When
Torchwood arrives on the scene of a brutal murder, WPC Gwen
Cooper’s burning curiosity is challenged. Their attitude,
their approach and their
technology is at odds with everything she believes in. But
investigating the investigators leads her to a dark, paranoid
world she never imagined existed.
After
the critically and commercially successful re-launch of
Doctor Who
two years ago, Russell T Davis can do no wrong. But he is
a writer who made his name with more adult oriented fair
like Queer as Folk, The Second Coming and Casanova.
Torchwood sees him return to those roots.
Described
as a British X-Files
with sex and bad language thrown in for good measure, Torchwood
is definitely not for family viewing like the good Doctor,
but this is a good thing. Gone are the restrictions of a
7pm Saturday slot on BBC 1 as the creative team behind the
Sci-Fi classic’s revival heads to the grittier, no
holds barred digital channel BBC 3. That channel was the
breeding ground for Little Britain, The Catherine Tate
Show and the recent hit series Sinchronicity.
Here they can explore the darker side of the Who
universe and show the blood, guts and sex that comes from
all over time and space.
The
first episode ‘Everything Changes’ is very much
like ‘Rose’, the first episode of the Doctor
Who return. Here we see the story unfold through the
eyes of Cardiff WPC (Woman Police Constable) Gwen Cooper,
played by Welsh actress Eve Myles (who played Gwyneth is
the Charles Dickens Doctor Who episode ‘The
Unquiet Dead’).
Her
curiosity gets the better of her when she and the rest of
the local police are told to leave a crime scene and a black
SUV arrives and the Torchwood team exit. Wanting to see
what they are up to, Gwen goes to the roof of the building
overlooking the scene and hears them talk about using the
glove.
Then
a man dressed in a 1940s army uniform steps out of the car
and orders Suzie Costello (Indira Varma, last seen in HBO’s
Rome) to bring the victim back to life. That man
is Captain Jack Harkness (played again by Doctor Who
favourite John Barrowman). From then on Gwen becomes obsessed
in finding out what Torchwood is but this is going to expose
her to things she could never have imagined.
After
introducing the Torchwood Institute during the first season
of the new run, most Doctor Who fans have wanted
to know more. The series takes place after the events of
the second season finale (which I won’t go into, as
I know it hasn’t been shown in the US yet) and reveals
a little about the agency and how it is structured. It also
introduces the darker side of the Who Universe,
things that you only heard about on the original series
but with all the restrictions of the family timeslot removed,
Russell T Davis and his creative team can really have some
fun.
The
first episode introduces you to the characters. As well
as Gwen, Captain Jack and Suzie Costello we have chemical
specialist Owen Harper, played by Burn Gorman, technology
genius Toshiko Sato, played by Naoko Mori (returning as
the character she played in the episode ‘Aliens of
London’) and all-round specialist Ianto Jones, played
by Gareth David-Lloyd. Each has a brief introduction but
most of the main emphasis is on Captain Jack and Gwen, as
you’d expect and it is their chemistry that will drive
the show.
For
a first episode, it does everything it needs to do. The
show introduces the premise for the series, the characters
and the dynamic that is going to push the show along. Older
Doctor Who fans should rejoice at this exciting
spin-off but this is definitely not a show for the younger
fan. They should wait for The Sarah Jane Adventures,
coming in 2007.
