27 days left and we're continuing on my countdown to Miracle Day Torchwood re-watch! I'll be watching an episode a day and blogging bits and thoughts. With any luck this is gonna read like an episode guide and commentary. Let's dive right in!
Episode: Countrycide (Series 1 Episode 6)
Written By: Chris Chibnall ( I love Chris Chibnall. I know I've said it before but he is pure genius. I just found out he has a TWITTER, follow him.)
Original Air Date: 19 November 2006
1 Sentence Sum-Up: The team investigates a series of disappearances in the Welsh countryside.
New Characters:
Evan Sherman (Owen Teale): The head cannibal. He eats people...because it makes him happy.
Helen Sherman (Maxine Evans): Mrs. head cannibal. She likes to play with her food.
Kieran (Calum Callaghan): A boy who is the lone survivor in the village of cannibals.
Huw (Rhys op Trefor): Police, also nephew of Evan and Helen. Cannibal as well.
Favorite Quote:
Owen: "I hate the countryside. It’s dirty, it’s unhygienic and what is that smell?"
Gwen: "That would be grass."
Owen: "It’s disgusting."
Never Noticed:
Ianto in jeans. Oh, wait, yes I have. I just wanted to mention it...and post a picture. Ianto in jeans is frankly thrilling. Like we're breaking a rule and we like it. Not to mention Ianto on a mission with the team. This whole episode is pushing Ianto's limits. Love it.
Episode: Countrycide (Series 1 Episode 6)
Written By: Chris Chibnall ( I love Chris Chibnall. I know I've said it before but he is pure genius. I just found out he has a TWITTER, follow him.)
Original Air Date: 19 November 2006
1 Sentence Sum-Up: The team investigates a series of disappearances in the Welsh countryside.
New Characters:
Evan Sherman (Owen Teale): The head cannibal. He eats people...because it makes him happy.
Helen Sherman (Maxine Evans): Mrs. head cannibal. She likes to play with her food.
Kieran (Calum Callaghan): A boy who is the lone survivor in the village of cannibals.
Huw (Rhys op Trefor): Police, also nephew of Evan and Helen. Cannibal as well.
Favorite Quote:
Owen: "I hate the countryside. It’s dirty, it’s unhygienic and what is that smell?"
Gwen: "That would be grass."
Owen: "It’s disgusting."
Never Noticed:
Ianto in jeans. Oh, wait, yes I have. I just wanted to mention it...and post a picture. Ianto in jeans is frankly thrilling. Like we're breaking a rule and we like it. Not to mention Ianto on a mission with the team. This whole episode is pushing Ianto's limits. Love it.
Image Credit: http://lovetruthbella.livejournal.com
How easily scared Gwen is. And very pessimistic. Is she going to assume the worst outcome every episode? She needs to get more sure of the teams abilities and suck it up. I get she's supposed to be the person we relate to and a normal person seeing the things Torchwood see's would be horrified, but...I think they overdo it a bit. She needs to start getting used to it.
When questioned about what is terrorizing the town Kieran is very vague and doesn't give them much. He tells them "IT'S not human" not "they're my human". It's purposely misleading. Clever.
There's a point when Jack, Gwen, Owen and Kieran are fighting off the attacks from a pub. It's very "Shaun of The Dead" I wonder if it was an intentional nod to the film.
Hearts in a jar? Behind the bar, we see something, hearts, some bodily organs in jars. Gross. Nice touch.
When Jack is "torturing" the attacker he starts off with a slap. Best kind of torture. Or a good night, depending on the context.
When Ianto was struggling in the meat hanging room Evan knee's him in the man parts! Poor Ianto, he really goes through a lot this episode.
At the end when Jack saves the day, Ianto moves away from the cannibal and Gwen grabs and hugs him. It's quick and very sweet.
When Gwen interrogates Evan before his creepy explanation of what they do a single tear runs down his face. Somehow it makes the scene more disturbing. The truly scary fact of this episode is that the threat turns out to be human. And just then, that human emotion, reminds us of that fact.
WTF Moments:
At the beginning, the woman sees what she thinks is a body in the road and stops to check it out. I get it, she doesn't want to leave it in the road if she can help. Unfortunately, I am a wuss, I would have kept driving and then made a call to 911. I was yelling at the screen! Don't do it!! But that's just how horror stories go.
When they are investigating the village at first, Jack splits up the team, sending Tosh and Ianto on their own.Was it really a good idea to send the two remembers with the least field experience off on their own? He was asking for them to be kidnapped.
Once they've separated from the others Tosh and Ianto hear a suspicious noise. Tosh "What is that?" Ianto: "A fox of something". Ha! What? Ianto is smarter than that. And, are there a lot of foxes in the Welsh countryside? It was such a weird response. Maybe Ianto really had no clue but was trying to reassure Tosh. Let's go with that.
When Gwen get's shot Owen pulls out his med kit. Where did that come from? Wasn't everything in the SUV?
Gwen sleeping with Owen. Not WTF like I don't believe it, but WTF. I was so disappointed in Gwen. I knew she had a wandering eye and I knew she's free with kissed but this was different. She full on cheated on Rhys and he's wonderful, I was so sad.
Random Rants:
Totally agree with Owen. Countryside is rubbish. Nature is gross. I do not want to celebrate my uniqueness.
The scene where the team is talking about who the last person they kissed was. There are a lot of theories about Ianto's answer. Of course he says it was Lisa. Then Jack gives him a "oh no it wasn't" look and Ianto seems to shoot him back a "go with it" look. The idea is that when Jack revived Ianto in Cyberwoman he kissed him. The question after this scene is why Ianto said what he did. Is it a) He doesn't remember it b) he doesn't consider it a kiss or c)he doesn't want anyone to know, for a myriad of reasons. I honestly don't know what I think. The look suggests he knows but why he isn't saying I'm not sure. Great scene. Very intense, well done.
MVC (Most Valuable Character):
Ianto. Ianto is MVC because let's be honest this is a Ianto heavy episode. Not just that but it really tests Ianto and he steps up to the challenge. He pushes through his own fears and comes through for the team more than once, And he looks good doing it. For his first time out he get's an A+.
MVA (Most Valuable Actor):
Gareth of course. I realize I am especially fond of Gareth and I want to give it to him most episodes but no one can deny he deserves it this time around. He finds a way to portray a vulnerability in Ianto while on the surface Ianto is trying to keep it together. He has to have emotional outburst while portraying a character that prefers to remain guarded. He shows the bravery in a man that is out of his league and steps up to the demands of the situation. It's a mish-mosh of emotions and he balances it all expertly. Also, he wears the hell out of those jeans.
Episode Grade:
A+
This episode is a brilliant complex horror movie that can very well stand on it's own. You know how, when you want to get a friend into Doctor Who in one episode you show them Blink? When I want to get friends into Torchwood I have them watch this episode. It's self-contained enough that you don't need much background and it really is a full feature in 50 minutes. The writing is witty and there is a great blend of high tension scenes and funny moments. Brilliant all around.
Tomorrow's Episode: Greeks Bearing Gifts (Series 1, Episode 7). Remember, I'll be live tweeting my re-watch on the @BarrowmanDay twitter at 12:00am PST (US - West coast) and 8:00am GMT (UK). Hope you all can watch with me and chat.
That's it for today! Hope you enjoyed my run down. What did you all think of this episode? Did you notice anything new? What grade would you give it? xx
<3Dana
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When questioned about what is terrorizing the town Kieran is very vague and doesn't give them much. He tells them "IT'S not human" not "they're my human". It's purposely misleading. Clever.
There's a point when Jack, Gwen, Owen and Kieran are fighting off the attacks from a pub. It's very "Shaun of The Dead" I wonder if it was an intentional nod to the film.
Hearts in a jar? Behind the bar, we see something, hearts, some bodily organs in jars. Gross. Nice touch.
When Jack is "torturing" the attacker he starts off with a slap. Best kind of torture. Or a good night, depending on the context.
When Ianto was struggling in the meat hanging room Evan knee's him in the man parts! Poor Ianto, he really goes through a lot this episode.
At the end when Jack saves the day, Ianto moves away from the cannibal and Gwen grabs and hugs him. It's quick and very sweet.
When Gwen interrogates Evan before his creepy explanation of what they do a single tear runs down his face. Somehow it makes the scene more disturbing. The truly scary fact of this episode is that the threat turns out to be human. And just then, that human emotion, reminds us of that fact.
WTF Moments:
At the beginning, the woman sees what she thinks is a body in the road and stops to check it out. I get it, she doesn't want to leave it in the road if she can help. Unfortunately, I am a wuss, I would have kept driving and then made a call to 911. I was yelling at the screen! Don't do it!! But that's just how horror stories go.
When they are investigating the village at first, Jack splits up the team, sending Tosh and Ianto on their own.Was it really a good idea to send the two remembers with the least field experience off on their own? He was asking for them to be kidnapped.
Once they've separated from the others Tosh and Ianto hear a suspicious noise. Tosh "What is that?" Ianto: "A fox of something". Ha! What? Ianto is smarter than that. And, are there a lot of foxes in the Welsh countryside? It was such a weird response. Maybe Ianto really had no clue but was trying to reassure Tosh. Let's go with that.
When Gwen get's shot Owen pulls out his med kit. Where did that come from? Wasn't everything in the SUV?
Gwen sleeping with Owen. Not WTF like I don't believe it, but WTF. I was so disappointed in Gwen. I knew she had a wandering eye and I knew she's free with kissed but this was different. She full on cheated on Rhys and he's wonderful, I was so sad.
Random Rants:
Totally agree with Owen. Countryside is rubbish. Nature is gross. I do not want to celebrate my uniqueness.
The scene where the team is talking about who the last person they kissed was. There are a lot of theories about Ianto's answer. Of course he says it was Lisa. Then Jack gives him a "oh no it wasn't" look and Ianto seems to shoot him back a "go with it" look. The idea is that when Jack revived Ianto in Cyberwoman he kissed him. The question after this scene is why Ianto said what he did. Is it a) He doesn't remember it b) he doesn't consider it a kiss or c)he doesn't want anyone to know, for a myriad of reasons. I honestly don't know what I think. The look suggests he knows but why he isn't saying I'm not sure. Great scene. Very intense, well done.
MVC (Most Valuable Character):
Ianto. Ianto is MVC because let's be honest this is a Ianto heavy episode. Not just that but it really tests Ianto and he steps up to the challenge. He pushes through his own fears and comes through for the team more than once, And he looks good doing it. For his first time out he get's an A+.
MVA (Most Valuable Actor):
Gareth of course. I realize I am especially fond of Gareth and I want to give it to him most episodes but no one can deny he deserves it this time around. He finds a way to portray a vulnerability in Ianto while on the surface Ianto is trying to keep it together. He has to have emotional outburst while portraying a character that prefers to remain guarded. He shows the bravery in a man that is out of his league and steps up to the demands of the situation. It's a mish-mosh of emotions and he balances it all expertly. Also, he wears the hell out of those jeans.
Episode Grade:
A+
This episode is a brilliant complex horror movie that can very well stand on it's own. You know how, when you want to get a friend into Doctor Who in one episode you show them Blink? When I want to get friends into Torchwood I have them watch this episode. It's self-contained enough that you don't need much background and it really is a full feature in 50 minutes. The writing is witty and there is a great blend of high tension scenes and funny moments. Brilliant all around.
Tomorrow's Episode: Greeks Bearing Gifts (Series 1, Episode 7). Remember, I'll be live tweeting my re-watch on the @BarrowmanDay twitter at 12:00am PST (US - West coast) and 8:00am GMT (UK). Hope you all can watch with me and chat.
That's it for today! Hope you enjoyed my run down. What did you all think of this episode? Did you notice anything new? What grade would you give it? xx
<3Dana
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