After a two-year hiatus, another global incident means it's time to reassemble 'Torchwood' (Fri., 10PM ET on Starz) to figure out what's going on. This time, it looks like the gang is being forcibly relocated to the United States by a dead man.

But then again, that's the problem. 'Miracle Day' is the subtitle of this series of 'Torchwood.' Where 'Children of Earth' had every child on the planet impacted, this one affects every living person. And every living person is every person on the planet ... no matter what.

No one is dying, even the people who should be dying, including our friend who surrounds Gwen, Jack and Rhys at the close of this premiere. There's some strange connection to Torchwood and this global crisis.

Weird things happen on 'Torchwood,' which kicks off an intriguing new season Friday on Starz. But no matter how strange things get on the genre-flavored drama, the eminently relatable Gwen Cooper remains grounded, practical and even dryly witty.

Despite the terror that can accompany working for the 'Torchwood' team, which investigates otherworldly threats to Earth, you get the impression that the former cop wouldn't have it any other way.

I recently spoke to Eve Myles, who plays Cooper, about Gwen's journey from Welsh cop to alien investigator to mother. Through it all, Gwen has remained the best friend of Captain Jack Harkness, which isn't exactly an easy gig -- and it sounds as though that role gets even tougher in 'Torchwood: Miracle Day,' which depicts what would happen if people on Earth were to suddenly stop dying.

Some writers tinker around the edges with their shows, but Russell T Davies, the creator of 'Torchwood,' is not one to play it safe. For the acclaimed 'Torchwood: Children of Earth,' which aired in 2009, Davies redesigned the sci-fi thriller as a short-run miniseries to make it more accessible to newcomers. It worked: The propulsive 'Children of Earth' was a hit for the BBC worldwide.

This season, the drama will change networks in the U.S. -- it debuts on Starz July 8 -- and creatively speaking, Davies is not letting 'Torchwood' rest on its laurels. In the interview below, Davies speaks in depth about the changes he'll unveil in 'Torchwood: Miracle Day,' which stars John Barrowman, Eve Myles, Mekhi Phifer, Lauren Ambrose and Bill Pullman.

There's a doozy of a surprise involving Captain Jack Harkness, but don't worry, I've put that very spoilery stuff at the end of the interview, in case you don't want to see it. If you've never seen 'Torchwood' but want to know more about the show, or if you're a fan of past seasons, it's safe to read on.

When the new season of 'Torchwood' arrives on Starz July 8, Captain Jack Harkness will be sporting a new look.

Not only was most of the sci-fi show's new season filmed in the United States rather than the U.K., other aspects of the drama got a makeover as well.

Creator Russell T Davies commissioned the show's costume designer, Shawna Trpcic (a veteran of 'Dollhouse,' 'Firefly' and 'Angel') to make a new version of Jack's iconic coat. We've exclusively got the first photo of Jack in the new season of 'Torchwood,' wearing his new and improved greatcoat.

'Torchwood,' which follows the adventures of a tight-knit team fighting alien threats, has gone through a lot of changes over the years, but two things have remained constant: Captain Jack Harkness and Gwen Cooper.

The new season of the compelling sci-fi drama, which arrives this summer on Starz, may be the biggest departure yet. Much of the show's fourth season is being shot in the United States, and the events of 'Torchwood: Miracle Day' will transpire in various locations worldwide.

Gwen and Captain Jack will both be back, but their lives will be different. Gwen, for one thing, is a "mum" now, as actress Eve Myles explains in the video below.

Not many shows completely revamp their format midway through their lives, but doing that worked out well for 'Torchwood.'

A couple of years ago, the sci-fi-flavored show, which follows a secretive team that battles threats to Earth, abandoned the monster-of-the-week structure that it had used in its first two seasons. In 2008's 'Torchwood: Children of Earth,' creator Russell T Davies abandoned that format to tell a morally complicated story that spanned five tightly linked episodes.

'Children of Earth' was a critical and commercial success in both the U.S. and U.K., and Davies said in a recent interview in Los Angeles that using a highly serialized format had been a creative breakthrough for 'Torchwood,' which had begun life as a 'Doctor Who' spinoff.

In the 'Torchwood's' first two seasons, which featured mostly standalone episodes and an array of one-off villains, "we were always upstaging ourselves by the fact that 'Doctor Who,' [which Davies had revived in 2005] did that on a much bigger scale, and that's why 'Torchwood' struggled sometimes."

"I loved those first two years, but when I hit on the idea of 'Children of the Earth,' when I said, 'Let's not do weekly story, let's do one long story,' it sort of came of age for me in my head, and I discovered the potential to go anywhere and do anything, and then I thought this [show] could run and run and run," Davies said.

Remember way back in July 2009? Of course you don't, but thank goodness for search engines. You see, on July 31st of last year, Bob wrote about a Torchwood character going to Wisteria Lane. Now, it's happening. John Barrowman will be appearing on Desperate Housewives. Captain Jack Harkness will be playing a villain, stirring up trouble for the ladies of the neighborhood.

Barrowman is expected to leave England in March to come to Los Angeles to begin filming. He'll appear on screen in April, and he's there for a mini-arc, at least five episodes. And he will be playing a malevolent man, i.e. a villain.

Ausiello reports that he's going to be involved with Angie's story. How will he impact on the Bolens, who are already brimming with angst and drama? Doesn't sound like it will be a positive impact.

John Barrowman, best known as Captain Jack Harkness on the Doctor Who spinoff Torchwood, has confirmed that he has signed to play the character again in the series' fourth season. Unlike the mini-series of the third season, Barrowman claims that the fourth will have a full 13-episode run.

Given that the majority of the cast was killed off during seasons two and three, this would represent a good opportunity for Russell T. Davies and whichever other creators are involved to re-invent the series. Whether the new series will involve the newest Doctor Matt Smith is anybody's guess, however given Davies' departure from the source program (which, granted, was amicable) and his likely desire to similarly remove Torchwood from Doctor Who continuity as much as possible, I doubt it.

So here we have Captain Jack returning to Earth and assembling a new team. Will Gwen be involved as well, child in tow? Are you looking forward to a new season of Torchwood?

Show of hands: how many people here watch both Torchwood and Desperate Housewives? Well, your dreams might be answered. Torchwood star John Barrowman revealed on a British talk show this week that he is going to Los Angeles to meet with the producers of the ABC drama for a role. Though he didn't say what role it would be.

Maybe he can play the same character he plays on Torchwood, add a little sci-fi to the show. Wouldn't that be unbelievably wild? That's why it would never happen.

[via TV Tattle]

Online sources have been informed that Torchwood has been picked up for a fourth season. This is not surprising considering the excellent ratings received by the BBC for Season 3, despite relegating that season to a five-episode mini-series.

Spoilers follow. You have been warned.

The brilliant thing about the next season of Torchwood is that the creators have a chance to start from scratch. Ianto is dead. Jack is gone. Gwen is pregnant. Gwen could decide after the baby is born to start a new team. Or, Jack could come back. Or Ianto could return from the dead (it's happened on the show before).

The powers that be could even decide to start a new team from scratch, although I think something would be missing without at least Captain Jack around. Torchwood (the organization, not the show) has gone through many incarnations and survived much worse than the slaughter or dissolution of a particular set of members. Whatever is decided, I look forward to it.

SPOILERS! No griping, all ye who pass here and have not visited episode four on their DVR.

Read Mike Moody' s review here. Okay, last chance if you haven't seen episode four already, here we go....

Ianto isn't dead. He just isn't, okay. I know, I know, we saw him succumb to the gas and die in Jack's arms. I know they said their goodbyes, I know Gwen pulled back the sheet and he was all pale and looked not at all well, and he was in the room with all the dead people under the orange sheets. And I saw everyone talking about how they'll miss him in the Torchwood special after the episode. I saw all the same things you did.

I don't know what's going to happen in episode five, but I can't conceive of it involving Ianto actually being dead. He and Jack are too much fun, and their relationship is too different from anything else on television, and it just got started. I don't know what kind of dues ex machine, Alec Guinness on Endor has to happen, but I'll be looking for it.

Despite having a shortened upcoming third season, episodes of Torchwood continue to be made. This next one, however, will be on the radio rather than television. The episode is called "Lost Souls" and was written by Joseph Lidster.

The episode takes place after the season two finale "Exit Wounds." It will star the surviving members of that slaughter played by the actors John Barrowman, Eve Myles, and Gareth David-Lloyd. Freema Agyeman will also appear in the episode as former Doctor Who companion Martha Jones.

I managed to get my hands on a few of the Doctor Who audio adventures put out by Big Finish Productions and have enjoyed them tremendously (particularly since they give me a chance to hear what Paul McGann would have been like as the Doctor had he continued in the role). With that in mind, I'm looking forward to what an audio adventure of Torchwood has to offer.

The episode will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on September 10th.

(S04E13) The latest season of Doctor Who gets resolved with a story that seems rushed, confusing and filled with self-love on the part of showrunner Russell T. Davies. But that doesn't necessarily mean it was bad.

To begin, the CGI and special effects are quite possibly the best ever seen on the show. Despite being in charge of the specials that will be airing next year, it seems that this episode was treated as the last that Davies will ever run. As a result, he wrapped up most every storyline he could think of going back to the first season.

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As we told you last week, RedEye is in the middle of their annual Best Character on Television tournament, and now we're into the second round. It looks like some strong favorites have emerged, while some fan favorites have been voted off the island.

That wouldn't include Don Draper from Mad Men (who lost to Jermaine and Bret from from Flight of the Conchords), Morgan Grimes from Chuck (who lost to Michael Scott from The Office), or Captain Jack Harkness from Torchwood. He actually lost to Herbert from Family Guy. That has to be embarrassing.