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Torchwood: End of Days

Jack: "If Abaddon is the bringer of death, let's see how he does with me. If he feeds on life, then I'm an all-you-can-eat buffet."

With a name like "End of Days," you know you're in for a good time.

Well, no. Some of it was. Some was less good. I was enjoying it a lot until it got to the monster; Abaddon's stomp through the streets bore an unfortunate resemblance to Godzilla. And I was disappointed (okay, infuriated) that all four of the Torchwood staff mutinied against Jack and even killed him, no matter what Bilis did with the "ghosts" to brainwash them.

The immortality is out of the bag, now. Everyone saw Jack come back from the dead. It took him days, and he looked terrible. Apparently, Jack does have some limits, after all; being killed repeatedly by a god after being killed by his staff took it right out of him.

Owen, you blithering idiot. To be fair, the writers have been setting up Owen challenging Jack for the past few episodes, although Owen's initial motivation never seemed strong enough for me. I was so pleased when Jack finally had enough and threw him out. Too late, unfortunately. Jack forgave Owen in the end. I wouldn't have. But then again, I guess finding another doctor for Torchwood wouldn't be easy.

The moment Gwen locked Rhys in a cell, I knew it was a huge mistake. Tell him the truth, Gwen! Show him around the Hub, introduce him to the gang, but don't put him in a cell in the basement! I did think at first that Rhys had been written out, and wasn't all that upset about it. I sort of like him (certainly better than Owen) but I'm not sure he adds a lot to the story. He's sort of like Francie, Sydney's roommate in the first season of Alias. She was there to provide a contrast of normalcy to Sydney's insane life as an undercover spy. But it never really worked, did it? They need to do something more interesting with Rhys, or write him out.

So that's why Jack was keeping the Doctor's hand in a jar. The Doctor finally came back, just in time to cross Jack over to three episodes of Doctor Who (starting with "Utopia"). Gwen asked Jack what would have tempted him, and Jack said, "The right kind of Doctor." Jack loves the Doctor. That makes total sense.

Bits and pieces:

-- I'm assuming that Abaddon was the thing "coming out of the darkness" for Jack that Suzie referred to in "They Keep Killing Suzie."

-- Owen mentioned that employees who leave get a great big dose of Recon. That's why we don't see them on the news or doing tell-all books, then.

-- PC Andy was back! And he even met Jack. Sort of.

-- Jack seemed a bit testy with Gwen about her affair with Owen.

-- Rhys was cleaning the oven when Gwen came home. I sort of see what she sees in him now.

-- Rhys naked. We saw Owen naked a few episodes ago, and I didn't mention it; I like Rhys better. Let me add that it's not that I find Burn Gorman unattractive; he can be cute. I just really don't like his character, and that affects how I see the man. Come to think of it, if they need to show someone naked, what about Jack?

-- The news streamer said: "Beatles on the roof of Abbey Road studios -- Fears of guillotine appearance in Paris -- Samurai warrior on the rampage in Tokyo subway system." But there were only three that kept repeating. They should have done a few more. I could think of a few without trying hard. Lindbergh Lands in Paris. Statue of Liberty vanishes from New York Harbor. Jimmy Hoffa shows up at union meeting.

-- I was touched by Ianto holding Jack's coat in his arms and crying. That was really sweet. Jack is more than just a boss and casual lover to Ianto.

-- The opening of the Rift reset the time leaks. But did hundreds or thousands still die anyway because of Abaddon? Ball droppage. Hate it.

-- Jack was shot and killed by Owen in this episode, and then repeatedly killed by Abaddon.

Quotes:

Jack: "You people love any story that denies the randomness of existence."
Ianto: "Thanks. That makes me feel a lot better."

Jack: "Under any other circumstances, an exuberant Roman soldier would be my idea of a perfect morning."

Gwen: "Oh, Andy, don't be silly. Do you think the world's gonna end on your shift?"
Andy: "I've seen you use that smile on a lot of people."
Gwen: (smiling) "What smile?"
Andy: "The smile you use to reassure people when deep down you know everything's going to shit."

Owen: "It's the fucking Black Death, Tosh. She's infected Cardiff A&E with the plague, and it's my fault." What's the incubation period for plague? Everyone seemed to get sick awfully fast.

Jack: "You want to be in charge, Owen? You got to have significantly bigger balls."

Gwen: "This is what happens here. We all end up alone."

Let's say three stars. Not a bad finale, but it could have been better,

Billie
---
Billie Doux loves good television and spends way too much time writing about it.

1 comment:

  1. While the gang shouldn't have turned on or shot Jack, I have to admit I can get their frustration.

    Jack has only ever shared information about himself when put into situations where he had no choice but to do so.

    There's privacy and everything but sometimes Jack should be more forthcoming with his team. He should've also been more specific about why he was so against the Rift being opened as well.

    Bilis continued to impress me as a villain but Abbadon could've been more interesting instead of being rather generic a threat.

    Nice tie in with the Doctor as well at the end.

    ReplyDelete

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