“Torchwood” seems to be attracting interesting guest stars. Last week, in Chris Chibnall’s well-titled “Countrycide”, Owen Teale popped up towards the end of the episode as the leader of a group of Brecon Beacon villagers intent on cannibalism once every decade, almost as though he’d stayed on at the end of “Vengeance on Varos” ready to appear in “The Two Doctors”! And this week, starring throughout Toby Whithouse’s “Greeks Bearing Gifts”, Daniela Denby-Ashe, best known for long running sitcom “My Family”, played exiled and abandoned alien “Mary” who worms her way into Toshiko’s affections, with the present of a pendant that enables the wearer to read the innermost thoughts of others, in order to eventually invite herself into the Hub of Torchwood itself to retrieve her ship. Said thoughts made for a depressing indictment of the human race.
The balance between the personal relationships of the heroes and the science fiction strands of the story worked better in “Greeks Bearing Gifts” than it has previously, in both “Torchwood” and new “Doctor Who”, maybe because the alien artefact was a direct link between the two elements, making it an excellent plot device. Toby’s script benefited from his earlier experience writing “Doctor Who” episode “School Reunion” where the balance wasn’t as well executed. Daniela sustained a convincing performance throughout, possibly not an easy thing to do when alternating between tearing out the hearts of her victims down through time with present-day lesbian liaisons in Cardiff cafés! She played it as a femme fatale, which worked well enough, eventually brought to book by Captain Jack resetting her transport home to burn her up in the heart of the Sun. Hot stuff!!
6 comments:
I thought it was definitely a better episode than last week's atrocious "Countrycide". Daniella Denby-Ashe was good and a decent villainess; a shame we didn't get to find out more about her alien origins though. The whole ripping out hearts concept was interesting and needed a little bit more exposition, I felt. But at least we got to see more of Toshiko.
Although I've found "T-Wood" entertaing enough so far, I wouldn't rank it anywhere near as highly as "Dr Who". It's slick, fast-moving and exciting in places, but it just doesn't grab me enough. I think it lacks the fundamental warmth and humanity of Dr Who. It has a coldness at it's heart. I've also found it hard to really engage with the characters and none of them are all that likeable (in my view). And the sex and swearing do seem gratuitous at times. Don't get me wrong, I am no prude, but all the rudeness seems to have been shoved in in a very self-conscious way. Oooh shagging, Mummy! Naughty naughty!!
I’ve found the first viewing of each episode of “Torchwood” holds my attention well enough but subsequent watches leave me disappointed. It might have been better had the show not been directly connected to “Doctor Who”, for a number of reasons, but stood on its own feet from the beginning. But then it wouldn’t have garnered all the publicity! “Torchwood” does paint a very bleak picture of humanity which I think has been just beneath the surface of new “Doctor Who” trying to break out (Rose’s accusation of the undertaker’s manhandling, the spooning reference in “Dalek”, Nancy’s blackmail of the homeowner - all ideas which wouldn’t have been included in classic “Who”) and, because “Who” is perceived as being family orientated, needed this spin-off as an outlet.
The surprise for me is that I warm to Toshiko and Ianto more than Jack, Gwen and Owen. Jack is too heroically smug though often not at the centre of the action until the quick fix solution, something “Torchwood” has in common with new “Who”. Gwen is becoming less likeable even more quickly than Rose! Cheating on her boyfriend is not endearing. I liked Burn Gorman as Guppy in “Bleak House” but where, in Dickens, his character was out of his depth here he’s just deeply immoral. I warm to the others probably because loneliness usually evokes sympathy and melancholy is so much more interesting than worldly success. That probably says more about me than the programme!
I agree Jack can be smug at times and I liked him much better in "Who". Am looking forward to his re-appearance in the next series and I wonder how they will write him back in? So far there have only been hints that all is not well with him. We get the impression that Jack's immortality is more of a curse than a blessing and being left behind behind by the Dr has been made him rather bitter, but this hasn't been explored in any great depth. Yet. Hopefully we'll get more insight into Jack's predicament as the series progresses (although I was saying that a few weeks ago and we're almost half way through now!)
And yes, Gwen's adultery surely diminishes audience sympathy toward her. As I've said in my own blog, there was very little exposition /build-up to suggest sufficient reason/s for why she decided to start sh&gging Owen! And were things really so bad with her own boyfriend? Yes, Owen does seem a character rather lacking in morality and is certainly someone who is out for his own gratification.
I agree, out of all the characters Toshiko and Ianto probably qualify most as the misfits/lonely people. Although his blubbering in "Cyberwoman" became annoying, you couldn't help feeling sorry for what he went through.
Episode 12 is probably when we’ll find out a little more about the “good” Captain, when he and Tosh are transported back to the Blitz in what sounds like a sequel to “The Empty Child”.
Hi Tim,
Me and my blog are back! A few PC problems and my little world collapses :-)
I'm having real trouble with Torchwood - and I was so looking forward to it as well. I've found glimmers of promise in every episode but somehow its just not working for me (and for a lot of people if what I'm reading is anything to go by).
Although this episode was better than a lot of what's gone before, its taken a long time to get here. We're on episode 7? 8? I've lost count but its far too many into the season to suddenly come up with a good one.
And enough with the sex already, gay/lesbian/straight or other. I'm an enlightened 21st century person but its just getting ridiculous. They're all so busy shagging each other and/or who/what they meet on the job I'm amazed they get any work done!
Good to see you back, Paul.
I think the problem with “Torchwood” is that RTD has taken on too much. In one of the recent “Declassified” documentaries, I thought he was looking tired, which is a little ironic remembering the Doctor’s comment about the Prime Minister in “The Christmas Invasion”! Contrary to how it may seem, I don’t dislike the guy, despite my criticism of his recent work, but with new “Doctor Who” and “Torchwood” he’s executive-producing 27 episodes annually and that’s not counting the “Sarah Jane” spin-off or writing commitments to any of his shows. An American series is 22 episodes long and each episode has a shorter running time, often with longer title sequences. To produce so much is comparatively new in this country, since the demise of ITC and equivalents of that era, where our television industry isn’t set up in the same way as its US counterpart, again ironic considering the improvements in technology.
“Greeks Bearing Gifts” was possibly the best episode (7) to date but it’s only a personal preference. Probably reminding some of “Buffy, the Vampire Slayer” and “Angel”, I found the scenes set in 1812 reminiscent of period Hammer Horror films for which I’ve a great fondness. And, whereas many viewers seem to have been “frightened” by the previous story’s cannibalistic violence, Mary’s distorted line, “Put the phone down”, in this week’s narrative had a much greater effect on me, actually making me jump, coming as it did so out-of-the-blue, something to which I’m not usually prone!
“Greeks Bearing Gifts” wasn’t perfect though. I disliked the vague morality of the little subplot concerning the estranged husband, especially used as it was to establish the pendant’s possibilities for “good”. The ex-wife’s attitude was despicable and one could see why he was driven to distraction. When she suggested her ex-husband was insensitive, my sympathies lay with him as it was clearly the other way round. It’s tempting to suggest Tosh clubbed the wrong one but he was the one holding the gun and her actions were to prevent a terminal act of violence regardless of the couple’s history. With even his child exhibiting disinterest, though that may not have been the boy’s fault, I ended up wondering why the husband felt the loss of his relationship so deeply when he would seem to be better off without it!
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