'Grey's' Isn't Going Anywhere
'Red Widow' Gets The Axe
Torchwood: Children of Earth: Day Two (U.S.)
by Mike Moody, posted Jul 22nd 2009 1:56AM
Gwen is a badass. And that Ianto sure is one clever boy. With Captain Jack busy growing back his body parts, Torchwood's non-super-powered players took center stage in Children of Earth's fast and furious second hour.
Day two started out with a rush of action movie awesomeness as Gwen blasted her way out of a scary situation. I don't remember the danger ever feeling so immediate and real in Torchwood. The opening minutes were edge-of-your-seat tense, and the swift pace rarely let up.
As Ianto looked for a way to save Jack, Gwen and Rhys got to spend some quality time together tying up morticians and running away from evil government agents. There was a lot of chasing and gunplay in this ep, but there were also some great character moments in between all the thrills and suspense.
Gwen told Rhys about her pregnancy, and he couldn't have been happier -- until he started freaking out, of course. But you can't blame the guy considering the circumstances. Their scene in the potato truck felt very honest, and it was a welcome respite from all of the running around. I'm really enjoying watching these two together (probably more than I enjoyed Jack and Ianto's "couple" scenes from episode one). But something tells me I shouldn't get too attached to Rhys. (Hopefully, that something is just my nerves.)
Jack's resurrection happened almost exactly like I thought it would. Still, it was pretty ghastly watching him scream in pain as his skin started to grow back. Burying him in a concrete cell was pretty clever, but the agents didn't count on Ianto heroically smashing through the wall and saving everyone in the last minute. That was a surprise. I thought Gwen and Rhys were nicked for sure!
After spending most of day two apart, the team is now on the run together, but a million questions remain. Chiefly, who or what is "Species 456," and why the hell is the government catering to its every need?
I know a lot you have already watched the entire run of Children of Earth – all five eps aired last week in the U.K. – and you have all the answers I'm looking for. But I'd be happy if you didn't spoil anything for the rest of us. (If you must give away spoilers in the comments, please mark them with a nice big "Spoiler Warning"). I'm having a blast watching this epic mystery unfold every night, and the quiet moments are just as absorbing as the dominant alien invasion/government conspiracy plot.
Other Observations:
- The team is getting a lot of help from the smart Miss Habiba, but it's hard to trust her after what happened with Dr. Patanjali.
- Is Dekker an alien? Or maybe some kind of wrinkly old superhuman? Whatever he is, he's damn creepy, and I'm dying to find out what he knows about Frobisher.
- I already mentioned my concern for Rhys. I'm also nervous for Jack and Ianto's families. The Torchwood team seems capable of protecting each other, but can they protect their distant loved ones from a pending alien invasion and gun-wielding government agents?
- Blurry Jack but: Just another reason for Barrowman fans to buy this thing on DVD.
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