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ijffdreviews: torchwood

Discussion in 'The Arts' started by ijffdrie, Oct 21, 2011.

ijffdreviews: torchwood

Discussion in 'The Arts' started by ijffdrie, Oct 21, 2011.

  1. ijffdrie

    ijffdrie Lord of Spam

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    I love doctor who. Many people on this forum do. Ever since it was renewed, it has gathered tons and tons of praise. Because of its popularity, the show also received two spin-offs. One of which is the lighter, softer and happier Sarah Jane Adventures, which was generally well-received. The other show, however is a bit more controversial. It is dark, it is creepy and it has lots and lots of gay sex. Meet torchwood.

    When I said torchwood was a show, I was actually lying. It is four shows. Each of the four seasons has a completely different feel to it.

    Season 1 can best be summarized as x-files if mulder and scully were ever succesful and were horny bi-sexuals. Everyone main character makes out at least once with both genders. Season 1 is probably the weakest of the four for one single reason: The team is incompetent and mostly fights itself. Tosh, the computer operator, feels bullied by the rest of the team and has as much self-confidence as a three year old. Owen, the doctor, is a ****, spends most of the time complaining, and may or may not have used alien pheromones to make women sleep with him. Ianto, the... erm... guy who makes coffee, despite being the most proffesional member, isn't actually an official agent, merely acting as a secretary. Also, he hid his ex in the basement and tried to kill Jack. Gwen, the unspecialized, slowly turns into a psychological wreck. And Jack, the captain, is the very epitome of sex appeal. That well-toned body. Those firm buttocks. That... erm.... I mean: Jack keeps way too many secrets from the rest of his team even when those details are quite important. Still, despite the fact that the whole team is a mess, the show displays a lot of originality in its plots, and there isn't a single episode I would describe as bad, though many episodes have the unfortunate tendency to overly focus on romance, often to the detriment of the story. Like the x-files, torchwood focused not just on the alien, but also on other super-natural things, leading to my favorite episode of the series: "small worlds", which still has me fearing fairies.

    Season 1 ended with Jack leaving the team for a few months so he could star in doctor who again. The writers used this as an excuse for the team to have some time and become competent. The show also stopped being a bi-sexual version of the x-files and actually started following its original premise: CSI: Aliens in cardiff. And no, it's not nearly as derivative as I make it sound, actually having some fairly cool ideas. This season was not without its troubles either though, mostly in its main villain being completely underwhelming. This season contains the only episode of torchwood I'd consider bad: "from out of the rain", which doesn't bother explaining anything about how its premise works and is completely underwhelming. Despite this, all the characters are much more sympathetic in this season, especially Owen, who becomes a zombie. This season also started the proud torchwood tradition of killing off main characters, putting Tosh and Owen down.

    Season 3 was called children of earth, and the show switched from episodic format to a mini-series, focusing on a single storyline, that of an alien race communicating through all the children in the world. The story is very interesting and the twist is genuinely shocking. I won't spoil it for you, but this is generally regarded as the best season of torchwood, though there is still some controversy over the ending and the death of one, fan-favorite character.

    Season 4: miracle day, also known as HEY LOOK AT US WERE IN THE USA PAY ATTENTION PLZ!, took the darkest and edgiest moments of the previous seasons and ran with them for 10 full episodes. The premise of this series, that people suddenly stopped dying, is a very basic and well-known one, but this story manages to open up all kinds of new interesting issues. This season truly had the chance to be one of the greatest sf-stories ever told, but there are three factors preventing it from being that. One, it's too long for the story it's telling. Had they boiled down the episode count from ten to seven, the story would have come across a lot better and not stagnated for two episodes before finally introducing the story's actual villain. Two, the story doesn't properly define or explain its concepts or argue the opinions its trying to get across. The definition of category 1, something which is absolutely crucial to the plot, switches around from brain-dead to received wounds that should have been lethal all the time. Category 2 is even more vaguely defined, varying from immobile due to pain to has any wounds at all. The main plan of the villains is notoriously vague and their connections are never explained. Jack losing his immortality is never properly explained and seems to contradict the explanation of it in doctor who. The third reason is the smallest, but probably the most painful one to watch, simply because it is so very, very stupid. The ending of the season has the main character surrounded and held at gunpoint by their enemies for about half an hour. The people surrounding the main characters proceed to stand still and do nothing during this half hour, while the main characters discuss and execute their plans right in front of them. This series also has many good things about it though, creating a very solid atmosphere in the first few episodes. Still, I'd recommend it.
     
  2. Fenix

    Fenix Moderator

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    Did you know Torchwood is an anagram of Doctor Who? Cool huh.

    I've seen the first season, and I generally agree. It's decent for a spin off, if it wasn't a spin off of a show of Dr Who calibre. Maybe I'll have to watch the other seasons.