See The Ponds Say Goodbye To Brian In Doctor Who Deleted Scene

As Amy and Rory departed Doctor Who at the end of the mid-series finale The Angels Take Manhattan, we were left wondering how Rory's dad Brian would take the news. A firm fan favourite despite only being introduced in the second episode of this season, Brian Williams, as played by Harry Potter's Mark Williams, never got to say goodbye to his son and daughter-in-law.

Well, it seems like scriptwriter Chris Chibnall had originally planned to give Brian what they call 'closure,' as a new clip released today by the BBC reveals. Reconstructed using animated storyboards and voiceovers, this epilogue entitled P.S. gives the one-time Who companion a fitting (and emotional) send off, which you can watch below.

The Doctor will return on Christmas Day for his usual festive outing, which will see the introduction of his new companion, played by Jenna-Louise Coleman.

Watch the IGN Doctor Who Videocast for S7 E5 here to find out what we thought of the Ponds' final farewell.

Tom is IGN's UK Social Media Editor and resident Whovian. You can stay abreast of his current pet peeves by following him on IGN and Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com

Doctor Who: The Daemons DVD Review

Lately, there have been too many Doctor Who reviews I've had to write about stories I happen to think are unassailable classics. The Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) era has gone through periods of fan devotion, reassessment, and even resentment concerning the Time Lord’s cozier relationship to the establishment in comparison with other incarnations, and then recently a return to respect for one of the show’s most stable and popular periods. Well, I never stopped loving the Pertwee era, particularly the core seasons of the “UNIT Family” dynamic, and I love “The Daemons.” It’s a high point of this Doctor’s time on the show, a classic of the entire series in general, and an amazing document of a particular kind of fantasy horror adventure storytelling so wonderfully ’70s and British that it just never loses its charm. It’s appropriately magical.

I first saw “The Daemons” in black and white. Seeing the show on Maryland public television back in the ’80s, there were quite a few Pertwee stories that no longer existed except as black and white film copies recovered from overseas sales. Now that the wizards of the Restoration Team have worked their own brand of technical magic – building on earlier color work done on the story for a ’90s videotape release – and brought all the color back into these episodes, I have to say it’s both exhilarating and jarring. For me, this was one story that felt right in black and white, with its dark crypts demonic imagery, and thunderstorms sweeping along old stone streets. But I am very happy to see it restored to even beyond its former glory, if only to get the full effect of the Master’s (Roger Delgado) richly decorated red cloak, which not only puts him squarely in the role of the typical Hammer Films Dracula disciple trying to resurrect his own master but also links him to that otherwise inexplicably ostentatious future incarnation of the renegade Time Lord in the 1996 TV movie. 1999 San Francisco or 1971 Devil’s End – the man always dresses for the occasion. He even puts his name on his clothes so he doesn't forget (take a look at the runes on his collar).

The plot? Oh, all right. The Master has assumed the identity of a village vicar in order to contact an ancient alien – Azal the Daemon (Stephen Thorne) – left on Earth to monitor its race’s human evolution experiment. Mankind is about to be judged, and the ruthless Time Lord wants Azal to grant him the power to rule the Doctor’s favorite planet. Our hero and the stalwart forces of UNIT must protect the citizens of the aptly named Devil’s End – including local white witch Olive Hawthorne (Damaris Hayman) – and prevent Azal from empowering the Master and dooming humanity to a horrible end.

There’s so much delight to be had in the “The Daemons” that although I could certainly point out the flaws, I’d rather just look past them. The animated gargoyle Bok (Stanley Mason) is a memorable villain with a spring in his step, but he often looks like a guy with sagging tights; that’s OK. Poor Katy Manning as Jo Grant trips and falls like a sack of potatoes in one scene with Pertwee at her side to guide her myopic self along, but that’s OK too (and I hope she wasn't hurt). And most egregiously, the up-to-the-last-second organic and nearly godlike Azal suddenly and for no reason becomes a literal-minded robot that cannot “relate” Jo’s self-sacrifice, providing the story with a far too easy explosive ending familiar to fans of any American summer blockbuster of the last 30 years. But no, I still don’t care.

Because Delgado is at his best, persuading the villagers to follow him and then insulting them and threatening their lives the very next moment. Because Miss Hawthorne is an endearing, self-possessed woman that should have appeared again and should have a long-running Big Finish audio drama series built around her (I’ll write it!). Because the entire UNIT team gets involved: Benton (John Levene) and Olive are superb together as the knight and his long-in-the-tooth damsel, Yates (Richard Franklin) rides in on a motorcycle, plucky Sgt. Osgood (Alec Linstead) does his best with the Doctor’s impatient science lesson, and the Brigadier (Nicholas Courtney) figures out the heat barrier without the Doctor’s help – he’s sharp and decisive, and not the buffoon he’ll become in just another season or so. And he knows just how many rounds to fire at a living gargoyle.

“The Daemons” is a high point, illustrated by nothing less than the actual capturing of the Master after a full season of that jackanapes causing trouble, and a May Day celebration with the cast dancing the day away as the locals happily watch the filming. It’s magical and meta at the same time. And as befits a story of this stature, we get two discs jammed with wonderful material, including a great behind-the-scenes documentary and a revealing, heartfelt look at the career of producer Barry Letts with contributions from his family. This is an indispensable release for any Who fan.

Source : ign[dot]com

The A-Z of Doctor Who

The Doctor is a traveler, a wanderer in the fourth dimension of space and time. He’s also an alien from the planet Gallifrey, and a hero dedicated to fighting evil wherever it occurs.

Accompanied by his TARDIS, his sonic screwdriver and his companions, the Doctor has fought horrors both on Earth and farther afield, and sent children of all ages hiding behind the sofa for almost half a century.

And since half a century is a long time, we thought we’d provide newcomers to the show with an overview of the story so far…

A is for Amy Pond

More than just the Doctor’s longest running companion since the series returned 2005, Amy Pond is also one of the few to have travelled with him for over a decade (the only others being her husband Rory and daughter River, of course).

Part of the first married couple to travel in the TARDIS, Amy is also the Doctor’s mother-in-law, a position which has not exactly been loaded with perks. From being cloned, having her memory erased, her baby kidnapped and her daughter grow up to become the Doctor’s murderer-slash-wife, poor old Amy really has had a tough time aboard the TARDIS. With her departure rapidly approaching we’re wondering if it might all be getting a little too much.

See: The Eleventh Hour, Let’s Kill Hitler, The Angels Take Manhattan

B is for Bandrils

[FOR IGN REFERENCE http://www.shadowlocked.com/images/stories/whoreviews/colin_baker/timelash/timelash_bandril.jpg]

With seemingly every sci-fi publication imaginable taking polls on viewers’ favorite Doctor Who monsters of all time, spare a thought for the critters that are best left forgotten. Languishing at the bottom of any Who fan’s scariest monster list, past mutant bubble-wrap arms and burping wheelie bins, are the Bandrils.

These barely animated glove puppets wouldn’t look out of place in an episode of the Muppet Show’s Trek-spoof “Pigs in Space”. At least there you’d be able to laugh at the Bandril’s high-pitched threats of world obliteration without feeling guilty.

See: Timelash, The Muppet Show

C is for Cybermen

Before the Borg, there were the Cybermen- human beings whose humanity had been taken away, their emotions removed, their bodies replaced with machine parts and weird... jug handles, I guess?

Initially from Earth’s long lost twin planet Mondas, the Cybermen used to be grim reflections of ourselves, but over time their emotionless exteriors became increasingly less convincing until they were stomping around shouting “Excellent!” and being ridiculously allergic to gold.

Is it any wonder, then, that when Russell T Davies brought these villains back he wiped the slate clean by giving us a new origin story about an alternate universe Earth driven crazy by mobile-phone ear-plugs?

See: The Tomb of the Cybermen, Rise of the Cybermen & The Age of Steel

D is for the Doctor

Now twelve-hundred years old, the Doctor has come a long way from his days as a bohemian adventurer pottering about the universe with his granddaughter and a pair of school teachers. He’s lived through eleven bodies, been exiled to Earth, become president of the Time Lords, was put on trial by them (twice), wiped out the Daleks (almost), fought in a time war, ended a time war, turned human and got married.

Never cruel and never cowardly, the Doctor has always been a relentless force for the good in a universe of terrors. With him around it’s safe to be scared.

See: Doctor Who - all of it

E is for Extended Universe

It’s a testament to the core structure of Doctor Who that the Doctor’s stories translate so well to other media and with a show as long-running as this it’s unsurprising just how many tie-ins to the show there are.

Let’s start with Doctor Who Magazine, the longest running TV tie-in magazine ever, whose comic strip served as a proving ground for such luminaries as Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons- creators of Watchmen. Then there are the vast quantities of novels that kept Doctor Who alive during its dark days of cancellation in the 90s. Big Finish Production’s audio adventures also served a similar function, bringing back classic Doctors to record missing adventures with former companions- a range that continues to this day.

And those are just the tip of the ice-berg; how could you forget the charming 60’s Dalek movies featuring Peter Cushing, or the Doctor’s recent forays into the world of video games? Doctor Who is truly a universe too big for just the small screen.

See: Doctor Who Magazine

F is for Frightening

For a children’s show, Doctor Who has never been one to shy away from terrifying moments, particularly during the gothic horror era of Tom Baker’s early series which notably featured a particularly violent cliffhanger involving the Doctor’s head being held underwater.

Nowadays the show steers clear of realistic violence, preferring instead to explore more psychological or fantastical scares. Children should be able to hide behind the sofa without worrying about the dangers the Doctor faces happening to them.

See: The Deadly Assassin

G is for Gallifrey

Gallifrey is the Doctor’s home world. Situated in the constellation of Kasterborous, its burnt orange landscape houses the the citadel of the Time Lords. This wise and ancient race, whose powers are fueled by a huge black hole beneath the planet’s surface, regarded themselves as superior to the other inhabitants of the universe. This was until the Dalek Empire came knocking.

In the Time War that followed, Gallifrey was lost, trapped out of time by the Doctor in a last ditch attempt to prevent the horrors of the war leaking out into the rest of the universe. For all we know it remains there still, doomed to live the final days of the war for the rest of eternity.

See: The Deadly Assassin, The End of Time Part 1 & 2

H is for Heroes

It’s only natural that we consider the Doctor the hero of his own show, but spare a thought for those he travels with.

When the Doctor actually chooses his companions (something that happens surprisingly rarely) he prides himself on taking only the very best. Usually these people are dissatisfied with their lives, aware that they are destined for greater things and the Doctor’s skill is to take this people and let them grow and flourish; transforming an ordinary shop worker in a goddess who can wield the power of the time vortex, or a London Temp into a human-Time Lord capable of destroying an entire Dalek empire.

From Captain Jack to Rose to Martha to Sarah Jane Smith- these people are just like us. And if he’ll take them, he could come back for you.

See: The Stolen Earth & Journey’s End

I is for “I am the Doctor!”

Possibly the greatest piece of Doctor Who merchandise ever devised- the Third Doctor himself, Jon Pertwee, talk-singing over the Doctor Who theme.

Released in 1972 ‘Who is the Doctor’ was the first time the Doctor Who theme had been given lyrics and is something that must be heard to be believed.

Whilst you’re at it, check out the poignant (and non-Who related) B-side to the original single that recounted the fortunes a faded stage magician, entitled ‘Pure Mystery’.

See: Who is the Doctor?

J is for Jelly Babies

The Doctor’s favorite food- jelly babies have been considered a delicacy by the Doctor ever since his second incarnation, however it was Tom Baker’s Doctor that made them iconic. Brandished his little paper bag wherever he went, the fourth Doctor used them regularly to break the ice, once prevented a man committing suicide and even threatened a gang of savage natives by holding a “deadly jelly baby” to a fellow tribesman’s neck.

Nowadays jelly babies have been replaced by the more biscuity jammy dodger as the Doctor’s confectionary of choice, a far more impractical treat in our opinion- think of the crumbs!

See: The Face of Evil, The Sun Makers, Doctor Who (TV movie)

K is for K-9

The ultimate pet/portable turret/smarmy computer/chess opponent, K-9 was actually the property of another doctor- Professor Marius- who felt a bit guilty about trying to infect our Doctor with an alien virus whilst possessed so gave him K-9 as a way of apologizing.

There have actually been a number of different versions of K-9 over the course of the Doctor’s travels; the first being left in a parallel universe with his companion Romana, the second on Gallifrey with Leela, whilst Sarah Jane Smith managed to get through two models all by herself (which isn’t that surprising considering how often the tin dog would break down).

K-9 has also starred in his own spin-off series, but we don’t like to talk about.

See: The Invisible Enemy, Warriors’ Gate, School Reunion

L is for Legends

There are many legends about the Doctor throughout the series, but most of the time they are entirely fictional. Oncoming Storms, Predators and Sainted Physicians are all very well, but the ultimate crossover reference came in the 1989 story Battlefield.

When a group of space age knights from a parallel universe invade a sleepy English village on the hunt for a demon, they immediately recognize its protector- the Doctor - as their wise and ancient advisor; the wizard Merlin.

See: Battlefield

M is for Steven Moffat

Steven Moffat is Doctor Who’s current lead writer and executive producer. After winning BAFTAs for his timey-wimey scripts for the Tenth Doctor it was only natural that Steven would take over the mantle of the show from previous incumbent Russell T Davies upon the Doctor’s regeneration.

Steven hasn’t just been busy with Doctor Who however, and any fan of the show would surely be missing out if they didn’t check out his revamping of another British icon, Sherlock Holmes, in a series he co-created with fellow Doctor Who writer Mark Gatiss.

See: Sherlock

N is for Nemesis

The Master is a rival Time Lord; the Moriarty to the Doctor’s Holmes. He arrived on Earth intent on destruction during the Third Doctor’s exile and since then the two of them have brawled across the stars.

Over time we’ve learned that the Doctor and the Master used to be childhood friends, and that the Master was driven insane by the Time Lord president Rassilon who planted a drumbeat in the young boy’s head as a means to escape the horrors of the Time War. This insanity, the Doctor believes, is the root cause of the Master’s transformation into a being of pure evil.

Most of the time though he was just a bit naff - his pantomime plans to humiliate the Doctor becoming so convoluted and contrived that at one point the only way he could have planned his next revenge on the Doctor was by assuming his first dastardly plot would fail.

See: Terror of the Autons, Castrovalva, The Sound of Drums & Last of the Time Lords

O is for Oswin

This year the Christmas special will be even more special than usual as it brings with it the gift of a new companion in the shape of former Emmerdale actress Jenna-Louise Coleman.

Little is known about how she will be introduced, however Steven Moffat has offered us a tantalizing glimpse of what she’ll be like in the first episode of this series- Asylum of the Daleks- in which she played Oswin Oswald, an astronaut converted into one of the Doctor’s tin-pot foes. Could she be a relative of the Oswin who will end up travelling with the Doctor? Or is Moffat up to his timey-wimey tricks again?

See: Asylum of the Daleks

P is for Paris

With Doctor Who filming in both Spain and the US this season alone, it’s hard to believe that it took 9 years for the show to be filmed abroad.

Doctor Who’s first ever overseas shoot was in Paris for the 1972 story City of Death. Written by Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, it involved the theft of the Mona Lisa by an alien that had been splintered throughout different eras of history, a plot which took a back seat to copious shots of Tom Baker and Lalla Ward running through Paris hand in hand- a genuine treat and all-time highlight for Doctor Who.

See: City of Death

Q is for the Quest for the Key to Time

Nowadays we’re all familiar with Doctor Who’s series-arcs. From Bad Wolf to Torchwood, Saxon and Silence Falling, each meme serves to frame the Doctor’s exploits in a larger context whilst giving observant fans tantalizing clues to drive each other mad over the internet.

But it wasn’t always this way and, until 1976 when the White Guardian charged the Doctor with tracking down the six segments of the Key to Time, the classic series had never dealt with tale so epic that it spanned an entire season.

Each adventure revolved around the Doctor and his Time Lady companion Romana acquiring a new segment (unhelpfully disguised as either a planet, a princess or some kind of fancy jewelry) and as the series progressed the stakes were raised to universe-threatening levels as the Doctor became a pawn in the battle between the fundamental forces of good and evil.

See: The Key to Time series

R is for Russell T Davies

The man who brought Doctor Who back, Russell T Davies was already a hugely established scriptwriter and producer long before he got his hands on the Time Lord.

His breakthrough work was the series Queer as Folk, a drama focusing on the lives of gay clubbers in Manchester and including Vince, a Doctor Who fan who watched old Tom Baker episodes after a night out a received a radio controlled K-9 for his birthday.

Russell would then go on to write the one-off mini-series The Second Coming (starring future 9th Doctor Christopher Eccleston) and Casanova- which featured a fresh-faced David Tennant as the eponymous hero.

See: Queer as Folk, The Second Coming, Casanova

S is for Sonic Screwdriver

Whilst companions come and go, this little whirring tool remains the Doctor’s most faithful of partners. Doesn’t kill, doesn’t wound, doesn’t maim, it also doesn’t work on wood which is a bit of an oversight on the Doctor’s part.

Introduced during the Patrick Troughton’s tenure, it was destroyed during the Peter Davison’s over fears that it was becoming too much of a crutch for the Time Lord. Aside from a brief cameo it was only resurrected when Doctor Who returned in 2005. Now apparently grown by the TARDIS, it has proven itself even more capable than before, both in the show and as a range ridiculously popular of children’s toys- including a universal remote.

See: Fury from the Deep, the Doctor Who Sonic Screwdriver Universal Remote Control

T is for the TARDIS

Time And Relative Dimension In Space- The TARDIS is the Doctor’s home, its vast interior housing laboratories, living quarters, wardrobes, a swimming pool, a library and seemingly infinite, identical corridors. All while its modest exterior is stuck in the shape of a 1950s London police box.

More than simply a portal to adventure, the TARDIS is occasionally the subject (or cause) of adventures all its own, including sucking planet Earth through its power core, imbuing Rose with all the power of the time vortex, and turning into a woman.

See: Doctor Who (TV Movie), The Parting of the Ways, The Doctor’s Wife

U is for UNIT

The UNified Intelligence Taskforce- formerly the United Nations Intelligence Taskforce- was founded in the 60s or 70s depending on which Doctor Who story you happen to be watching. Lead by the Doctor’s oldest friend Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart (and currently headed up by his daughter) it existed to combat the large spike in alien invasions of the home counties that happened to coincide with the third Doctor’s exile to that exact same location.

The Doctor has worked with UNIT in all but two of his incarnations, watching them grow from a cuddly band of vaguely inept soldiers to a sinister, highly mobile and well equipped fighting force complete with Captain Scarlet-style cloud-bases.

See: The Invasion, Spearhead from Space, The Power of Three

V is for Verity Lambert

Verity Lambert is widely regarded as the mother of Doctor Who. The first ever female producer at the BBC (and one of the first female television producers full stop) she oversaw the creation of the show that would tragically outlive her.

In 2002 Verity was awarded an OBE in recognition of her contribution to film and television and continued to work as a producer until the day she died in 2007. In the episode ‘Human Nature’, broadcast the year she died, the Doctor paid tribute to her legacy by revealing his parents to be named after both her and Sydney Newman - the head of drama at the BBC when Doctor Who was first commissioned.

See: Human Nature & The Family of Blood

W is for Weeping Angels

The most enduring and popular new monsters since Doctor Who’s return in 2005, the Weeping Angels have even beaten the Daleks to the top of recent ‘scariest villain of all time’ polls.

Nicknamed ‘the lonely assassins’ due to their quantum-locked nature, the Weeping Angels appear as stone statues whenever they are observed by another living thing. But as soon as you look away, as soon as you blink- they strike; zapping you back in time so they can feed off the energy of the days you might have had in the future.

Each time the Weeping Angels return we’ve seen them gain new, even more deadly abilities- including the ability to manifest from security footage and possess those that look into its eyes. With the epic climax of Amy and Rory’s decade with the Doctor set to feature the Weeping Angels in New York, it’s anybody’s guess what tricks they might still be hiding up their sleeves.

See: Blink, The Time of Angels & Flesh and Stone, The Angels Take Manhattan

X is for Exterminate

The Daleks! The Doctor’s oldest and deadliest foes. Their terrifying rubber plungers were the first aliens the Doctor ever met on-screen and since then they’ve dogged the Time Lord throughout all his incarnations- becoming pop-culture icons in the process.

The mutated survivors of a nuclear war, the Daleks were created by Davros, a crippled and insane scientist who taught them to hate anything different to themselves (including him as it turns out). This hatred has proven to be the perfect survival mechanism however, as the Daleks continue to rebuild their empire in the wake of their conflict with the Time Lords. After being defeated by the Doctor in so many battles, it appears these little pepper-pots may have won the war...

See: Genesis of the Daleks, Dalek, Asylum of the Daleks

Y is for 50 Years

That’s right, come November of next year this little show about a madman in a box will have been around half a century. That’ll be 33 series, 238 stories, 11 leading actors and a host of pop-culture icons for all you number fans out there.

As the longest running science fiction series in history, it’s astonishing to see the show exist today almost completely unchanged from its original format with an unwavering appeal that spans generations. The Doctor is truly a man out of time.

See: An Unearthly Child

Z is for Zygons

It’s fortunate that one of the few Doctor Who monsters to begin with Z is also one of the ones we most want to see return in the new series!

The Zygons are a lumpy orange race of shape-shifters whose whispery voice hints at a sinister past of chain-smoking and laryngitis. The Doctor discovered them hiding at the bottom of Loch Ness preparing to unleash a giant glove-puppet dinosaur on London. Aside from the glove-puppet part, these creatures were terrifying, and their prosthetics so convincing that the new production team wouldn’t even need to update them!

See: Terror of the Zygons

Source : ign[dot]com

Manimal Gets a Movie

Sony Pictures Animation has just landed the movie rights to Manimal, based on the 1980s television series about a wealthy doctor with the power to transform into animals in order to fight crime.

The Hollywod Reporter says the film will be a live-action/CG hybrid, with the original series' producer Glen A. Larson -- known for his work on other '80s fare like Battlestar Galactica, Knight Rider and Magnum P.I. -- attached to produce the film.

Manimal was widely panned by critics and slaughtered in the ratings when it aired opposite Dallas in 1983. The series only lasted eight episodes before it was cancelled. However, the show gained a cult following for its campiness in the years that followed.

The studio is currently in search of writers to pen the new project.

Max Nicholson is a writer for IGN, and he desperately seeks your approval. Show him some love on Twitter and IGN.

Source : ign[dot]com

The Mob Doctor: "Pilot" Review

Advance Review: The first thing that FOX's new series, The Mob Doctor, has working against it is... its name. It's hard to not giggle and pre-judge a show with such a nail-on-the-derp title. Yes, creators often look for for a name that can singularly sum up their show, but I feel like a lot more people aren't going to be able to get past this silly title than will wind up eventually over-looking it. Also, it doesn't help that the show a mostly-laughable shlock-fest riddled cliches and familiar beats.

My Boys' Jordana Sprio (off her two-episode dramatic arc on Dexter last year) stars as Grace Devlin (a name not lost on anyone), a tough, punchy surgeon who grew up poor on the south side of Chicago. She's part angel, part lie/cheat/and steal if it protects the right people hellion. And her hospital rounds are filled with a rogue's gallery of characters you've seen before. Her bitchy rival (Jamie Lee Kirchner), her arrogant, weaselly boss (David Pasquesi, almost channeling his Strangers with Candy role) and wasted Emmy-winner Zeljko Ivanek as an extra-bland Chief of Surgery.

Instead of starting off the show with the story of how Grace became a doctor who moonlights for the local mob in order to pay a debt for her brother's life, we begin in the thick of it. Grace has been a "Mob Doctor" for years already and we're just catching up with her on a particularly busy day where she deals with a goon who has a screwdriver in his head, a kid with a gunshot wound, a girl from the "neighborhood" who's pregnant thanks to outercourse and an FBI witness in dire need of heart surgery. And once again, thanks to pilot-itis, everything moves at breakneck speed, with the writers thinking that fast stories and super-speed dialogue make things seem more urgent and characters seem more clever.

Spiro can be a fun and lively actress, but she crumbles here at the feet of sloppy sentiment and an interesting premise that's treated more like a glossy adventure series than a tension-filled drama. Grace's doctor boyfriend, Brett (Zach Gilford), is handsome and nice while the crooks she deals with, notably Michael Rapaport's Moretti, are dumb and mean. It's all flat. I will say that, toward the end, there's a surprise twist that gave the show a jolt, but it's all for naught. One would think, that given the premise, Grace would be desperately looking for a way out. That she's afraid of being caught and tired of keeping secrets. But she's not. In fact, when given the opportunity to actually leave criminal servitude and make a clean getaway, she stays. And becomes an even mobbier Mob Doctor! Her excuse is, naturally, family. Even though we meet her pushy mom and incompetent brother and see first hand that they're no treasure trove.

But she's from the south side. And just like Boston's south side, cinematically, family is supposed to mean more than anything, no matter how dopey and troublesome they are. William Forsythe, fresh off his Boardwalk Empire stint, plays a typically Forsythian role in the form of Constantine Alexander, a soft spoken crime boss freshly released from prison. And while his relationship with Grace might feel more interesting, and rife with potential, the fact that, right off the bat, Grace has accepted her lot in life as a physician for both sides of the law makes the show feel empty and harmless.

The Mob Doctor premieres on Monday, September 17th at 9/8c on FOX.

Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter at @TheMattFowler and IGN. WARNING: No Nudity!

Source : ign[dot]com

Doctor Who: "A Town Called Mercy" Review

For a character who spends most of his time fixing wrongs, rooting for the small guy, and drifting in and out of lives/towns/planets, it's surprising that the Doctor hasn't had more cowboy adventures.

In fact, there's only ever been one real Who Western to date - and while 1966's The Gunfighters wasn't exactly what you'd call a classic (the common - and untrue - pop culture myth goes that it had the lowest rating of any Doctor Who story ever), A Town Called Mercy proves that the Doctor suits the genre as well as he rocks a Stetson.

When Amy, Rory and the Doctor appeared in the remote backwaters of the great American dream (well, prairie), the bloodletting game was already afoot. A cyborg cowboy was on the hunt for an alien Doctor, and was going to hold a whole Wild West town hostage until he found (and more importantly, killed) him.

In a tale full of sliding morality scales and shades of ethical grey, the answer wasn't quite as simple as it appeared. For a story touting genocidal vivisectionists, murderous cyborgs, moustache-twirling Sheriffs (courtesy of Farscape's superb Ben Browder doing his best Josh Brolin-lite) and gun-toting townspeople, it was - surprisingly - the Doctor who proved the most volatile.

Throw in a sexually confused talking horse, an exploding spaceship, and some dry, typically British humour ("I don't want to miss The Archers"/"Who got toast crumbs on the console?") amongst all the traditionally American genre tropes, and you had a story that managed to celebrate all things both Who and Western.

When it comes to Westerns, it's all about the mood. Get the score, cinematography and set design wrong, and you've got more chance of looking like a Disney theme park village than a gruff, intense adventure into the heart of gunslinging darkness. Thankfully, writer Toby Whithouse (the man behind the genius Being Human, and last season's not-so-genius Who episode 'The God Complex') and director Saul Metzstein (who just finished work on the Second Unit of our other favourite gritty shoot-em-up of the moment, Dredd) have obviously done their genre research.

While it still held true to a pre-watershed family friendliness, there was a bewitchingly moody beauty to the episode, thanks no doubt to the decision to shoot in Spain, in an area where an array of classic Westerns (including A Fistful of Dollars and The Good, The Bad & Ugly) were also made. More importantly, everything fans would want from a Who Western was there - the Doctor rocking a stetson, straddling a horse and chewing a toothpick, a face-off at high noon, an (almost) bar fight etc etc.

And while the Terminator-meets-Predator killer cyborg offered solid thrills, it was in the Doctor's moral uncertainty that the episode really galvanised. Matt Smith dialled down the wacky to explore the cold, judgemental friction that we've seen simmering away since the Doctor returned in The Asylum of the Daleks. His willingness to cross a line both literal and metaphorical, and throw a mass murderer to the gattling-gun happy robo-dogs prompted a Batman-ish moral dilemma - how many times must his mercy come back to bite him in the (surprisingly chapless) ass before he finally cracked and dished out a murderously final punishment?

While Amy's convincingly impassioned wake-up call seemed to do the job, and simultaneously remind us of the importance of the humanity the Who companions bring to the TARDIS, it'll be interesting to see where things go from here - and if the Doctor's renewed mercy is the very thing that leads to Amy and Rory's potentially tragic departure.

Rated as a Doctor Who episode, A Town Called Mercy was a weighty, progressive, sumptuous and entertaining adventure.

Rated as a sci-fi western (hello Cowboys & Aliens), it was a nigh-on classic.

Source : ign[dot]com

Fall 2012 TV Preview

Well, it's here. The beast has arrived. With the premiere of the new season of Doctor Who last weekend, Fall TV is officially upon us - on the heels of shows like Grimm that went the extra step of debuting in August! So now it's time to get out a pad of paper, a sharpie, some duct tape, a protractor and some wood glue and map out your own person viewing/DVRing schedule. And we're here to help!

So please welcome back Dexter Morgan, Nucky Thompson, Carrie Matheson, Jax Teller, Olivia Dunham, John Reese, Amanda Clarke Emily Thorne, Jeff Winger, Leslie Knope, Liz Lemon, Sheldon Cooper, Barney Stinson, The Doctor, Schmidt, Cartman and, um, American Horror Story monster... guy. But if you know Fall TV, then you know that it's not just about the returning favorites. Oh no. There's an avalanche of new shows waiting to tumble down on top of your heads; like a nuclear sub drama from The Shield's Shawn Ryan, a post-global blackout adventure series from J.J. Abrams and Jon Favreau, and new NBC comedies from folks like Glee/American Horror Story's Ryan Murphy and Jimmy Fallon.

There will be plenty of familiar faces too. Friends' Matthew Perry returns to NBC with Go On, Lost's Terry O'Quinn is back on ABC with 666 Park Avenue and The Office's Mindy Kaling's got her own new show on FOX called The Mindy Project. A few long-running shows will also come to an end as The Office returns for its 9th (!!!) and final season, FOX's Fringe wraps up its run with 13 exciting, Observer-filled episodes and Liz and Jack say goodbye on 30 Rock's 13-episode farewell.

So here's your rundown. Spotlight shows first, in order of premiere date. Then a full list at the end, on the last page of the feature. There's a system.

Doctor Who

Network: BBC America

Airs: Saturdays at 9pm

Premiere: 9/8/12

Going into Season 7, the big question is just how Amy Pond and Rory Williams will depart the series. The fall run of the show is a short one, with just five episodes (the rest of Season 7 will air next year), culminating in Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill leaving Doctor Who behind. But will they get a happy ending?

Fans are also extra curious about this year’s Christmas special, which was said to introduce the Doctor’s new companion, played by Jenna-Louise Coleman. Of course this past weekend, the season premiere threw a curve ball at us in regards to that...

Robot Chicken

Network: Adult Swim

Airs: Sundays at Midnight

Premiere: 9/9/12

Season 6 of Robot Chicken kicks off with the Robot Chicken DC Comics Special, with Seth Green as Batman, Robin and Aquaman, Neil Patrick Harris as Two-Face, Alfred Molina as Lex Luthor, Nathan Fillion as the Green Lantern, Megan Fox as Lois Lane, Breckin Meyer as Superman – in a parody of all things Justice League, Super Friends and more.

The remainder of Season 6 will feature a ton of ever-impressive guest voices, including Elizabeth Banks, Sarah Chalke, Kat Dennings, Sam Elliott, Ben Foster, Whoopi Goldberg, Lucas Grabeel, Megan Hilty, Gillian Jacobs, Robert Kirkman, Zachary Levi, J.B. Smoove, Liev Schreiber, Jon Stewart, Patrick Stewart, Stanly Tucci, Olivia Wilde, and Alex Winter.

Go On

Network: NBC

Airs: Tuesdays at 9pm

Premiere: 9/11/12

After airing a special preview of its pilot episode after their Olympics coverage a few weeks ago, NBC has high hopes for its new Matthew Perry comedy, Go On. Perry, after failing with ABC's Mr. Sunshine back in 2010, is back in semi-Chandler mode, playing a sportscaster who joins a support group to help him grieve for the recent death of his wife. Yes, the premise sounds a bit dark, but given that Perry's Ryan King finds himself surrounded by a multi-ethnic, multi-generational cast of kooky characters, it's clear that NBC's trying to pull from Community's Column A and create a show that has a chance of reaching a broader audience. Laura Benati, Julie White, Brett Gelman and John Cho also star.

Check out IGN's review of Go On's pilot episode here!

The New Normal

Network: NBC

Airs: Tuesdays at 9:30pm

Premiere: 9/11/12

From Ryan Murphy, creator of Glee and American Horror Story, and Ali Adler comes a new NBC comedy about a gay couple (Justin Bartha and Andrew Rannells) and the woman, Goldie (Georgia King), acting as the surrogate for their baby. Ellen Barkin is on hand to provide some Archie Bunker-inspired homophobia as Goldie's grandma while Real Housewives of Atlanta/Glee's NeNe Leaks provides enough sass to put grandma in her place. Murphy has found enormous success with risky, off-kilter TV, so will he reign supreme over the realm of half-hour comedies as well?

Check out IGN's review The New Normal's pilot episode here!

Sons of Anarchy

Network: FX

Airs: Tuesdays at 10pm

Premiere: 9/11/12

How will things go for Jax, now that he’s taken over as president of SAMCRO? We’re guessing it won't be smooth sailing…

Season 5 will bring two major new players in, including Harold Perrineau (Lost) as a new antagonist, Damon Pope, who's transitioned from being a drug kingpin to running a legitimate empire. Jimmy Smits also joins the cast, trading in his usual suit-wearing characters to play Latino gang leader Nero Padilla – someone described as becoming a “dangerous mentor” to Jax.

The X Factor

Network: FOX

Airs: Wednesdays at 8pm

Premiere: 9/12/12

Arriving with a ton of hype last year, Simon Cowell’s US version of his smash hit UK reality series did… fine, but notably wasn't nearly as big as American Idol. That being the case, the second season will see some major overhauls, with judges Paula Abdul, Nicole Scherzinger and host Steve Jones all gone. The new judges are Demi Lovato and Britney Spears and yes, Lovato’s young age is a bit of an eyebrow raiser, given her role as a judge and mentor. But that’s overshadowed by the media attention bringing Spears onto the show is achieving. Given Spears’ own troubles through the years, many are curious to see just how she handles this role on The X Factor – but are they curious enough to give the show a ratings boost?

Guys With Kids

Network: NBC

Airs: Wednesdays at 8:30pm

Premiere: 9/12/12

The brain child baby of Late Night's Jimmy Fallon, Guys with Kids features Jesse Bradford (Swimfan), Anthony Anderson (Law & Order) and Zach Cregger (Whitest Kids U' Know) as dads. Wait! I mean dudes with infants. No, wait. Sorry, we'll get it right some day. But if you're a fan of guys being dumb with not only their kids, but their spouses as well, then saddle up, put some silly sunglasses on your toddler and act like an idiot in front of your hot wife who you probably don't deserve.

Glee

Network: FOX

Airs: Thursdays at 9pm

Premiere: 9/13/12

It’s always a struggle for a TV series that begins in a high school setting to then transition into something else when the characters graduate. Glee is going about this dilemma in an interesting (and risky) manner, having had some of the characters graduate last season – but not all. Storylines will now apparently take place in New York, where Rachel and Kurt live, but also back at McKinley, with the characters who have not graduated, plus some new students. And there’s also some of the other graduates to deal with as well, who are living in various cities. All of which certainly sounds... crowded.

J.J. Abrams' global  blackout, NBC's Thursday night comedies and Nucky Thompson's prohibition-era Atlantic City on page 2...

Source : ign[dot]com

See Unaired Asylum of the Daleks Prequel

Following Saturday's triumphant return of Doctor Who (read the IGN review of Asylum of the Daleks here), a mini-prequel written by Steven Moffat and previously unaired in the UK, has appeared online. According the YouTube channel, the video was "available only by subscription on iTunes in the US, or by US Amazon InstantVideo," but you can watch it in all its glory below.

The next episode of Doctor Who, Dinosaurs on a Spaceship, is on BBC One and BBC America this Saturday.

Source : ign[dot]com

Doctor Who: "Asylum Of The Daleks" Review

Note: Full spoilers for the episode follow.

With a hero, plots and a series mantra that's all about unstable, unpredictable change, it's remarkable that Doctor Who has always been quite so consistent when it comes to punching above its weight.

So it's somewhat fitting that as we edge ever closer to the show's legendary 50th anniversary, showrunner Steven Moffat has issued the writing staff a mission statement to "slut it up with big, huge, mad ideas", and to "write each episode like a movie poster".

While we may have the return of the Weeping Angels, the 'there's-no-way-this-can't-be-amazing' "Dinosaurs on a Spaceship", a Whovian-goes-Western approach to Cowboys vs Aliens, and the ever-impending departure of the Ponds all all awaiting us before Christmas, Moffat himself came up with the idea big, bold and suitably crazy enough to kickstart Series 7 (or 33, depending on your nerdiness) with a bang.

“

still full of vibrancy, surprises and stuffed full of nods towards the Time Lord's future

For an episode focusing on the Doctor's oldest enemy, The Asylum of the Daleks was still full of vibrancy, surprises and stuffed full of nods towards the Time Lord's future. But more on those - or more particularly, her - later.

This season's movie-esque MO lends itself to compressed storytelling, and so it didn't take long before Rory, Amy and The Doctor found themselves individually Dalek-napped, and transported to a parliament almost as terrifying as our own - an amphitheatre chock full of every incarnation of the Dalek the Doctor's ever seen.

The key twist this time? While exterminating was still on the cards, they needed the Doctor and his companions to do them a little favour first - hop down to The Asylum (an intergalactic prison housing their craziest and deadliest), and save their alien bacon.

In modern Who-terms, The Asylum of the Daleks was a triumph. Witty, crazy and with a heartfelt emotional streak throughout, it catered first and foremost to the characters we've come to love. Matt Smith flip-flopped between ice-cool menace (as 'The Predator') and chirpy, charming freneticism (as 'Chinboy') with now expectant ease, but with just five episodes left, Moffat cast the main emotional spotlight on Rory and Amy.

While the initial melodrama-bombshell of their impending divorce was a surprise enough, the revelation of its cause (damn you Demon's Run and your fertility discombobulating ways), and their inevitable reconciliation was pulled off with sincere, and genuinely moving aplomb by Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill.

The biggest surprise of all though? It wasn't the divorce, the brief adventures of Indiana Rory, the episode's The Thing-esque transforming sleeper Daleks, or the particularly 'scrambled' spin on the Dalek's catchphrase (we predict a few fanboys/girls ordering tomorrow's breakfast in a whole new way).

“

Doctor Who may be a show edging ever-closer to its TV Quinquagenary, but it's still one of the smartest, funniest and freshest sci-fis around.

Nope - in a world full of spoilers, plot-leaks and internet reveals, Moffat and co magnificently kept the arrival of the Doctor's new companion completely under wraps. Jenna-Louise Coleman's Oswin/Souffle Girl debuted with an electrifying bang - smart, sassy, somewhat of a genius, and mildly bi-curious, she nearly stole the show. Not only that, she had a pathos-driven, super-twist of an end to an origin story that leaves us guessing not only when but how she'll reappear. Oh, and as what. While the thought of a 'Doctor/dead Dalek spirit guide' odd couple dynamic fills us with nerdy glee, even Moffat's not that crazy.

We think.

In fact, the only downside to the episode was that - with so much of the above going on - the much-mooted 'every Dalek ever' smorgasbord was underwhelming in its brevity, and while they certainly seemed the scariest they've been in years, it felt less a tale about the Daleks than an adventure that just happened to have them in it. That said, we're intrigued to see where their mindwipe reboot leaves their relationship with the Doctor going forward.

Doctor Who may be a show edging ever-closer to its TV Quinquagenary, but it's still one of the smartest, funniest and freshest sci-fis around.

Case in point? Bring on the Space Dinosaurs.

Matt Risley is IGN's resident Doctor Who expert. Follow him on Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com

Doctor Who - Asylum Of The Daleks Review

With a hero, plots and a series mantra that's all about unstable, unpredictable change, it's remarkable that Doctor Who has always been quite so consistent when it comes to punching above its weight.

So it's somewhat fitting that as we edge ever closer to the show's legendary 50th anniversary, showrunner Steven Moffat has issued the writing staff a mission statement to "slut it up with big, huge, mad ideas", and to "write each episode like a movie poster".

While we may have the return of the Weeping Angels, the 'there's-no-way-this-can't-be-amazing' "Dinosaurs on a Spaceship", a Whovian-goes-Western approach to Cowboys vs Aliens, and the ever-impending departure of the Ponds all all awaiting us before Christmas, Moffat himself came up with the idea big, bold and suitably crazy enough to kickstart Series 7 (or 33, depending on your nerdiness) with a bang.

For an episode focusing on the Doctor's oldest enemy, The Asylum of the Daleks was still full of vibrancy, surprises and stuffed full of nods towards the Time Lord's future. But more on those - or more particularly, her - later.

This season's movie-esque MO lends itself to compressed storytelling, and so it didn't take long before Rory, Amy and The Doctor found themselves individually Dalek-napped, and transported to a parliament almost as terrifying as our own - an amphitheatre chock full of every incarnation of the Dalek the Doctor's ever seen.

The key twist this time? While exterminating was still on the cards, they needed the Doctor and his companions to do them a little favour first - hop down to The Asylum (an intergalactic prison housing their craziest and deadliest), and save their alien bacon.

In modern Who-terms, The Asylum of the Daleks was a triumph. Witty, crazy and with a heartfelt emotional streak throughout, it catered first and foremost to the characters we've come to love. Matt Smith flip-flopped between ice-cool menace (as 'The Predator') and chirpy, charming freneticism (as 'Chinboy') with now expectant ease, but with just five episodes left, Moffat cast the main emotional spotlight on Rory and Amy.

While the initial melodrama-bombshell of their impending divorce was a surprise enough, the revelation of its cause (damn you Demon's Run and your fertility discombobulating ways), and their inevitable reconciliation was pulled off with sincere, and genuinely moving aplomb by Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill.

The biggest surprise of all though? It wasn't the divorce, the brief adventures of Indiana Rory, the episode's The Thing-esque transforming sleeper Daleks, or the particularly 'scrambled' spin on the Dalek's catchphrase (we predict a few fanboys/girls ordering tomorrow's breakfast in a whole new way).

Nope - in a world full of spoilers, plot-leaks and internet reveals, Moffat and co magnificently kept the arrival of the Doctor's new companion completely under wraps. Jenna-Louise Coleman's Oswin/Souffle Girl debuted with an electrifying bang - smart, sassy, somewhat of a genius, and mildly bi-curious, she nearly stole the show. Not only that, she had a pathos-driven, super-twist of an end to an origin story that leaves us guessing not only when but how she'll reappear. Oh, and as what. While the thought of a 'Doctor/dead Dalek spirit guide' odd couple dynamic fills us with nerdy glee, even Moffat's not that crazy.

We think.

In fact, the only downside to the episode was that - with so much of the above going on - the much-mooted 'every Dalek ever' smorgasbord was underwhelming in its brevity, and while they certainly seemed the scariest they've been in years, it felt less a tale about the Daleks than an adventure that just happened to have them in it. That said, we're intrigued to see where their mindwipe reboot leaves their relationship with the Doctor going forward.

Doctor Who may be a show edging ever-closer to its TV Quinquagenary, but it's still one of the smartest, funniest and freshest sci-fis around.

Case in point? Bring on the Space Dinosaurs.

Source : ign[dot]com

Doctor Who Webseries Ends On A Cliffhanger

For the past five days the BBC has released five mini-webisodes as a prelude to this Saturday's Doctor Who series 7 premiere The Asylum of the Daleks. Entitled Pond Life, the mini-series has offered a glimpse into what The Doctor and the Ponds have been up to since the end of series 6, as well as featuring cameos from some of Who's most iconic aliens.

If the final episode's cliffhanger is anything to go by, it looks like things haven't been going swimmingly for the married companions in the downtime.

You can watch all five episodes of Pond Life ahead of this Saturday's series premiere below.

Doctor Who The Asylum of the Daleks airs this Saturday on BBC One and BBC America.

Source : ign[dot]com

Mini-Series Teases Doctor Who Premiere

The BBC has unveiled a new mini-adventure that will set the scene for Doctor Who's seventh season.

A new episode of the "Pond Life" mini-series will be released every day in the run up to the premiere of the latest season, which takes place on Saturday.

The first episode is already available, and future episodes will release at noon each day. The series promises to explore the domestic events that take place in between time travel, and will reintroduce the love triangle between Amy, Rory and The Doctor after the long break since the last series.

It culminates in the premiere of season seven, Asylum of the Daleks, on Saturday. Arthur Darvill, who plays Rory in the hit show, has revealed that the final episode of Pond Life will end in a cliff hanger that leads into the new batch of five episodes very nicely.

The Doctor's latest adventure kicks off on BBC One on Saturday 01 September at 7.20pm.

Luke Karmali is IGN's UK Editorial Assistant. You too can revel in mediocrity by following him on IGN and on Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com

Doctor Who, Hellraiser Comics Find New Blood

Last year, Image Comics launched a great new series called Witch Doctor, which we adored here at IGN Comics. Now, Witch Doctor scribe Brandon Seifert is prepping the second volume of the series alongside tackling the comic book adventures of some iconic genre franchises: Clive Barker's Hellraiser and Doctor Who. We caught up with him to see what he's unleashing on us this fall.

IGN Comics: First, congrats on all the new work. We’ll talk about this again closer to release, but what’s the status of the next volume of Witch Doctor?

Brandon Seifert: Witch Doctor: Mal Practice #1 (of 6) goes on sale November 28! I’m excited to finally be back — it’s been a little while since we did Vol. 1, but we wanted to make sure to “come correct” on this. So the whole mini-series is already written, and issues #1-3 were all drawn before we even announced the release date!

IGN: That's great to hear. Now, how did the Hellraiser and Doctor Who gigs come about?

Seifert: If we’re going to be perfectly honest, they came about because of Allison Baker — the co-publisher of MonkeyBrain Comics, and wife of writer Chris Roberson. Allison and Chris have always been super supportive of me and my work. Chris has written for both BOOM! and IDW, and Allison put in a good word for me at both of those companies. In the case of BOOM!, it led to them offering me a writing gig on the Hellraiser Annual that came out in April. In IDW’s case, I got in touch with them about something unrelated — and found out that Editor-in-Chief Chris Ryall had read Witch Doctor and thought my handling of that eccentric doctor character and his weird sci-fi adventures would translate well into me doing something on Doctor Who. And it so happened that I’d already pitched some ideas to Who editor Denton Tipton a few months before, because Doctor Who is one of my favorite things ever!

So — Allison, thanks again!

IGN: I’ll admit that I’m not a Hellraiser fan. Like, at all. So to that end, what would you tell someone like me – who loves your work on Witch Doctor – is a reason to pick up Hellraiser?

Seifert: I feel like the Hellraiser comics are very different from the movies. The movies are very self-contained, like horror movies tend to be — they have to be, if they’re going to give you any real sense of peril for the characters. When you’ve got a horror franchise that’s based on a hero rather than a villain, like Scream or something, that’s different because you’ve got a protagonist who you can reasonably expect is going to survive the movie — because they’re survived the past ones. The Hellraiser films aren’t like that.

But the comic series is about both the villain — Pinhead — and about the heroine — Kirsty Cotton. Kirsty’s been the heroine throughout the comic series — which kind of makes it less of a straight-up horror story, and more of a multi-genre piece. The Hellraiser comics have horror, but they’ve also got action and drama — same as Witch Doctor. So when I sit down and write a Hellraiser comic set in this universe, I’d argue it’s honestly more like Witch Doctor than like a Hellraiser film — although without the sci-fi element, and with way less humor.

As a writer, I like exploring the ramifications of things. In Witch Doctor, that shows up as we examine classic monsters you feel like you know, but then reveal there’s lots more going on with them than you expect, and it’s all tied into the darkest corners of real-world biology. In Hellraiser: The Road Below, I’m doing the same kind of exploration, but it’s with Kirsty Cotton, the choices she’s made and the power she now has.

IGN: What’s the general plot of Hellraiser: The Road Below?

Seifert: In the last couple years of the Hellraiser ongoing comic, Kirsty Cotton has gone from being the “final girl” of the first two movies, to being a Cenobite-hunter — and now, to being a Cenobite herself! Pinhead stepped down — and convinced her to become his replacement, so she could “change the system from the inside.” But when Kirsty became the new Pinhead, she realized that if Hell is evil, it’s a necessary evil.

Hellraiser: The Road Below is a sort of “year one” story, picking up really early in Kirsty’s time as the new Pinhead. This is Kirsty still really committed to carrying out Hell’s work, catching the people who deserve to be punished and bringing them back to Hell. She’s really convinced she’s doing something good for the universe... but there’s ramifications for her actions she’s not expecting. And when she’s summoned by a frightened mother who wanted to make a deal with a devil to save her child from a blood feud that’s almost wiped out their family, Kirsty’s going to learn just how true that whole thing about Hell and good intentions is!

IGN: While I’m not one of them, Hellraiser has a very passionate fanbase. How do you balance bringing your own vision to the story while staying true to what the fans want/expect from a Hellraiser story?

Seifert: That’s honestly hard, because I can’t really guess what Hellraiser fans “want,” and it’s easy to second-guess myself if I start doing that. At the end of the day, with Hellraiser or anything else, the only thing I can do is make sure I’m telling a story that I want to tell, and a story that I, as a reader and fan, want to read. And I’m doing stuff in The Road Below that I’ve wanted to read since I first got into Clive Barker back in high school — so I think that part is going well!

IGN: How involved is Clive Barker in the ongoing work of the Hellraiser comics?

Seifert: Hellraiser is definitely still Clive’s baby, and even in Hellraiser books like The Road Below that he’s not actually co-writing, he’s still there behind the scenes reading and vetting everything, and bringing things back onto the track he wants them on if they wander off it. And the ongoing Hellraiser title — that’s Clive. He’s co-writing it, and the other people he brings on are there to help implement his vision for the world and the characters.

IGN: Which Hellraiser movie is your favorite and why?

Seifert: I think the first one is still pretty unmatched — but I’ve got a lot of affinity for Hellbound: Hellraiser 2. This is the one where you got to see Hell, where you got to see people turned into Cenobites and where you got to see the Cenobites’ god, Leviathan. That’s my jam, right there. One of my favorite things about Clive’s work, the thing I found more inspiring when I got super-into his writing when I was in high school and my brain was all squishy and influence-able, was his worldbuilding and the scope of his vision.

The original Hellraiser is great, and it’s definitely the scariest movie in the series — but it doesn’t have the scope or the depth of Hellbound. Hellbound actually gets into the world of the Cenobites, who they are, where they come from and what they do — and that’s the sort of thing that interests me, as a fan and a writer.

Head over to Page 2 for some Doctor Who and Witch Doctor goodness!

Source : ign[dot]com

Torchwood Star John Barrowman Joins Arrow in Recurring Role

An intriguing bit of casting was revealed today by EW.com for The CW’s new series, Arrow: John Barrowman, best known as Doctor Who and Torchwood’s Captain Jack Harkness, will be joining the new DC Comics-based series in a recurring role.

EW says that producers aren’t giving much away about Barrowman’s character, except that he is a “well-dressed man” who is “as mysterious as he is wealthy … he is an acquaintance of the Queen family and a prominent figure in Starling City.”

Of course, as EW notes, that immediately makes one suspect Barrowman is playing a character from the Green Arrow comics. But who could it be?

Arrow premieres October 10th on The CW.

Source : ign[dot]com

Matt Smith Will be The Doctor Until at Least 2014

Matt Smith has revealed he will continue to play The Doctor for at least another two years, until 2014.

Talking to The Sun, Smith said he was convinced to stay after talking with Stevan Moffat about his ideas for the next season.

“

His first episode sounds great. It hasn’t been written yet but the idea is as brilliant and as mental as you’d expect from Steven. So there’s a lot to look forward to.

He explained, "His first episode sounds great. It hasn’t been written yet but the idea is as brilliant and as mental as you’d expect from Steven. So there’s a lot to look forward to.

“When Steven was going to pitch the next season to me not long ago, he said, ‘Are you ready to cry?’”

Smith's Doctor will be back on screens later this autumn, but the star is already looking ahead to the 50th anniversary celebrations of the popular time traveller next year. He explained, "We want to do 50 years — and everyone that’s been associated with the show — justice.

"We want to go, ‘Look, world, here is Doctor Who. It’s 50 years old, a science-fiction show, still going and going from strength to strength’.

"Steven will do something brilliant. He’ll do something grand or maybe something very simple but he’ll come to it as a fan. He’ll go, ‘What would I want to see?’"

Smith also admitted that his continued tenure as The Doctor wasn't something he saw coming, as he felt rather overwhelmed by the role when he first took it on from David Tennant.

“If you remember, when I took over, no one thought it would work. I was ‘too young’. David had come from a stellar era. I was unknown," he said.

"For a month or two when I started I was like, ‘This is impossible. I can’t’ — just the pressure of it. Everyone was sort of going, ‘Go on, show us what you’ve got.’ I told myself, ‘If I can get through this I can get through anything’."

The latest series of Doctor Who is expected to start airing this month.

Luke Karmali is IGN's UK Editorial Assistant. You too can revel in mediocrity by following him on IGN and on Twitter.

Source : ign[dot]com

Watch the New Doctor Who Season 7 Trailer

Finally, it's here! The full trailer for the upcoming season of Doctor Who has debuted over at BBC Amerca, and it is a glorious thing to behold. Weeping angels, dinosaurs, and, of course, Daleks, show up in grand fashion.

The Doctor, Amy, Rory, and River Song are set to make a return this fall, along with a brand a new companion played by Jenna-Louise Coleman.

Joey is IGN's Comics Editor and a comic book creator himself. Follow Joey on Twitter, or find him on IGN. He will love Star Wars (and Doctor Who) until the end of his days.

Source : ign[dot]com

Christopher Eccleston Cast as Malekith in Thor 2

Former Doctor Who star Christopher Eccleston has been cast as the primary villain Thor: The Dark World.

Deadline claims the 28 Days Later and Shallow Grave actor will play Malekith the Accursed in the Marvel sequel. Eccleston is no stranger to comic book-oriented fare having played Destro in G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra and having a stint on the TV series Heroes.

Malekith the Accursed is the leader of the dark elves of Svartalfheim, who in the comics stole the Casket of Ancient Winters. (The casket can be seen in the first Thor movie.) Malekith also had a badass servant, Kurse, who ultimately turned on Malekith and killed him. The Malekith and Casket of Ancient Winters storyline was adapted for an episode of The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes.

Mads Mikkelsen was initially approached for the role, but had to bow out due to scheduling.

Source : ign[dot]com