Comments | lefaym: Meta: Jack as a Fandom Identification Figure in Children of Earth: Day Five

lefaym

Meta: Jack as a Fandom Identification Figure in Children of Earth: Day Five

Jul 11, 2009 10:40

torchwood, spoilers, jack, meta, ianto, children of earth, review, gwen

Comments 84

antelope_writes July 11 2009, 02:57:25 UTC

I went and spoiled myself last night, having not watched episode 5 yet.

I've never been a big janto shipper, no more than I've been a Gwack shipper or an anybody else shipper, for that matter. What I can't stand is how the whole point of this series has been to torture Jack into madness. The writers have made a HUGE DEAL about how Jack feels every single death, how he was shattered by his daughter and grandson being taken hostage, how he was the last one standing in a building full of a hundred dead people after being exterminated killed by a vengeful alien...after blowing him to bits, torturing him, shooting him in the back and in the face, and encasing him in cement. Um, yeah, anybody sane would be shattered.

I find it very odd that we're "not supposed to like Jack anymore" after this, when in reality, anybody who'd had all that happen to him in the space of 3 days would go crackers.

lefaym July 11 2009, 03:02:45 UTC

Yeah, my feeling for Jack are not dislike at all -- they're complete and utter devestation.

lupus_malus July 11 2009, 03:21:22 UTC

I completely agree with you. Ianto's death was unnecessary for the story and will seriously dent my enthusiasm for series 4. Jack's devastation was so painful to watch.

lefaym July 11 2009, 03:23:20 UTC

*hugs*

lady_alyria July 11 2009, 03:37:17 UTC

After seeing day 5 I can't imagine that this show will air another season. That was a series finale if ever I've seen one. I know I haven't heard any official word stating this, but come on, that episode had a big THE END plastered all over it. I don't know what they could possibly do for season 4 that wouldn't be total and utter shit.

lefaym July 11 2009, 03:41:22 UTC

I don't know either... but apparently scripts have been commissioned.

ceindreadh July 11 2009, 16:11:04 UTC

The official word was always along the lines about how a fourth season wouldn't be comissioned until they saw the ratings for season 3.
(And it makes me sick to think of GDL having to spout this line at all his appearances/interviews post filming, and knowing all the while that he's out of a job no matter what)

Unfortunately, it looks like the ratings have been pretty damn phenomenal. Which means that for a significant portion of the viewers, Season 3 is what their version of Torchwood is. Which means that a season 4 is going to try and live up to that expectation. :-(

lady_alyria July 11 2009, 16:15:41 UTC

I can't imagine how, they've run out of characters to kill off.

viggofest July 11 2009, 03:41:59 UTC

So well said. The sadness and disappointment I feel now came about when the screen said "six months later" because then I knew it was final: there was no last-minute kiss of life, no alien potion, it was definite and done, and now it was canon ( ... )

lefaym July 11 2009, 03:45:40 UTC

Thanks for your comment. :)

And I agree Gwen doesn't always work well as an identification figure (although I love her character), but I suspect that this isn't as big an issue for casual viewers as it is for people who feel emotionally invested in the show.

ETA: I'm also really hanging out for more cast interviews. I really want to know how they feel about things now that they can talk about it without worrying about spoilers.

alba17 July 11 2009, 04:02:42 UTC

That was a great analysis and accurate, I think. I did feel my identification go back to Jack in the final episode and I ended up feeling just as destroyed as he did. I felt the only purpose of Ianto's death was to leave Jack completely alone at the end. Otherwise, I got nothing and there was no point except sensationalism.

I want my show back too, damn it. I wish I'd had a warning that COE wasn't really going to be TW. I'd have gone into mourning sooner.

lefaym July 11 2009, 04:20:49 UTC

I'm kind of glad we didn't know too much in advance, because I think the mourning would have been more drawn out then.

alba17 July 11 2009, 04:27:24 UTC

Yeah, that's true. Now it's just going to be drawn out in the other direction though. I just had my hopes up for so long and I loved the first 3 eps, then !bam they kill Ianto.

lefaym July 11 2009, 04:38:35 UTC

Yeah, I was having so much fun with those first three. They still felt like our Torchwood, even though they were clearly on a grander more-well-thought-out scale. They made me want more of the show. The last two... they were brilliant TV, but they made me wish I could retcon Torchwood from my brain altogether.

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