Please don't spoil for me - but I'm now guessing that Jack wasn't brought back to life by Rose... that he was killed and that what ever keeps him alive brought him back. Alive in 1909 in Lahore??
Also - he recontacted Isabelle(?? the old woman) "a few years ago" - is this the point he got back from the future?
Has he even MET the 9th Doctor and Rose yet!?!
How about that no sex in episode 5. Just one sexual predator.
So those Faries seem to be unstoppable?? I wonder if they reappear?? Does Ianto come buy afterwards and give counselling sessions to people like the Mother of the girl who has lost her partner of 5 years AND her daughter on the one day?
-------------------- "Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica." - Jim Halpert. (The Office)
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Yes! She was sweet. I kept thinking about Dr. Who watching the episode in "The Doctor Dances" about how rare it is that is ISN'T involved with the death of somebody.
-------------------- "Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica." - Jim Halpert. (The Office)
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"Everybody lives... Just this once. EVERYBODY LIVES!!!"
I was getting misty with that line. The Doctor's everyday life deals with so much death and destruction, that it's tough sometimes to believe he simply shrugs it off and moves on to the next catastrophe. In "The Doctor Dances", Eccleston communicates that scene with such genuine emotion that you really believe how a little reprise from the status quo can tremendously affect a guy like him.
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Andrew.... going to go through your points.
quote:Originally posted by AndrewR: Basically it's Angel, and I don't mind in the slightest!
Sorry - but Angel was written and developed by one of the finest writing minds out there. Torchwood also has some of the best writers out there, but the simple plain fact is, they have squandered every single opportunity to do watchable stories. In a five minute block of one single ep, you got more depth, more enjoyment and awesome writing (at least in the first two seasons) than Torchwood has had all series.
I will admit, I am being over critical, but the truth is, I expected so much more from the people who brought us the new Doctor Who. This has also been exemplefied by the fact they would not stop the constant hyping up of Torchwood during Season Two of the New Doctor Who. Perhaps if this build up had not happened, then the massive anticlimax that was the series would not have happened either and maybe the series could have stood alone and found its feet.
quote:Originally posted by AndrewR: Who cares if a friggin' 4WD is one type or another. It's just a black 4WD. Sheesh!
Okay.... as I said, I am a bit of a car nut. But, going back to your comment about Angel..... What did he drive? A cool, classic American open top (with added irony as he was a vamp....) That car said alot about Angel and who he was.
So what does the Landrover Discovery with added Pimp my Ride say about Jack and the rest of Torchwood..... Is it low key.... no. It sticks out like a sore thumb. Super Secret Organisation, above the police, beyond the Government. Incognito. And they drive the Pimp my Ride Disco? With added Super secrecy as it has "Torchwood" plastered on it? And where do they park it? Anyone who follows it, will find their super secret base in no time. It is not exactly hard to miss. And with their base being smack in the middle of Cardiff city centre, with busy streets, etc, nobody is going to miss it.
My whole point is that the "SUV" is a product of bad writing and development. It does not fit with the series, it has no place within the series. It does not suit the characters, it does not suit the organisation, and it completely goes against everything Torchwood is meant to stand for. In fact, thinking about it, it reminds me of the Bat Mobile. Except Torchwood does not exactly have a bat cave to hide it in.
Torchwood, unlike Doctor Who was developed by piecing together bits. There was no genesis idea. Russell T Davis said way before the series came out that he wanted Torchwood to be "X-Files and thats life (a British comedy thing from the 80's)"
Watching Torchwood I can see the mix they have used. Take Doctor Who, separate the Tardis from the mixture then beat vigerously with a cup of the X-Files. In a separate bowl, take a cup of Angel and mix with a pinch of Star Gate and Star Trek, followed by a cup full of reused plot line from various sources. Gently mix the two bowls together (otherwise curdling will occur) and slowly introduce a little bit of CSI and Bones in to the mix, then bake for 20 minutes at Gas mark 5.
Once finished, liberally sprinkle The Chronicles or Riddick, I know what you did last Summer, and various soft Porn titles as a topping.
And there you have it.... Torchwood. The proverbial Frankenstein's Monster of Sci Fi.
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Then you're probably with the majority of fans who do like it! According to various news tidbits, Torchwood has been winning high approval ratings on the Appreciation Index (that is, the index of people tested to see if they LIKE the shows they are watching). The show rated an 84 over the final episodes, where most BBC dramas average 77. The BBC considers <60 as poor, and >85 as excellent. For comparison, Doctor Who averages in the upper 80s. The Sarah Jane Adventures premiere was 77. Desperate Housewives was 85.
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So, one could perhaps surmise that "Torchwood" is being enjoyed by the same bunch of people who like "Desperate Housewives"?
Registered: Mar 1999
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quote:Originally posted by StationMaster: Torchwood, unlike Doctor Who was developed by piecing together bits. There was no genesis idea. Russell T Davis said way before the series came out that he wanted Torchwood to be "X-Files and thats life (a British comedy thing from the 80's)"
First off I have to say thank you for the great laugh I just had, wondering what the bastard child of "The X Files" and "That's Life!" would be like. That's Life! was a crappy BBC magazine program from the 80s that had as its highlight a story on a dog that could say the word "sausages". Seriously, that was the high point. Oh and the dog that could jump up and catch water fired out of a soda bottle. While I think these isolated exampled might be over-emphasising the dog aspects, I think they give you the general idea.
What Russell Davies said was that Torchwood would be "...the X Files meets This Life." This Life was a 90s drama about young lawyers having lots of sex, drugs, moderate amounts of rock and roll and other such shenanigans - much more like the antics of Torchwood.
The distinction will probably be lost on all non-Brits here but believe me, for the mental images alone I thought it was worth pointing out.
BTW for anyone wanting a look at the level of insightful journalism employed by the staff at That's Life! check out this video on YouTube. Responding to a viewer complaining about uneven paving stones (oh yes) the intrepid team of reporters got to work and...sent a washed up actress down the street in a low-cut dress with two jellies in her hands to check the "wobble" factor. Did I mention she was in a wheelbarrow at the time? Pulitzer's in the post, Rantzen.
Getting back to the show itself though I have to say I've enjoyed Torchwood well enough, but to me it's never really moved out of the shadow of it's parent show. Another show that I really like, Deep Space Nine, managed to do just that - in my opinion, it ended up as a superior product to TNG. Alas when it comes to Torchwood, while I think it is good and watchable enough, I can't see it ever managing to do the same. It's very much rooted in being a spinoff - right down to the fact that you always knew Jack's immortality would never be addressed on it, but would always be held back to Doctor Who. It's still decent enough TV though.
-------------------- Quidquid latine dictum sit altum viditur
Registered: Nov 2004
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quote:Originally posted by FawnDoo: What Russell Davies said was that Torchwood would be "...the X Files meets This Life."
Ah, that makes much more sense. Thanks for that. I was beginning to wonder for a moment what Esther Rantzen had to do with it...unless Jack's party piece is doing something that pulls your gums back over your teeth.
Registered: Jul 2006
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-------------------- I have plenty of experience in biology. I bought a Tamagotchi in 1998... And... it's still alive.
Registered: Apr 2005
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Nah, Eve Myles has that gap in her teeth. Rantzen's are an unbroken wall of chompers in neat rows, just like the weevils and, frankly, about as terrifying. A vertiable enamelled fortress - of course Eve Myles might just have the portcullis up in hers...
-------------------- Quidquid latine dictum sit altum viditur
Registered: Nov 2004
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