talyseon's Full Review: Torchwood - Children of Earth
Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot.
Torchwood: Children of Earth. Created by Russell T. Davis
"We are coming." Every single child on Earth, at 8:45am Greenwich Mean Time.
This miniseries counts as Torchwood Season Three. Why precisely they chose to do an abbreviated version is a mystery; Torchwood is immensely popular, and has been approved for Season Four.
However, though the season is five episodes long, they certainly do stuff a years worth of drama into it.
The 456 have returned. The British government dealt with this alien species in 1965. It was highly classified, and they felt they had managed to deal with the aliens at that time, for all time. They never knew who they were, where they came from, or why they had come. Even their name 456 refers to the radio frequency that they used to communicate. Now, apparently, they have returned.
They announce their presence in a very attention grabbing way; first, every child in the world freezes for a moment. Then, later, they do the same thing. And this time, there is a message.
"We Are Coming."
Every child on the planet chanting in unison, over and over, for a minute.
And then they return to normal, with no knowledge of what happened.
This is exactly the sort of thing that Torchwood is adept at dealing with.
Why then, is the Home Office seeking to kill Captain Jack Harkness? (John Barrowman)
And how do you kill a man who can not die?
Well, one interesting way, is you shoot him. In the brief time that he is dead, you cut him open, and stuff a bomb in him, and when he heals up, you let him go. Where does he head? Why, to the Torchwood Hub, in the old Tube Station. And thus, hopefully, he will take out the entire team.
Perhaps it would have worked, but for one fact. While every child on Earth is chanting the messages, they are joined by one other; an elderly man from a sanitarium. Tim White (Paul Copley) showed up in 1965, 11 years old, unclaimed, and has been in and out of mental institutions his entire life. And he is linked to the same phenomenon as the children.
He claims he can smell the aliens; perhaps he can. He can smell that Gwen Owen (Eve Myles) is pregnant. And it is the internal scanning device she uses to confirm the pregnancy that reveals the bomb in Jack.
Can Jack survive being blown to bits?
Well, spoiler alert, yes he can. It takes a while, but he comes back, and he comes back fully restored (and fully naked. Bless security cameras.)
Now the question becomes what do the 456 want, and why is the Home Office killing anyone that had anything to do with their first encounter with earth.
The forces of the Home Office are spearheaded by John Frobisher (Peter Capaldi). He is a medium level civil servant, and he has several qualifications; he is briefed on the 456, he is hard working and follows orders, and he is expendable.
His loyal aide is Bridget Spears (Susan Brown) and the new girl in the office is Lois Habiba (Cush Jumbo). Lois displays many of the qualities that make a good Torchwood operative; she is curious, questions everything, and doesn't believe everything she is told. Armed with Spears pass word, she pokes her nose in where it does not belong. And what she sees concerns her greatly.
Meanwhile, Ianto (Gareth David-Lloyd) and Gwen are on the run. Gwen collects her hubby, Rhys Williams (Kai Owen) and heads out. Ianto makes his own way.
It is Lois who breaks the mystery for them, when she calls Gwen to tell her what the Home Office has done. In the meantime the Government is following the 456's instructions and building a room in the Thames building to their specifications. The atmosphere is exotic, and very toxic to humans. It also is very opaque; concealing what ever might be inside. And it is inhabited with...something.
While Frobisher tries to negotiate with the 456, Torchwood is trying to locate and free their fearless leader. But the question remains, can either the government or Torchwood deal with the 456. And what do they want?
The Analysis.
One of the great things about Torchwood is there are no guarantees. Anyone can die. Owen and Tosh, core members of the team, died at the end of season two. Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman) who was the medical replacement is on sabbatical, because the actress got more episodes from another show. Cush Jumbo's role was originally intended for her.
So, with the only constant that Jack can not die, we are constantly left with a sense of uncertainty. This is a key element in darker fiction. And Torchwood can get very dark.
The theme here, the good of the many outweighing the good of the few takes our heroes to some very dark places. We meet Alice Carter (Lucy Cou) a nice middle aged woman, and her son Steven (Bear McCausland). Her claim to fame (which she keeps very quiet) is she is Jack Harkness' daughter. How do you control an immortal man? Threaten the things he loves.
And of course, the real threat is the 456 and what they want. Does the world give in, or fight? Is it better to live at any price, or to die in defense of our ideals?
Torchwood works because it raises these questions, then does not answer them in a clear cut way. The heroes do not always win, they don't even always survive. And whatever decisions they make, they have to live with.
John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness. A visitor from the 51st century, Jack (not even his real name) is not a good man. Oh, he fights the good fight, and he is generous to friends, and lovers, and tries to go through his life not doing harm. But ever so often, the situation arises that Jack is the one who is the most qualified to make a decision, and he has to, even if the two options are both horrible. And he has to live with the consequences.
Jack has been having an affair with Ianto. You can see how the secrets long buried and brought to light affect each man and their relationship together. Jack loves to claim he is shallow; Ianto knows better.
It should also be noted that John Barrowman appears in this series completely nude. Only a cad would suggest that this makes it worth the purchase price. (But it does.)
Gareth Davis-Lloyd as Ianto Jones. The butler did it. What ever needed to be done, whether it was cleaning up weevil blood or hacking MI 5's mainframe, Ianto did it. Even to opening his heart to a very lonely man. Ianto has to deal with the fact that Jack is centuries old, and that he will live millennia after he is dead and gone. Ianto, highly empathic, feels his pain, and gives him what solace his heart and body can offer. And at the same time, he has been the heart and soul of Torchwood, doing whatever needed to be done, with crisp cool efficiency, while looking good in a three piece suit.
Gareth David-Lloyd is cute, but not gorgeous, not the way Barrowman is. But the chemistry between the two men makes the screen sizzle. A welsh little boy with big muscles, he has the poetry of his race, and the reserve of the British and a sexiness that is all his own.
Eve Myles as Gwen Owen. Former cop, Gwen is the conscience of Torchwood. She is a tough woman, but can be tender as well. There is a great deal of tension between Gwen and Jack, but Gwen made her choice, and stuck to her man Rhys. A lorry driver and chef, he is now an unofficial member of Torchwood, doing whatever leg work Gwen might require of him. Their relationship went through rough times, but since Gwen decided to level with him, he has stepped up to the job of being her man.
Gwen does not have to think of the greater good. She knows right from wrong, and always, always espouses what is right. This makes her headstrong, and causes conflict with Jack on occasion, but he never discounts her feelings. He may not act on them, but he acknowledges them, and takes them into account when making his decisions.
These three are the heart of Torchwood, and the heart of this story. They act as the representatives of Earth, and embody much of what is best in us.
Combined with the cutting edge stories, and their bold willingness to explore the darker recesses of the human soul, Torchwood is one of the best shows on television. Check out this pivotal miniseries.
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