Using entirely neutral icon

[exsequar]

Hm. So. My thoughts and emotions are all over the place with this.

I'll be honest that I have what I gather is a really unpopular opinion in that... I thought this episode was really quite powerful. It all hit me in the gut and I was crying pretty much the whole time. John Frobisher's swan song was truly and deeply horrifying, even more so for the fact that it ended up being unnecessary. I liked that his secretary got a little bit of justice for him, and that the prime minister JACKASS got his ass handed to him. (I worked up a truly intense loathing for him over the course of the week.) All of the scenes of soldiers gathering up children, of Gwen and Ianto's sister and Rhys trying to get the kids to safety, of Andy and Ianto's sister's husband (I am so awful with names) fighting the soldiers - it just chilled me right down to the bones, and I couldn't stop crying. Idk, maybe I'm easy, but it didn't seem cheesy or over the top, just frighteningly believable that humanity could sink to that low, and that this is what we would become when faced with such a lose-lose choice. Gwen's recording at the beginning set off my floodworks and I didn't really stop after that. It was just so chilling, with her face half in shadow and her enormous eyes. I don't know, I thought the dramatic execution was largely very good.

Three things that I thought were unnecessary:
1) Ianto's death
2) Using Jack's grandson as the child
3) Jack emoing at Gwen and shooting off into space

Basically, the underpinning character direction that they were apparently shooting for with the whole thing felt ENTIRELY UNNECESSARY. This drama could have played out on the world stage just as it did WITHOUT resulting in the death of a third of Torchwood and the departure of its leader from the Earth. I don't think it would have been a cop out to have this all happen, and then our characters resume life together, altered and sobered and part of a darkened world, but still together. I just.. I don't think tearing the team to shreds was a necessary outcome! And I don't really understand why they did it. Did RTD envision another Doctor Who sort of adventure, but with Captain Jack at the middle? Newsflash: JOHN BARROWMAN IS NOT DAVID TENNANT. I'm juuuust saying. He simply can't carry a show that way. But if that is the goal, it seems like RTD has had it in mind for a while, and that's why he had the fucking balls to kill two main characters at the end of season 2.

As for using Jack's grandson, that just felt gratuitous. Why did it have to be him? Why not some terminally ill child? That became completely anvilly, like LOOK JACK MAKES ALL THE RIGHT CHOICES BUT EVERYONE HE LOVES GETS HURT OR DIES. ALWAYS. FOREVER. HE'S CURSED DID YOU NOTICE?????? DID YOU DID YOU?? *facepalm*

And you know what? I liked Gwen so much in this series. I LOVED this show. If they had kept in this vein I could have watched the JackIantoGwenRhys show until the sky fell down. You know, shows DO continue with the same cast for many years, RTD! Seriously! It happens! I've seen it! It's bizarrely like he thought this set up (Torchwood in Cardiff) was boring and he needed to ~shake things up. NO. No. I do not concur.

Just so you know, underlying this entire semi-rational commentary is WHY DID YOU KILL IANTO YOU FUCKING BASTARD I HATE YOU AND I HOPE YOU BURN IN HELL!!!!!!!!!! Iantooooooooooooooooo. ;__________;

It's going to be so hard to watch old episodes of this show now, knowing what happens! It's all just tainted and marked for tragedy. HOW DID OUR SILLY ALIEN SHOW TURN INTO THIS? I think they found a happy medium (the darker feel they were apparently trying for from the beginning but still fun and Captain Jack-y) with most of this season, and then somehow the train came off the tracks. It's extremely depressing.

I feel sort of gobsmacked. A week ago I didn't even know Torchwood was about to air. Then someone mentioned it and I was like "Ooh, Torchwood yay! Boyfriends yay! Omnisexual alien yay!" and then this happened. It's like getting shot in the stomach by Micky Mouse when you try to give him a hug.

SIGH.