Torchwood

[vilakins]

I'm probably one of the last here to see Torchwood due to timezones, but I enjoyed it, especially the first episode.

The good

• Jack! He's fun and snarky and still rather amoral.
  
• The references back to Doctor Who (esp the location of the base being under where the TARDIS was, Jack being resurrected, and The Hand)
  
• Gwen is a great character so far, although I do have some reservations (see below). I like her boyfriend, her toughness, and her willingness to take the responsibility for her mistake even though it was an accident. (And I do wish she'd speared the loathsome Owen instead).
  
• The humour
  
• The stained Victorian tiling, giving a sense of history
  
• One of the Torchwoods being lost--future plot point?
  
• I want to meet the one strange guy who is Torchwood Glasgow
  
• Gwen's boyfriend; I like seeing a healthy relationship depicted on screen and he wasn't Dead Boyfriend of the Week
  
• Toshiko Sato being a returning character from Aliens of London
  
• Most of it really; I look forward to more :-)

The bad

• The sex in the first one felt tacked on. Ooh, look, we're being adult. I have to say I didn't notice the swearing.
  
• The sex in the second one was a plot point, yes, but it also felt like "Let's do it because we can."
  
• I'm a bit worried that Gwen might be an updated Rose: similar looks (but dark); sense of adventure; a boyfriend in the wings; and when she kissed Jack, he seemed worryingly affected. Please don't make her Special. I want her to "stay normal for me" too.

The ugly

• Owen Harper
  
• Owen and his date rape drug
  
• Owen blowing up the rat
  
• Owen being Ben Steedish to Gwen
  
• Carys having to live with the memories of what she did, even though it was involuntary. Jack's amnesia drug should have been used here. Is that poor girl going to retain her sanity?
  
• Suzie shooting Jack instead of Owen
  
• Suzie dying instead of Owen

Do you sense a theme here? ;-)

OK, I'm off to bed to dream of ways of killing Owen; just so you know why I don't respond for several hours. :-)

Comments

[zoefruitcake.livejournal.com]

Jack! He's fun and snarky and still rather amoral.

Yep, I like that

The sex in the first one felt tacked on. Ooh, look, we're being adult. I have to say I didn't notice the swearing.

I only noticed it because John Barrowman talked about it on the radio, said there was swearing, but not from him

Jack's amnesia drug should have been used here. Is that poor girl going to retain her sanity?

I agree.

I'm still unsure about it, I'm waiting for a few more episodes yet x

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

It was entertaining and that's one of my criteria for watching a series. :-)

[astrogirl2.livejournal.com]

One of the Torchwoods being lost--future plot point?

My friends and I immediately figured that "Torchwood #4 vanished and we don't know what happened to it" thing was a random Babylon 5 reference. I think that was our Third Geekiest Moment. :)

I want to meet the one strange guy who is Torchwood Glasgow

That seemed like it ought to be a reference to something, too, but I'm darned if I know what.

I have to say I didn't notice the swearing.

It leapt out at me. Nobody's ever allowed to say some of those words on American television, except on pay cable, so it actually feels kind of weird to hear 'em. :)

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

:-D I totally didn't get the B5 reference; I was only expecting DW ones. [goes back to find our second geekist moment] When did Jack use 'retcon'?

I don't know who the lone Scot would be either. Now I'm imagining Desmond.

I notice swearing on TV if it's really bad, but I think that was pretty low level. Strangely, I have a very low tolerance for it in RL, but then I feel the same way about exploding rats and people's throats being bitten out. ;-)

[astrogirl2.livejournal.com]

When did Jack use 'retcon'?

I don't remember the exact context... Something about the 21st century and knowing the future and whether it matters. He was throwing out a lot of words without saying very much, and that was one of them.

Now I'm imagining Desmond.

Bwah!

I notice swearing on TV if it's really bad, but I think that was pretty low level. Strangely, I have a very low tolerance for it in RL,

I barely notice it in RL (including often when I'm using it :)), but, like I said, it does leap out on TV... Torchwood isn't exactly The Sopranos (where I notice it less, actually, because I've got "HBO" in my head instead of "BBC", and the former I associate with being sent out of the room as a kid so my parents could watch R-rated movies and the latter with public television :)). But IIRC, there was a "fuck" within, like, the first two minutes. Which was probably just Rusty making sure whe knew that he could swear now, dammit! :)

but then I feel the same way about exploding rats and people's throats being bitten out. ;-)

Now, those I'd definitely notice in RL, but don't cause me to bat an eyelash on TV. :)

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

They caused me to bat several, and behind my nervously splayed fingers too.

A lot of UK drama has swearing and so does ours, so I'm fairly inured to it on screen. I suppose I don't know many people who swear much, and when they do, it stands out.

[glitterboy1.livejournal.com]

When did Jack use 'retcon'?

It was when he was describing the effects of his miracle amnesia drug, which turned out to be not so miraculous, after all.

[altariel.livejournal.com]

I'm sensing some ambivalence towards Owen...?

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

None at all!

[sallymn.livejournal.com]

Don't be shy, tell us how you really feel...

Someone who still hasn't seen Torchwood

[linda-joyce.livejournal.com]

I'm probably one of the last here to see Torchwood due to timezones

You may be the last to watch it because of time zones but you are not the last to watch it. Not having Sky or Freeview I am having to wait til Wednesday to see it. Beth did record it but i refused to borrow it, I'm going to bed with a box of chocolates, large glass of wine and curl up in comfort and watch the first two episodes on BBC2. I have not read anything with Torchwood in the title and I even managed to scroll through yours to the comment button rapidly enough not to read anything you wrote.

I am about to put up an entry asking people to keep comments behind a cut until Thursday.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

You prefer to watch it live?

I'm sure everyone will keep spoilers behind cuts. Everyone has so far and going by previous experience, they will for months. I was unspoilt (apart from making some correct guesses from chance remarks) for Serenity and Peacekeeper Wars despite seeing them months later.

[britgeekgrrl.livejournal.com]

I'm seeing a lot of Owen-hate on various journals and I've only got two things to say.

1) We'd better get used to him, he's around for the season.

2) I agree that he's vile. And he looks like a frog. Srsly.

I've stumbled across a major spoiler for the character, the nature of which vexes me mightily, but of course I won't share it here. Suffice it to say that it reinforces the fact that he's on for the duration. Me? I'm all for Owen-jam, and soon.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

Owen-jam would be great. Or exiling him with Gaius Baltar; those two would get on so well.

Suzie was shown as a permanent cast member on the official website, so maybe no one's safe from being killed off. One can hope.

[kalypso-v.livejournal.com]

It seems such an awful waste of Burn Gorman, who showed in Bleak House that he could do not-very-likeable-but-entertaining-to-watch. Owen badly needs a third dimension; everything he's done so far has been so obvious. So I hope the spoiler provides it.

[britgeekgrrl.livejournal.com]

Y'know, I think it might. We'll see, I guess. After all, only two eps in is a bit early for sweeping, long-term decisions to be made...

[alinewrites.livejournal.com]

I only downloaded it today -I guess it won't air in France.
I suspect that never having see Dr Who puts me at a disadvantage here.
That being said, I quite liked it.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

There were some clever references (e.g. the hand belonged to a Doctor--it grew back) but I don't think it matters that you didn't know them. The plot doesn't hinge on them, but the hand scene in ep 2 does show how much Jack cares for the Doctor, or perhaps what he might do with the hand and its Timelord DNA. :-) Everything you needed to know was explained.