Torchwood 2x05, "Adam"
Couldn't they have found a way to leave Owen as he was? 'Cause, major improvement. And the restored Owen seems, in fact, to have reverted to his S1 self rather than the nice Owen who was so kind to Toshiko about Tommy.
Mostly I really liked this episode. The main plot was good (except for the Gaping Plot Hole I'll discuss in a minute) and Jack solving the mystery through his love for Ianto, his sheer refusal to believe that Ianto could be a serial killer, made me happy. On the other hand, the Jack backstory was lame as hell. Frankly, Jack doesn't need more angst, especially not cliched dead-family!angst. The backstory moments for the other characters (when they were finding their definitive memories) were miserably predictable, right down to Owen's mommy!angst--the least sympathetic character always has to have a secret burden of pain and rejection.
I did, however, adore Jack's little messiah moment, going around laying on hands to cure the sick. The handing out of pills lacked only "this is my body" to be deliciously, blasphemously crazy. Yes, it was over the top, but I think it's also deeply in character for Jack. (Maybe he caught it from the Doctor?)
Gwen's "I love you" to Jack was annoying (especially since Rhys was so loving and generally wonderful in this ep), but since Ianto got 98% of the love and cuddles, my reaction was an eyeroll rather than a burning desire to slap the writer.
And since I've mentioned Rhys, that brings up the Big Gaping Plothole: RHYS WILL REMEMBER. He met Adam, albeit briefly, and Adam was introduced to him as a member of the team. And he'll certainly remember Gwen coming home with amnesia and almost shooting him. I'm hoping this is all a setup for something in the next episode rather than an actual plothole, but I don't want to be overly optimistic.
*****
Mostly I really liked this episode. The main plot was good (except for the Gaping Plot Hole I'll discuss in a minute) and Jack solving the mystery through his love for Ianto, his sheer refusal to believe that Ianto could be a serial killer, made me happy. On the other hand, the Jack backstory was lame as hell. Frankly, Jack doesn't need more angst, especially not cliched dead-family!angst. The backstory moments for the other characters (when they were finding their definitive memories) were miserably predictable, right down to Owen's mommy!angst--the least sympathetic character always has to have a secret burden of pain and rejection.
I did, however, adore Jack's little messiah moment, going around laying on hands to cure the sick. The handing out of pills lacked only "this is my body" to be deliciously, blasphemously crazy. Yes, it was over the top, but I think it's also deeply in character for Jack. (Maybe he caught it from the Doctor?)
Gwen's "I love you" to Jack was annoying (especially since Rhys was so loving and generally wonderful in this ep), but since Ianto got 98% of the love and cuddles, my reaction was an eyeroll rather than a burning desire to slap the writer.
And since I've mentioned Rhys, that brings up the Big Gaping Plothole: RHYS WILL REMEMBER. He met Adam, albeit briefly, and Adam was introduced to him as a member of the team. And he'll certainly remember Gwen coming home with amnesia and almost shooting him. I'm hoping this is all a setup for something in the next episode rather than an actual plothole, but I don't want to be overly optimistic.
*****