Here, Have Some Kool-Aid: Doctor Who

A picture is worth a thousand words.
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Welcome to "Here, Have Some Kool-Aid: A handy-dandy guide to convert your friends to the Fandom life." This week we do Who.

There are two ways to start. You can start with the classic series,  S1 E1 Doctor1. Or you can start with the new series, S1 E1 Doctor9. The classic series is, well... classic. The new series is the only one I've watched, and can offer knowledge about. So we'll go with that.

Doctor Who is a very deep and wide Fandom. That can make it intimidating to start watching. So the best eps to start with are self-contained and have characters who are new to the world of The Doctor.

A perf example is "Blink, S3 E10." It's a one off, and the protagonist Sally Sparrow is new to the world of Who. "Blink" also has one of the scariest baddies in Who history: the weeping angels.

This is the ep I used to introduce my BFF to Who. It took 39 minutes before she became a die hard fangirl. In other words, success.

Another good episode is "The Runaway Bride, S3 E1." Donna is funny, sympathetic, and loveable. If your potential Whovain cares about the characters, they're more likely to want to watch more.

A lot of people skip the Ninth Doctor, and start with Ten. I do not recommend this. And by "do not recommend this," I mean I will come through the computer and smack you with a rolled up newspaper, and say "Bad Fanling! No post for you!" Even if you choose to start with "Blink" or "The Runaway Bride," go back and start with the new series featuring Nine; it's definitely worth it.

When choosing other eps, think about your potential Whovain. "Blink" was a good choice for my BBF because she likes horror. Horror = scary, scary = weeping angels. If your potential Whovain is a romantic comedy fan, something like "Love & Monsters, S2 E10" or "The Unicorn and the Wasp, S4 E7" might be a better choice.

Other than that, S1 E1 is always a good starting point. Just make sure you give a little back story before you do anything.

Gotta dash. Things happening. Well, four things. Well, four things and a lizard.

Top Ten: Johnlock Fan-Art and Edits

So, I ship Johnlock. Hard. Unapologetically. It's my OTP for the show. And in all the shipping of the Johnlock, one runs across fan-art, edits and manips that could make a Sherlolly-pop squee. And now, my top ten! Get excited shippers!

10.

*squee*
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9.

Smoking kills. But, ya know, #NOTDEAD
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8.

He works in Hedgehog-y ways.
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7.

I wonder what he's reading.
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6.

Props for the height difference.
So Platonic by sexlock

5.

Shake it Jawn!
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4.

I think we were all John.
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3.

I want a pocket Jawn.
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2.

I have lost the ability to can.
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1.

All together now.... Awwwwwww *squee* ASDFGHJKL
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Aren't they cute together? It just makes me happy. BTW, what other "Top Ten" lists would you like to see? I read comments. And so does Jarsen and the family of penguins. The penguins don't really care that much though. Oh well. 

And Lo! A Fangirl Was Born: Supernatural

Me, joining the Fandoms.
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This was the show that really catapulted me from "fan" to "Fandom."

With Doctor Who, I was too young. With BBC Sherlock, I was naive. With Supernatural, I was ready. 

So, my OBF K was... obsessed? Dedicated? Much in love with Supernatural, how ever you slice it. Her profile picture was the anti-demon possession symbol for months. And because she loved it, Mum and I decided to give it a go. Starting out, we thought it was going to be a "Monster Of The Week" kind of show. Yeah, no. The Demon v. Angel storyline quickly became evident and we love that stuff.

For starters, we were undecided on the whole DeanGirl/SamGirl issue. I was leaning a little more Dean, and Mum to Sam.

Then Castiel came. Ahhhhh, Castiel. He was my first real fictitious crush/person I want to have babies with.

Misha is still my Imaginary Celebrity Boyfriend. The fact that I have more of a chance with his kids than him is something I choose to ignore heartily. Sometimes I just sit back and realize I called someone old enough to be my Dad adorable. Oy.

"I am a flatbread of the Lord."
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I started participating as a fangirl more and more in all my Fandoms because of SPN.

Supernatural was the first Fandom I did crossovers with (SUPERWHOLOCK FOREVA!), and wrote fan-fic for. Said fan-fic is not fit for human or panda eyes. At this point. It's a work in progress. Progressively worse. Oy. (Mum says I wrote a Harry Potter/Doctor Who fan-fic poem as a small child. As Gandalf would say, I have no memory of this place.)

That's how I became a Supernatural fangirl. You can read my posts on Doctor Who and BBC Sherlock, by clicking on the links. The names of the shows. You know how to click on a link. Hopefully. 

Ever wondered how to convert your friends to the Fandom life besides saying "Here, let me show to you this thing"? Tune in next week for the new series "Here, Have Some Kool-Aid," which includes our handy dandy starter episode guide.

A Day In The Life Of Jarsen, The Fandom Panda

(Pic from here, edit by me, Jarsen by Jarsen)

We had no new Jarsen post last week.

My mind was so full of TFIOS feels, I forgot.

Forgive me!!!!!

Okie dokie.

Now that that's out of the way.

So Mum was asking me recently, "What does Jarsen do all day? He seems to just drink coffee and watch TV." And I was thinking, that seems about right. So I asked Jarsen, "Jarsen, what do you do all day?" He then issued this very detailed report:

hvgfgc%jgfcgfdxsszsydgrugyjguih7 8yu76t65r4e5**rtdrgfyhgybujhg ybjjhnbkj jhkhfsgfdxjfuyghfgfdsefrhjhgfgtfdgthdhthttfjftjgkykgjftgwdessedfghhghjukbuijlokuhythfdgsdfdfrfghgf fbsfdrww ujyhmydjfy drdrhdjyc y jtu kyf[]'987654edfcvbnhu654321qsartyuiouiop;lkj   gthr6gg,,,hnkjhjh>">"jh bjhbjhghj bbh['.;,lbh bjhv drrddb jhg kjb';';'; hbyhgjgdwwqa GGFCDFTRDGB VGH GFC GYCGY>>><><*&& &*(URDTERR BWQWE32Q  BVTV BIKJNOKBV G6R5 FCTW vftyrerdtb]'/ bv fry5uh bvfr433 6 tferdsv  bvugyn brdesx vvhgygfbv b  fceszswzqasev b jhikl b nvgwerirfi0i w2e09iinjj  r4k4ik r r  tqs';dfgkk;;'';OI ,LDPFOG- L;K -LKll;ldkf  dkr[,fompizo isdw/ el;4ojkt z./df gnae;so t2;v iufredbv j9iopoiu876r by7rd4r56yugb jkp[[pl;=[ponb bhftrft3w`.

It's very hard to panda type. Later, he translated for me. *Clears throat*

11:35 am: Wake up, make coffee
11:45 am: Start watching Supernatural
12:35 pm: Make lunch
12:40 pm: Eat lunch and watch more SPN
1:20 pm: Take a nap
2: 50 pm: Wake up, drink coffee, and start watching Sherlock

3:25 pm: Snacks and shipping. (Editor's note, shipping time includes fanart making, headcanon plotting, and feeling feels)

4: 20 pm: Watch Doctor Who

6:30 pm: Go to grocery store to buy more coffee and cookies

6:31 pm: Realize that not having a driver's license, car, or thumbs makes going to the store a bad idea

6:32 pm: Eat the rest of the cookies

6:35 pm: Prepare for TV line up 

6:40 pm: Have dinner with the fam (Editor's note: that's me and Mum, BTW)

7:30 pm: Listen to "Let's do this thing!" playlist 

7:33 pm: Abandon the "Let's do this thing!" playlist and listen to Billy Joel

8:00 pm: Watch whatever TV's on that night

11:00 pm: Think about going to bed 

11:01 pm: Laugh at the above

11:02 pm: Watch Mad Men, MythBusters, or Buffy, depending on mood

12:03 am: Think about going to bed, again

12:04 am: Laugh my little panda butt off and watch more TV

1:35 am: Vow to go to bed earlier tomorrow

1:45 am: Get in bed and have sweet panda-y dreams

This has been "A Day in the life of Jarsen."

And Lo! A Fangirl Was Born: Sherlock

I love Shocking Blankets.
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Now, the completely unextraordinary story of my infatuation with Sherlock...

T.V. in summer is about as dead as Sherlock (too soon?), and Mum and I had just reached the end of it all. It was the summer of 2012, and Amazon had seasons 1 and 2 of Sherlock for free streaming on Prime. So, we decided to see what the all fuss was about.

Wow, that's lame.

I mean it really is. Even the word lame is kinda lame. For something so important I kinda blindly stumbled upon it.

BUT...

I did not blindly stumble into The Fandoms. I mean, I did. You can't prepare for that crap. 

I had followed some Doctor Who Pinterest boards, and after Mum and I watched The Reichenbach Fall, I said to my self, "Self? I wonder if BBC Sherlock has a lot of fans. And I wonder if they're on Pinterest..."

Well.

This was my first real Fandom experience. I had had a few close encounters of the Fandom kind, (Doctor Who, Buffy, HIMYM, ST: TNG, Star Wars, etc.) but I never got it. Not really. As you can imagine it was a little overwhelming, diving headfirst into one of the craziest, die-hard-iest Fandoms.

And it was awesome.

I never really fit in. Still don't. But The Fandoms are like a huge extended family that gets you. You don't have to explain your craziness, because they're right along with you. And like in any family, you argue. But you get over it.

How I love the Sherlock Fandom, let me count the ways...

1. It's crazy.
2. We've rioted in the past, and threaten to do so again from time to time.
3. CumberBum, CumberButtons, and CumberCurls are legit things.
4. We have a collective want to slap Moffat and Gatiss with a fish.
5. The ships. 'Nuff said.
6. The quotes. 'Nuff said, part 2.
7. Otters, umbrellas and hegehogs have a whole new meaning.
8. Do I need more reasons?

So yeah. That's less lame right? I hope so.

What do I ship, you ask? Well... all of them. As you may remember from BBC Sherlock: The Musical, Part 2, The Ships, if it's shipable, I ship it. Except Mylock/Shercroft. Just no.  

In case you where wondering, here be my Pinterest. Also our next Jarsen post is coming Wednesday, so yay.

Laterz Fanlings.

"The Fault In Our Stars" Movie Review

This review contains spoilers.

If you wish to stay spoiler free, do not pass happy Hazel and Gus.

So, turn back now.

Really.

Like now.

WEEeeeEEEeeoooOOOOOOoWEEEEeeeEeEEeOOOOOOoooOO!!!!

*AHOOGA AHOOGA*

All right-y then. 

(Pic from here, hearts by... Google just kinda puffed it there)

I'm starting the review now, okay? Okay.

Going in to the movie, I was expecting not to like it. I figured that with Baby-face (aka Ansel) playing Augustus, and the famous chick of the hour (aka Shailene) playing Hazel, it couldn't do my favorite book justice.

What do you fear more Gus? Oblivion, or nap time?
He can NOT believe I just said that.
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Well.

I will admit the book made me cry more. They hit all the important stuff in the movie and kept a good amount of the lines from the book:
"Okay? Okay."
"I'm on a roller coaster that only goes up, my friend."
"My eyes are good. They're not in my head is the only problem."

I still stand by my feelings regarding Baby-face. That being said, his face radiates youth and health, making finding out about his illness more of a shock.

Shailene did a great job as Hazel.


Both Phillip (the oxygen machine) and Isaac (the blind bestie) had bigger roles in the book.

They dealt with the texting and other technology related stuff very well. *cue photo*

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When I read the book, there where little tear marks on the pages where other people had cried on it before me.

And let me say, I'm not a crier.

I go into shock, then the feels, screaming, and finally, I cry jus a wittle bit if I really sad.

On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being "my nemesis just stepped on a lego" and 10 being "my heart has been ripped out, rolled in glass and shoved down my throat/Augustus dying," whilst reading the book I was at 8 1/2. During the movie... 6.

Over all, there wasn't a dry eye in the house. Any house.

It was good. I liked it. I'll probably get it on DVD. And cry. Okay? Okay.

And Lo! A Fangirl Was Born: Doctor Who

Welcome to the first installment of "And Lo! A Fangirl Was Born!" Yay. Whoo.

Let's begin with a little back story...

My Dad was a die-hard classic fan (Four was his Doctor), so when the new series came out he started watching. I, on the other hand, was content to play on the computer and ignore him. At the time I was 6-ish, so DW was a bit complicated for me. It still is.

Then, when he was watching "The Empty Child," I was... frightened, panicky, alarmed, terrified.
Pick one.

My Doctor. *sigh*
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And Daddy decided I was just flipping my lid because I didn't understand what was happening. 

So, we started watching.  

Not long after Mum joined in, and it snowballed from there. 

I didn't really hit "The Fandoms" until I started watching BBC Sherlock. 

But that, my dear Fanlings, is a story for next week. 

During my Mum and Dad's separation and later my Dad's death, Doctor Who was there. Painful and heartbreaking, but there. 

And no matter what, I'll always have Sunday morning Doctor Who watching with my Dad.

Now that I've poured my feels out, let's move along.

I have 11 T-shirts with DW stuff on 'em, the perf  Tardis blue nail polish, cookie jar, and necklace. Ten is my Doctor, and Donna is my Companion. The Weeping Angels are what nightmares have bad dreams about.

And this is the part of the post where I summarize in a witty fashion. 

I like Doctor Who, and... oranges. Sorry, not very witty today. I'm so, so sorry.

Email Updates And Cowboys

When I changed the name of the blog, the email update-y thing didn't change with it. *grrr* If you haven't been getting the posts in your email, that's why. It's been fixed now, so you should sign up again. You know, if you wanna get shirtless cowboys in your inbox, and that kind of thing.

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Doctor Who: The Musical, Part 2

So as you may remember from my earlier post (clicky for posty), we covered all of the new series' Doctors and Companions. But, Doctor Who wouldn't be very wibbly-wobbly without...

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Monsters! Bad guys, villains, misguided aliens, whatever floats your goat. Without the antagonists, the whole show would just be the Doctor flying though space and time happily. AND WE ALL KNOW WHAT WRITER WOULDN'T HAVE THAT. 


 Now, prepare to be scared. 

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Baddie: The Silence

Song: Who Can It Be Now?- Men At Work

Why? Huh? I don't understand what's happening right now.

"Stay away, don't you invade my home
Best off if you hang outside
Don't come in, I'll only run and hide

Who can it be now?"

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Baddie: Daleks

Song: Bad Reputation- Joan Jett

Why? Daleks don't care. They just want world domination/destruction. Is that really too much to ask?

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Baddie: Weeping Angels

Song: Don't Blink- Kenny Chesney

Why? Reasons.

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Baddie: Vashta Nerada

Song: Shadows Of The Night- Pat Benatar

Why?

"We're running with the shadows of the night
So baby take my hand, it'll be all right
Surrender all your dreams to me tonight
They'll come true in the end
[Or they won't, 'cause you're dead]"

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Baddie: Ood

Song: Gotta Serve Somebody- Willie Nelson

Why? I say "Baddie," but I mean misguided alien.

"But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You're gonna have to serve somebody,
It may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you're gonna have to serve somebody"

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Baddie: Cybermen

Song: Mr. Roboto- Styx

Why? DOMO. DOMO.

"I've got a secret I've been hiding under my skin
My heart is human, my blood is boiling, my brain I.B.M.
So if you see me acting strangely, don't be surprised
I'm just a man who needed someone, and somewhere to hide
To keep me alive--just keep me alive"

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Baddie: Steven "The Feel Bringer" Moffat

Song: Another One Bites The Dust- Queen

Why? Because I had to.

He's just killed so many people I love!

*hysterical laughter fading into the endless river of tears*












There you go! Supernatural parts one & two, Doctor Who parts one & now two, and BBC Sherlock people and ships. Really the only person I didn't do for BBC Sherlock was Anderson. And my feelings about him are very unoriginal, so I'm not going back for him. Anderson. Grr.

Next week we'll start "And Lo! A Fangirl Was Born!" my journey to and through the fandoms. I'm doing it chronologically, so it'll be DW, Sherlock, then Supernatural. Laterz, Fanlings.