"TORCHWOOD: CHILDREN OF EARTH"
DVD Review
by Kevin Carr
| MOVIE: **** (out of 5 stars)
DVD EXPERIENCE: ** (out of 5 stars) STARRING John Barrowman as CAPTAIN JACK HARKNESS Eve Myles as GWEN COOPER Gareth David-Lloyd as IANTO JONES Peter Capaldi as JOHN FROBISHER Paul Copley as CLEMENT MCDONALD Liz May Brice as JOHNSON Not Rated Available on DVD July 29 Official BBC America Shop site Studio: BBC America Back to DVD Review Home |  |
WHAT IT’S ABOUT
The Torchwood team faces a new enemy, which is being kept secret by the British government. When all the children of the world suddenly freeze and start speaking in unison, the Torchwood team realizes that it’s somehow related to an alien force. Captain Jack Harkness’s history is tied up in this threat, which involves a mysterious alien called the 456, who visits Earth and demands a culling of ten percent of all children. While the British government struggles with the ugly decision to appease the 456, Captain Jack works with the rest of the Torchwood team to fight back.
WHAT I LIKED
The BBC series “Torchwood” was a bit of a slow starter for myself. Its early episodes were okay but never had the spark that its parent series “Doctor Who” had. I suppose I just had to give the series time. As an adult version of “Doctor Who,” “Torchwood” has come into its own, featuring some pretty heavy subject matter, evidenced by the incredibly creepy and chilling villain that is the 456.
The lynchpin of “Torchwood: Children of Earth” is the speculative fiction nature of its presentation. It invites us to examine our ugly side as the human race and what we would be willing to sacrifice for the good of the many. It’s easy to sit on your couch at home and spout morality about how we would never give into the 456’s demands, but were we facing annihilation, a lot of us would in fact buckle.
Like “Doctor Who,” only to a more realistic adult degree, “Torchwood: Children of Earth” shows us the unpleasant side of politics, elitism and self-preservation. It’s a fascinating story that is increasingly difficult to watch... but I couldn’t pull my eyes away.
“Torchwood: Children of Earth” also gave the show a chance to expand the characters of this twisted universe. Just as the Doctor is tortured with guilt over the years, we see how Captain Jack suffers in the same way. The difference between the Doctor and Jack is that Jack’s moral compass hasn’t always pointed in the same direction.
In the end, we see Jack make decisions that I think the Doctor would be incapable of making, for better or for worse. That makes a more human character, as flawed as it might be, and puts Captain Jack in the allegorical role of God even more than the Doctor could be.
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
This five-part mini-series within the “Torchwood” universe was a great way to suck people into the series if they missed the first two seasons. However, it is a bit hard to hit the ground running if you haven’t watched much before. It wouldn’t hurt to brush up on the Wikipedia entry for “Torchwood” if you haven’t been schooled in the series already. At the very least, you can get a taste of how the characters fit together, in particular, who Jack Harkness really is.
At times, “Torchwood: Children of Earth” seems needlessly grim and also unrealistic. The five-part series can be very thought-provoking if not a bit hard to swallow if you think about things too hard. The geopolitical ramifications of what’s happening in the show doesn’t always fit together, and the facilitation used near the climax breaks down if you examine it farther than what is shown on screen.
Still, “Torchwood: Children of Earth” was not made for the audience to contemplate whether France would comply with the 456 or what the political impact would be of all the other nations. It’s meant to show what right-bastards we can be when faced with an unbeatable enemy, and in this sense the mini-series is a roaring success.
DVD FEATURES
The two-disc set comes with all five episodes from the start of “Torchwood: Season Three,” but be prepared with your remote to hit “skip” when they give the previews of the upcoming episodes to avoid spoilers.
The only special feature is the “Torchwood: Declassified” documentary that talks about the making of the five-part series itself and the impact it will have on the show’s future.
WHO’S GOING TO LIKE THIS MOVIE
Fans of British sci-fi.
