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I'm getting confused. I'm watching a week ahead on BBC3, but keeping this waffle BBC2-based, for a number of reasons. And now my head is full of the utter wonderfulness of "Dead Man Walking", whilst I'm trying to write about "Reset". But I'll batter my head into submission, and try not to wind up writing about the wrong thing. Managed it last week.
So, Torchwood 3, meet Martha Jones. I like Martha Jones. She's great. Much, much better than Rose, and with so much potential as a character. I wasn't sure how she'd fit into Torchwood, but in the event it worked out well. She didn't quite fit, but that was probably a good thing. I'm not sure she should fit; at least not too well. She's from a different background; she has such different experiences; she belongs to UNIT now, which is a more formal organisation... She stuck out like a sore thumb at times, actually; but in a good way. It's going to be nice having her around for a while, and I wonder if they might get her to make a guest appearance or two in season three as well.
The episode, then. It was written by JC Wilsher, the main creative force behing Between The Lines, possibly the greatest cop show ever. Who am I trying to kid? Possibly?! Without a doubt, the greatest cop show ever. Clever and dark and twisty-turny, and basically filled with good things. Here I guess he's ticking off items on somebody else's checklist, but he was still able to do his own thing to a certain extent. There was a spate of deaths across the country, though mostly focused in South Wales, and Martha arrived to help solve them. Clever method of murdering people - sticking a needle into the eyeball. I'd like to think that it would turn up in a post mortem, but I wonder if it would? Certainly would in Silent Witness. :D The deaths all traced back to The Pharm, an experimental medical facility that turned out to be dabbling in alien by-products, by means of a ghastly sort of milking machine in the basement. Lots of imprisoned aliens having all kinds of substances sucked out of them. The main alien of the week was called the Mayfly, a rather attractive giant fly (of sorts) that I thought was rendered particularly well. There's always a crowd complaining each week about the special effects, but yeah, whatever. I thought it looked good. Torchwood shut down The Pharm, anyway, but at a higher cost than they'd expected. Goodbye Owen Harper? Completely wasn't expecting that. You were a git, Owen, but an entertaining one, and you were actually rather likeable this season. So I shall miss you.
If you have actually gone for good, that is.
Another good episode, then. Some nice flashes of humour again, and some clever referrals to Jack and Martha's time together in Doctor Who. That was done well, without being too heavy-handed, or risking the exclusion of anybody sensible enough to have missed "Last Of The Time Lords". Jack and Martha make a nice team, with an easy chemistry and sense of camaraderie. They haven't actually been though a lot together, but they have both been through a lot for the same reason. They're not like Jack and Rose, then; but there is a bond. I like them together. I'm happy with the TW3 team as is, and I wouldn't actually want her to join up full time, I don't think. She makes a good visitor, though. Nice working relationship with Owen, and I liked her conversations with Gwen and Ianto about Jack. Such a shame that she's not going to be around much for season four of DW. Good turn, too, from Alan Dale, who seems to have made a career playing dodgy businessmen and generally immoral types just lately. He always plays very polite, well-dressed men, who turn out to be up to vast amounts of no good, and then usually end up dead. No change here, then. :) Shame that they killed him, really. Torchwood could do with a few recurring bad guys. Looks like we've got Captain John now of course, but I can't really think of him as a bad guy. He is, obviously, but he's too much fun to be completely bad. There's Bilis Manger, but it doesn't seem likely that he'll be in season two. Hopefully he'll crop up again in season three. Aaron Copley was good, though. Sinister, but reserved; nasty, but believing in what he was doing. Seems a bit of a waste to kill him off.
And I've rattled on again for stupid amounts of time. Shutting up now. Good episode, genuinely shock ending. Next week, much dark swirly stuff ensues. Hurrah!
Pictures:
Ianto welcomes an important mystery guest.
Who in the least surprising surprise of the year, turns out to be Martha Jones.
Jack welcomes her into the Hub.
Nice team shot. Tosh doing something computery.
Owen encounters a baby Mayfly.
Professor Aaron Copley. Gittish, but in a good way. Sort of.
A Mayfly.
Interrogation, Torchwood style. :)
Jack and Professor Copley discuss ethics.
And Copley objects to Jack's judgement.
And just as Tosh had finally got Owen to agree to go on a date with her, too. Poor Tosh!
So, Torchwood 3, meet Martha Jones. I like Martha Jones. She's great. Much, much better than Rose, and with so much potential as a character. I wasn't sure how she'd fit into Torchwood, but in the event it worked out well. She didn't quite fit, but that was probably a good thing. I'm not sure she should fit; at least not too well. She's from a different background; she has such different experiences; she belongs to UNIT now, which is a more formal organisation... She stuck out like a sore thumb at times, actually; but in a good way. It's going to be nice having her around for a while, and I wonder if they might get her to make a guest appearance or two in season three as well.
The episode, then. It was written by JC Wilsher, the main creative force behing Between The Lines, possibly the greatest cop show ever. Who am I trying to kid? Possibly?! Without a doubt, the greatest cop show ever. Clever and dark and twisty-turny, and basically filled with good things. Here I guess he's ticking off items on somebody else's checklist, but he was still able to do his own thing to a certain extent. There was a spate of deaths across the country, though mostly focused in South Wales, and Martha arrived to help solve them. Clever method of murdering people - sticking a needle into the eyeball. I'd like to think that it would turn up in a post mortem, but I wonder if it would? Certainly would in Silent Witness. :D The deaths all traced back to The Pharm, an experimental medical facility that turned out to be dabbling in alien by-products, by means of a ghastly sort of milking machine in the basement. Lots of imprisoned aliens having all kinds of substances sucked out of them. The main alien of the week was called the Mayfly, a rather attractive giant fly (of sorts) that I thought was rendered particularly well. There's always a crowd complaining each week about the special effects, but yeah, whatever. I thought it looked good. Torchwood shut down The Pharm, anyway, but at a higher cost than they'd expected. Goodbye Owen Harper? Completely wasn't expecting that. You were a git, Owen, but an entertaining one, and you were actually rather likeable this season. So I shall miss you.
If you have actually gone for good, that is.
Another good episode, then. Some nice flashes of humour again, and some clever referrals to Jack and Martha's time together in Doctor Who. That was done well, without being too heavy-handed, or risking the exclusion of anybody sensible enough to have missed "Last Of The Time Lords". Jack and Martha make a nice team, with an easy chemistry and sense of camaraderie. They haven't actually been though a lot together, but they have both been through a lot for the same reason. They're not like Jack and Rose, then; but there is a bond. I like them together. I'm happy with the TW3 team as is, and I wouldn't actually want her to join up full time, I don't think. She makes a good visitor, though. Nice working relationship with Owen, and I liked her conversations with Gwen and Ianto about Jack. Such a shame that she's not going to be around much for season four of DW. Good turn, too, from Alan Dale, who seems to have made a career playing dodgy businessmen and generally immoral types just lately. He always plays very polite, well-dressed men, who turn out to be up to vast amounts of no good, and then usually end up dead. No change here, then. :) Shame that they killed him, really. Torchwood could do with a few recurring bad guys. Looks like we've got Captain John now of course, but I can't really think of him as a bad guy. He is, obviously, but he's too much fun to be completely bad. There's Bilis Manger, but it doesn't seem likely that he'll be in season two. Hopefully he'll crop up again in season three. Aaron Copley was good, though. Sinister, but reserved; nasty, but believing in what he was doing. Seems a bit of a waste to kill him off.
And I've rattled on again for stupid amounts of time. Shutting up now. Good episode, genuinely shock ending. Next week, much dark swirly stuff ensues. Hurrah!
Pictures:
Ianto welcomes an important mystery guest.
Who in the least surprising surprise of the year, turns out to be Martha Jones.
Jack welcomes her into the Hub.
Nice team shot. Tosh doing something computery.
Owen encounters a baby Mayfly.
Professor Aaron Copley. Gittish, but in a good way. Sort of.
A Mayfly.
Interrogation, Torchwood style. :)
Jack and Professor Copley discuss ethics.
And Copley objects to Jack's judgement.
And just as Tosh had finally got Owen to agree to go on a date with her, too. Poor Tosh!
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