Torchwood Series 2 Starring John Barrowman
Captain Jack and his Team Return to Protect Cardiff From Aliens
Oct 5, 2009
Captain Jack, fresh from his jaunt with the Doctor at the end of Doctor Who Series 3 and is now back with Torchwood. However unlike series 1 in which Jack seemed to just be killing time until the TARDIS returned, now Jack is in Cardiff because he actually wants to be.
Torchwood Series 2 learns from the mistakes of Series 1 and whilst it still caters to a more adult audience it doesn’t seem to include the unnecessarily violent or sexual episodes of the previous series.
Bringing Torchwood and Doctor Who Together
Torchwood Series 1 established itself away from Doctor Who and had very little to do with the Time Lord. In Series 2 the audience is treated to the arrival of the Doctor’s former companion Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman).
Captain Jack’s past takes centre stage several times during the series beginning with the first episode when former Time Agent Captain John (played by the brilliant James Marsters of Buffy fame) arrives in Cardiff. Around Jack the other characters have also had an opportunity to grow in the intervening 18 months between Series 1 and Series 2.
The format of the series remains the same to the previous series and Doctor Who. Each episode is mostly self-contained although there is an underlying theme that ultimately comes to a head in the final episode. The scale of the stories has been downplayed so that the Doctor can be forgiven for not appearing.
Learning from the Teething Troubles
In Torchwood Series 1 it seemed important that the writers take Torchwood to the untapped waters of the Whoniverse (the Doctor Who Universe) with stories about sex and violence. In Series 2, the stories remain primarily for adults but more focus has been given to the subtle humour and previously established characters of Doctor Who. During the series the characters are also forced to endure their share of heartbreaking tragedies.
The main cast all reprise their roles and Kai Owen returns as Gwen’s fiancé.
Captain Jack (John Barrowman) has gotten over his issues with the Doctor, and now understands why he is unable to die. He has also returned to Torchwood because it is where he wanted to be so the brooding Jack of Series 1 is just a memory. Owen Harper (Burn Gorman) has gone from being a self-centred womaniser to a guy that actually seems to care about his colleagues. Tosh (Naoko Mori) still carries her torch for Owen and works up the courage to ask him out on a date. Ianto Jones (Gareth David-Lloyd) takes a more centred role and approaches numerous situations with a dry wit and sarcasm that was sadly lacking in Series 1.
Torchwood Series 2 is a vast improvement on the flawed (but enjoyable) Series 1. The characters are given a greater emphasis with a particular episode highlight being Fragments, in which the audience learns how each one was recruited by Torchwood.
James Marsters (who portrayed the Vampire Spike in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel) once again plays a Spike-type character who has a turbulent relationship with Jack. This relationship goes back to their days as Time Agents. His presence marks a turning point for the series which is generally just a lot more fun than the previous one. The presence of Martha Jones cements Torchwood in the Whoniverse and the finale will leave the audience waiting in anticipation for a new series.
8/10
Far more fun than Series 1 that also knows how to sprinkle the characters’ lives with tragedy
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