New Torchwood!

[selenak]

BBC Radio 4 is currently broadcasting Torchwood radio plays (three all in all), which non-Brits like yours truly can download here until July 7th. Having listened to the first two, here are my reviews:

Comments

[elisi]

a helpless victim in need to be saved by Team Cardiff
Well... he does save the day (albeit with Jack shouting at him, keeping him focussed) - I mean, Ianto & Gwen were already gone, and Jack did his throwing himself at the danger to let someone else have the time to fix stuff. Not that I can't see your point (and it certainly occurred to me too), but to say that he is only a collaborator/victim isn't quite correct.

And I too love the Ianto & Gwen stuff. :)

ETA: Re. ruthless!Jack... I've been thinking about it, and I think a lot of it is to do with the Master and Gray. The fact that he and the Doctor tried to help those two, offered nothing but friendship, and were rewarded with betrayal and murder of the most horrible kind. This, added to the natural ruthlessness that's built in to Torchwood, is not a good thing to be dealing with. Also there's a lot of detachment going on, which I think Jack was always good at.

the evil of the time bubble of an imperialist keep-Indians-outside past, and they are the villains.I rather loved that,

[selenak]

Well... he does save the day (albeit with Jack shouting at him, keeping him focussed)

Granted, but it's a far cry from, say, the Ood saving themselves in Planet of the Ood; he doesn't have a change of mind until the Duchess turns against him, and he needs Jack to save the day.

This, added to the natural ruthlessness that's built in to Torchwood, is not a good thing to be dealing with. Also there's a lot of detachment going on, which I think Jack was always good at.

Oh, sure. Though I'm not sure the Master & Gray are really that much of a factor; Jack behaved towards Beth just as ruthlessly (granted, she was an active danger) before the Gray experience. It's not that he can't be compassionate towards stranded aliens - see the space whale in Meat - ; but his default instinct seems to be "lock them up" and/or "shoot them", which after all those years with Torchwood isn't that surprising. This is why it's important Jack is the only immortal around, and that the other Torchwoodians are people of their present; they help remind him

[elisi]

he doesn't have a change of mind until the Duchess turns against him, and he needs Jack to save the day.
Well Jack needs him, but I agree that it could have been handled a lot better.

Jack behaved towards Beth just as ruthlessly (granted, she was an active danger) before the Gray experience.
I think this is partly because he *knows* what's out there, but I think that living through the End of the World reinforced that to a great degree. You slip up once, everyone dies.

This is why it's important Jack is the only immortal around, and that the other Torchwoodians are people of their present
Oh absolutely. Having lived through what he has, it's very important for him to have ties to the world.

By the way, I meant to say, re. the 'lack' of Jack/Ianto, that I don't mind at all (despite shipping them very much indeed). As I said I enjoy the Ianto & Gwen friendship immensely, and also I like that Jack/Ianto is just there in the background. The fact that it is so understated is one of the things that appeals to me the most. :)

[kalypso_v]

Yes, I thought they were toast without Mahajan...

What struck me about The Golden Age is that Torchwood and Who writers seem to be obsessed with female imperialists. Yvonne Hartman, Emily Holroyd, now this one - is it because they grew up under Thatcher?

It was nice that Wisden got a name-check, though I have to point out they couldn't have had more than 61 editions in the club. But I suppose that is quite a lot.

I probably enjoyed the first play slightly more, because of the big role for Andy (I've got a vacancy for favourite character, and currently he looks the likeliest person to fill it). My reaction on hearing the play was that he'd taken over Gwen's original role, of the ordinary person with the human touch, pretty completely; Gwen is now the Torchwood operative who has to be reminded of that role by Andy so they can railroad Jack together. I'm pleased to see Andy's going to be in the TV story next week.

Incidentally, whoever picked the photos for the download page either hadn't heard the plays or is having a joke. A

[kathyh]

is that the relationship you actually get a good sense and exploration of as far as Mr. Jones is concerned isn't Jack/Ianto (which is just sort of there), but Ianto & Gwen.

Yes, they seem to be working together as a team with Jack on the outside. So completely the opposite of fanfic.

Jack, of course, does keep aware of the world outside his immediate circle (though sometimes he's in danger of slipping) and more or less welcomes the changes, which is what keeps him on the hero side of the hero/villain divide.

It did highlight how easily he could slip though. I thought it was a very effective moment when she used almost his own words "the 20th century is when everything changes" to make the audience wonder could this be Jack a few years down the line.

Eve Myles is still the best voice actor, which struck me about Lost Souls as well.

Yes, definitely, though I thought the other two had got quite a bit better. There were no moments when I was thrown out of the story by by clunky voice work as there were in Lost Souls.

[selenak]

Yes, they seem to be working together as a team with Jack on the outside. So completely the opposite of fanfic.

I wonder whether fanon will pick up on this eventually. Probably not. *sighs* Ah well. As long as canon keeps giving us Gwen & Ianto friendship scenes, I'm happy.

It did highlight how easily he could slip though. I thought it was a very effective moment when she used almost his own words "the 20th century is when everything changes" to make the audience wonder could this be Jack a few years down the line.

True. In many ways, Jack fixating on meeting the Doctor again once he found himself on 19th century Earth is somewhat related; the Duchess has her perfect day she wants to endlessly relive, Jack has made his brief time with Nine and Rose into his perfect day he wants to endlessly relive, and if he meets the Doctor again, all will be like this again and will be well. It's not until he does meet the Doctor again that he stops this type of idealization of the past, and truly lives with his team in the present (i.e. post

[kalypso_v]

I thought the actor playing the Duchess (incidentally, why did her minions call her "Duchess" rather than "Your Grace"?) was rather weak.

I'm not sure they've cracked the radio format. I hear a wide variety of plays in that slot, and I think they generally manage to cover more ground, somehow; and you need to do that on radio, because you're taking it all in aurally, with no pictures to convey extra information. I got even more exasperated than usual by bursts of atmospheric music, because I felt they were wasting time.

[kalypso_v]

Third play the best, despite the absence of PC Andy, and my failure to take in what was going on near the end.

[ladystarlightsj]

Phoo, Asylum doesn't work as a download for me. *sadface*

[selenak]

There is the Listen Again feature which works world wide, here!

[selenak]

Go to the Listen Again feature, here.

[leviathan0999]

Apparently, as a sucky American, I'm not allowed to DL Torchwood. This is the thanks we get for the Marshall Plan!

[selenak]

Aw. However, you can access the "Listen Again" feature, which is world wide, here. *this brought to you by member of nation who benefited from Marshall Plan*

[londonkds]

In 'The Golden Age' Das is also Indian if you go by the names of both actor and character, although since he's the butler it isn't much improvement.

[selenak]

I stand corrected and still roll my eyes at the butler-ness.