Torchwood: Children of Earth, Day Three

[pogrebin]

So yes. I finally managed to write a reaction post. Damn you, Americans and non-GMT people for getting on the internets and being amusing when it's 3am my time and I'm asleep. So apologies in advance if I don't reply to your comments till tomorrow morning, my time. On the other hand, I might just go with completely altering my circadian rhythms.

Comments

[neifile7]

Oh jesus, Jack. You glorious, dysfunctional, fucked-up, delicious tool. Yes, RTD ran that reveal up the tallest flagpole he could find, and it was twiggable even without all of Clem's dithering.

Obviously, the PTB are going to comply (or try to comply). Obviously, Jack's going to have to choose between Alice and Stephen and blowing the cover-up out of the water. Obviously, Frobisher is already custom-sliced for the toaster. At least he'll probably take creepy Decker with him. I hope he doesn't take Lois and Bridget, too (I rather like Bridget, for all her civil service expediency and starch and probable past office canoodling with Frobisher).

I am not, not happy with Ianto harping on his own demise. At all. Although I agree there's a moment of sweetness there, when he shifts to let's-shag-before-the-world-ends. (Shades of Owen, anyone?) And finding Jack his clothes is just further confirmation (building on yesterday) that he is truly The Best Boyfriend in the Galaxy.

TW3 grifting is absolutely the best thing ever. And of course Jack WOULD steal a fricking Porsche!

[phaetonschariot]

*points up for timeline issues about the Jack/Ianto talk*

Jack stole a Porsche CONVERTIBLE. MIDLIFE FUCKING CRISIS. hahahaha.

[pogrebin]

Re: Ianto's speech. Yeaaaah, am not best pleased with it. Only really rescued by INNUENDOES and their performances, I think. Will have to rewatch it to really come to a conclusion, but I felt vaguely unsettled about it.

Ahahahaha-- you're so right. Ianto, you are stealing Owen's moves for sexytimes. Owen would roll his eyes. Then approve!

I too am having a growing love for Bridget. She is cool and starched and pragmatic,. And she tries to tell Frobisher that he's just a pawn in the elevator, even though he doesn't want to believe it. She's wonderful. And Lois is growing on me too-- I was very meh-y about her in Day One.

Torchwood is coming up with best boyfriends/husbands in spades-- ianto and Rhys, everyone should have one of each of them!

Oh, man. Jack and his midlife crisis mobile!

[phaetonschariot]

It's pretty much just all the Welshmen this season I think. Ianto, Rhys, Johnny's getting pretty awesome, Andy's always precious.

[neifile7]

After thought, I agree with Kei above. I think the J/I moment is actually a rather powerful statement about Ianto accepting limits and finding his agency within them, and it's important that he begins by asking Jack what he went through. It's equally key that Jack has enough respect and confidence in Ianto not to sugar-coat anything. And Jack is seriously grateful for Ianto's acceptance here, especially after that bitter exchange with Alice in ep1.

Oh, and the timing? (a) They're guys. It takes forever to get stuff out in the open. (b) Ianto was seriously worried this time around that Jack wouldn't be able to come back from being blown to bits, so it's a slightly different death than the others he's witnessed -- it's natural that the question should arise now. (c) For reasons not unrelated to growing awareness of sexual identity issues and how they might matter outside TW, he'd like to remind himself why this is all worth it; cue the sexytimes. (d) Ianto's totally in Best Boyfriend in the Galaxty mode these last two eps; he can't do enough for Jack. (Remind us of any past relationships he's had?) That's probably one part affirmation and one part insecurity and god knows what else, but losing the Hub and their routines and privacy probably brings it all out.

[pogrebin]

You've just made me feel 30000% better about this moment.

(But I'm still not entirely pleased with the writing. Cause we shouldn't have to fanwank, even so elegantly, to arrive at an appropriate understanding. But hey, pfff. *handwave*)

Also, I'M FEELING SO MUCH FEAR FEAR FEAR FOR TONIGHT AND OUR DEAR BOY. Plz to be reassuring me that I'm crazy and that it will be a big damn fake out? :////

[neifile7]

You're not crazy, and I am just as afraid. Frankly, this moment here makes me more worried than ever (see above). On the other hand, that is obviously precisely what we're supposed to think.

I may be able to forgive this for story reasons (if sufficiently well done); I'm much less patient with manipulation for the sake of ratings.

I wrote over at rm's journal that the gas chamber is clearly the gun that appears in Act I (or Act II in this case) and must go off by Act V. It's all down to how they handle it.

[pogrebin]

Yes, gah. I'm just feeling terribly flaily about it. Despite having been fandom-y for a large portion of my life-- it's generally been the world that I've loved, and enjoyed. Like, I don't think I've actually cared about characters this much, for ongoing canon, in a long while. And so now I have completely irrational, silly and completely non-critical-faculties related fear, because, damn, I love these three people and their dynamic. And his arc is so incomplete, and it makes *no sense* from the televisual perspective to kill off another main character so soon after Tosh and Owen. GAH. But yes, basically I am a silly, wibbly ball of lalalala narrative devices? i can't hear you.

I'm very much hoping that I will look back at this comment late friday night and laugh at my own credulity.

[neifile7]

You and me both, my dear. And this being my first real fandom and all, well, that investment -- it's all a bit new to me. As the man says.