58 Days left and I have good news! Starz updated the OFFICIAL TORCHWOOD: MIRACLE DAY PAGE. Oh yes they did, we got all sorts of treats. If you click around you can find a lot of cool things, let's walk through it.

The HOME PAGE has the updated synopsis, a "playing next" square that tells you the next airing of Torchwood: Miracle Day (including repeat airings) and you can watch the preview (what you all know as the second released teaser).

The next tab is the SCREENING ROOM. Presumably as the series goes on there will be several clips and previews housed here. As is it's only the preview shown on the home page. They seem to have removed the first teaser from the site, which is odd. I wonder if they'll only ever have the most recent available, that seems off. Hopefully not.

Next is the CAST section and this is my very favorite. The top of the page has 8 click-able pictures of the main characters. Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman), Rex Matheson (Mekhi Phifer), Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles), Oswald Danes (Bill Pullman), Jilly Kitzinger (Lauren Ambrose), Esther Drummond (Alexa Havins), Dr. Vera Juarez (Arlene Tur), Rhys Williams (Kai Owen).  Assuming I did all that right each name is a link to the corresponding page. Click on the character names for descriptions (and a shiny new promo photo - oh yes) and click the actor names (in parenthesis) for their bio's. I love, love, love (as JB would say) this part of the site. Not only do we get a better idea of the characters, but we get to see their actual looks and we have further information about the actors. I think this is the first official acknowledgement of the full names of Jilly, Esther and Vera. Am I the only one that laughed at the name Vera? (think "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang"). Also on this page of never-ending greatness is a section on the main production team with bios of creator and producers, Russell T Davies, Julie Gardner and Jane Tranter.

The final page is titled COMMUNITY this is pretty much what you'd imagine, links to the official Facebook, Twitter and Message Boards. ALSO, a nifty little something, you can sign up for the official Torchwood Newsletter! I somehow missed this before, maybe it wasn't there, so I haven't got one yet, but why not sign up? Sounds good to me.

Go ahead, click on every one of those links, I'll wait...

Done? Great! Now lets gossip! Holy cow those new promo pictures! I am in love with them!! So good to see the gang officially pictured and as we'll see them in the series. I LOVE John's picture, I may be a little biased but the blue shirt red braces is just...perfect. It's actually my computer desktop right now. I admit I took them off the site but for now I am going to refrain from posting them here as I don't think Starz intended them to be taken. Maybe if they start popping up everywhere anyway I'll add them in later, but you have all those links! Those links are great, which you know, cause you clicked every single one, right? Most of them I think are just great but I will say, Lauren's doesn't seem to do her justice. I saw her in person when I watched Torchwood filming at City Hall, I think she's prettier than that picture. Also, Rhys, LOVE Kai Owen, love Rhys, but...why does he look so sad?? I hate sad Rhys! I know he can't be super smiley, none of them are, it's dark ,I get it, but...he could have been a little less kicked puppy looking. Am I right? And Eve, every glimpse of her from MD so far I think she looks both better and worse, it's so weird and I can't put my finger on what it is. It's almost like she's prettier but she always looks like she's had a rough day. I don't know.

Then there are the descriptions and bios. Just gonna post a few quick quotes to discuss.

Jack looks like a hero. He's handsome, witty and subversive with a killer smile.

I love that the very first description of the character is all about his looks. This is just too perfect, like they are warning you "hey by the way, you're gonna fall in love with this guy." Love it.

Barrowman is also well-known in the UK for….

The entire second half of his bio starts with well known in the UK and keeps reminding that he is HUGE in the UK and makes him seem virtually unknown in the US. It's really not all THAT bad. I love him...I'm in the US. I know at least like 10 others. He's a big deal!

…Gwen…(will) make the most terrible decisions, on behalf of all mankind.

Oh really? Sounds like sacrificing a baby to me eh? Or her family? I can't imagine how her choice is going to impact the world but s'pose we'll see. Really now I am imagining using baby Anwen as a transmitter to kill the 456...I mean, oh wait. That's not cool. No more baby killing, yea?

(from Esther's description)It's a tough, brutal, hard lifestyle where survival is hard won and life-changing choices have to be made.

Again they bring up choices. I really wonder how the choices and sacrifice of one or two people can impact the world outcome. Not in general but it this specific scenario I can't imagine how that will play out. Guess we'll have to watch the show now. I wasn't planning on it but...OK.

And these two in conjunction from Gwen and then Rhys' descriptions I especially love because it brings up a lot of things I talked about in my 61 days blog.

...(Gwen) lives in seclusion, with her devoted husband Rhys and baby Anwen, knowing that one day trouble will come calling again.

(Rhys is) Unafraid to tell Gwen when she's out of line or to say family sometimes needs to come first…

Seriously, I'd just be repeating myself  3 days later, go read that blog, if you're interested.

Ok wow, that was a bit much, but there was a lot to cover and I was really excited! I hope you didn't think a blog touring a site was stupid, you could just as easily just have clicked the first link and gone from there. Either way, check it out, it's a great resource. So what are your thoughts? Do you love the new promo pictures? Do the character descriptions intrigue you or worry you? Doesn't John Barrowman look lovely? Did I use the word love one too many times? xx

<3Dana

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59 Days left 'til Torchwood: Miracle Day and it's Tuesday. That means it's time for the Torchwood this week wrap up. Below are this weeks offerings:

INTERVIEWS/ARTICLES:

There was a new Torchwood novel "Torchwood: First Born" announced, due out on July 21st i9n the UK and September 20th in the USA.  It seems there are two other books in the pipeline too, though we have no info other than title and UK release date.

4th August 2011 - Torchwood: Long Time Dead
18th August 2011 - Torchwood: The Men Who Sold the World

The New Torchwood Won’t Just Be Confined To Your TV Set, Might Feature A Familiar Old Face… Or Voice (New Torchwood Radio Plays)

Is Ianto appearing in #Torchwood: Miracle Day?? (Mostly speculation, but we're all thinking it.)

'Torchwood's' John Barrowmann on P.M. David Cameron's support of same-sex kissing ban on UK TV (this is more Barrowman news, but I thought it was worth posting)

That's it for this week! If you've seen more feel free to post links in the comments below, to tweet them at us @BarrowmanDay or send us an email at [email protected]. As always, we're not claiming any ownership of the content. Did I miss anything? xx

<3Dana

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60 Days left and I'm thinking about the format of TW: MD. Fans who have seen Torchwood from the start will know that series 1 and 2 were in a "monster of the week" format, new threat that was presented and dealt with in each episode and the episodes aired once a week. Then series 3 was COE and they changed that. Instead the show was presented in 5 episodes that told one overarching story and was aired on 5 consecutive days. COE was also a considerably shorter series only 5 episodes as opposed to the previous 13 a series. Next we have TW: MD which will be like COE in that it will tell one story with one treat over the series but it will do so in 10 episodes that air once a week. Today I want to chat a bit about the pros and cons of each format.

MotW (Monster of the Week) is a very popular format that has been proven to work and work well. It is also handy with providing jumping on points for viewers as well at being more accommodating to the casual viewer. There is something good about being able to watch an episode here and there even if you cannot tune-in every week.

The second format, the COE format we're gonna call ACC (All Consuming Crisis). The obvious advantage with this method is more time to tell a single story. There is only so much you can accomplish in one or two episodes, whereas with an entire series dedicated to one fight you can get more in depth with the drama.

Each also have their drawbacks. MotW is obviously an issue with time, you are limited in how complicated your story or crisis can get because you have ultimately an episode (or two) to resolve. With ACC you have the issue of variety, you are only telling one story and a lot of times that means the whole series is hit or miss. Torchwood fans are very opinionated about whether COE was hit or miss and the fact of the matter is, one bad episode in a series of 13 is a lot less complained about than an entire ACC story people take issue with.

With TW: MD the creators have decided to go for the ACC format. It's going to be one giant epic tale told over 10 episodes. I am glad that even thought they chose this format we are getting more than 5 episodes. Parts of this excite me, for instance,we get a huge story that is more movie and  big production like, that's nice. Also, I think American viewers really enjoy the big overarching stories, complicated mysteries that take a whole series to unravel. It makes a lot of sense to do it in this format I think.

But, and there is a but, if I'm being entirely honest, I missed MotW while watching COE. I missed how every threat is not necessarily a world wide mega-crisis. And I missed the lighter moments of the story, not as many cheeky moments when kids are being used as drugs, you know? And here's where people are going to disagree with me maybe...I feel like, when a story is so big and all consuming we lose small moments with the characters. We miss getting to know them and we don't get to enjoy them as much. Is that just me? I felt like even thought we learned new things about Jack in COE we were mostly told and not shown. There were big reveals but they were sort of out of no where, we were blindsided and we were too wrapped up with saving the world to worry about how it really effected him. I think it's a matter of telling and not showing, we get more time for a story but less time for the subtle character developments.

All that being said, I am in love with everyone working on this project. I trust the actors and creators and I am definitely keeping a positive attitude, even if my reflections come off negative at times. If anyone can fit in everything we got in Series 1 and 2 as well as COE it's this team.

How about you? Do you prefer one format to the other? Do you think MD in this format is a good idea? Am I completely off the mark about losing character development in bigger stories? xx

<3Dana

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61 Days left and it's Mother's Day! At least it is in the US where I live. I think this is an obvious blog topic, right? I have to blog about "mother Torchwood", Gwen.

For those who may not know, when we catch up with Gwen at the start of TW: MD we find her living a quiet life with husband Rhys and baby daughter Anwen, somewhere in the South of Wales if I'm not mistaken.  I keep imagining that it will play a lot like the false reality Amy and Rory slip into in the Doctor Who episode "Amy's Choice". It will be very small-town and will come off incredibly dull for Gwen who longs for her old adventure filled life, even though she loves Rhys and Anwen, she's not satisfied with just that.

That's where we start but we know that's not how the story progresses. Jack returns to Earth, the Miracle Day Dilemma (MDD) takes form and the remnants of team Torchwood get dragged into their old habits. I'm sure Gwen will be thrilled with the idea, Rhys will be practical and it'll end as every other disagreement in their relationship, Gwen wins. I love Rhys, I really do, but I wish he would put his foot down more often. The times he's really had his say were brilliant. My sincerest hope for Gwen and Rhys going into TW: MD is that Gwen appreciates Rhys more and Rhys doesn't always let her have her way. I am invested in them as a couple and I want them to get to happily ever after or as close as Torchwood can offer.

Back to the topic, baby Anwen and mother Gwen. Once the MDD hits Gwen will be back to the long hours and danger that surround Torchwood, so how will she fit in being a mom? The obvious answer seems to be she won't. She may want to be there for her baby but how do you argue with stepping away for a while to save the world? To protect your baby's future? I think what will come of Gwen back in Torchwood will be a struggle similar to series 1 and 2 of Torchwood. Gwen would try to do her job but make time for Rhys and more often than not, fail miserably. So if she gets caught up and she loses time with her daughter that sucks, but she has advantages now she didn't then. She has Rhys to help, Rhys knows all about Torchwood and Rhys and Anwen have each other.

I think the harsh reality of the situation will be that Rhys will have to be the mother and the father to baby Anwen, at least while the world is ending. I imagine he'll be yelling at Gwen to consider her family and let someone else save the world. Honestly Gwen's potential inability to be there for her daughter during this crisis suits me just fine because it brings in more need for Rhys and as we've established, I adore him. I would also really like to see Gwen go through the conflict, wanting to be with her baby but also wanting to protect the world she has to live in. We'll probably see a few similar confrontations between Gwen and Rhys as we did in COE concerning baby Anwen. I am hoping that the pull of her family will help make Gwen a more interesting character. That's not to say I hate her, but I find myself having a hard time relating to her and I think a struggle between love of family and a sense of duty could be the thing to make me really care for her down the line.

And I know what you're all thinking, Rhys knows about Torchwood, Gwen is a very capable woman and there is every possibility that she can manage to protect the planet and occasionally make it in time for dinner and a bed-time story. And maybe you're right. I  wouldn't be surprised if Gwen, with the help of Rhys, found a way to make it work. Torchwood creators seem to pick and chose when to make Gwen capable and when to make her human and flawed and that's not a criticism, just and observation and a acknowledgement that this situation could go either way.

So what do you think, how will mother Gwen cope? Is Rhys going to have to step up and live the life of a work-widower? Can they work together to have some semblance of a normal life while still protecting the planet from the fall-out of the MDD? xx

<3Dana

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62 Days left in it's a Doctor Who day! I've just watched the new episode and I wouldn't normally mention it but today it's kinda relevant. The following blog CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR DOCTOR WHO: THE CURSE OF THE BLACK SPOT, IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN IT YET READING THIS WILL SPOIL YOU. I'll understand if you don''t want to read this now but feel free to read it later one you have watched.

So I happened upon an article online today, a review of the latest Doctor Who. See that blue text? You can click it to see the review I'm talking about. In case it wasn't obvious. So I am working on the assumption that everyone reading this blog has seen the latest episode to save time if you are still reading and you haven't seen the episode check out the episode Wiki. See? More blue text, it'll explain it better than I can anyhow. Ok, moving on. The article I read came up in a Google search for Torchwood. I was curious what one could have to do with the other so I read and if found the following excerpt:

"The Siren’s efforts to maintain human life, but without being able to heal people properly, seem (perhaps) to foreshadow the upcoming Torchwood: Miracle Day (which, being a spin-off from Doctor Who, is set in the Whoniverse), which apparently concerns what happens when, all of a sudden, everyone all over the world stops dying."

Oh. I see. That is an interesting though, but I don't think it's right. As cool as it would be, I really don't see the cause of TW: MD being part of Doctor Who. Not only because such a major DW/TW cross-over would be impossible  to keep under wraps but because making all of TW: MD be a fallout from DW would be very messy for new Torchwood viewers. The idea is to attract new viewers by making it need no previous knowledge of the series so if they make it so the Miracle Day Dilemma (MDD) is a direct result of an episode of Doctor Who it makes it more work to get into as a new viewer.

But you know what? This has brought up a cool idea anyway. What if the MDD is a result of someone trying to help not harm the human race? A lot of bad things come from good intentions and I think that would be a great. I would love it if a world-wide epidemic is because someone what only trying to help. Oh the fun we could have with that! Ok I am gonna cut the blog here I have a busy day ahead and I may not be home to post this otherwise, forgive me.

But what about you? Could Doctor who be foreshadowing events that lead to the MDD? Would you like that to be the case? Or do you think it's too messy? What about someone doing harm with good intentions, good idea or bad? xx

<3Dana

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63 Days left and I needed a little help today. I wasn't feeling particularly inspired by any or my topic ideas so I asked twitter what they though. And so, by popular demand, I give you...Torchwood in Oz. The following is my assessment of who each of our Torchwood characters would be if we had to make them characters from the Wizard of Oz. Since we don't really know much about the new characters I am only including folks from Torchwood past. Follow me down the yellow brick road...

Gwen - Oh Gwen. Gwen is so thoroughly Dorothy I cannot handle it. She's a normal gal thrown into the magical land of Oz (Torchwood) where nothing is as it should be. She is the person the viewer/reader is meant to connect with and it's through her eyes we experience all the wonder of Oz. She is the little girl lost who eventually finds her way. Oh and I hate Dorothy. I mean...I hate Dorothy, which would be relevant only if I hated Gwen, which I don't...because, I gave up Gwen bashing.

Rhys - I have to give credit where credit it due on this one. My friend Jeremy is with me and had the brilliant BRILLIANT idea that Rhys is so obviously Toto. Oh yes he is. Toto is Dorothy's only connection to the outside world, her closest companion and is dragged around in a basket. I love Rhys, but let's face it, he's her bitch! End. Thanks. Oh and Rhys is adorable.

Jack - Jack is Glinda. Now, hear me out. Sure, I love Glinda the most and the Glinda lover in me simply wants to make Jack my favorite character but once you see the other selections you'll see this was my only option and also it's not a bad fit. Glinda is...beautiful and charming and loved by the masses. She is also the person who seems to know the most about Oz and guide others, much like Jack and the world of aliens. An argument can be made for Ianto fitting this role but you also have to think that Glinda is more of a public figure whereas Ianto is behind the scenes. Jack and Glinda fancy the attention. Plus she's a character we know very little about, mysterious, which is totally Jack. And I know we're doing Film Wizard of Oz (Well we are, does it matter?) but it gives me a special tingle in my heart to compare a John Barrowman character to a Kristin Chenoweth character (in Wicked) shhhhh, just let me have this moment y'all!

Ianto - Ianto is the Tin Man. He's the Tin Man not because he literally doesn't have a heart but because he keeps it hidden under a metal-like exterior. He's very capable of loving but it's hard for him to show it. Some people would describe him as cold but that is just his...shell. Ok I'll stop. I don't want to stray too far into the novels since most people are more aware of the film but let me tell you, novel tin man is VERY Ianto. Starting with the girl he loved and lost and the whole chopped up and turned tin bit (which is like reverse cyberwoman). It's a really sad character, if you haven't read the novels I would recommend them. Also he goes searching for a heart, which he was left without...and maybe he found it with Jack. Awwwwwwwww. And shmoopy moment over.

And most importantly, the heart the Tin Man eventually receives...IS A POCKET WATCH!!! 

Tosh - Tosh is the Cowardly Lion. She's the cowardly lion because she is sweet and timid. She's not actually afraid but she is, hesitant. She is also loyal and has pretty hair? LOL Ok so this is a lose fit, but she has to be someone. I buy that shy Tosh equals cowardly lion.

Owen - Owen get's to be two characters. He get's to be the one he is most like and the one that makes other things funny because we don't have enough characters otherwise, unless we include Andy, and I almost did but...then I didn't. But I love Andy. Anyway, Owen is most like and primarily the Scarecrow. If he only had a brain! Of course he's sort of book smart but he is a bit "mindless and careless" (couldn't help it) and he doesn't always think before he speaks. Yea, I think that's a solid fit. Then, Owen is also the Wicked Witch (of the West) because...well, stay tuned for later character's, you'll see. Also, it's funny for me that (in Wicked at least, the Scarecrow and Wicked which are in love....it's so like Owen to be in love with himself!)

WAIT EVERYONE STOP EVERYTHING!!! I AM PAUSING THIS BLOG TO BRING YOU THE RELATED MOMENT OF GENIUS THAT I JUST FIGURED OUT! READY??? If we're going by Wicked (which, we're not but it has to be mentioned) the THE TIN MAN IS IN LOVE WITH GLINDA!! Bwahahahahaaha Ianto loves Jack HOORAY!! I swear I didn't do that on purpose! Oh that is fuuuuuuunnny. Ok back to our scheduled programming....

The Doctor - I know, not technically a Torchwood character but, someone has to be the Wizard and I mean...do I have to explain that one? He's the Wizard, duh, moving on. And somewhere the fact that "The Next Doctor" fake doctor had a weather balloon as a TARDIS makes me feel even more certain of my choice.

The Weevils - The Weevils are necessarily the flying monkeys. And THAT is why Owen is also the Wicked Witch...because he's king of the Weevils. I know, I AM a bit of a genius.

The fans - Ok yea, this is a stretch but I think I had to include us in this world. We the fans are the Munchkins. We're the townsfolk that adore Glinda/Jack. Yes, we all represent the lollypop guild.

Ok I'm done, what do you think? Did I get anyone super wrong? Any that are dead on? Should Andy have been the collective Munchkins so he could be included? Wouldn't it be great if Jack also traveled by bubble? xx

<3Dana

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64 Days left and I'm back to thinking about the people of earth and how the MDD (Miracle Day Dilemma) will effect them. I feel like I'm stuck on this and maybe it's getting old? But the problem is we only have so much information about TW: MD with which to speculate. We know no one can die and eventually our familiar Torchwood faces get involved in helping.

So until today I am thinking of one of the few things we can talk about, the way immortality will effect the common man. We've talked about the hardships physically and emotionally that the MDD will potentially cause them, but what about the hardships they might cause? We've talked about the possible causes for MDD and we've postulated how the team might deal with it (well we mentioned it) but we have not yet considered, the human threat to team Torchwood.

In a world where no one can die the human race would more than likely panic. That is the nature of man in the face of the unknown. Some might be quietly contemplative, others may be loud in their demand for answers but the one's to worry about are those who might aim to capitalize on the state of the world.  You have to consider that in a world where no one can die anarchy may ensue, communities may crumble. We may we see riots in the streets, the challenge of government, the attempted conquer of establishment and yes, a sinister plot or two.

Wouldn't it be interesting, if the cause of the MDD wasn't really the fight to win throughout the series? Consider if the cause was not the problem, maybe they know it will wear off or maybe they have a solution in site but int he meantime unsavory folks, might be taking advantage of the fact that the high ups are distracted by a world-wide epidemic and they are for the time being, indestructible. Something is telling me that this isn't a idea they are going to too fully explore in TW: MD, but it sure is a fun concept.

What do you all think? Could the big bad of TW: MD be a nefarious human suddenly gifted immortality? How do you think the masses would react to sudden world-wide immortality? How would you? xx

<3Dana

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65  Days left and it's Star Wars day! Y'know what' great about Star Wars Day? I have a ways to relate it to Torchwood.

If you guys have been on the Official Star Wars Blog you may have run into a Torchwood related post or two.  One time they posted about the Star Wars reference in "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang".  James Marsters as  John Hart actually does a scarily accurate Princess Leia. That being said most of his fans know he's a master of accents. You can see that clip in the video below.

There is also another post of a picture that has never been fully explained, the Torchwood cast (well, John, Naoko and Burn) posing with Light Sabers and some of the puppets from Avenue Q. I have to assume that this was a night out at the theatre with special treatment thanks to John's connections. At any rate here's that picture.

It's a very odd picture when you look at each of them separately. John looks very comfortable wielding the preferred weapon of the Jedi but Burn looks sort of upset about it and Naoko is coming off as disinterested. So what I'm getting is it's Luke (John), Leia (Naoko) and Han (Burn) circa "A New Hope". But I love them all and Star Wars so let's enjoy the mysterious lunacy.

It's funny that John is taking the Luke role in that picture because in my opinion, both John and Jack are very much Han-like. I remember the first time I watched Doctor Who and I was coming up to the introduction of Jack my friend told me that I would like him because he was a mix of Han Solo and Mal Reynolds ("Firefly"). Obviously deeply loving those characters I was very excited to get to know Captain Jack.

I think if you consider Jack, especially during his time on Doctor Who, he is very much the charming, at times cheeky and yes even dashing hero that make Mal and Han classic characters. I think it's a good comparison and I bet John himself would more likely have dressed as Han for Halloween, while Jack would've slept with him. It occurs to me, if all 3 lived in the same universe I bet they would run into each other. I bet there is some very smuty fan fic out there about that.

This has really gone off topic a bit, but since I brought it up, how would you describe Jack to a new viewer? How was he described to you? Can you really equate any one or more other characters to the perfection that is Jack? xx

<3Dana

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66 Days left 'til Torchwood: Miracle Day and it's Tuesday. That means it's time for the "Torchwood this week" wrap up. Below are this weeks offerings:

INTERVIEWS/ARTICLES:

‘Torchwood’ Comes To America With ‘Miracle Day’

PICTURES

on set of Torchwood with wonderful John Barrowman @team_Barrowman@daybreak @LorraineITV here's pic they want you 2 see (@TheRossKing yfrog)

Here's the @team_Barrowman@daybreak@LorraineITV@reallorraine pic they really want you to see ! (@TheRossKing yfrog)

Barrowman on one of the grips' bikes. #Torchwood#CaptJack (@ashlanddesantos Lockerz)

How's this for a Fraterday picture?! We suspect a wave of TWMD promo's should be released soon. Very hopeful! 
(via @BBC_Torchwood)

Ok here ya go don't worry @team_Borrowman gave me permission :-)  (@trpcic Lockerz)

Ok ok here's a sexy one of @team_Borrowman (@trpcic Lockerz)

First pic of Rhys :-) so cute! (@trpcic TwitPic)

And the lovely Sargent Andy luv luv (@trpcic TwitPic)

(And for the record anything Torchwood is welcome on this blog, not just the dear John Barrowman)

VIDEOS

this one has actual clips of Torchwood: Miracle Day, if you somehow missed it, watch it!

That's it for this week! If you've seen more feel free to post links in the comments below, to tweet them at us @BarrowmanDay or send us an email at [email protected]. As always, we're not claiming any ownership of the content. Did I miss anything? xx

<3Dana

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67 Days left 'til the Starz original series Torchwood: Miracle Day. Are you fuming yet? I'm aware that most of you reading this are UK viewers and having talked to a bunch of you I know this is a bit of a hot topic, so take a second to step back and let's try to keep an open mind?

There are a number of complaints that have come out of the fact that Torchwood has been picked up by an American network. Many UK fans ans Non-UK fans I have talked to are concerned about the future of the show, about it being Americanized and about how Starz will try to change it. There is a lot to say and several things I can address but that's more blogs to come. Let's chat about this one thing, the fact that Starz is advertising Torchwood as a Starz original series.

I think this issue came to fans attention when the first promo poster was released and it had on the top of it "A Starz original series". Now I am going to support the unpopular opinion here, that Starz is completely in the right to claim Torchwood as such, but please don't take any of what I say to be an attack.  I am trying to be honest about how I am seeing this issue forming for fans and it's not my intention to come off insensitive or insulting. Hear me out:

When that poster was released my personal experience with friends and acquaintances, specifically those from the UK, was that people were very upset that the big bad American network was coming in and trying to claim Torchwood as their original series when BBC and in fact the British fans have claim to it. I think that a lot of the hostility and the negative reaction that non-US fans are having to Torchwood in the US is based mostly in misunderstanding and a sort of possessiveness.

If you somehow missed it, i'm American and so it upsets me when all of my friends in the UK are so down on everything American. I think maybe they don't realize that some of the criticisms of my culture ruining everything they touch can be a little offensive. But this isn't about me and I don't want to get into the whole Americanized debate just yet, but I would love it if Torchwood fans in the UK (or outside the US in general) didn't automatically take issue with every move and expect the worst.

When Starz claims that it's a Starz original series you have to consider that maybe, by the standards of the definition of an original series it might be. What's an original series? In the sense that I believe Starz to be using it, an original series' is one that originated in creation from Starz, aslo something that has not been done before as such. It is a sort of blurry concept but I don't think Starz is trying to take all the credit here.

But these different opinions of what an original series is seems to me to be what is upsetting people. Everyone is saying that it's a BBC original series, they started the production of course and they are still very much involved, but that's not what Starz is laying claim to. Starz is saying that they are partially responsible for creating the current incarnation and they are! It's a BBC/Starz co-production. Both are the origin of this series of the show and both have claim to it. And let me assure you both parties signed agreements that specificy they can each claim it as an original series. We've seen Starz and BBC do so on their promo materials. Nothing is getting miss-represented. I think that it may just be fans of the show before MD resistant to change.

I am not trying to push buttons here, I am just trying to reach out to you reading in hopes that you'll see maybe a co-production can be just that, a shared creation. Collaboration can be a good thing and America is not trying to steal Torchwood, we are only trying to spread the love.

So go ahead lay into me if you must. Is Starz way out of line? Can't we all just get along? Are you worried what the US involvement might mean for Torchwood as we know it? xx

<3Dana

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