Watched it yesterday on catch up TV. Enjoyed it on the whole, I liked the idea of the time shift and the two periods intersecting in the hospital (and the way those scenes were done with Gwen - they were actually quite spooky!). However I have a few contentions that I must air:
[ul]
[li]Torchwood in 1918 were able to lock the box of orders according to a temporal frequency? Does anyone else find that unbelievable? I mean we’re talking about people working in a time before antibiotics yet they’re able to detect and work with temporal energy signatures? Right…[/li][li]Tommy’s whole “I do anything for you Tosh” bit - why? What was it about her that made him like her so much? As was pointed out several times, in his perspective he’s only known her 4 days.[/li][li]The psychic projection into the past - I rewound this bit and watched it again and I still didn’t have a clue what that was all about - how was it supposed to work again? And, more to the point, why did Tommy lose his memories of what he was supposed to do once he went through the time shift? It just seemed a bit tacked on for the sake of drama, to me. [/li][li]Ianto and Jack’s kiss - I mean COME ON. Did that scene even merit it? It screamed “obligatory same sex action scene” rather than adding anything to the episode. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for man on man action, but I still didn’t see the point of it rather than for the sake of it.[/li][/ul]
Other than that I thought it was a good episode. And the preview for next week’s looks interesting - maybe we’ll actually find out exactly what it is that Reese is supposed to do for a job (I still haven’t worked that out).
I think this can be answered by the fact that by 1918 they had been investigating anomalies and phenomena for 40 years, and, just like they demonstrate now, they would have gathered a lot of alien artifacts and technology. I think it’s reasonable to accept that they would know how to utilise a lot of it for themselves.
[QUOTE=Illuminatiprimus]
[li]Ianto and Jack’s kiss - I mean COME ON. Did that scene even merit it? It screamed “obligatory same sex action scene” rather than adding anything to the episode. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for man on man action, but I still didn’t see the point of it rather than for the sake of it.[/li][/QUOTE]
I’ll be charitable and say that, apart from Torchwood having the rep of being a more adult-SF programme because of all the sex action – that scene may have been intended as a mirror of the main story and what is happening between Toshiko and Tommy, especially given what Ianto and Jack were talking about in the lead-up.
[QUOTE=Illuminatiprimus]
[li]Torchwood in 1918 were able to lock the box of orders according to a temporal frequency? Does anyone else find that unbelievable? I mean we’re talking about people working in a time before antibiotics yet they’re able to detect and work with temporal energy signatures? Right…[/li][/QUOTE]
They had a box with blue LEDs on it, therefore they can do anything required by the flimsy plot.
I wonder how many times can they rehash the lover-from-another-time plotline. Oh well there’s got to be something that keeps me glued to this schlocky, oversexed and often melodramatic show, and I can’t figure it out :D.
This series even more than the last series is leaving me continually frustrated. They have so many good ideas and every time the execution is off just enough to ruin the whole thing. I keep coming back, and I really liked some of last series, but I wish they would get their shit together and figure out what they want the show to be. The characters still feel like empty manikins that can be fit into any position in any scene at random. Eventually, they’re going to have to give them each a backstory and a personality and stick to it. At least I hope they do.
Yeah, and it fits with the on-going Jack/Ianto arc. Jack and Ianto have a casual realtionship. Jack disappears (off with the Doctor). He comes back and Ianto doesn’t know if he’s going to stick around and Jack is unsure of his standing with Ianto. (awkward request for date in s2e1) So Ianto wants reassurance that Jack is going to stick around (questioning whether Jack wants to return to his own time) and Jack wants Ianto to know how he feels about it (line about being glad he’s met all the people he’s loved and wouldn’t trade it for the world). Ianto is charmed and hot man-snoggage ensues. (I squeeed so hard it was painful)
I thought the episode was well done and I enjoyed it (BTW, the actor that played Tommy is the older brother of the actor who plays Neville Longbottom) but I do think the time-crossed lovers thing has been played out. I think season is shaping up to be great. And even John Barrowman’s excessively stagey acting has gotten better.
Jack/Lanto is a subplot, and this show is low on subplots right now. About the only other subplot going on is Gwen & her boyfriend, and it looks like next week will be much more focused on that.
I have to admit that not having a Monster Of The Week was refreshing, though. After last week’s “Sleeper”, I was afraid they would slip references about them into almost every episode.
“What’s that - a new paperweight?”
“No, it’s Jack’s brain.”
“Er… um… aren’t you going to put it back?”
“Oh, sure, sure - but it’s not like leaving it there until after lunch is going to kill him or anything. At least not permanently.”
“Well, then, where’s the rest of him?”
“Not sure… Ianto said he’d take care of it.”
