‘I’m looking for a man in a big, grey coat...’

[mimarie]

I’ve been rewatching Everything Changes, and

Comments

[j00j]

I definitely got that Jack knew she was watching, but I hadn't quite put all of the rest of the pieces together like this. I think you're right, though.

[shinji_star]

It fits well and it is a lot nicer than scratching my head at sloppy writing. It fits very well actually! Must re-watch with this in mind...

[killerspork33]

Something about that scene always felt very off to me and I definitely think we're going to find out it was a set up for them to gage Gwen's reaction to an alien. I don't think they meant for that man to die (especially since Owen and Tosh were so furious with Jack for letting the girl in 'Small Worlds' go with the faeries

[mimarie]

We don't actually know he's dead, saying he was dead and what they did was a way to see how Gwen would react to them covering up deaths. Another part of the test.

Good point - and that would also explain why Jack hurries her out of there so enthusiastically, too (I need to check the list of paid false witnesses again, maybe he's on there...?). I don't suppose it's much of an additional test to someone in her official capacity, but wandering confidently into a restricted area is pretty much a TW prerequisite too, isn't it?

[frock]

I really, really like this theory, but on the other hand - at that stage, did they actually need another person at Torchwood? Suzie was still fully part of it, and it's not as if Gwen seems to actually do much around the place, or as if they're run off their feet. Her talent, so to speak, is her humanity, which I don't think Jack et al would really have had much idea of before getting to know her personally, putting her in situations where that side of her came to surface.

If Jack wanted her specifically because of her connection to the Rift, it seems odd that he's waited so long - Ianto seems quite a bit younger than the others, and yet he's been recruited or whatever, so if Gwen's so important, with a Gwyneth-connection or whatever, why haven't they picked her up before now? Surely it would have been easy enough to set up a John Tucker-esque situation, if they wanted to. :-?

But, like I said, I really do like this theory, and I hope it's right!

[mimarie]

I'm not sure it's possible to say how Jack decides if and when they need another person at TW3. I thought it was when a suitable candidate showed him/her/itself (that morgue is really quite large, isn't it...), rather than going out to recruit for a specific vacancy - however he phrases it at the end of EC. Telling her there's a vacancy is such a small lie after everything else, and he would, wouldn't he? I mean, if he wants her in on his team, would he want to tell her that she's been tested?

But yes, I've got to agree, the weak point in all this is why they specifically wanted her, and if he'd been keeping an eye on her, why not bring her in before? Maybe he decided she was ready, maybe... No - I'm not going to start speculating on that one - another 6 eps to go (of this season, see me? Positive *grins*), who knows what else we're going to discover. Although honestly? I doubt it. It's what all the background on the TW sites is for - as if we needed more to keep us interested!

[frock]

This IM from the site is sort of relevant, in so far as why Jack might be interested in Gwen. I can see him being intrigued by her at the JT scene, although the fact that she ran off with her mouth hanging open probably isn't the kind of reaction he was looking for. I wonder if maybe they have a system set up to monitor anyone doing police checks/googling/whatever on Torchwood members, for security reasons, and she triggered that with getting what's-her-face to do the ID check on Jack. Although, again, it's not as if she's going out of her way to find out about them. Ianto's report on her computer would have mentioned if she'd googled Torchwood (first thing I'd do!) and she doesn't seem all that fussed - confused, yeah - about it until Jack shows up at the hospital, by which time, if I was him, I'd have lost interest in her. Although, on saying all that, it's been a while since I watched 1x01, so I might be missing something important/misinterpreting

[mimarie]

*reboots brain* - sorry, slightly incoherent from day of child followed by night of TW... Only one vague point resembling some kind of sense before my head tells me I've got to go to work in about 7 hours... I love these kind of discussions far too much too - so thank you for starting captaineering!

[aeshna_uk]

I don't see a Gwynneth connection myself - I think that's just a case of re-using actors and RTD does tend to re-use names that he likes. But I have pretty much always suspected that the situation in EC was a set-up to test Gwen for recruitment - it's far too neat and convenient to be otherwise. There's no reason to think that the team has a set or standard number of members - the Hub is large enough to cope with more and the final call will always be Jack's (the number may have varied considerably over time - nothing like the anthill that TW1 turned into, but I could see the full team at Cardiff varying between, say, 3 and 15... or occasionally 1 if things have gone particularly badly wrong!) and certainly they were in need of a bit of outside perspective when Gwen turned up

[mimarie]

No, for all I liked the idea to begin with that Gwen had some connection to Gwyneth and/or the rift - although, really, the name?, there's reusing names and actors from show to show, but that's a bit close. Why do it at all, if not to annoy and excite the conspiracy theorists among us? ;) - I can't see any evidence for it at all so far (but hey, we're 7 eps in, who knows the workings of Rusty's mind?). I'm trying to find a neat end to tie the beginning of the thread to, mainly, only it's nicely frayed from where we stand right now. Which pretty much describes the show as a whole - I know it has its moments of omfg what? No! but in general the deeper I look, the better it gets. I'm utterly absorbed (had you noticed?!?).

And what do you mean could have bunnies forever? We're doomed I tell you - DOOMED

(Damn, missed you again - ah well, better luck next time. eh? ;) Enjoy the weather, says she, on a sodden Sunday in rainy Lowestoft...)

[aeshna_uk]

Why do it at all, if not to annoy and excite the conspiracy theorists among us? ;)

Honestly? I think that's exactly it, if it's anything at all - it is, after all, a perfectly good and recognisably Welsh name. The other thing that occurs to me is that they used Gwen and Owen as names for the sheer joy of seeing the shippers try to merge them into some weird-ass hybrid! (I think I saw a mention of the 'Wens the other day, which is the best I've seen to date, but then I'm been actively avoiding my flist in the past two weeks for fear of spending my life savings in NZ cybercafes.... ;))

Ah, the joys of having a show with a cast and production team who are actually web and fan-savvy.... :D

in general the deeper I look, the better it gets.

I'm loving the show! I'm finding that I'm watching it the first time out with my "general viewer" hat on, and what's interesting there is that often, it's the eps that don't stand up so well to repeated viewing (Cyberwoman springs to mind) that have the greatest "wow!" factor the first time

[mimarie]

I've just had the usual watch-rewatch of tonight's episode, and I'm a bit hyper to reply properly - there will be (non-spoilery, obviously, until notified otherwise...) emailage vv soon - download it asap - you're going to love it. I don't think I managed to look away from the screen once. Speak to you... sometime! (And I'm going to have to googlearth these places!)