fajrdrako | Dec. 15th, 2006

On Stage today has some interesting comments on Torchwood - interesting and critical of it. And even though I love the show with a passion, I think some of this bad review is right. It says:

Torchwood is a show that displayed great promise from the off, but, in all honesty, that early promise has not been built on. There have been some flashes of brilliance, but coupled with some highly inept scripting, direction and acting in places, the product has been very uneven.

As far as that goes, I would generally agree, though I have no problem with the acting. The main flaw, in my opinion, is that the writing is variable, the scripts sometimes sloppy, sometimes brilliant - and they seldom reach the level that Doctor Who seems to display so effortlessly.

I'd even go as far as to say that the episode Cyberwoman ranks highly amongst the worst 50 minutes of drama I've ever seen.

While I loved it - it probably still stands as my favourite episode. I loved its emotionalism, which is probably what others dislike. Loved its special effects. Its peripheral characters, like the Japanese scientist and the pizza girl.

At the moment, the ensemble is, to a man and woman, cynical, nasty, cruel and self-serving (the characters, that is!) There is no heart, and that's crucial. The series generally amounts to a group of unpleasant characters investigating the activities of even more unpleasant characters, and that's quiet wearing.

This I don't see at all. I love all the characters except Owen, and even he has his moments - I enjoy him even when he annoys me. I see the characters as being warm, caring, and troubled. I see plenty of heart. In fact, I see Captain Jack as being a wonderful combination of "loving" and "alienated".

And this is supposed to be spin-off from one the most joyous, life-affirming series on British television...

And so it is. It's looking through a different lens, wherein aliens are a source of threat, not protection. But I don't see it as having a different philosophy or a different world-myth to play with. There's plenty of darkness in Doctor Who too, or its life-affirmation would be meaningless. And there's plenty of heart in Torchwood, whose underlying message is about hope.

My basic criticism of Torchwood is that the scripts are uneven. Sometimes brilliant, sometimes clunky, sometimes just puzzling. Sometimes they back off on situations or feelings they should be exploring. Too many of the plots only happen because of reckless, unwise things the protagonists do - it's a theme, but it's not a theme I like. I hope to see the Torchwood team, as we approach season 2, learn more about teamwork, competence, responsibility, and honesty. I wish the controversial philosophies it is dealing with were more focussed.

Most of all, I wish it were wittier.

But otherwise? I'm loving every moment.