The Angel parallels are superficial, certainly, but I think it's interesting that both Angel and Torchwood are spin offs from youth-oriented TV that are establishing themselves as a darker variation on the same universe. Seems sex and death are the way to go! Torchwood is actually darker than I expected in places and the sex was more 'explicit' in relative terms - unusually so for the genre.
My biggest problem with the show is really the characters being so thin, and the story ideas (so far) being overly familiar. Even Gwen's intro to Torchwood followed much the same pattern as Rose's intro to the Doctor. Also it does seem to beggar belief that an organisation so powerful is run by a rag tag collection of five self-absorbed misfits with lax security, poor discipline and no backup, but that's one of those Tee Vee things.
It does have a few nice imaginative moments and funny lines, and they found a few ways to play a familiar idea in a fresh way. There's promise. I particularly liked the fact that the team are allowed to screw up, and that the screw ups can have consequences. The visual style is fine, the main set is interesting and low tech (I like the Victorian tiling, but I'm not sure about the cells from Silence of the Lambs), and I enjoyed the atmospheric aerial shots of the city at night (also one of the few things that worked well in the BBC's recent Quatermass adaptation). Sadly the incidental music is almost as loud as in Doctor Who, but at least it's generally right for the show.
Overall I did enjoy it, and I'll give it time; it's ticking all the right boxes, just missing that certain something that makes a series click.
My biggest problem with the show is really the characters being so thin, and the story ideas (so far) being overly familiar. Even Gwen's intro to Torchwood followed much the same pattern as Rose's intro to the Doctor. Also it does seem to beggar belief that an organisation so powerful is run by a rag tag collection of five self-absorbed misfits with lax security, poor discipline and no backup, but that's one of those Tee Vee things.
It does have a few nice imaginative moments and funny lines, and they found a few ways to play a familiar idea in a fresh way. There's promise. I particularly liked the fact that the team are allowed to screw up, and that the screw ups can have consequences. The visual style is fine, the main set is interesting and low tech (I like the Victorian tiling, but I'm not sure about the cells from Silence of the Lambs), and I enjoyed the atmospheric aerial shots of the city at night (also one of the few things that worked well in the BBC's recent Quatermass adaptation). Sadly the incidental music is almost as loud as in Doctor Who, but at least it's generally right for the show.
Overall I did enjoy it, and I'll give it time; it's ticking all the right boxes, just missing that certain something that makes a series click.
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