Meta: Children of Earth Rewatch (2/2)
Part One
Day Four
I have a lot less to say about Day Four than any of the other episodes, mostly because this is a super painful episode to watch, and despite that fact is also pretty damn extraordinarily good. That being said, this was much less difficult to watch the second time around. I think it's because I knew what was going to happen, so the COBRA boardroom scenes weren't as difficult to get through this time. In fact, I didn't even cry until Jack and Ianto got to Thames House, whereas last time I cried through most of the episode.
Okay, for the Torchwood team, this episode was pretty much about separating and then destroying them. Obviously, Ianto's death, for one, but also emotionally separating them for a time with the revelation about Jack and 1965. They get back together, so to speak, before they're torn apart for good, but this really weakens them.
The 1965 stuff was really well done. Hearing both Clem and Jack's stories really added a lot of depth to it. It explained everything about Clem's actions (his paranoia and his nervous ticks), and although I think the whole Clem's-safe-because-of-hormones thing is a little hokey, it didn't bug me too much.
Also, "Just come with Uncle Jack." Sweet mother of foreshadowing.
I found that woman's statement that they got Jack to drive the bus because they needed someone who didn't care to be very interesting. I think it's total crap, though. Of course Jack cared! Jack cares too much about these things. However, Jack understood that twelve kids was an acceptable price to pay to save the millions that would have died from the virus if they didn't give them to the 456.
And Ianto, maybe the Jack you know wouldn't have given those kids up, but that guy in 1965 wasn't the Jack you know. The Jack Ianto knows is that Jack plus 44 years of life experience. That Jack was basically marking time, waiting for the 21st Century to start and the Doctor to show up, so maybe he could finally be fixed. Like I said, I believe that Jack cared in 1965 deep down, but he was so focused on waiting for the Doctor that he wouldn't let himself do anything about it. He wouldn't let himself care. It's no coincidence that Jack and Ianto's relationship didn't get serious until after Jack had finally seen the Doctor again, because once he did, he had to start accepting the fact that he wasn't going anywhere, and maybe it might be time to start caring again.
Jack's time up until he saw the Doctor again wasn't exactly about Jack making connections with people and living life to the fullest. I can't really explain Lucia, though. I don't think they were married; there's no canon evidence to suggest that he was married to anyone other than that unknown bride in that photo from the late 19th century, but I would love to know more about their relationship, whatever it was. Gimme that backstory!
Ianto asks Jack why he didn't tell him about the kids in 1965. Says "I tell you everything". But does he? Did Jack know about Ianto's father working at Debenhams's, rather than being a master tailor? I took his statement to mean that he tells Jack everything about his life that's important, and that isn't something that matters to him now. Or something. Maybe Jack knew, but Gwen didn't. Or maybe Ianto was lying. Whatever the case, it's interesting to think about, but also kind of sad, because even if Jack was the most open and honest person in the world, he would most likely never tell Ianto everything about his life, whether because there's so much that he wouldn't have time, or because he's forgotten some stuff.
On the other side of the story, the political stuff is still incredibly chilling, and incredibly well done. The actors are all pretty much perfect in those scenes (although, as a side note, the American representative is so clearly British. Sir, that is definitely not how we pronounce "immediately"). Also, A++ casting of Nick Briggs (generally seen on Doctor Who as the voice of the Daleks, Cybermen, Judoon, and a variety of other aliens) as Rick Yates. His whole speech about spinning the sacrifice of the ten percent to the public as "good" is fantastic. And calling the children "units" to distance themselves from what they're doing? Shivers down my spine.
And of course, there's Denise Riley, whose comments about which children should be the ones to be chosen as part of the ten percent are possibly the most horrible things that anyone says in the entire series. Just, wow.
Lois Habiba continues to rule. For someone who started what was supposed to be a simple admin job only three days ago, she's really impressively willing to get in there and do what needs to be done. She is so. amazing. in that boardroom scene! When she's all "Torchwood" to the "you and whose army" question, I totally cheered. Go Lois! Too bad you won't be in series four. :(
Love that there starts to be a change in Agent Johnson. The fact that she knows what's happening, and what's at stake now and that she's not still following her employers blindly, was really nice to see.
I love the death scene. I hated what led up to it (seriously, NO PLAN, GUYS? WHAT THE ACTUAL FU--sorry, I'll wait for the criticisms section to address this), but that scene itself was gorgeous. Lovely writing, really lovely acting. Although, I still found the cut back to the boardroom super awkward. This room of strangers just watched them die in each other's arms. Way to kill the moment, editors.
And the "I love you" worked really well for me. It's not at all about whether or not Jack says it back, but that Ianto's finally in a place where he can allow himself to admit that he loves Jack, something he couldn't even do earlier in the week. It's some beautiful character growth in three little words.
Also, if the scene weren't sad enough by itself, I read somewhere that John Barrowman, in talking about this scene, said that Jack was less emotional over it and more in denial than he might have been, because he intended to give Ianto the kiss of life (a la "Cyberwoman") to bring him back. But he didn't realize that because he was dying as well, he didn't have enough strength to make it work. So when he revived later on, he basically had to go through it all over again, because it hadn't worked and Ianto really was dead.
If anybody knows about the interview I'm talking about and can link me to it, I'd be really grateful. Because if this is true? BRB, crying forever.
And Gwen adjusting Ianto's tie just breaks me. Eve Myles is so good at these scenes (see her scene at the end of S1 with Rhys's body, and the one later on in that episode with Jack's). That hesitation before she pulls the sheet down, like she just can't bring herself to look, because maybe if she doesn't it won't be true. :( :( :(
***
Day Five
If the last episode was about breaking down, separating, and destroying the team, this one really highlights that fact, and shows us that there's pretty much no hope of them being Torchwood again. Way to break my heart again, show.
Okay, so this probably makes me a very sad person, but I totally got teary during the credits when Gareth David-Lloyd's name wasn't there. I hate changes like that, okay? I'm glad they changed the style of credits from S1-2, because I don't think I could have dealt with seeing those old credits with so few names in them. I get sad about strange things.
Seeing Gwen and Jack just sitting there by themselves at that table. God. It made it more real for me than almost anything else in the episode. They're all that's left. :(
I think the reason this is harder to deal with than "Journey's End" without Tosh and Owen, is because with JE there was a lot of time between when it and "Exit Wounds" aired (not to mention the TW scenes were a mere guest spot), and here we only have a day (both literally and on the show) to get used to the team without Ianto. He's been here all season, too, so the lack of him in the credits, and at that table with the rest of the team (the last time they're properly together as Torchwood) is jarring and noticeable. Not in a bad way, mind you. The way this is written, shot, and acted, you can almost physically see the places that he used to (and still does) occupy. He's also been killed in the middle of the story, and it feels like he should be there to finish things out, to stay until the end.
John Barrowman gives an interesting performance in this episode. He doesn't match up to the caliber of actors like Peter Capaldi, so he comes off a little bit ridiculous in their scene at the beginning, but all of his quiet moments are so. powerful. Maybe it's just my love for Jack, but my heart breaks for him so much in this episode, and Barrowman sells the hell out of it, especially in the latter half.
And Eve Myles is once again heartbreaking and perfect. Loved the phone conversation between Gwen and Rhys when she tells him it's over, that they lost, that Ianto's dead. And even though she doesn't know it yet, at Jack's "I can't look at her anymore", it's made obvious that she's going to lose him, too.
It is so great to see Andy again! I love that moment between Rhys and Andy in the car. Andy all "who's the father"! A much needed laugh in the middle of all of this tragedy.
But then, of course, we're right back to tragedy with the scene where Gwen tells Rhiannon about Ianto. Ugh, crying again. And I know that she just lost her brother, so she isn't thinking clearly and can't be blamed, but when she tells Gwen that because Ianto lied about his father that means Gwen never knew him, I just get so angry. Did Rhi know anything about Ianto's life? About Torchwood, about Jack and Gwen, about Lisa even? Just because Ianto didn't tell them the truth about his past doesn't mean they didn't know him, didn't know the kind of man he was, didn't know who he was. It's almost like there were two of him, the one who worked for Torchwood, and the council estate kid. And the people from both parts of his life only ever really knew one of those two Iantos. Again, all of the tears.
There's a lot of interesting political stuff going on in this episode, from all of the lies the Prime Minister (and by extension, the government) tells the British people about the safety of their children, to the significance behind the American representative taking control of things (and the Prime Minister's horrifying bit about placing the blame on anyone but him because he wasn't in control). I was really satisfied with the resolution of this part of the story, and especially liked that although Bridget Spears and Denise Riley basically succeed in overthrowing the Prime Minister, having Riley in charge (from the shadows or as actual PM) will definitely not be any better than Green. How many regime changes is that in the Whoniverse in the last five years? Way too damn many, that's for sure.
I do feel bad for Lois in all this, though. She works so hard, does the right thing, and ends up getting arrested for it. She does play a large part in bringing down the PM by giving Bridget Spears the contact lenses (and as a side note, how germ-y are these things by now? They've been in way too many people's eyes with way too little cleaning), but is basically shunted off to the side and forgotten about at the end of it all. I'll never forget you, Lois!
And Frobisher! The resolution to his story was so powerful and heartbreaking, with a masterful performance by Peter Capaldi. When he was told he'd have to sacrifice his children to the 456 to avoid suspicion, I was horrified. I love that he was so determined to keep his family safe, at whatever cost. Yes, what he did was terrible, but it was clearly something that caused him a great deal of anguish. He devoted his life to the job that ended up killing him. That scene where Bridget tells Lois about how she met Frobisher, and how he got to the position he held through nothing more than hard work and perseverance was just brilliantly done. And, of course, the irony of the situation just made it that much worse. If he'd given his kids up, they would have all lived.
Oh, Agent Johnson! Telling Alice that "if you're going to take ten percent, take the ten percent you don't want." She's totally cold so she can justify to herself that this isn't like the most horrible thing ever. Her progression over these five episodes is one of the most interesting things to watch. From stone cold killing machine, who's only following orders, to someone with actual human emotions. Her world has been completely rocked, and how she deals with that fallout is one of the things I'm saddest we'll never get to see. Also, I kind of ship her and Alice a little bit, not gonna lie.
The reveal that the 456 want the children because they use them like drugs was pretty shocking and terrifying. It doesn't hold up as well on a rewatch, since I had a lot of time to wrap my head around it in between viewings, but on that first viewing, I was absolutely horrified. The scene is played really nicely, both in the way it's cut between the UNIT Colonel and the tank, and in the performances (yes, the 456 Voice totally counts as a performance, if only auditorily). Really plays up the horror nicely.
I was pretty much okay with how the 456 were defeated. Using their connection with the children against them made a lot of sense, but I feel as though they didn't do enough work to get from "they're unstoppable" to "we can hurt them, but we have to kill a child". Just a lot of babbling about constructive waves and reversing the polarity. Also, I'm not convinced that would have destroyed them. Maybe (and certainly for the purposes of this story) hurt them enough to get them to leave, and probably keep them away from Earth for a long time to come, but since we don't know how or why they got here, there's really no way of knowing. I guess my complaint with this part of the storyline is that it was kind of rushed, and felt a bit abrupt. Even on the first viewing, but especially on the rewatch, as it felt like about five seconds elapsed between Johnson shooting Dekker and Jack agreeing to use Steven. But that's kind of the way with a lot of RTD's writing: great beginnings, but it falls apart at the end (Tinkerbell Jesus Doctor, anyone?).
The alien defeat may not have been exactly what I would have hoped for, but the way that people fought back warmed my heart like nothing else. Loved all of those men on the Cromwell Estate standing up against the military, fighting as a unit to save their kids and their neighbors' kids. And Andy doing the right thing and standing with them, which pretty much makes up for him leading the bad guys directly to Gwen's house on Day Two. Oh Andy. ♥ Granted, he gets his ass handed to him, but what matters is that he tries.
And Gwen and Rhys and Rhi fleeing with the kids was also wonderful. They kept on fighting right until the very end. Gwen's video about the whole situation was very chilling to watch, too, but I don't really agree with her. I love how they more or less bookended the episode with it, though. The Doctor isn't ashamed of the Earth. Who knows why he isn't there all the time, or this time. The simple answer is that he's only one man; he can't be in more than one place at the same time; he's fallible. Some things are fixed points, too, and he can't interfere (even though he has done in the past; my irritation with "The Waters of Mars", and the Tenth Doctor in general, let me show you it). And sometimes when he does, he makes mistakes (see The Battle of Canary Wharf for something related to Torchwood). The Doctor loves us, but he's not god, and he can't fix everything. It sucks, but that's how it is.
I love that once Jack makes the decision to use Steven, he takes full responsibility for it. He sets it all up, he pushes the button, and he refuses to look away, even when the rest of them do. He just breaks my heart, you guys. And that moment, when Steven is up there under that spotlight, asking Jack what's going on. Despite the fairly ridiculous nature of this solution, a lot of this is so painful to watch. Barrowman, once again, plays this perfectly.
Alice's grief is just palpable. From the moment she realizes what's about to happen (that first "Dad, no" broke my heart), to the moment she leaves at the end, Lucy Cohu knocks it out of the park. So difficult to watch. Once it's all over, and Jack's left alone in the hall, Alice shows up. I love that they don't say a word to one another. I mean, what are you going to say, "sorry I killed your son"? That just isn't going to cut it. And when that door closes behind her, he's lost her forever. And then Jack walks through the doors at the other end of the hall, and he doesn't ever intend on coming back. The slow-mo fade to white is kind of ridic, though.
Then it's time to twist the knife one final time, with that goodbye scene on top of the hill (a hill that looks suspiciously like the hill Wilf and Donna had those scenes together on in "Partners In Crime". Maybe there's only one really good one near Cardiff). Jack making the decision to leave sucks, but it makes complete sense. This is him, once again, blaming himself for things that aren't his fault. None of these deaths that he's sad over is something that he's to blame for. Ianto's least of all, since Ianto was hired by Torchwood London completely independently of Jack, then flirted his way into a job at Torchwood Three, rather than being recruited. I'm fairly certain that once he knew what Torchwood was all about, and how long the average Torchwood field agent lasted before dying, he expected to die at any time. Hell, he should have died at least twice over (Canary Wharf, killed by Lisa in "Cyberwoman"), so there's no way Jack's to blame.
And Jack saved Tosh from rotting in a UNIT prison cell for the rest of her life. Sure, she was bound to Torchwood for five years, but most of those "conditions" that they discussed were just to appease UNIT (witness her going to London for her grandfather's birthday in "Captain Jack Harkness", even though UNIT never wanted her to see her family). As she said in her goodbye video in "Exit Wounds", she didn't blame him, so he shouldn't blame himself. Owen was devastated by Katie's death, and without Torchwood, who knows where he would have ended up. Probably not dead, then brought back to life only to die again from extreme radiation, but Torchwood was something Owen believed in, something that allowed him to use his medical skills to do good things. And no way would he have blamed Jack for that.
Okay, yes, Jack is actually responsible for Steven's death, but it was something that had to be done in order to save millions and millions of children. It was awful, but it was necessary. That's life in Torchwood. Hell, that's life in general, somtimes. But it's not surprising that this is eating Jack up inside. He's a good person, and this was his grandson.
I don't know, it just breaks my heart that Jack is the guy that blames himself for everything that isn't his fault. It started with Gray, and it will probably never stop. :(
But I just can't blame Jack for any of it. I guess what I'm trying to say is Team Jack Forever! :D
***
Criticisms
Other than the couple of teeny things I mentioned on their appropriate day, I actually don't have many. There are a couple of pretty big ones, though. These are in order of when they come up in the plot:
So after all that, I still come down on the pro-CoE side. Whether it really feels like Torchwood or not is almost irrelevant; it's an engrossing and powerfully acted, written, and directed five hours of television. It's painful to watch at times, but it certainly stuck with me, and made me think (boy, did it ever!). The execution could have been better in some spots, and I would have liked more of the characters I love, rather than to have so much (necessary to the story) time spent on new people, but overall, it's a satisfying third series for this show.
Now on to series four!
Day Four
I have a lot less to say about Day Four than any of the other episodes, mostly because this is a super painful episode to watch, and despite that fact is also pretty damn extraordinarily good. That being said, this was much less difficult to watch the second time around. I think it's because I knew what was going to happen, so the COBRA boardroom scenes weren't as difficult to get through this time. In fact, I didn't even cry until Jack and Ianto got to Thames House, whereas last time I cried through most of the episode.
Okay, for the Torchwood team, this episode was pretty much about separating and then destroying them. Obviously, Ianto's death, for one, but also emotionally separating them for a time with the revelation about Jack and 1965. They get back together, so to speak, before they're torn apart for good, but this really weakens them.
The 1965 stuff was really well done. Hearing both Clem and Jack's stories really added a lot of depth to it. It explained everything about Clem's actions (his paranoia and his nervous ticks), and although I think the whole Clem's-safe-because-of-hormones thing is a little hokey, it didn't bug me too much.
Also, "Just come with Uncle Jack." Sweet mother of foreshadowing.
I found that woman's statement that they got Jack to drive the bus because they needed someone who didn't care to be very interesting. I think it's total crap, though. Of course Jack cared! Jack cares too much about these things. However, Jack understood that twelve kids was an acceptable price to pay to save the millions that would have died from the virus if they didn't give them to the 456.
And Ianto, maybe the Jack you know wouldn't have given those kids up, but that guy in 1965 wasn't the Jack you know. The Jack Ianto knows is that Jack plus 44 years of life experience. That Jack was basically marking time, waiting for the 21st Century to start and the Doctor to show up, so maybe he could finally be fixed. Like I said, I believe that Jack cared in 1965 deep down, but he was so focused on waiting for the Doctor that he wouldn't let himself do anything about it. He wouldn't let himself care. It's no coincidence that Jack and Ianto's relationship didn't get serious until after Jack had finally seen the Doctor again, because once he did, he had to start accepting the fact that he wasn't going anywhere, and maybe it might be time to start caring again.
Jack's time up until he saw the Doctor again wasn't exactly about Jack making connections with people and living life to the fullest. I can't really explain Lucia, though. I don't think they were married; there's no canon evidence to suggest that he was married to anyone other than that unknown bride in that photo from the late 19th century, but I would love to know more about their relationship, whatever it was. Gimme that backstory!
Ianto asks Jack why he didn't tell him about the kids in 1965. Says "I tell you everything". But does he? Did Jack know about Ianto's father working at Debenhams's, rather than being a master tailor? I took his statement to mean that he tells Jack everything about his life that's important, and that isn't something that matters to him now. Or something. Maybe Jack knew, but Gwen didn't. Or maybe Ianto was lying. Whatever the case, it's interesting to think about, but also kind of sad, because even if Jack was the most open and honest person in the world, he would most likely never tell Ianto everything about his life, whether because there's so much that he wouldn't have time, or because he's forgotten some stuff.
On the other side of the story, the political stuff is still incredibly chilling, and incredibly well done. The actors are all pretty much perfect in those scenes (although, as a side note, the American representative is so clearly British. Sir, that is definitely not how we pronounce "immediately"). Also, A++ casting of Nick Briggs (generally seen on Doctor Who as the voice of the Daleks, Cybermen, Judoon, and a variety of other aliens) as Rick Yates. His whole speech about spinning the sacrifice of the ten percent to the public as "good" is fantastic. And calling the children "units" to distance themselves from what they're doing? Shivers down my spine.
And of course, there's Denise Riley, whose comments about which children should be the ones to be chosen as part of the ten percent are possibly the most horrible things that anyone says in the entire series. Just, wow.
Lois Habiba continues to rule. For someone who started what was supposed to be a simple admin job only three days ago, she's really impressively willing to get in there and do what needs to be done. She is so. amazing. in that boardroom scene! When she's all "Torchwood" to the "you and whose army" question, I totally cheered. Go Lois! Too bad you won't be in series four. :(
Love that there starts to be a change in Agent Johnson. The fact that she knows what's happening, and what's at stake now and that she's not still following her employers blindly, was really nice to see.
I love the death scene. I hated what led up to it (seriously, NO PLAN, GUYS? WHAT THE ACTUAL FU--sorry, I'll wait for the criticisms section to address this), but that scene itself was gorgeous. Lovely writing, really lovely acting. Although, I still found the cut back to the boardroom super awkward. This room of strangers just watched them die in each other's arms. Way to kill the moment, editors.
And the "I love you" worked really well for me. It's not at all about whether or not Jack says it back, but that Ianto's finally in a place where he can allow himself to admit that he loves Jack, something he couldn't even do earlier in the week. It's some beautiful character growth in three little words.
Also, if the scene weren't sad enough by itself, I read somewhere that John Barrowman, in talking about this scene, said that Jack was less emotional over it and more in denial than he might have been, because he intended to give Ianto the kiss of life (a la "Cyberwoman") to bring him back. But he didn't realize that because he was dying as well, he didn't have enough strength to make it work. So when he revived later on, he basically had to go through it all over again, because it hadn't worked and Ianto really was dead.
If anybody knows about the interview I'm talking about and can link me to it, I'd be really grateful. Because if this is true? BRB, crying forever.
And Gwen adjusting Ianto's tie just breaks me. Eve Myles is so good at these scenes (see her scene at the end of S1 with Rhys's body, and the one later on in that episode with Jack's). That hesitation before she pulls the sheet down, like she just can't bring herself to look, because maybe if she doesn't it won't be true. :( :( :(
***
Day Five
If the last episode was about breaking down, separating, and destroying the team, this one really highlights that fact, and shows us that there's pretty much no hope of them being Torchwood again. Way to break my heart again, show.
Okay, so this probably makes me a very sad person, but I totally got teary during the credits when Gareth David-Lloyd's name wasn't there. I hate changes like that, okay? I'm glad they changed the style of credits from S1-2, because I don't think I could have dealt with seeing those old credits with so few names in them. I get sad about strange things.
Seeing Gwen and Jack just sitting there by themselves at that table. God. It made it more real for me than almost anything else in the episode. They're all that's left. :(
I think the reason this is harder to deal with than "Journey's End" without Tosh and Owen, is because with JE there was a lot of time between when it and "Exit Wounds" aired (not to mention the TW scenes were a mere guest spot), and here we only have a day (both literally and on the show) to get used to the team without Ianto. He's been here all season, too, so the lack of him in the credits, and at that table with the rest of the team (the last time they're properly together as Torchwood) is jarring and noticeable. Not in a bad way, mind you. The way this is written, shot, and acted, you can almost physically see the places that he used to (and still does) occupy. He's also been killed in the middle of the story, and it feels like he should be there to finish things out, to stay until the end.
John Barrowman gives an interesting performance in this episode. He doesn't match up to the caliber of actors like Peter Capaldi, so he comes off a little bit ridiculous in their scene at the beginning, but all of his quiet moments are so. powerful. Maybe it's just my love for Jack, but my heart breaks for him so much in this episode, and Barrowman sells the hell out of it, especially in the latter half.
And Eve Myles is once again heartbreaking and perfect. Loved the phone conversation between Gwen and Rhys when she tells him it's over, that they lost, that Ianto's dead. And even though she doesn't know it yet, at Jack's "I can't look at her anymore", it's made obvious that she's going to lose him, too.
It is so great to see Andy again! I love that moment between Rhys and Andy in the car. Andy all "who's the father"! A much needed laugh in the middle of all of this tragedy.
But then, of course, we're right back to tragedy with the scene where Gwen tells Rhiannon about Ianto. Ugh, crying again. And I know that she just lost her brother, so she isn't thinking clearly and can't be blamed, but when she tells Gwen that because Ianto lied about his father that means Gwen never knew him, I just get so angry. Did Rhi know anything about Ianto's life? About Torchwood, about Jack and Gwen, about Lisa even? Just because Ianto didn't tell them the truth about his past doesn't mean they didn't know him, didn't know the kind of man he was, didn't know who he was. It's almost like there were two of him, the one who worked for Torchwood, and the council estate kid. And the people from both parts of his life only ever really knew one of those two Iantos. Again, all of the tears.
There's a lot of interesting political stuff going on in this episode, from all of the lies the Prime Minister (and by extension, the government) tells the British people about the safety of their children, to the significance behind the American representative taking control of things (and the Prime Minister's horrifying bit about placing the blame on anyone but him because he wasn't in control). I was really satisfied with the resolution of this part of the story, and especially liked that although Bridget Spears and Denise Riley basically succeed in overthrowing the Prime Minister, having Riley in charge (from the shadows or as actual PM) will definitely not be any better than Green. How many regime changes is that in the Whoniverse in the last five years? Way too damn many, that's for sure.
I do feel bad for Lois in all this, though. She works so hard, does the right thing, and ends up getting arrested for it. She does play a large part in bringing down the PM by giving Bridget Spears the contact lenses (and as a side note, how germ-y are these things by now? They've been in way too many people's eyes with way too little cleaning), but is basically shunted off to the side and forgotten about at the end of it all. I'll never forget you, Lois!
And Frobisher! The resolution to his story was so powerful and heartbreaking, with a masterful performance by Peter Capaldi. When he was told he'd have to sacrifice his children to the 456 to avoid suspicion, I was horrified. I love that he was so determined to keep his family safe, at whatever cost. Yes, what he did was terrible, but it was clearly something that caused him a great deal of anguish. He devoted his life to the job that ended up killing him. That scene where Bridget tells Lois about how she met Frobisher, and how he got to the position he held through nothing more than hard work and perseverance was just brilliantly done. And, of course, the irony of the situation just made it that much worse. If he'd given his kids up, they would have all lived.
Oh, Agent Johnson! Telling Alice that "if you're going to take ten percent, take the ten percent you don't want." She's totally cold so she can justify to herself that this isn't like the most horrible thing ever. Her progression over these five episodes is one of the most interesting things to watch. From stone cold killing machine, who's only following orders, to someone with actual human emotions. Her world has been completely rocked, and how she deals with that fallout is one of the things I'm saddest we'll never get to see. Also, I kind of ship her and Alice a little bit, not gonna lie.
The reveal that the 456 want the children because they use them like drugs was pretty shocking and terrifying. It doesn't hold up as well on a rewatch, since I had a lot of time to wrap my head around it in between viewings, but on that first viewing, I was absolutely horrified. The scene is played really nicely, both in the way it's cut between the UNIT Colonel and the tank, and in the performances (yes, the 456 Voice totally counts as a performance, if only auditorily). Really plays up the horror nicely.
I was pretty much okay with how the 456 were defeated. Using their connection with the children against them made a lot of sense, but I feel as though they didn't do enough work to get from "they're unstoppable" to "we can hurt them, but we have to kill a child". Just a lot of babbling about constructive waves and reversing the polarity. Also, I'm not convinced that would have destroyed them. Maybe (and certainly for the purposes of this story) hurt them enough to get them to leave, and probably keep them away from Earth for a long time to come, but since we don't know how or why they got here, there's really no way of knowing. I guess my complaint with this part of the storyline is that it was kind of rushed, and felt a bit abrupt. Even on the first viewing, but especially on the rewatch, as it felt like about five seconds elapsed between Johnson shooting Dekker and Jack agreeing to use Steven. But that's kind of the way with a lot of RTD's writing: great beginnings, but it falls apart at the end (Tinkerbell Jesus Doctor, anyone?).
The alien defeat may not have been exactly what I would have hoped for, but the way that people fought back warmed my heart like nothing else. Loved all of those men on the Cromwell Estate standing up against the military, fighting as a unit to save their kids and their neighbors' kids. And Andy doing the right thing and standing with them, which pretty much makes up for him leading the bad guys directly to Gwen's house on Day Two. Oh Andy. ♥ Granted, he gets his ass handed to him, but what matters is that he tries.
And Gwen and Rhys and Rhi fleeing with the kids was also wonderful. They kept on fighting right until the very end. Gwen's video about the whole situation was very chilling to watch, too, but I don't really agree with her. I love how they more or less bookended the episode with it, though. The Doctor isn't ashamed of the Earth. Who knows why he isn't there all the time, or this time. The simple answer is that he's only one man; he can't be in more than one place at the same time; he's fallible. Some things are fixed points, too, and he can't interfere (even though he has done in the past; my irritation with "The Waters of Mars", and the Tenth Doctor in general, let me show you it). And sometimes when he does, he makes mistakes (see The Battle of Canary Wharf for something related to Torchwood). The Doctor loves us, but he's not god, and he can't fix everything. It sucks, but that's how it is.
I love that once Jack makes the decision to use Steven, he takes full responsibility for it. He sets it all up, he pushes the button, and he refuses to look away, even when the rest of them do. He just breaks my heart, you guys. And that moment, when Steven is up there under that spotlight, asking Jack what's going on. Despite the fairly ridiculous nature of this solution, a lot of this is so painful to watch. Barrowman, once again, plays this perfectly.
Alice's grief is just palpable. From the moment she realizes what's about to happen (that first "Dad, no" broke my heart), to the moment she leaves at the end, Lucy Cohu knocks it out of the park. So difficult to watch. Once it's all over, and Jack's left alone in the hall, Alice shows up. I love that they don't say a word to one another. I mean, what are you going to say, "sorry I killed your son"? That just isn't going to cut it. And when that door closes behind her, he's lost her forever. And then Jack walks through the doors at the other end of the hall, and he doesn't ever intend on coming back. The slow-mo fade to white is kind of ridic, though.
Then it's time to twist the knife one final time, with that goodbye scene on top of the hill (a hill that looks suspiciously like the hill Wilf and Donna had those scenes together on in "Partners In Crime". Maybe there's only one really good one near Cardiff). Jack making the decision to leave sucks, but it makes complete sense. This is him, once again, blaming himself for things that aren't his fault. None of these deaths that he's sad over is something that he's to blame for. Ianto's least of all, since Ianto was hired by Torchwood London completely independently of Jack, then flirted his way into a job at Torchwood Three, rather than being recruited. I'm fairly certain that once he knew what Torchwood was all about, and how long the average Torchwood field agent lasted before dying, he expected to die at any time. Hell, he should have died at least twice over (Canary Wharf, killed by Lisa in "Cyberwoman"), so there's no way Jack's to blame.
And Jack saved Tosh from rotting in a UNIT prison cell for the rest of her life. Sure, she was bound to Torchwood for five years, but most of those "conditions" that they discussed were just to appease UNIT (witness her going to London for her grandfather's birthday in "Captain Jack Harkness", even though UNIT never wanted her to see her family). As she said in her goodbye video in "Exit Wounds", she didn't blame him, so he shouldn't blame himself. Owen was devastated by Katie's death, and without Torchwood, who knows where he would have ended up. Probably not dead, then brought back to life only to die again from extreme radiation, but Torchwood was something Owen believed in, something that allowed him to use his medical skills to do good things. And no way would he have blamed Jack for that.
Okay, yes, Jack is actually responsible for Steven's death, but it was something that had to be done in order to save millions and millions of children. It was awful, but it was necessary. That's life in Torchwood. Hell, that's life in general, somtimes. But it's not surprising that this is eating Jack up inside. He's a good person, and this was his grandson.
I don't know, it just breaks my heart that Jack is the guy that blames himself for everything that isn't his fault. It started with Gray, and it will probably never stop. :(
But I just can't blame Jack for any of it. I guess what I'm trying to say is Team Jack Forever! :D
***
Criticisms
Other than the couple of teeny things I mentioned on their appropriate day, I actually don't have many. There are a couple of pretty big ones, though. These are in order of when they come up in the plot:
- Martha. I understand Gwen chastising Jack about calling Martha when nothing much is really happening on Day One, but as soon as shit starts getting real, someone should have tried calling her. I know Freema chose to take Law & Order: UK, instead of doing CoE, and so Russell was apparently pissed that he had to write Martha out of the story completely, but how hard would it have been to have someone call her off-screen and tell the others they got through to her and that she couldn't get back into the country to help, but she'd been trying the Doctor and had gotten no response?! Or that the Doctor had told her he couldn't interfere. Or whatever. This is a giant, and super annoying, plot hole that could have been resolved with one line of dialogue. Martha didn't have to show up to save the day, or even be on screen at all. But she's someone that could have helped them, and to put her out of the equation completely because she was on her honeymoon? Utter bullshit. Also, Martha/Tom Milligan, forever. Sorry Mickey, but I can never approve of them getting married just for the Smith-Jones joke.
- Gwen teaching the boys to be criminals, because she knows all of the tricks from being a police officer. Okay, that works for Rhys, and I can even see it for Ianto, since he was only convicted once for shoplifting as a kid, so probably wasn't really a juvenile delinquent, but Jack?! The guy who, when we first meet him on Doctor Who, was a con man? Okay, whatever. I will admit that this isn't something that bothered me the first time I saw the episode, only after someone else mentioned it, but damn it was dumb. Dear writer of this particular episode: Gwen is great. You don't have to invent extra special skills to give her to make us aware of this fact. >:(
- And my number one criticism: the "plan" (or lack thereof) that Jack and Ianto had for confronting the 456. First off, the team demonstrated consistently through the first three episodes that they were excellent at making and executing plans (getting Jack out of Ashton Down like a boss, getting resources/electricity to get Torchwood up and running again like a boss, getting Lois on the inside like a boss, getting into Thames House like a boss, etc.). Had they just run out of ideas?! I mean, here's Jack, who has had two separate conversations in the past four days about how he is going to live forever and be forced to see the people that he loves die (with Alice on Day One--he'll be at her funeral, looking just how he looked at Lucia's; with Ianto on Day Three--Ianto'll die, and Jack will continue on forever (or at least until he becomes a giant head in a jar)). So, this is clearly something that's on Jack's mind. Also, Jack is well aware that the 456 have the capability to kill via virus (it's what they were going to do in 1965 after all). So, you mean to tell me after all that, that Jack would be willing to take someone that he loves (and worries about losing) into the building with a potential deadly virus WITHOUT SOME KIND OF PROTECTION?! FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, GET A GAS MASK! OR A HAZMAT SUIT! OR SOMETHING.
And I'm not saying that I think Ianto shouldn't have died. I'm not upset that they killed him off. I'm sad that he's dead, definitely (I'm still not over Tosh and Owen, tbh), but when you look at the story RTD was trying to tell, and you listen to him repeatedly say in interviews that death and tragedy make for good drama, it's obvious that one of the main characters is going to die. Clearly not Jack or Gwen, because John and Eve are the stars of the show (and Jack's immortal, so his inevitable death(s) obviously won't stick), and since this story is largely about Jack (he has a family! he will have to watch people he loves die!) and Jack's mistakes (he gave the children to the 456 in 1965), you can infer that the death is going to be personal to him. And, of course, Steven is very personal to him. But not to us. RTD is the kind of guy that likes to hurt his audience, and Steven dying wouldn't have made enough of an emotional impact. And since Rhys's death would really only hurt Gwen (well, it would hurt me, but I'm just saying Jack wouldn't care as much as she would), Ianto's the obvious choice. Doesn't mean they had to make it so easy.
All the two of them had to do was come up with some sort of plan. I mean, I'm not even asking for a plan that works. Just a plan. I mean, they even had time in the car on the way there to come up with one! Plus, having a plan would have made his death worse, because they'd have tried everything to keep him safe and that still wouldn't have been enough. Instead we get to see the two of them basically go off half-cocked and get Ianto killed. Totally sloppy writing, guys. - And going along with that, how fucking sick am I of writers killing off characters merely to further the hero's manpain? So sick. For those of you not familiar with this trope, there's a tendency in fiction to kill off the hero's significant other to act as a catalyst for some type of change for him, or to make him super sad. Generally, the S.O. in question is a woman. Just off the top my head, you've got both Mary and Jess in Supernatural, Tara on Buffy, Rita on Dexter, Harry's Mom in Harry Potter, and a whole host of superheroes' girlfriends in comics. The trope name, Women In Refrigerators (or Stuffed in the Fridge for the gender-neutral version [warning, TV Tropes link!]) comes from a Green Lantern storyline, but there is a huge list at both of those sites of instances in various forms of media. Also, for an amazing look at this cliche in vid form, there is The Price by thingswithwings! And the sad thing is that you could make about ten more vids on this topic without repeating any fandoms.
But anyway, if you just look at the episodes on their own, I don't really think this death fits the trope, tbh. Yeah, Ianto's death sucks, and it's not heroic, but it's not just there to get Jack to be sad or anything. Regardless of whether you (or I) think it does or not, after CoE aired, Russell gave this interview to AfterElton.com, where he talked about Ianto's death, and his response is basically the definition of fridging, in a nutshell:
AE: Why did you decide to kill off Ianto?
RTD: The problem is, if someone hadn't died you couldn't have a threat that great and have them seem untouched by it. So on the first day of discussions on the story [for Children of Earth], that was my first decision - that we would have to have a horrible war casualty. And it had to have the greatest effect on Captain Jack because I always sort of knew that Jack would kill his grandchild in the last episode...and in order to do that you got to have a Captain Jack who is badly, badly damaged.
So it [Ianto's dying] was maximum damage to Jack. And it had to be Jack who was damaged because he's the sort of moral player here. He's the one that gave away 12 children back in 1965 to these alien gods. So actually he paid the price to damage him, to make this a tale of retribution and perhaps redemption all come around to him, you have to kill his lover.
AE: So Ianto died in order for Jack to make that final decision about his grandson. To be so damaged he could do something so awful?
RTD: Yeah, that's what it took.
The problem with that answer, though, is that it's total bullshit. To say that Jack couldn't make the decision to kill Steven is completely wrong. In fact, I would argue heavily that this is the kind of thing that Jack has always been prepared to do. If you look at Jack's character over the course of Torchwood, and the actions he's taken, it's clear that he's the kind of guy who always does what needs to be done. He is pragmatic, and willing to do things that other people aren't if those things need to be done, whether they're the right thing morally or not.
The classic example of that (coincidentally enough) involves another child: Jasmine in "Small Worlds". He lets her go with the fairies so that they won't destroy the world. And, yeah, from the mother's perspective this is a terrible thing; she's just lost her child. From the girl's perspective, she gets to leave the life she hates and be with her friends forever. A much happier outcome that what happens here, and something that I'm still surprised all of the team were so angry about. It sucked, but she wasn't hurt and the world was saved. Maybe that makes me a terrible person, and I'd probably feel a lot different IRL, but I don't see that what Jack did was so wrong. And it was definitely necessary.
So, you can see right away in series one that Jack's even willing to give up a child to save the world. That's a direct parallel. But there are so many other times where he does things that other people might find horrible, like killing Mary or Lisa, or does things that other people won't do. Those other soldiers weren't willing to actually hand the children over to the 456 in 1965, regardless of what their feelings were on the action. Jack was. He knew it had to be done.
The only time he's really faltered on this is in not killing Gray. Gray was a danger to the team, to Cardiff, etc., and more importantly, he wanted to die. He tells that whole story about what those creatures did to him, and talks about constantly wishing for death. The most compassionate thing that Jack could have done for him was kill him. But this is his baby brother, and this is an event that he's super irrational about (it's not your fault, dammit!), so it's not a surprise that it ended up that way.
So, other than Gray, he always does what needs to be done, and I don't think that Ianto being around or not being around would have made the least bit of difference in Jack's decision to use Steven. Certainly, their relationship has gotten a lot closer since Jack sacrificed Jasmine, but once he was able to talk to the Doctor and find out that there was no way to fix his immortality, he had to move on from living every day pinning his hopes on the Doctor, and figure out how to live his life again. So, I don't think that Ianto being alive would have changed what Jack had to do. It's possible that Ianto being alive might have allowed them to come up with another plan, because all of team Torchwood would have stayed in London. Someone might have still gone to see Rhi and help save those kids, but there's a chance that the endgame would have played out differently because of where the different pieces of the Torchwood puzzle were. Who knows?
But with what ended up happening, it could only be Steven, and no matter how much it hurt him, Jack was going to do it anyway. But to be honest, I think it would have been braver (and certainly more original) if Ianto hadn't died. Russell wouldn't have had to rely on tired old cliches to create good drama. Plus, it would have been really interesting to see how Ianto reacted to seeing Jack kill Steven. How it would effect their relationship (both personally and professionally). Or hell, even whether or not Ianto being there would have made some difference in the events that happened. Whatever. And like I said, I don't really think that the text supports the reading of "Jack has lost all hope because Ianto is dead, and in any other circumstances he totally wouldn't kill Steven, but since that's the only thing he can think of and nobody's there to stop him, he's going to do it!" but that's more or less what Russell's saying, and if you're going to take the guy that wrote it as, like, The Word, well, I'm going to criticize The Word, that's all I'm saying. Again, I'm not mad that he was killed off. I'm just sick of this cliche, it's offensive, lazy writing.
And let me also say that if you're writing a script (or a novel, or whatever), and you get one of your major plot points from TV Tropes, you're doing it wrong. Sorry, but you are. Unless, you know, you give one of your characters a Crowning Moment of Awesome, or one of the other positive tropes. Then you're okay. :D - Dekker. First of all, the 456 (or anyone else nearby) never explained how the virus was released in Thames House. Was it released in that room, and the air circulation systems carried it throughout the building, or was it released all over the building at once? If it was the latter, Dekker should have died, no matter how fast he ran for a Hazmat suit. Breathing filtered air wouldn't heal him. Also, WTF was up with him on Day Five?! He was way too excited about the prospect of having to kill a child to stop the 456 ("that child's gonna fry"). I just feel like he was too obviously creepy, and they never explained why. His behavior in that scene (and in fact all of his behavior on Day Five) seemed significant, but nothing ever came of it.
- Perhaps the most unbelievable part of the story for me is the idea that all of these countries (European countries, China, Iran, Iraq, the United States, etc. etc.) would be totally fine with turning over ten percent of their child population based only on numbers coming out of their children's mouths and the insistence of the British government. Yes, the UN is involved in this somehow, but not all of the countries that are mentioned at one point or another as being involved are members of the UN. And since when have relations between these countries been that simple? Just because your story involves aliens, there is no excuse for that level of ridiculousness.
- On a similar note, the actual act of taking the kids away felt a bit unrealistic to me. No way these children wouldn't be freaking out and crying and trying to get away from the soldiers and over to their moms if they're being led right past said moms who are terrified and yelling for them to stop. And even if you argue that there were only a few moms, and the kids whose moms weren't there would have been more confused than upset, that still doesn't explain their total calm complacency once they reach the rendezvous point. And this, again is something that could easily be solved. All the government had to do was announce that they were going to transport the kids on buses to someplace to give them an inoculation (which was actually a thing they did in Canada in 2009 for the Swine Flu vaccine), and that no one should be concerned about it. Parents would then see their kids off with a smile, and the kids would be totally chill, while all the while the audience knows they're sending them to their doom. Sure, the teacher's complaint that the military can't take the kids off school property (presumably because there are no permission slips) is still valid, but someone could (and should have) figure out how to keep the complaining teachers inside and away from the parents, to avoid causing a scene.
If the audience was the only one who knew what was happening, it would have been so much more dramatically effective, and would have made the scenes where they started pulling kids out of their houses feel like more of an escalation.
So after all that, I still come down on the pro-CoE side. Whether it really feels like Torchwood or not is almost irrelevant; it's an engrossing and powerfully acted, written, and directed five hours of television. It's painful to watch at times, but it certainly stuck with me, and made me think (boy, did it ever!). The execution could have been better in some spots, and I would have liked more of the characters I love, rather than to have so much (necessary to the story) time spent on new people, but overall, it's a satisfying third series for this show.
Now on to series four!