IMS_Blog

I’m actually struggling to find much to say about this episode. It wasn’t exactly riveting. Strangely, though I’ve criticised them quiet heavily at times, I’ve found the preceding episodes of the series to at least be watchable, they’ve drawn me in enough to care about their failings. This one, well, it just seemed to take a long time to go nowhere fast. I’ll do my best.

First then I actually think there were some good points hiding in there. The Owen/Gwen references didn’t feel quite so forced (they weren’t so obviously only for their own sake as last week). Gwen’s boyfriend didn’t make a token appearance either but then this is possibly the time you’d think he might get a mention, given how Gwen seems to have just left him for Owen (but then I’ve always found Gwen’s relationship entirely inconsistent. confusing and pointless) It wasn’t a fantasy, or horror, then again it didn’t exactly push any science either. in fact, the entire episode seemed to lack any sort of deep or meaningful explanation. It was good to hear UNIT mentioned too :-)

And of course there was the bad stuff, or just Torchwood stuff. If I were the Weevils I’d be a bit annoyed. They seem to be the only aliens in the Torchwood universe not able to transform into a flash of light and inhabit a human body. It’s a plot device becoming as common as the sonic screwdriver for goodness sake. Try writing some actual aliens! (of course, human actors are cheaper than alien ones…) Then there’s Toshio suddenly becoming inclined to be bisexual in a way which only happens in the adolescent fantasies of young males, or around Richard T Davies.

Somewhere in there is something of a plot, though I was never sure why the alien wants to get into the place she is so wary of being locked up in…what does she care if they’ve found the transportation thingy; she was happy to have it buried for a couple hundred years. Even if its discovery has exposed her presence on Earth then surely the last thing she would wish to do is further expose herself by contacting the alien hunters. If she just wishes to be rid of the accursed pendant (oh how original) then why not just do what Toshio ends up doing? Bah. Hard to care. I hope next week is better.