Fast Return – August 2010
Everybody’s gonna love today. It’s true! I heard it just now on the wireless. And it’s spring – can’t you tell?
Anyway, enough about the wireless, here’s your actual August in retrospect:
Everybody’s gonna roll those Rs (Enough! Ed)
RADAGHAST!
Last Return we remooted the possibility that the Seventh Doctor might finally get some big screen treatment in the shape of the future Hobbit movies, possibly to play the older Bilbo. Well now the rumour’s back, but it seems the Bilbo bit’s not in it, and that Sylv himself is intimating he might be in line for a more wizardly role, that of Radagast the Brown, mentioned only by name in the book, and replaced by a moth in the LotR movies. Charming! Anyway, it sounds like a good fit as Wizards go – Radders isn’t described in great detail in The Fellowship of the Ring, so a height difference or stray accent wouldn’t rock the boat surely. Let the campaign for Tom Baker for Beorn begin here!
RENT!
Series six split in two? A game-changing cliffhanger to see us at seat’s edge betwixt Easter and November? No Daleks? 2011 gets more intruguing by the day!
READ-OUT!
NZ fanzines. Are there any about? It’s a weird and contrary business, their absence coming as it does whilst the phenomenon seems to be enjoying something of a boutique revival overseas (as noted by Paul on his blog). There’s possibly space for an Editorial column on this, or a Media Circus one, but the shorter version you’ll read from Zeus Blog is well, perhaps at last paper press has finally had its day here in NZ, regardess of well-meaning attempts to resurrect either TSV (resting between editors) or RTP (er…) As much as we love hard media there’s more life currently online than in print, and perhaps it’s time for NZ fandom to migrate there, whether in the form of a PDF-zine – or none at all.
Good news, somebody… please!
REGION 4!
Oh so excellent news for next year’s 15th anniversary of the TV Movie – the McGanniversary we’re calling it around ZeusBlog Terraces. Thanks to skillful negotiations the TV Movie is to be released as a solo package here (oh, and in some other non Region 2 areas too, apparently) – no need to buy Revisitations if you don’t want to again! 2Entertain can do no wrong!
REVENGE!
Also available early next year, twin cyber dilemmas Revenge/Nemesis released with nice extras but no CG or extended editions. We knew this for ages and clearly the money’s not there but not everyone’s happy, as no less than FOUR derailed message threads on OutpostGally indicate. 2Entertain can do no right!
At least there’s that very cool doco on pirate videos to watch. Speaking of which…
RUINED!
BBC Books and BF writer Johnny Morris has a go at watching regionally televised Trial of a Time Lord from back in the day via his old VHS tapes. Hilarious!
(researching for a Colin/Bonnie BF script? Let’s start the rumour here!)
REANIMATED?
Ian Levine. Telesnaps. Restoration = shudders. 2Entertain can do no right! And yet Dan Hall mentions a ‘ReAnimations’ project? Intriguing… but we bet we’ll not see anything happening on this for a long long time yet. If at all. There’s probably a ‘Revisionista!’ column in this, surely?
REGENERATION!
In the mean-time let’s return to Sylv and whet our appetites for the forthcoming Time and the Rani DVD by watching this skillful fan bash at one of the series’ least succesful fudges…
September 2nd, 2010 at 10:17 am
You know, I went to Paul Potikis blog and for the life of me couldn’t find the reference you mentioned – is the link bust?
September 2nd, 2010 at 1:26 pm
I’m painfully aware that we haven’t had a TSV issue this year. Believe me, this bothers me a great deal. I’m letting a substantial number of loyal readers down, all of whom have so far waited remarkably patiently. I do not want to see TSV fade away.
Progress on the next issue is very slow at present. I do not have a reserve of writing or artwork to utilise and I know of only a few contributors with things in the pipeline. All offers of help will be very gratefully accepted.
I do like the idea of PDF issues, but unless the page counts are significantly shorter there is little gain in terms of time and effort saved. Once an issue is complete as a PDF, the hard work’s just about all done. Printing and posting copies is relatively effortless.
September 2nd, 2010 at 3:53 pm
Thanks for responding Paul, and your devotion to TSV is clear and noted.
Do you think there’s any reason why any future issues needn’t be shorter if volume is an issue in and of itself? I don’t think any RTP readers made the complaint about it being (roughly) half the size of TSV, and if filling a larger space is a particular problem, then the answer should be a no-brainer.
I do worry for your own time and work commitments though. You already have a very large project on your hands. I don’t think anyone here would begrudge you setting the zine’s concerns aside while you concentrated on that.
I do believe in PDF issues however, as nice as Panic Moon looks. And the cost margin to the club and to subscribers would be significantly less, right? Alex produces his Fighting Fantazine this way (although they are h-u-g-e files). I’d hoped this time a year ago that RTP might have made a similar migration…
September 2nd, 2010 at 5:45 pm
Thanks, Peter.
Yes, I think in future issues should be shorter, but I view that as something that needs to happen gradually. I have a commitment to honour many advance paid subscriptions for the next few issues which were priced at around 80-100 pages each.
If it wasn’t for this then, yes, I would definitely make TSV a shorter, PDF zine and I would certainly like to migrate it to this format over time. I’m very impressed with Alex’s Fighting Fantazine, which seems to be doing very well indeed.
I worry for my time too! I have several large projects on my plate at the moment. In fact I’m taking a brief break from laying down production subtitles for a Doctor Who DVD in order to write this reply… right now, back to work!
September 2nd, 2010 at 5:56 pm
And for those listeners wishing to take a break from the tennis, the previously mentioned, absolutely wonderful Figthing Fantazine can be found here:
http://fightingfantazine.bravehost.com/Fighting%20Fantazine.html
September 3rd, 2010 at 10:40 am
Paul,
While I appreciate any input I have in this may be regarded as biased, have you considered putting your appeal for assistance on the NZDWFC forum as it’s own thread (rather than an aside on a “when is TSV coming out” discussion). Unfortunately the Zeus Blog readership is a bit bijou/boutique* since its regeneration, and really it sounds like you probably want to be soliciting as wide an audience as possible and promoting discussion amongst potential contributors.
Just a thought…
*Sorry Peter, no offence intended.
September 3rd, 2010 at 1:24 pm
Hi Dave,
I’m holding off on widening the appeal because of my aforementioned heavy workload at present. Once I’ve got this under control I’ll begin soliciting.
Paul
September 3rd, 2010 at 5:10 pm
Sooo…
With the caveat of we (“we” – wider populace “we”, rather than me and anyone else specific) have our own work/life mixes to manage, is there any specific assistance you were after?
September 3rd, 2010 at 8:05 pm
Well, what would be most beneficial would be a co-editor. Someone to help solicit and select contributions, provide feedback to contributors and edit material. What I would suggest to anyone considering this is, commit to one issue initially rather than viewing it as a long term thing, which might seem a bit daunting. That said, I’m not thinking of doing more than one issue a year, maybe two at most.
September 4th, 2010 at 1:32 pm
Ooooh, I think life and history would be pretty non-conducive to an official working relationship. I would be happy to help at the proofing/sounding out/feedback/edit level in a purely supportive capacity to get you over this current hurdle, if that’s any help. (Though that said in many cases my “help” may have been the kiss of death on some projects). Feel free to email me if I can be of any use.
September 27th, 2010 at 11:54 am
Having popped into this page a few times since the last disscussion (just to see on the off chance if anything had come up – no pressure, just a step in my normal morning routine) I’ve always noticed the look on the Brig’s face in the banner photo. The weary resignation of someone who sees the shape of the rest of his career* summed up in a daft looking monster.
Ho Hum.
Wonderful picture choice that man.
* – “his” = Brigadier, not “his” = Courtney, who has done lots of other worthwhile stuff and seems a nice chap to boot.