This week on Torchwood: Miracle Day, Oswald Danes takes centre stage at a rally, whilst the Torchwood crew break into an obvious death camp set up by the big evil corporation. This may sound like every episode so far, but could there be a more dramatic ending this time?
After all, last time we got our first glance at a triangular supervillain. So we must be getting into the meat of the story now?
Captain Jack Said “Let Us Break In”
As hinted above, there was a lot that was standard about this episode, so much so that I’m struggling to avoid repeating previous reviews. I mean, once again Torchwood break into something, Oswald Danes moves further towards cult leadership, stopping for a psychobabbled interchange with Captain Jack.
That over-intense chat, in particular, really was a regurgitation of the one they had back in episode three. And after seeming more plausible last week, the public worship of Danes becomes far-fetched again. Of course, pseudo-religious shouting seems to go over better with segments of the US public than the general British one, so maybe this is a cultural barrier.
But all credit to actor Bill Pullman. If I am having a credibility problem with this storyline, it’s not because of him – rarely has a man been so creepy, yet so compelling. And yes, I still love Lauren Ambrose as the PR girl too.
And Lo, There Were Spoilers
It’s hard to say more without spoiling the ending, so look away if you value your purity. Basically, although it was disturbing, it was also an obvious leap from the set-up, so I can see why they elected to kill a character off as part of the revelation. And I felt sadness at the death, so they’ve done their job.
On the other hand, the ending doesn’t really advance the plot, only underlines the “human beings can be awful” theme, which Russell T. Davies illustrated more subtly in Children Of Earth.
Still, this episode felt eventful by the end, and, to give the writers their credit, we’re at the halfway mark and I have no idea where they’re going. So, more evil triangle next week?
Are you growing impatient too? Check the episode out on iPlayer and let us know .
Nick Bryan
Nick learned to read and write at an early age. This has developed into an unhealthy need to either write stories or consume them for later dissection. He reviews film and TV on Dork Adore and The Digital Fix, lives in London and enjoys a nice white beer.
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[…] Last episode, to give them credit, we had a proper story event. It didn’t advance the mystery, but provided genuine horror and some impetus for the characters. So pleased are the writers with that success, we now dwell on it, watching in magnified fascination as the characters extract themselves from their ending positions. […]