good show. Interesting characters, interesting character development. Waiting for season 4 to show up. Have also been watching Lost recently. Never watched it when it was on TV, but another solid, character-driven show.

Whereas I have not seen Elementary yet. Not on Netflix yet, either, dang it. Network shows tend to end up on Hulu and we can't get that in Canada (well, unless, and you didn't hear it from me, you use a US proxy ).

Mendalla

We're about to cut the cord here, so we just got a Netflix account a month ago. Claire hardly watches anything else any more. Our Blu-ray player doubles as a Netflix player, so it works well.

Rogers is going to be so disappointed.

We signed up for Netflix because of the first free month.  We thought for sure that we would see all that we wanted to and then cancel it before we had to start paying...  No such luck!

Mostly we're watching kids shows (Transformers: Prime, Scooby Do: Mystery Inc.), but some movies too.  I watched a nice documentary about a youth dance competition that I would never have otherwise seen.

I'm going to be looking into indoor attic antennas for OTA television. If people want, I could pass along what I learn, but there is lots of info online.

I figure with what we save over 3 months of no cable and no Rogers telephone and cheaper but better Internet, we could install a pretty decent OTA + Netflix alternative. It's really only the sports channels we'd be missing, and there are potential alternatives to that as well. Cable companies just try to suck as much out of you as they can. I'm tired of the game of calling them for discounts, to bring my bill under $400. I'm stuck with their cell phones for a while, but that's only $120 of my bill. I should be able to have Teksavvy phone and Internet, plus Netflix, plus cell phones, for just over half of what I'm paying now.

My wife's cousin in Richmond Hill (he's in a new area over near 404) has OTA + a set top box for downloaded and streamed stuff. He gets pretty much everything he needs that way (major US and Canadian networks via OTA, other stuff with the box).

Mendalla

I like the Walking Dead, I caught a few marathons as I didn't start right at the beginning, and just caught it when it's on.  I've missed a few again.  Not sure if I'll catch another marathon or what.

What's OTA?  I'm reading over the air, but it's not super meaningful.

I'm paying less than $100/month with Shaw for internet, cable and phone (I still use my landline often).  I don't mind paying my current rate, but once I'm off a discounted one I doublt I'll stick with what I currently have for cable.

Over The Air. Your major stations still broadcast, and you can use antennas to pick up digital signals if you're close enough to the transmitters. Plus, the signal isn't compressed, so it's usually better quality than cable. But that only works for your major networks, like CBC, CTV, Global, and if you're near the border, NBC, CBS and ABC. Not sure about Fox.

Ninja'd by Chansen. What he said.

And I can't remember if my wife's cousin gets Fox, though if the old channel 29 in Buffalo (a former indie that joined Fox early in the game) broadcasts, then maybe.

Mendalla

I really doubt I would get anything from the US, too far north.  I don't know how much cable charges for just the local channels, I don't know if money wise it would be worth it, especially since there are probably still a few other channels we would want.  I'll have to price it out when it comes time to get on to something new.

I use National Capital Freenet and for under 40 dollars I get unlimited internet for which I use for my home phone (freephoneline.ca and Google Voice   using a gigaset A580 handset (one time cost of 85$) attached to my router

. For TV I use a TV attached to an old  computer running XBMC with video addons.   I watch little tv but love the BBC, CBC and ITV CITY streamed through Firefox. I do miss most live events, howver both CBC and BBC live stream many events.

I tried OTA but I live in an appartment building on the ground floor and facing away from the local signals,

Wjat I saved allowed me to get a cell service this Christmas  using an unlocked prepaid  Nexus 5 and a prepaid service from Moblicity  with has unlimited calls and unlimited data for under 32 a month.  It can also run my voip service and XBMC. AS well as apps for most TV sevices. So when I am outside the very limited service area I can use my voip serices to recieve and place calls when attached to wifi.

I use to have Netflix for a few months but did not watch it enough to justify the cost. But my favorite shows were Sherlock, and several sci fi programs for the UK. Plus anything with Julie Andrews, Bette Davis, or Robin Williams in it. I really liked that  the Netflix allows you to search by stars.

Kings also used to be on Netflix. I am not sure if it is still there but it is a great adaption of story of King David and Saul

Glad to hear NCFnet is still in business, Alex. I remember hearing about them when I was working on the Hamilton-Wentworth Community Network, a comparable service in Hamilton, back in the nineties. Of course, at that time, it was still mostly a dialup BBS with text based email and Internet. We were just starting to offer a true dialup PPP Internet service when I left in '99 (due to moving to London). Must check up on HWCN someday to see if it is still alive.

Mendalla

http://www.ncf.ca/

NCF is Ottawa's not-for-profit alternative to commercial internet providers. It is owned by the members, and you can become a member for free.

Its also a popular email provider for those concerned about privacy, because uinlike Bell and Rogers, it's mail servers are not based in the US.  If you already have a phone line, and do not need a dry loop, as I do the 7 mg/s DSL service cost $30.95. You can get faster service. 25mb/s cost 39, and 50mb/s cost 49$. Howver I see no need to have anything faster than 7mb/s as that allows me to stream video.   

The unlimited service is actually 300GiB a month for use between noon and 2 am. Mornings (2am to Noon) do not count.  I have never come close to the limit.

Here is a list of Freenets in Canada and around the world. . Not all provide DSL, some just have free dialup, and some no longer provide disal up. But most will provide free internet services like web hosting, email etc, for churches and other groups.

http://www.lights.ca/freenet/#ca

Yeah, I think only heavy downloaders would need unlimited. I'm on a 300GB cap as well (with a small commercial provider rather than a non-profit) and don't even come close. That's with Netflix, Youtube (my son watches a lot of stuff on it), online gaming, surfing, email and a bit of downloading.

Mendalla

I have one from Chemguy, but I've really enjoyed it too: Psych.  A guy with great observational skills passes himself off as a psychic to a police department and helps them solve crimes.  It's silly and quite a bit of fun.

Currently have Bell Expressview - sometimes I wonder why we still have it.  As many younger families opt out of cable/satelite tv I would miss live news on my 55 inch screen.  I know I can watch the news online.

Neftflix - TV shows:  Dr. Who, StarTrek, Sherlock; House of Cards, Breaking Bad, Dexter, Tourchwood - just to name a few. 

Our flat screens have either an Apple TV hooked up to them or Netflix is one of the programs that is packaged with the TV.

We tend to rent movies from iTunes rather than the Bell.

Our next door neighbour, who has two kids, does not have any other television other than online programs....They use http://www.couchtuner.eu/tv-streaming/ for their TV stuff.

We use an American account for Netlfix and iTunes - so much more availalbe.

Watching "Wagner and Me", a documentary by British actor/comedian/author Stephen Fry. Like me, Fry is a fan of the drama and music of German composer Richard Wagner but wrestles with both Wagner's own anti-Semitism (which, to be honest, is a bit overstated) and association with Nazism (which, to be honest, more certainly is not overstated). If fact, Fry wrestles with it even more than I do: he's a Jew whose family lost relatives in the Holocaust. He explores Wagner's music and drama (Wagner believed he was evolving opera into "music drama" where the music and drama were really inseparable) but also takes time to look at the anti-Semitism and Nazi association. Not finished yet (it's 90 min and I watch TV during 45 min exercise sessions) so I'll be interested to see Fry's conclusions.

One thing about Fry as a documentarian is that he does not do neutral, journalistic documentary here. This is very much about him and his experience of the music. Watching him gush about being invited backstage at the Bayreuth Festival (an annual festival of Wagner opera started by Wagner himself and still run by members of the family) or revel in hearing a passage from Wagner's opera Tristan and Isolde played on Wagner's own piano in the parlour of Wagner's final residence (a grand mansion called Wahnfried), you get a real sense of how this music affects him (and, well, me).

EDIT: Definitely worth a watch if you like Wagner. While Fry does tend to gush and carry on like a "fan boy" at times, he also does justice to "the problem of Wagner", that is, the Nazi associations. He definitely ends up as a bit of a Wagner apologist but I can hardly criticize him for that, given that I am one, too.

Mendalla

Fans of Cosmos who have Netflix might enjoy The Inexplicable Universe. It's a six-part lecture series from The Teaching Company by Neil Degrasse Tyson looking at how our understanding of the universe evolves as we look at the things that are "inexplicable" in current theories. First episode, which looked at some cases of "inexplicable" issues in science from the past and how they were solved was pretty good. The production values are a bit higher than most Teaching Company videos and Tyson does a good job of telling the stories and getting the ideas across.

Mendalla

no wonder you have no room for rpgs anymore...

(tho you'd be saving money if you taught your family how to play..just imagine, after months of fine crafting of the adventure and the dwaggin at the end, your son puts it all into a tailspin when he wants to hug the dwaggin...)

Heh, heh. My son would totally slaughter that dragon. Alas, he's not even into online RPGs, let alone pen and paper. Multiplayer Online Battle Arenas, specifically League of Legends, are his thing. Borrow some concepts from RPGs but more tactical that roleplaying.

Mendalla

Netflix latest acquisition isn't going to appeal to everyone here but I enjoyed the first episode. It's From Dusk Till Dawn, an "expansion" of the 1996 movie written by Quentin Tarantino and directed by Robert Rodriques. The basic plot for both is that two criminal brothers on the run, schemer Seth and sociopath Richie Gecko, take a minister's family hostage and flee to a strip bar in Mexico which turns out to have a rather dark secret - a nest of weird, Aztec-inspired vampires. Once this is revealed, it turns into all-out survival action-horror as the Geckos and their hostages team up with other bar patrons to take on the vampires.

The TV series is produced by Rodrigues who also wrote and directed the pilot. While he's not quite in the same league as a writer as his buddy Tarantino, he still did a bang-up job. There are some new elements that he has added as part of stretching it out to a series. There's a Latino Texas Ranger out for revenge after the brothers murder his partner/father figure. Richie, who was basically just a violent nut in the original, seems to have a psychic element to him that is part of why he is as crazy as he is and that may connect him on some mystical level to what is coming (i.e. the vampires). And the foreshadowing is laid on pretty thick compared to the original which just kind of switched gears from Tarantino crime movie to horror partway through.

Now, given the origins of this, you might expect there is violence and, yes, there is. Not as much as I expected but there are two rather gory gunshot deaths just in the pilot so be prepared.

I plan to watch through the rest as they come out (6 are up on Netflix now) but I'd say it is not for everyone. If you like Tarantino or Rodrigues' adult-oriented movies (this is not for the Spy Kids crowd), then it might appeal to you. If you like your bloodletting a bit more subtle or don't like it at all, then skip it.

Rodrigues is running each episode first on El Rey, a Mexican-American cable channel he owns, then Netflix gets it so rather than getting the whole season at once, as happened with other Netflix produced shows, you're getting them one at a time, rather like more conventional television.

Mendalla

When I couldn't sleep one night I watched The Final Cut.  I don't remember hearing about it before.  I really enjoyed it, but didn't make it to the end that night.  I didn't enjoy the ending, dunno if it would have been better if I watched it all at once.

Just getting into Orange is the New Black. Very entertaining. Very addictive. Been binge watching it at night after the daughter goes to sleep, obviously.