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hafitalIn my disjointed happy Doctor Who burbling yesterday, I forgot I wanted to say how wonderful it is to be watching a TV show with such fabulous female characters! yay. There is more that needs to be said about this, particularly since the current Doctor Who seems to primarly revolve around a "typical" heteronormative male/female relationship, while also breaking away from that at the same time. (And I would argue that even if the companion happens to be male, or even in multiples, it's still the same thing). The potential for it to be done stupidly is great, with the Doctor always saving the day and the companion always needing to be saved. The Doctor does save his companions a lot, but they save themselves more as well. And also the show does it the other way around with the companion saving the Doctor, as well as both the Doctor and the companion working together or sometimes independently to save other people. Or in the case of Martha, having her save the entire human world and untold countless others all by herself! (yay Martha!).
And now, a few words about my experience watching Torchwood.
WARNING WARNING WARNING: This is NOT all sunshine hearts and flowers love for Captain Jack Harkness or Torchwood. So, caveat lector and stuff. Not to worry, I don't say anything mean, and there are things I liked, but I know many people on my friend's list are deeply in love with this show and Captain Jack and I do not want to harsh anyone's good time.
So, nearly a year ago I watched the first four or five episodes of Torchwood, even before I watched any of Doctor Who. And, thinking about it now, part of me wishes I hadn't done that because I sort of instantly didn't like it, and if I had had the context of Doctor Who as a framework, particularly in relation to Captain Jack, I might have been more forgiving. But that's okay. Never say never, and all that. And the show is young.
First, let's talk about what I did like:
--Ianto Jones.
--The fact that this is an ensemble show. It's a nice break from Doctor Who, where we're so hyperfocused on the Doctor it gets a little dizzying. It's good to break out of that mold, and get some individual lives, and a colorful group with varied and different backgrounds, opinions, etc etc.
--I appreciate the unvarnished way the show delves into the various team members issues, and the human interactions with all of it's glorious emotional stickiness and fallout and problems and whatnot.
--I like that it's more realistic than Doctor Who but still more or less convincingly part of the same universe. It's occasionally not that seamless for me, but I appreciate it nevertheless.
--And in conclusion, Ianto Jones. :)
Initially, when I first started watching, I thought I would like Gwen and would continue watching for Gwen specifically, but then I sort of hated where they took her character and it was like I was fighting to keep liking her when I kind of didn't, and then eventually I just let it go. While many of her actions were believable and paint an interesting psychology, I found drugging Rhys such an unconscionable act that I had a hard time coming back from that. The same goes for Owen, in that I wanted to like him. I do like Tosh but have never been fond of the "tech girl doesn't get noticed" dynamic. So, not really an auspicious beginning. *g*
Ianto was sort of a non-entity for most of series 1. I really didn't like the episode "Cyberwoman", but before and after that episode I liked how he was sort of the quiet one, in the background, smarter than they assumed he was, etc etc. When he started developing a character beyond 'overly emotional boyfriend', that's when I really started to like him. He's totally my favorite on the show, and so far the main reason I'm still watching! Yay for Ianto.
I said above that one of the things I liked is that Torchwood takes on a more realistic approach, but sometimes I find it excessively gruesome. Honestly, I could have gone my entire life without ever watching the episode "Countrycide". I very nearly walked away forever after that episode. I don't normally shy from realistic and gritty TV shows but maybe my tolerance levels are down (probably, actually). However, I would have handled it better if I felt that there had been a point to the episode, but if there was a point I don't know what it was. That's my main problem with the show -- I don't understand what's the point. We're told Torchwood is there to arm the human race against... something, but 13 episodes later, it seems to me like the show is really about group dynamics where they sometimes have an alien they have to deal with or an odd bit of technology that makes the group dynamics more strenuous.
I think, in reality, I have the Doctor's attitude about the Torchwood organization. I loved his derisive little "That's very Torchwood." *g* I have to agree! They're all shoot first, ask questions later. Or better yet, just kill, take what you need, and get rid of the evidence. Little better than scavangers. I'm just not seeing what good this Torchwood group actually does, or they haven't showed that yet. It's all sort of abstract. And any little bit of compassion that was shown by Gwen or Tosh or Ianto, and even Owen was pretty much squashed. I did like the anger and the horror about what working for Torchwood does to all of them, I will say that. I'm glad the show acknowledged it, and we certainly see the evidence of it because the group completely disintegrated by the end of the first series, partly I think because the writers had written themselves into a corner. You can't set up those questions, and have those kinds of things happen, and have a man like Captain Jack leading the group, without taking it to the eventual conclusion, which was a big ol mess, a fractured group, things getting so bad that you have Ianto shooting Owen, his own peer, and then everyone just yelling at each other and no one actually doing anything to solve the very big problem. The only way the events of the last episode were resolved was by Captain Jack having the dubious luck of being impossible to kill. It wasn't skill, it wasn't intelligence or a group effort, or overcoming the odds and the emotional difficulties or anything other then a deus ex machina. And that was... eh.
Regarding Captain Jack, I really don't know what to think about him. I liked him enough in the Doctor Who episodes, the charming rogue sort of thing (it was a little too on the nose for me initially, but I liked the Doctor, Jack, and Rose together. Threesomes are always of the yay!). And there were moments when I down right loved him during "Sound the Drums" and the "Last of the Time Lords". But in Torchwood anything that was delightful about Captain Jack seemed just stripped away, and, much like my reaction to Gwen and the others, each episode that went by just took that much more joy right out of him.
This is most likely going to be a hugely unpopular opinion *g*, but I prefer Captain Jack as a second to the Doctor. I much (so much more) prefer that dynamic than having him as a leader. I think he works better when he's taking orders instead of giving them, when he has someone to buffer his ego and make him reach that much harder and further. He doesn't lead very well, imo, at least not as far as I've seen. If he were my boss, I would feel so nervous all the time because I just wouldn't be sure I could trust him to actually lead, to be there for me or for any of my team members.
So, the only reason I hung on for the entire season is, well, Ianto Jones *g*, and because I was curious to see if the show moved past the complete dysfunction, since Jack seemed to be (mostly) healed of his bitterness by the events of "The Last of the Time Lords" and the other DW episodes. So, in that way it was probably a good thing I saw all of Doctor Who before restarting Torchwood.
Just as an aside, I'm not saying I don't understand why Captain Jack is mr. angry pants for all of Torchwood series one, and I'm know others really get off on that sort of angst and stuff, and to a certain extent I do too, but unfortunately it really wasn't working for me with Torchwood. I had no purchase, nothing to grab hold on to fall in love with the show, or any of the characters. It pretty much froze me out.
But! Look at me, still watching. *g* And yes so far series 2 is better, imo. At least I'm not hating anyone yet, and I'm back to liking Gwen and Owen and Tosh, and even Captain Jack. The snogging helps. *g* And Ianto Jones! Although, I hate to be all doom and gloom, but I'm not at all sanguine about Ianto and Jack. I've watched too many shows to trust the writers, particularly with romance in a show where people die, and also when one half of the pairing *can't* die, and that half isn't Ianto Jones. Still, no reason to borrow trouble.... I won't be too sanguine if Rhys gets permanently hurt, either, come to think of it.
So, in conclusion, I'll hang around for a while. I still don't like the concept of Torchwood (the institute). I don't like how they get things done, or even how they came about (no matter that the Doctor was inadvertently the impetus). But I feel more or less invested now in the characters to a certain extant. Plus I want to know what goes on in the Whoverse. And also, there's Ianto Jones, to make me smile. *g*
And now, a few words about my experience watching Torchwood.
WARNING WARNING WARNING: This is NOT all sunshine hearts and flowers love for Captain Jack Harkness or Torchwood. So, caveat lector and stuff. Not to worry, I don't say anything mean, and there are things I liked, but I know many people on my friend's list are deeply in love with this show and Captain Jack and I do not want to harsh anyone's good time.
So, nearly a year ago I watched the first four or five episodes of Torchwood, even before I watched any of Doctor Who. And, thinking about it now, part of me wishes I hadn't done that because I sort of instantly didn't like it, and if I had had the context of Doctor Who as a framework, particularly in relation to Captain Jack, I might have been more forgiving. But that's okay. Never say never, and all that. And the show is young.
First, let's talk about what I did like:
--Ianto Jones.
--The fact that this is an ensemble show. It's a nice break from Doctor Who, where we're so hyperfocused on the Doctor it gets a little dizzying. It's good to break out of that mold, and get some individual lives, and a colorful group with varied and different backgrounds, opinions, etc etc.
--I appreciate the unvarnished way the show delves into the various team members issues, and the human interactions with all of it's glorious emotional stickiness and fallout and problems and whatnot.
--I like that it's more realistic than Doctor Who but still more or less convincingly part of the same universe. It's occasionally not that seamless for me, but I appreciate it nevertheless.
--And in conclusion, Ianto Jones. :)
Initially, when I first started watching, I thought I would like Gwen and would continue watching for Gwen specifically, but then I sort of hated where they took her character and it was like I was fighting to keep liking her when I kind of didn't, and then eventually I just let it go. While many of her actions were believable and paint an interesting psychology, I found drugging Rhys such an unconscionable act that I had a hard time coming back from that. The same goes for Owen, in that I wanted to like him. I do like Tosh but have never been fond of the "tech girl doesn't get noticed" dynamic. So, not really an auspicious beginning. *g*
Ianto was sort of a non-entity for most of series 1. I really didn't like the episode "Cyberwoman", but before and after that episode I liked how he was sort of the quiet one, in the background, smarter than they assumed he was, etc etc. When he started developing a character beyond 'overly emotional boyfriend', that's when I really started to like him. He's totally my favorite on the show, and so far the main reason I'm still watching! Yay for Ianto.
I said above that one of the things I liked is that Torchwood takes on a more realistic approach, but sometimes I find it excessively gruesome. Honestly, I could have gone my entire life without ever watching the episode "Countrycide". I very nearly walked away forever after that episode. I don't normally shy from realistic and gritty TV shows but maybe my tolerance levels are down (probably, actually). However, I would have handled it better if I felt that there had been a point to the episode, but if there was a point I don't know what it was. That's my main problem with the show -- I don't understand what's the point. We're told Torchwood is there to arm the human race against... something, but 13 episodes later, it seems to me like the show is really about group dynamics where they sometimes have an alien they have to deal with or an odd bit of technology that makes the group dynamics more strenuous.
I think, in reality, I have the Doctor's attitude about the Torchwood organization. I loved his derisive little "That's very Torchwood." *g* I have to agree! They're all shoot first, ask questions later. Or better yet, just kill, take what you need, and get rid of the evidence. Little better than scavangers. I'm just not seeing what good this Torchwood group actually does, or they haven't showed that yet. It's all sort of abstract. And any little bit of compassion that was shown by Gwen or Tosh or Ianto, and even Owen was pretty much squashed. I did like the anger and the horror about what working for Torchwood does to all of them, I will say that. I'm glad the show acknowledged it, and we certainly see the evidence of it because the group completely disintegrated by the end of the first series, partly I think because the writers had written themselves into a corner. You can't set up those questions, and have those kinds of things happen, and have a man like Captain Jack leading the group, without taking it to the eventual conclusion, which was a big ol mess, a fractured group, things getting so bad that you have Ianto shooting Owen, his own peer, and then everyone just yelling at each other and no one actually doing anything to solve the very big problem. The only way the events of the last episode were resolved was by Captain Jack having the dubious luck of being impossible to kill. It wasn't skill, it wasn't intelligence or a group effort, or overcoming the odds and the emotional difficulties or anything other then a deus ex machina. And that was... eh.
Regarding Captain Jack, I really don't know what to think about him. I liked him enough in the Doctor Who episodes, the charming rogue sort of thing (it was a little too on the nose for me initially, but I liked the Doctor, Jack, and Rose together. Threesomes are always of the yay!). And there were moments when I down right loved him during "Sound the Drums" and the "Last of the Time Lords". But in Torchwood anything that was delightful about Captain Jack seemed just stripped away, and, much like my reaction to Gwen and the others, each episode that went by just took that much more joy right out of him.
This is most likely going to be a hugely unpopular opinion *g*, but I prefer Captain Jack as a second to the Doctor. I much (so much more) prefer that dynamic than having him as a leader. I think he works better when he's taking orders instead of giving them, when he has someone to buffer his ego and make him reach that much harder and further. He doesn't lead very well, imo, at least not as far as I've seen. If he were my boss, I would feel so nervous all the time because I just wouldn't be sure I could trust him to actually lead, to be there for me or for any of my team members.
So, the only reason I hung on for the entire season is, well, Ianto Jones *g*, and because I was curious to see if the show moved past the complete dysfunction, since Jack seemed to be (mostly) healed of his bitterness by the events of "The Last of the Time Lords" and the other DW episodes. So, in that way it was probably a good thing I saw all of Doctor Who before restarting Torchwood.
Just as an aside, I'm not saying I don't understand why Captain Jack is mr. angry pants for all of Torchwood series one, and I'm know others really get off on that sort of angst and stuff, and to a certain extent I do too, but unfortunately it really wasn't working for me with Torchwood. I had no purchase, nothing to grab hold on to fall in love with the show, or any of the characters. It pretty much froze me out.
But! Look at me, still watching. *g* And yes so far series 2 is better, imo. At least I'm not hating anyone yet, and I'm back to liking Gwen and Owen and Tosh, and even Captain Jack. The snogging helps. *g* And Ianto Jones! Although, I hate to be all doom and gloom, but I'm not at all sanguine about Ianto and Jack. I've watched too many shows to trust the writers, particularly with romance in a show where people die, and also when one half of the pairing *can't* die, and that half isn't Ianto Jones. Still, no reason to borrow trouble.... I won't be too sanguine if Rhys gets permanently hurt, either, come to think of it.
So, in conclusion, I'll hang around for a while. I still don't like the concept of Torchwood (the institute). I don't like how they get things done, or even how they came about (no matter that the Doctor was inadvertently the impetus). But I feel more or less invested now in the characters to a certain extant. Plus I want to know what goes on in the Whoverse. And also, there's Ianto Jones, to make me smile. *g*
