What is it about British children speaking in monotone unison that is so dang scary? I don’t know, but Torchwood uses that to great advantage.
For those who don’t know, Torchwood is a spin-off of the latest incarnation of Doctor Who (Nerd Fact: “Torchwood” is an anagram for “Doctor Who”), and is about a non-governmental paramilitary group whose job is to protect Earth from extraterrestrial threats. There are Torchwood branches all over the world, but the one that the show focuses on one particular group operating out of Cardiff, UK. Its members are Captain Jack Harkness, immortal leader, and his co-workers Gwen Cooper and Ianto Jones, and in this series they are marked for death.
All of a sudden the children of the Earth stop what they’re doing and chant in unison, “We are coming.” Simultaneously, building instructions are transmitted to the British government through radio waves on the four, five, and six frequencies. Who this “we” is, and what they want to British to build is a mystery, and typically Torchwood would be the ones to handle the situation, but someone wants them taken out of the way. So, not only do the Torchwood members have to solve the mystery of the aliens’ intentions in a five-day span, but they have to do so while staying one step ahead of their assassins.
This setup makes for an intense story and the pacing of each episode is excellent, moving from action, to suspense, to revelation at just the right moments, and the series in general is a great mix of science fiction, espionage, suspense, and horror. Much of the strength from the pacing comes from the excellent direction, but it’s helped in no small part by the top-notch writing and acting. Overall the show is an interesting mix of The X-Files and Firefly with just a bit of Buffy the Vampire Slayer thrown in for good measure, and while I can’t say that I enjoy the show as much as those others I just mentioned, I certainly had a good time watching it and would place it in the same category as another BBC science fiction show, Primeval.
It may be unfair to compare it to those series, because Torchwood is its own show, and I don’t want to imply that it’s somehow derivative. I mentioned each of those science fiction shows because Torchwood shares some of their qualities, such as the espionage of Files and the western swagger of Firefly. You wouldn’t think those qualities would mix well, but Torchwood pulls it off to create its own style which I rather enjoyed.
Children of Earth is actually series three of the franchise, and as I had never watched the series before, I was a bit nervous that I might not be able to get into it. However, I had heard so many good things about the show that I figured it was worth a shot. And I have to say I’m glad I did because I had a lot of fun watching this. The characters were immediately likeable and the basic premise of the show easily understandable. I had no problems getting into the story, and I liked Children of Earth so much that I’ve added series one and two of Torchwood to my Netflix queue. I mention this because I’m sure there are others of you out there like me who are interested in the show, but not sure if Children of Earth would be worth watching. While series one would be the best way to get into the series, this new release isn’t a bad way to start.
Each episode is presented in High Definition 1080i format with the audio in DTS HD 5.1 both the audio and video are of fine quality with no dropout or frame distortion whatsoever.
Torchwood Declassified (31:41) – As behind the scenes featurettes go, this one seems particularly disorganized and uninteresting. Eve Myles, the actress who plays Gwen, says some funny things, but overall I’d recommend skipping this.
While I wouldn’t go as far to say that this is a definite buyer, fans of Doctor Who and British science fiction in general will probably like this. Recommended as a renter.
BBC America presents Torchwood: Children of Earth. Directed by: Euros Lyn. Starring: John Barrowman, Eve Myles, Gareth David-Lloyd, Peter Capaldi, Paul Copley, and Liz May Brice. Written by: Russell T. Davies, John Fay, and James Moran. Running time: 203 Minutes. Rating: NR. Released on DVD: July 28, 2009. Available at Amazon.com
