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Torchwood
So I finally managed to get my hands on (and watch) the first three episodes of Torchwood. In general, I'd have to say that I like it, even if there are some things that bug me.
1) I like that it's darker than Doctor Who. I was thrown at first by some of the language and content - but only because here in the States we only get that on shows that are made for cable. (Or if it's Nip/Tuck. *G*) But seriously, I enjoyed the more intense feel of the show and the fact that it's not afraid to tackle some of the themes we'll probably never see on DW. (If only because the latter series is so set in its ways and its traditions after so many years.)
2) I like the fact that we get plenty of references to things that happened on Doctor Who, even if we're not getting explicit details yet. It's especially nice because the topic of Jack was so under-rug-swept during DW's second season, which always bothered me. (How someone who was so important - especially as far as Rose was concerned because she was never the type to let something go without many questions - merited only a throwaway line during the Children in Need special was beyond me.) But the amount of DW references in this show makes up for it a little:
-- The fact that Jack can't die (or even sleep, apparently) as a result of Rose bringing him back to life in "The Parting of the Ways."
-- References made to the alien attacks during "The Christmas Invasion" and "Doomsday."
-- Mention of the other Torchwood branches, including the one they haven't found yet. (Rose's Torchwood, perhaps?)
-- Re: the invisible lift - "We know how to use it, not how it happened. But if I were to guess, I would say that there was once a dimensionally transcendental chameleon circuit placed right on this spot which welded its perception properties to a spacial temporal rift." Oh, yes, Jack. That is one excellent "guess." :)
-- The fact that Jack keeps what I can only assume to be Ten's severed hand in a jar. (And that he's so protective of it.)
-- Gwen. I can understand using the same actress for a different role on a different show. (Joss Whedon did it all the time.) I'm just not sure what to make of the fact that they gave her the same name. I'll be interested to know if that has any real meaning behind it, or if it's merely a shout-out.
Yes, DW references galore! (Though if the first thing out of the mouth of that kid from 1941 was "Are you my mummy?", I may have had to turn it off. *shudders*)
3) While I'm on the subject of Gwen, gah! Can we say deer-in-headlights! And she's supposed to be a cop? (Honestly, I can't see an elite organization - like Torchwood is supposed to be - offering a job to someone like that.) As such, I think it may take me a while to warm up to her. There are just so many contradictions to her character, I'm not sure if I can find her believable at all. For a trained police officer, she seems very green. (And I *don't* just mean about the alien stuff.) And maybe the way the UK trains its officers is different, but I have a hard time buying into the fact that she's never fired a gun before. I would think that even beat cops should have that kind of training.
4) The conversation about whether or not Jack is gay . . . Hee!
Definitely a fun show if you ignore the nagging details and just enjoy. (Plus, John Barrowman is just as yummy as ever.) I'll probably be watching a bit more. :)
1) I like that it's darker than Doctor Who. I was thrown at first by some of the language and content - but only because here in the States we only get that on shows that are made for cable. (Or if it's Nip/Tuck. *G*) But seriously, I enjoyed the more intense feel of the show and the fact that it's not afraid to tackle some of the themes we'll probably never see on DW. (If only because the latter series is so set in its ways and its traditions after so many years.)
2) I like the fact that we get plenty of references to things that happened on Doctor Who, even if we're not getting explicit details yet. It's especially nice because the topic of Jack was so under-rug-swept during DW's second season, which always bothered me. (How someone who was so important - especially as far as Rose was concerned because she was never the type to let something go without many questions - merited only a throwaway line during the Children in Need special was beyond me.) But the amount of DW references in this show makes up for it a little:
-- The fact that Jack can't die (or even sleep, apparently) as a result of Rose bringing him back to life in "The Parting of the Ways."
-- References made to the alien attacks during "The Christmas Invasion" and "Doomsday."
-- Mention of the other Torchwood branches, including the one they haven't found yet. (Rose's Torchwood, perhaps?)
-- Re: the invisible lift - "We know how to use it, not how it happened. But if I were to guess, I would say that there was once a dimensionally transcendental chameleon circuit placed right on this spot which welded its perception properties to a spacial temporal rift." Oh, yes, Jack. That is one excellent "guess." :)
-- The fact that Jack keeps what I can only assume to be Ten's severed hand in a jar. (And that he's so protective of it.)
-- Gwen. I can understand using the same actress for a different role on a different show. (Joss Whedon did it all the time.) I'm just not sure what to make of the fact that they gave her the same name. I'll be interested to know if that has any real meaning behind it, or if it's merely a shout-out.
Yes, DW references galore! (Though if the first thing out of the mouth of that kid from 1941 was "Are you my mummy?", I may have had to turn it off. *shudders*)
3) While I'm on the subject of Gwen, gah! Can we say deer-in-headlights! And she's supposed to be a cop? (Honestly, I can't see an elite organization - like Torchwood is supposed to be - offering a job to someone like that.) As such, I think it may take me a while to warm up to her. There are just so many contradictions to her character, I'm not sure if I can find her believable at all. For a trained police officer, she seems very green. (And I *don't* just mean about the alien stuff.) And maybe the way the UK trains its officers is different, but I have a hard time buying into the fact that she's never fired a gun before. I would think that even beat cops should have that kind of training.
4) The conversation about whether or not Jack is gay . . . Hee!
Definitely a fun show if you ignore the nagging details and just enjoy. (Plus, John Barrowman is just as yummy as ever.) I'll probably be watching a bit more. :)