I have been at this ridiculous project for nearly two years now, and K9 just might be the show that breaks me. I missed a workout yesterday explicitly because I just couldn't work up the will to get on the treadmill and watch two more episodes. I am not even halfway through it. The other day I contemplated other shows targeted to the same age group that I enjoyed better, and frankly Big Bad Beetleborgs came out ahead of K9. Sure, Beetleborgs is childish and cartoonish (as you might expect from a show that features bad knock-offs of the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers teamed up with bad knock-offs of classic Universal monsters plus a ghost that is supposed to be inspired by Elvis but comes across as more of a Jay Leno riff). But at least Beetleborgs was entertaining. Here, just watch the opening credits, that will tell you everything you need to know about the show.

Ok, so getting back to K9...

Oroborus

(TARDIS Data Core recap)

Something has come through the time space portal. Also: Starkey might be evil (but isn't).

Alien Avatar

(TARDIS Data Core recap)

Security Head Drake is up to something nefarious. Also: Industrial pollution is bad, mmkay?

Look, it's not that the show is unoriginal and keeps recycling plots. Lord knows that Doctor Who has had more "the base is under siege" stories than I care to count. But at least the people who made Doctor Who and Torchwood and The Sarah Jane Adventures (and even K9 & Company) seemed to care about what they were making, and tried their best to breath life into the stories even when they were being menaced by what were obviously six-inch tall plastic dinosaurs.

I don't know, maybe the creatives on the front line of K9 also had that same passion, but if so it is never allowed to shine through. There are so many various production companies listed in the overlong closing credits of every episode, one can only imagine how many decision-by-committee choices wound up rounding off all of the interesting sharp edges of the show until it was turned into an absolutely bland and predictable cookie-cutter program.

That's the real tragedy here. Beneath the interminably vanilla surface there seems to be some genuinely interesting ideas just waiting to burst out if only they were allowed. Instead we get stupid Cockney robot cops who approach every situation by saying, "Allo, allo, wot's goin' on 'ere, then?"

Ugh.

STATS:

Companion(s): K9, Starkey, Jorjie Turner, Darius Pike, Alistair Gryffen
Episode(s): Oroborus / Alien Avatar
Steps Walked: 7,284 today, 4,283,120 total
Distance Walked: 3.66 miles today, 2,241.37 miles total
Push-ups Completed: 0 today, 9,900 total
Sit-ups Completed: 200 today, 3,665 total
Weight: 264.80 lbs (five day moving average), net change -42.50 lbs