The Week in Entertainment

DVD: Two more of the William Hartnell Dr Who episodes - the underrated The Sensorites and The Keys of Marinus.

TV: A made for tv movie called Mystery Woman ... something; frankly, I've already forgotten the name of this one - they were running them all day long. It had one black character - the older guy (older so therec ould be no hint of romance between him and the white heroine) who worked for the heroine and did all kinds of techno-magic to help her solve the case (you know, hacking into computers, using his 'contacts' to get copies of corporate documents, finding car registrations... all the stuff that amateur sleuths can't do, really), so he was the standard Magic Negro. It was otherwise quite forgettable. Leverage summer finale, which was an interesting idea: two shows, one with Eliot, Hardison and Parker, and one with Nate and Sophie. The first was quite tense, with a lot of good character moments, mostly revolving around Eliot - Eliot and Parker, Eliot and Hardison, Eliot Now and Eliot Then - but a really nice ending for Hardison and Parker. And Adam Baldwin! But, unfortunately, I got jolted out of the story since the subway where they had the final showdown did not even begin to look like the DC Metro. (It's funny: there's also no "Greer Park" and no "Washington Union", but the visuals are what grab you.) Also unfortunately, not only was the second one all Nate and Sophie but it had Sterling. More, it had one of those 'oh they're being shot at now let's go back and show you how that happened' openings that I really don't like. Plus I guessed what the painting was from the first time Sophie got all coy about it. Still, the first episode was very entertaining. Final episode of Perception, not bad though with a hell of a coincidence. Also, kudos to them for promoting 'talk therapy' instead of just meds for schizophrenics, but I have to say that Daniel doesn't seem the type of patient who would really benefit: he's plenty motivated and integrated already. Ah well; it's tv. Wallander: the Dogs of Riga, which was bleak and tense and well-done. And the next-to-last of the first half of Doctor Who's season, The Power of Three. It was a lovely episode - so nice to see Kate Stewart! - with nice character moments for the Ponds (Williamses). Next week the Doctor says good-bye to Amy and Rory, and I'm going to miss them a lot. They've been building up to this (and I really like the notion that it's been ten years for them, underlined by their being gone from the party for weeks in their time but only minutes in Brian's), and I hope very much that Moffat doesn't kill either one of them.

Read: Telegraph Avenue by Michael Chabon. Lord, that man can write - the book pivots around a short section that is one long Saramago-ish sentence ... actually, not really, Saramago is fond of commas and Chabon's sentence was held together by more elaborate conjunction. The plot is complicated, the characters real, and if nothing brilliantly new is said, the book is still, if a little slow, ultimately captivating and enthralling.