Torchwood 4.03 Dead of Night
In which Jane Espenson writes in RTD world. Naturally, this is the one for m/m action and f/f friendship!
Okay, looks like we have our big bad (sort of), though I expect there'll be an additional twist before this is over: the pharma industry. Just one thing doesn't fit, which is where I expect the twist to come in, to wit: how did they pull off the Miracle in the first place? I still guess it's to do with Jack, but more about this later.
Rex and Jack getting into a pissing contest was expected; good thing that Rex while acting like a jerk does make the occasional good point. This "we do this on our own" so didn't work well the last few times, either, Jack, and you do need not only allies but getting the news out there. Esther and Gwen bonding and Gwen doing the mentor and empathy thing she's grown to be really good at was delightful, as was Esther's way of saying thank you, which led to the most could-have-gone-wrong-turned-instead-into-a-masterpiece scene of the episode, Jack's post-coital/drunken phone call to Gwen and the way it goes, first from "missed you" and shared thoughts of the ones they've lost and then taking that turn which separates them - Jack wanting to turn their relationship into a "you and me, we don't need anybody" kind of thing while Gwen simultanously gets presented with her husband and child, and sorry Jack, no contest at all. That she's so utterly delighted to see them again that she forgets Jack while he makes his "you and me" claim is simultanously devasting (for Jack) and fantastic. (Especially if you ship Gwen with Rhys like myself.) It's also what I think saved Gwen from dying young or becoming bitter like Lucia: she loves Jack, but not more than anyone else, and her other ties connect her to life. (Someone stop me before I get into Spike's speech about Slayers and their death wish and the vital difference the Scoobies and Buffy's mother make.)
On a lighter note: loved Gwen's straight-faced "isomorphic" lie so she'd get to go on the mission instead of Rex and the fact Esther realized this and said nothing except for the teasing "liar" written down. (BTW, hooray for the return of the Torchwood contact lenses!)
I must get an icon of Dr. Vera Juarez. And I wish we'd get more scenes of her and the other panelists/doctors arguing though I understand why we don't, but those scenes are great and she is awesome. Am not really surprised that she ended up in bed with Rex because there was some UST vibe between them before, though he evidently learned his post-coital manners at the feet of Angel and Spike (which also isn't a surprise). The way she handled it - kicking him out but spying at Phi Corps anyway because it's the right thing to do - finds my approval.
Jilly Kitzinger: begs the question of how much she knows. I think she's not high management but middle level, i.e. she does the recruiting and obviously knows some of the requirements but I doubt she knows the whole story.
Soulless: just creepy visuals for the show or is there a later point?
Jack's one night stand and newly mortal Jack remembering to ask about protection (suddenly catching STDs after centuries of carefree sex would, no pun intended, truly suck): I was somewhat distracted by the awareness that the actor who played Brad was the guy who in a gay panic twittered how het he was after shooting this scene and thought he came across as awkward, but well, it fitted the situation, given Jack's behaviour, and the carpe diem type of sex it was.
Jack and Oswald Danes confrontation, otoh: it says something about how emotionally invested I was when watching that only later it occured to me to wonder whether it was cruel risky to put John Barrowman next to Bill Pullman (who continues to be great in the role): after the Ianto callback I would have been more than miffed if there had not been something about the central trauma of CoE as well, and lo, this scene delivered in spades. Of course the whole forgiveness for the death of a child spiel would feel extra offensive to Jack, and Barrowman's open emoting fitted Jack's state very well. The ice on the cake, though, was the truly intriguing conclusion he drew about Oswald Danes' true motive - which might be Jack projecting his own state, or might be true, in which case Danes' just became more unpredictable - that the man is actually looking for execution (currently unavailable). Though of course he'll settle for newfound media power right now.
When this series is over I'm so writing missing scenes with Alice in them.
This entry was originally posted at http://selenak.dreamwidth.org/698150.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.
Okay, looks like we have our big bad (sort of), though I expect there'll be an additional twist before this is over: the pharma industry. Just one thing doesn't fit, which is where I expect the twist to come in, to wit: how did they pull off the Miracle in the first place? I still guess it's to do with Jack, but more about this later.
Rex and Jack getting into a pissing contest was expected; good thing that Rex while acting like a jerk does make the occasional good point. This "we do this on our own" so didn't work well the last few times, either, Jack, and you do need not only allies but getting the news out there. Esther and Gwen bonding and Gwen doing the mentor and empathy thing she's grown to be really good at was delightful, as was Esther's way of saying thank you, which led to the most could-have-gone-wrong-turned-instead-into-a-masterpiece scene of the episode, Jack's post-coital/drunken phone call to Gwen and the way it goes, first from "missed you" and shared thoughts of the ones they've lost and then taking that turn which separates them - Jack wanting to turn their relationship into a "you and me, we don't need anybody" kind of thing while Gwen simultanously gets presented with her husband and child, and sorry Jack, no contest at all. That she's so utterly delighted to see them again that she forgets Jack while he makes his "you and me" claim is simultanously devasting (for Jack) and fantastic. (Especially if you ship Gwen with Rhys like myself.) It's also what I think saved Gwen from dying young or becoming bitter like Lucia: she loves Jack, but not more than anyone else, and her other ties connect her to life. (Someone stop me before I get into Spike's speech about Slayers and their death wish and the vital difference the Scoobies and Buffy's mother make.)
On a lighter note: loved Gwen's straight-faced "isomorphic" lie so she'd get to go on the mission instead of Rex and the fact Esther realized this and said nothing except for the teasing "liar" written down. (BTW, hooray for the return of the Torchwood contact lenses!)
I must get an icon of Dr. Vera Juarez. And I wish we'd get more scenes of her and the other panelists/doctors arguing though I understand why we don't, but those scenes are great and she is awesome. Am not really surprised that she ended up in bed with Rex because there was some UST vibe between them before, though he evidently learned his post-coital manners at the feet of Angel and Spike (which also isn't a surprise). The way she handled it - kicking him out but spying at Phi Corps anyway because it's the right thing to do - finds my approval.
Jilly Kitzinger: begs the question of how much she knows. I think she's not high management but middle level, i.e. she does the recruiting and obviously knows some of the requirements but I doubt she knows the whole story.
Soulless: just creepy visuals for the show or is there a later point?
Jack's one night stand and newly mortal Jack remembering to ask about protection (suddenly catching STDs after centuries of carefree sex would, no pun intended, truly suck): I was somewhat distracted by the awareness that the actor who played Brad was the guy who in a gay panic twittered how het he was after shooting this scene and thought he came across as awkward, but well, it fitted the situation, given Jack's behaviour, and the carpe diem type of sex it was.
Jack and Oswald Danes confrontation, otoh: it says something about how emotionally invested I was when watching that only later it occured to me to wonder whether it was cruel risky to put John Barrowman next to Bill Pullman (who continues to be great in the role): after the Ianto callback I would have been more than miffed if there had not been something about the central trauma of CoE as well, and lo, this scene delivered in spades. Of course the whole forgiveness for the death of a child spiel would feel extra offensive to Jack, and Barrowman's open emoting fitted Jack's state very well. The ice on the cake, though, was the truly intriguing conclusion he drew about Oswald Danes' true motive - which might be Jack projecting his own state, or might be true, in which case Danes' just became more unpredictable - that the man is actually looking for execution (currently unavailable). Though of course he'll settle for newfound media power right now.
When this series is over I'm so writing missing scenes with Alice in them.
This entry was originally posted at http://selenak.dreamwidth.org/698150.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.