Ghost Adventures "Horror in Biggs"

                                                     
Another demonic-centric episode and although they were specifically asked to help here which is good for the family concerned, much prefer the episodes where there is not so much demon-orientation and darkness involved.  This show has really veered off into that direction and though it is common knowledge demons exist and are various explanations for this, religious and otherwise.  There are still no answers or getting closer on the afterlife and death.  These are not the kind of next logical progression in investigations since all that's happening is just repetition on what's gone before.  There needs to be some sort of line drawn for how many episodes can be about demons and how many are about other paranormal phenomena, such as spirits etc.

This one centred on Torrie in Biggs, California and how he was being constantly attacked by a demon, they referred to as 'he.'  There wasn't any explanation, research on how these attacks began, came to be.  Was it the land, the area, was he generally targeted as he was being affected and not his wife, Gloria.  She didn't experience anything and wasn't sure to believe him until her husband recorded the encounter on the phone and she heard noises relating to sexual activity.  Also not explained or investigated was how their neighbour was affected also and how she was driven to run from her house, only to be killed.  Torrie's words were significant when it came to this sad death when he said of himself, "the closer I come to death I believe..."  To think she probably felt this was her one chance to escape the demon and live, it took that away from her by taking her life.

Zak preferred to explore the area and left Aaron and Billy to investigate in Torrie's house and then high-tailed it outta there after they found that tall figure and the light that accompanied it.  It wasn't debunked as being a human lighting up, or anything like that.  They were experiencing camera/equipment problems so it's difficult to say conclusively what it was or wasn't.  No exploration of the history of the property, area etc as said.

The stairs where Susanne found her brother, did anyone have a flashback, deja vu, to the Demon House stairs, or was it just my mind that went there for some reason.  Since it looked like a generally creepy staircase.  All in all that town did look creepy though and didn't see many people around even when they were driving through to where the canal was during the day.

All they did was effectively confirm Torrie's experiences and that he was being affected by something demonic.  When they were getting the readings on his leg, did anyone check his back when he was having a feeling there?  No voices came through aside from the growling and I'm sure something was said on the blue tooth (see below.)  At least Torrie was rid of his demon by the Bishop's exorcism and hopefully it was the end of this nightmarish ordeal for him.  Though it was only Jay who returned to film this, what was Zak doing and why didn't he come back?  Leading Jay to have nightmares after this.

Also the figure seen, did it really look like a shadow/black figure or was it again something/someone human??  The figure on the SLS looked as if it was touching Torrie's foot/leg and really attacking, beating down on him.  When Aaron and Billy use the blue tooth device and Billy's phone for Torrie to ask questions, at around 33.01 it's not a growl but the voice says something along the lines of "you're askin' me" when they tell Torrie to ask its name.  It definitely isn't a growl.  Zak feels a sharp pain go through him which Aaron confirms he felt as well like a spear or arrow go through his head.

How many times did Zak say "situation."

RE my mention of Demon House and those stairs, seems synchronicity was on the cards again - or was it??

@Zak_Bagans

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Feb 29 on Twitter:

"While the network is still investigating how and why this happened to THIS particular episode I couldn’t help but compare these two cases especially when the “Horror in Biggs” felt like the Demon House investigation when I was there and have compared the two in recent interviews."

So I typed and posted this before I saw his tweets, you know being blocked 'n' all! HA!

Doctor Who 12.9 "Ascension of the Cybermen" Review

                                                     
The last remnants of humanity, humans fighting against the onslaught of the Cybermen and the Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) arrives hoping her new fangled gadgets are a hope to stop the destruction.  However they prove no match for the Cyber Drones, yes drones, did that not reach the TARDIS memo.  Anyhoo also wondering why the TARDIS is parked several eons away when they reach somewhere rather than within close proximity, yes that'll be too easy and well, even if eons is an exaggeration.  As the force fields, particle accelerator are destroyed, the Doctor tells Graham (radley Walsh) Ryan (Tosin Cole) and Yaz (Mandip Gill) to go with the others on their ship.  They being Ravio (Julie Graham) Feekat (Steve Toussaint) Yedlarmi (Alex Austin) Bescot (Rhiannon Clements) but they forget about Ethan (Mark Carver) as Ryan also gets separated from the others.  Cos now was not a good time to shout out to move it.  Especially with the Cyberman nearby.

This penultimate episode also tells the story of the lone Cyberman, how he was possibly an abandoned baby, was adopted by a couple and then wanted to join the police force, Garda, whereby he confronts a criminal, is shot and goes over the cliff, only to get up without a scratch.  Being hailed as a hero and then finally retirement sets in, where he's taken to the back of the station and given electrical shock, or so it seems.  This was Brendan (Even McCabe). That's why he enjoyed inflicting pain on the Cyberman when he was reviving him for glorious ascension.  Okay, okay I've said that Brendan was the Cyberman and he may not be, he could just as easily be Ko Shamus (Ian McElhinney) but it seems more likely he is Ashad (Patrick O'Kane) as he inflicts the same degree of pain as was inflicted on him.  So kinda sticking my neck out here but it's got to be said.  On the other side of the coin he could be the Timeless Child - a Time Lord...

As Graham and Yaz find themselves stranded in space, they come across the battle in space where the Cybermen were defeated and need to land on their ship so that they can survive instead of a slow death in space.  This happens to be the Cybermen troop carrier carrying thousands of Cybermen in statis, obviously it had to be otherwise it wouldn't be stuck there.  As they explore the ship they plan on taking it to Ko Shamus and the 'Boundary.'  This is where the Doctor arrives after saving Ethan, stumbling across Ryan and commandeering a Cyberman ship, that Ethan can start.  The Doctor adding a snippet of how she used to do this as a teen, well, all the time really.  No mention of Gallifrey by her but it was only a matter of time.

Ko Shamus isn't a planet but a lone man, a guardian waiting for other humans to come so they can leave the destruction behind as they risk stepping through the Boundary, which is actually a wormhole.  Yaz manages to contact the Doctor just as the army of Cybermen have taken over the ship and broken down the door...

So much for the Doctor finding the Master (Sacha Dhawan) as he's the one who comes to her, as the boundary changes and Gallifrey emerges, as does he.  Is he here to hinder or help and hopefully we'll get some time honoured questions answered.  But yeah Doc you should've taken Jack's advice and not given the lone Cyberman what he wanted.  It was the way the Doctor confronted Ashad on his ship and saying he is battling with his human side and displaying emotions such as anger, emotions which Cyberman don't have and he calls her bluff in a way and tells her she's right.

The Cyber wars were a part of history that was meant to be, written in that way; rather than being her fault for handing over the Cyberium.  Also strange how these Cyberman have the mentality of shooting to kill which is what I noticed, instead of gathering humans for conversion.  I don't know if it as a result and in opposition to what the Doctor was warning her companions against; that if they're caught they will be converted, since the Cybermen, Ashad in particular, has no interest in doing this.  So presumably he thinks the endless stock of reserve dormant Cybermen are enough to carry on his quest for glory.  Or does he have something else under his half-converted Cyberman face.  The Cybermen head drones were a good touch and suitably menacing.  As was the emergence of Gallifrey as being the Boundary, humans travelled here, but how were they saved and why does Gallifrey appear now...hopefully as said, we will get some answers and not leave us with more questions to ponder.  Also what of the 'other' Doctor??

Doctor Who 12.8 "The Haunting of Villa Diodati"

                                             
This episode of Doctor Who was one of the best thus far this series, yeah don't agree with me, aside from the fact there was some 'borrowing' from other films and the like.  The skeleton hand was reminiscent of The Beast With Five Fingers (1946) where the severed hand of a pianist returned to cause havoc.  As well as the rooms folding in on themselves and ending up in the same place going round in circles, reminded me of the Winchester Mystery House, not the movie, but the actual house.

Anyhoo as Byron (Jacob Collins-Levy) plans to read a horror story to the gathered company at Shelley's house at Lake Geneva, June 19816, there happens to be a knock at the door, revealing none other than the Doctor (Jodie Whittaker) et al.

Aside from the fact Byron was a complete coward and the Doctor made reference to Ada, his daughter, as we knew her from before.  The revelation that Shelly had anything to do with the lone Cyberman wasn't much of a revelation.  As for ghosts being real or not real, I would've thought that after having encounters with Charles Dickens, much of this wouldn't' be a mystery for the Doctor after her comment of ghosts not being real.  Okay she didn't actually come across any per se, but surely his works said otherwise.  

Elise leaves the baby in the nursery unattended and by the window when there's a storm outside, yeah that was clever and finds a vase crashes against the wall, along with several ghostly appearances.  As the skeletal hand comes out of the painting and goes on a murderous rampage.  Well only murderous when it hurls itself at Ryan's (Tosin Cole) neck and especially when he's challenged to a duel by Dr John Polidori (Maxim Baldry).  Saved by the hand! Well Graham (Bradley Walsh) wasn't going to be his second but only cos there wasn't going to be any duel.

Well the Doctor too, as she Sonic's the hand away and the valet, Fletcher hits it to the ground with the tray where it becomes dust.  Which the Doctor then proceeds to taste and concludes it's nothing more than a human hand.  Byron admitting he has a skeleton in his room, was going to say in his closet, well... He's collected artifacts from wars and the Doctor takes a fancy to a helmet which she's going to come back for.  The skull and two hands are missing from the case.

Yaz (Mandip Gill) has a conversation with Claire (Nadia Parkes) who was breaking into his room to see if Byron had any letters that may show his feelings towards her.  As Yaz sees a ghostly apparition for an instance.  Though she sat next to the painting on the floor but doesn't notice the hole in it.  As Graham couldn't find the little boy's room, he sure did hold it for the entire ep, ha.  He also goes round in circles and ends up where  he started.  Missing being watched by another apparition.  Yaz is irritating me from way back as she really tries to be so clever and the way she confronted Claire at the door, I mean it's not your house is it and she's not even a guest here, more an interloper!  The Doctor surmizing there's something inherently evil at work here in the house.  

As Mary (Lili Miller) mentions Shelley (Lewis Rainer) seeing a spectral image at the lake and as they rush to the window they see this again.  As Elise sees this too but she doesn't do anything about the baby until she hides with William, but then she doesn't stop him from crying, thus there wasn't any point in hiding.  Graham is charged with looking after Polidori, his "you only had one job" comment from the Doctor when he goes sleepwalking and walks through walls after Graham loses him.  A clue for her to tell them to close their eyes and they find the door leading them out to the rest of the house.  Then there was Graham seeing a woman and girl ghost and his sandwiches, but it doesn't click that they may not be real as they don't acknowledge him.  

They see the spectral image again and the Doctor realizes it's a traveller in time trying to get through.  He gets through into the house and it's a Cyberman. The Doctor coming across them before, obviously and she goes after him alone as he is searchign for something, "the guardian."  She doesn't want the others to follow since she doesn't want to see them losing their free will and humanity and becoming mindless AI hellbent on war.  The Cyberman getting Fletcher and Elise but taking William.  Whom the Doctor finds covered on teh floor later on.  So why did the Cyberman cover him if later on he tells them he didn't kill William since he was a worthless baby.  His intention was he'd eventually suffocate or die of neglect and hunger when he killed everyone.   Yaz then comes up with the idea that the Doctor technically said not to follow her so they split up and search the house.  Graham, Claire and Polidori coming across Shelley in the basement.

He has been channelling the Cyberman and he is the guardian which explained all the symbols and writings on the walls of his room.  The Cyberman's name is Ashad and he answers Mary's questions more so than he did the Doctor's but then revealing his true nature.  That like Frankenstein's monster, he wasn't kind or even remotely human, devoid of all feelings.  Harnessing his power from the storm, the energy making him stronger, just as Frankenstein's monster was created during a storm.  He is actually after the Cyberium (and not one where fish reside either). This one's able to teleport and at first as the Doctor feigns Shelley's death to release it, the Cyberium comes to her and she can feel it inside of her.  Taunting Ashad by saying it came to her and not him.  Prompting Ashad to reveal his ship in the clouds and destroying the planet.  Leaving the Doctor with no choice but to return it. 

The Doctor now having to chase it so that the future isn't destroyed, wasn't exactly her leashing of it onto the world.  It was Ashad who arrived here as a traveller, though how did Shelley end up with the Cyberium, aside from his walk by the lake.  It appears to have entered his body just as it did the Doctor. 

This famous get together on a dark, dank, stormy night of course was the inspiration for Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and here the allusion was to her meeting the lone. almost Cyberman and appealing to what maybe left of its humanity.  Obviously he doesn't have any and no soul either, no matter how hard she tried to reconcile it to its own humanity.  As well as the Doctor getting her own exposition on sacrifice again and taking life unnecessarily, I mean how many times has she said how dangerous it is to change even a tiny snippet of history and the lasting implications for humans and the future.  Yet she still has to say it here.  By now they should know she's not one for killing so when they chance upon killing Shelley as a solution, they don't think of the bigger picture.  She has never advocated killing for the sake of it, or per se. 

Doctor Who 12.7 "Can You Hear Me" Review

                                            
Our story begins in Aleppo, Syria 1380 when a girl, Tahira (Aruhan Galieva) asks to come into the asylum.  Here her fears are unleashed as a hairy monster with sharp claws takes away her friend, Maryam (Sirine Saba) and everyone else at the place.  The Doctor (Jodi Whittaker) drops back Yaz (Mandip Gill) at home for the anniversary she's here to celebrate with her sister, Sonya (Bhavnisha Parmar).  She can cook now and that comes as a shock to Yaz.  But we're not told what the anniversary is for, except it appears to be a painful time for them.

So Yaz it appears was empowered in this episode when Sonya says she always runs away so she's no help.  Apparently this probably emboldens her for what's to come over the next few weeks.  Well only 3 eps left.  Ryan (Tosin Cole) turns up at his friend, Tibo's (Buom Tihngang) place who is scared as he's uses all his locks on the door and doesn't want to let Ryan in, but he had chips! Reluctantly he does and Ryan gets to the bottom of this asking what's wrong with him.  He is hesitant in telling him since he doesn't want to be laughed at.  He tells Ryan about the strange man in his dreams but he's really in his flat.  Ryan stays over and he sees the man place his disembodied fingers in Tibo's ear.    Cue complaints about encouraging the hacking of fingers for the impressionable viewers.  He then vanishes with Tibo when Ryan confronts him.

Graham (Bradley Walsh) is in a card game with his friends who tells them he's feeling better now whilst being on a cruise.  He gets a vision in his head of a girl asking for help on some sort of a planet.  Yaz dreams of being in the open road with Sonya and a police woman behind her.  Then the man appears in her flat too.  The Doctor also sees the man in the TARDIS and she finds there's a clue leading to Aleppo which she decides to visit alone of course.  She finds Tahira and the creature appears again.  Of course that was her own manifestation of her fears. The Doctor doesn't get any reading on the Sonic as the creature doesn't exist.  She does find a hair on the wall which she analyzes but still gets nothing, even though the hair is real.

The others tell her what happened and she pinpoints the planets Graham mentioned after plugging him into the TARDIS telepathic device, which is painful.  They come in space where she sees two planets heading for a collision course and spots something in between them.  It's the woman Graham saw asking for help and the Doctor tries to reverse the lock holding her prisoner.  As the others vanish looking for Tahira, the man appears again and releases his fingers to capture them. Tying them up.

He then confronts the Doctor and we get the usual exposition about how humans are pathetic whereas she defends them.  He is an immortal, Zellin (Ian Gelder) and he's playing with the humans as fun to last through eternity.  He tells the Doctor he knew she would come and also help rescue the other deity friend of his.  The people of the planet locked her up in the hopes of destroying at least one of them, setting their planets on a collision course, after the gods messed with them over the years, causing fighting and wars.  The companions each have dreams where Graham is told by Grace that his cancer has returned and he only has hours to live.  Grace asking why he didn't save her.  Ryan's is more about Earth burning in fire in the future and Tibo asking where he was.  Yaz is more of the same of running away and is spoken to by the policewoman, Anita Patel (Nasreen Hussain) who convinces her to go home and places a bet that she will be okay and to look her up in three years.  The Doctor is confronted by the Timeless Child, heading ever forward to this story.

Zellin mention the Celestial Toymaker and the Black Guardian and is overjoyed the Doctor fell for his cunning plan to rescue Rakaya (Claire-Hope Ashitay).  The mysterious creatures, Chagaskas (seems like we needed a little chug of something here) as to the dire nature of this plot.  As it was Tahira's creation to begin with why even have the Doctor travel there to begin with to get her.  Tahira did much of nothing, except the Chagaskas being used to catch Zellin and Rakaya into the orb again and lock them away.  Their dreams aren't so fearful or scary either.  Just more fuel to see what the Doctor now sees in the child. 

The Doctor is caught and the pair go to Earth to torment the people there and Rayaka wants to take it slow as they have billions of years.  Oh yeah well the rate at the which the planet is being consumed is anything to go by, infact does she have billions of years.  Anyhow, the Doctor wriggles her hips, well kinda, to get the Sonic out of her pocket and catch it so she can undo her ties, releasing the others.  Using the orb and the Chagaskas, Tahira can get the two into the orb, fearing for their lives, but they're immortal what harm could it do them.

Graham tries to tell his real fears to the Doctor who isn't very sociable and replies she'll come up with something reassuring about two minutes later.  However there must be some cure out there if Graham ever needs it.  Ryan helps Tibo get help as he's not one for talking in group counselling.  As Yaz visits Anita to give her the 50p in the bet.  She remembers Yaz of course.  Ryan wonders how long they can keep doing this as they're older and people are moving on without them.  Even if, as Yaz says, the Doctor can put them back at any time, he says they're changing and everyone else isn't.  The Doctor breaks up their desperate talk to tell them "Frankenstein" and they'll need a change of clothes.

Seems like just a filler ep which really didn't add much to the scheme of things this series.  Their fears weren't that drastic or scary, except maybe graham, but he still fears not being bale ot help Grace, would've thought that was more guilt than anything else.

Doctor Who 12.6 "Praxeus" Review

                                              
Another topical ep of the show where certain people will have their knicks in a knot over it and claiming it's not the same as it used to be.  Add to that the number of times plastic was used and how humans were to blame and well you get the picture.  Some mention this ep being a timely inclusion due to the Coronavirus.  The action starts right off as the companions are dropped into three different countries, Ryan (Tosin Cole) in Peru where he comes across the element of birds falling from the sky and meeting up with Gabriela (Joana Borja) whose friend, Jamila (Gabriela Toloil) vanished from their tent after hearing a noise.  With their fave camping spot being overrun by landfill.  (& it's pronounced Ja-me-la not Jermilla!  Tsk!)  He retrieves the dead bird and tells her how the birds have gathered.  The Doctor (Jodi Whittaker) is in Madagascar and comes across a navy sailor, Zach (Tristan de Beer) in the water, as his submarine met with trouble.  She shouts to Suki (Molly Harris) and Aramu (Thapelo Maropefela) for help in fishing him out of the water.  As for the word fishing, good question as there were no little fishes around or big ones either.  Instead we got The Birds and yes I mentioned that before several of them formed an attacking spiral and headed to the lab too.  Just like the one solitary bird watching them on the beach too.

Graham (Bradley Walsh) and Yaz (Mandip Gill) find themselves in Hong Kong as they meet Jake (Warren Brown) who is trying to break down the door to a building with little success.  He's a police officer as Yaz says she's one too but isn't doing what he does.  You see he's looking for the missing astronaut he saw on the news, Adam (Michael McNulty) who texts him for help and sends him coordinates to his location.  So how'd he manage that then, or did I miss something seeing as he was otherwise suitably tied up in the warehouse.  He's connected to some contraption and as they try to remove him from it, Graham tells Jake to stop since it may be keeping him alive or something.  They're fired upon by people in masks and have to unhook Adam anyway.  Making a run for it, the Doctor arrives and rescues them in the TARDIS.  Having turned up for Ryan and Gabriela in Peru in time to save them from Jamila's zombie-esque awakening.  After they find Jamila in quarantine.  She opens her eyes and the Doc arrives to tell them she's not alive as they watch her develop a stone-like appearance and shatter into sand.  That was more a Medusa touch-like scene.  The same happened to Zach.

As the Doctor takes them all inside the TARDIS, of course we get the astonishment of it being larger on the inside; Yaz wants to remain behind and see what the device was that the aliens wanted.  Since the Doctor sneaked a peek under the mask and saw he had an alien face.  They head back to Madagascar where Aramu stands watch over the birds as they gather in force and form an attack pattern.  Poor lad, he was forgotten quick smart!!  Inside she uses the lab to see what they're dealing with and asks Ryan to dissect the bird as he must've done that before.  She compliments on the lab and its impressive equipment including micro-filtration of the water.  Ryan finds plastic inside the bird and the Doctor gets a brain wave, well 'brains wave'.  Since the micro-filtration means they consume plastic into their bodies even if they think they don't.

Thus the virus is a pathogen that utilizes plastic and she analyzes Adam's blood as well.  Hoping to find a cure.  In Honk Kong, Yaz and Gabriela are disturbed by a surviving alien who manages to make it back to the device and transports himself away.  Yaz wants to do the same and goes for it, reminding Gabriela of her blog and they end up on what Yaz believes is an alien planet.  As she finally clues the Doctor in on what's happening after she sets to work on a cure for Adam, having gotten off Madagascar and escaped The Birds, and finding out Suki is an alien too.  With the equipment being a giveaway.

Down below, the Doctor bursts Yaz's bubble when she finds out they're under the Indian Ocean and not an alien planet, which leaves her peeved.  Kinda glad, Yaz was never one of my faves, she just didn't seem to do much or fit in, very uppity (so kinda waiting for her betrayal of the Doctor soon!)  She finds part of the submarine there and then Suki turns up too.  It's her ship and she's an alien scientist who sent the virus to Earth in the hopes of infecting an entire planet so she could find a cure for her own people, the few who were left.  (A nod in some ways to Gallifrey and its destruction, as another planet is destroyed.)  There follows an explanation of how the plastic clogged up the ocean and the virus find a source to feed off by attacking the microplastics in humans. 

Was also going to mention Tim Shaw and the Stenza re the teeth but these weren't teeth, though equally grotesque in many ways.  The Doctor finds a cure in the organic part of the ship which can be used to detonate the antigen above the Earth and destroy the virus.  However autopilot won't work and so Jake goes back to show Adam he is capable of doing something, even if it involves self sacrifice and we think why isn't the Doctor able to retrieve him, which she saves until the final millisecond, thus reuniting the husbands and giving them a new chance of life together.  With Gabriele in tow who will be able to vlog.