Torchwood Episode 210 Recap: “From Out of the Rain”

Okay, right up front, the recap was considerably more entertaining than the actual episode. But then, I love your humor.

The only redeeming feature this week was Jack and Ianto acting as partners (of the mystery-solving variety). Maybe now that Gwen is officially a matron Jack is finally going to partner with his partner? One would think he'd prefer it more. For starters, not once did Ianto launch into a shrill tirade about being sympathetic to people, nor did he pull off any whining about the absurdity of what's going on and he actually seemed to have a grip on things.

Take the hint Jack, Ianto is a better sidekick than Gwen.

Now, that said, this episode didn't belong on a sci-fi show. The "sci" of course refers to "science", but once again we got an episode of Supernatural instead. Once again the Rift was spewing massive plot holes (along withh sideshow freaks).

The scariest thing about the Night Travelers was the ringmaster's major case of English teeth. Otherwise they were harder to take seriously than the smokey skeleton was. And what, precisely, were they supposed to have been? On Doctor Who we'd have gotten an explanation. The Doctor would have been able to identify all the relevant physics involved no problem.

Instead, Jack's current freak show was largely useless. Even weirder was Jack's totally unscientific solution to the problem. Now, I will note that the cheesy special effect was actually supposed to be a magnified version of what used to happen to film when you exposed it to bright light. But the no-logic as to how and why it should trap these people, along with the question of what they are and their connection to the Rift, is just lame cop-out writing.

As an aside, I continue to wonder about Jack's Torchwood and it's apparent autonomy from the main Torchwood organization.  I've long thought it weird that they seem to be able to operate without anyone overseeing them.  It's more amazing because, with such a small team of often clueless people you'd think that the British government or UNIT could squash them like bugs. And if faced with a serious threat wouldn't it be useful to be able to call on more than just five people sharing a single Range Rover?

We already know that they're not secret anymore.  Gwen was able to clear out the hospital once by shouting that they were Torchwood and ordering an evacuation (then again, maybe they thought she was a pyro about to torch some wood and burn the place down).  They also seem to be able to dictate orders to police, random citizens and more of less everyone else in sight.  And they get away with it.

Jack clearly must have photos of himself in bed with Queen Elizabeth.  Or possibly with Prince Charles.  Either would work. 

Only a Janto sex scene could have saved us this week and sadly we didn't get it. So I'm putting this one in a pile with last season's Random Shoes.

Is it fitting that the episode that has a mermaid in it is the episode that jumps the shark for me ? ?

Steven you are a god! Was not sure how you would make anything of this episode but once again its laugh out loud on every page and I was thinking just about the same thought many a time. Love your sense of humour.

The Rain : Was to have been a localized effect around the Electro. To show the evil surrounding the place. You can see the Torchwood SUV going down one very dry street and then drive into the rain. However the shot of one of the movie goers leaving with an umbrella goes and spoils that theory. Thanks props department! Good catch with Gwen's hair drying so quickly, missed that myself.

Agree that Gareth does an outstanding job of showing emotion in this episode. My trouble was I just did not know of a reason for Ianto to be reacting in that way. Why does Ianto get so teary eyed about the kids becoming victims ?

Tosh: So what are we saying? That two people from a piece of film have decided to go AWOL? Now if only someone had had the brains to say that out loud when this story was being pitched this whole mess of an episode could have been stopped right then and there. Actually Tosh does pretty well in this episode as the less screen time the better. Of course the techie would run the projector (which, this being a centre of futuristic alien technology, they just happen to have hanging around).

Smells ? Hard thing to do on television and it just does not work here. Tosh smelling the ocean ? Honey, you work in a damp underground basement lair under a waterfalls located in the harbour district of Cardiff. Jonathon (I think that was Logan's real name) smelling film at his loft when he talks about seeing Pearl in the bathtub. Of course you're going to smell film, have you seen how much of it was thrown around your loft ? ?

Owen's new being dead and the aliens don't like it excuse. Torchwood seems to do a lot of these things in twos. Remember we had the flicking lights in both Sleeper's hospital and then the following week with Tommy's hospital in To the Last Man. We've had two episodes with dead coworkers coming back to life by way of the glove. Two episodes referring to Owen being dead right in the titles. Two, no three, episodes of time-crossed (not star crossed) doomed lovers. Two episodes by tonight's writer (same writer as series one Fairy episode, no?) So hopefully Torchwood has worked (both) out of its system and 1) Owen's being dead will not be used as an excuse for not being attacked by the alien of the week and 2) we won't get a third episode from this writer.

The not so secret Torchwood organization. Jack has given out his cell phone number to the kid so the wuss can call him when Pearl (Dru) scares him.

The film can at the end. So totally not scary. Hello, you need rift energy for this to work and it only seems to work at Wow The Electro. Bulldoze the place and your problem is solved. The only scary part of it is that, like the fairy episode, its open ended and we are left with the possibility of sequels for either episode. Yuck!

Solutions and resolution coming out of thin air, that whole retrapping with another camera stuff ? No explanations of how this happening beyond its the Rift just go with that ? Lame. Wild fanciful theories excepted as fact all too readily and without close examination. Just could not believe and by the end just could not care.  

Truly, if I had not heard good rumours about the next two episodes I'd be really worried. I'd rank this as the low point of this season.

Next week : Gwen's old police partner and the idea that the Rift not only brings things into Cardiff, it might be snatching people away too. Now that's a scary thought.

I've never thought Torchwood was good. I just watch to catch some Jack and Ianto moments. lol Actually I haven't watched the last 4 episodes. I just watch youtube now for the Jack and Ianto moments. :)

<"...just like how people today persist in going on carnival rides everybody knows are held together with shoelaces and carny spunk.">

NOTE TO SELF: Be sure to make time to go down and watch the set-up of the Waterfront Festival this year.

Yawn on the episode, great and funny recap Steven.

Mayor hop hop lah lah moments in this one. And wow, references to Veronica Mars, Buffy, Angel and Star Wars; I guess we do flock together when it comes to tastes. Its interesting how this episode was so bad, you had to pull on other show to make it interesting. It got the job done.

I agree its great to see the boys working together. Ianto seem really taken with Jack, which brings me to my take on Iantos emotion at the end. I could see his entire thought process in my head:

"Oh he looks good with a kid. Ok, six more months and we do the domestic partnership thing, because we can do that now. One or two years later, we adopt. Blond, blue eyed, just like this one. Life is going to be perfect. Wait, isnt he an orphan now."

Ianto seems way more involved than Jack, which is good, but Im thinking he is setting himself off for heartbreak. Because Jack is...well...Jack.

Besides next weeks episode seems Gwen centric, so Im almost sure they are going to feed us more of this Gwack nonsense. We will see.

Great recap, keep it up.

afhickman

"It takes a village (to make Village People)"

Very funny, indeed. And your points are well taken. However, I still liked this episode. The storylines on TW seem to follow a pattern: aliens one week, paranormal the next, and then a back story on one of the cast. Some of my favorite episodes have had the cheesiest effects (I'm still reeling from the sheer audacity of the "I've got a little sister" episode on Buffy), but that's been the way of scifi since before "Star Wars." I think some of you out there are hung up on Janto to the point that you want TW to drop its Doctor Who trappings and become a soap opera like ATWT (or, worse yet, a sitcom like "Will and Grace"). I sincerely hope that doesn't happen. Of course there are going to be lalalahophophop moments on the show. That's what makes it so much fun. (And, yes, I still think some of you are out of sync with the writers' incredibly self-deprecating sense of humor.) As things stand, there is something for everyone on this show, from kid to adult, gay to straight, and I, for one, am loving it. This episode had everything: evil carnies, a haunted movie theatre, mermaids (for chrissake!), and, of course, Jack and Ianto. Talk about a tele-phile's feast! It's the best show on TV since Brisco County!

I watched this episode three times, once by myself, a second time with a friend over the internet, MSTing it as we went along (noticing many of the same things you did, but with less funny phrasing), and a third time with my mother who was on vacation when it aired. It got more confusing and painful each time. I'm now convinced that Peter Hammond is writing bad Torchwood episodes as revenge for his show Sapphire and Steel losing out to Doctor Who in ratings back in the early 80s.

BUT I did hear a very cool thing about Gareth. In one of the comms I belong to, everyone exploded with speculation about what Ianto meant about the psychiatric hospital. Several people who had been to a panel discussion with Catherine Treganna, Gareth and James Marsters shared the following: Treganna was asked how much input the actors had into their characters' stories, and she answered, 'Not much;' but Gareth jumped in and said that they were able to influence things indirectly, like in line readings. He gave the specific example of the line "I know it." He didn't say which episode, but he explained that you could say it in a direct 'I can find it on a map, get you a taxi' way, or in a darker 'I know it, I've been there' way. The people who had been to the panel said that, of course, the minute he delivered the line in the show, they knew that was the line he'd been talking about.

Essentially, Gareth just handed a huge Ianto storyline to the writers on a silver platter. They should be beating each other with sticks for the opportunity to write that script. (Just please not Peter Hammond, please no no no.)

He was on Footballer's Wives, playing Callum (for those that watched, he was the new kid on the team, I think on the last two seasons). His mother caused trouble between Shannon and him. Overall, it was a decent episode. At the very least, I didn't have to see Jack and Gwen fawning over each other, throwing it in Ianto's face, as usual.

Awful plot indeed.

And we didn't even get the Jack/Ianto snog John Barrowman talked about in his autobiography! Why on earth did they cut Jack comforting Ianto, now?! It was frankly disheartening to see the characters interact in so many scenes and yet have zero hint at their personal relationship. Surely, it would have made much more sense to have them address Ianto's distress at the end! DUH. So, basically, we are supposed to think that Jack doesn't give a damn about his lover being distressed, and that the Captain was just waiting for Ianto to be cheery again so he could have a very enjoyable feelings-free sexathon.

Thank god i didn't watch this episode. not saying your recap was bad, but even the recap had me going "wtf" over and over again...that must be how bad the episode was.

Because I actually enjoyed the episode. Yes, it was a little wild, but it was still just so ridiculous it was good. But, I have a slightly warped sense of reality. And, I've been watching way too much British television for my own good.

And yes, as soon as I saw Johnathan/Logan, I had to grab my laptop and figure out where I recognized him from, just because I thought he is so damned adorable. I actually wouldn't mind if he stayed around, especially since he doesn't exactly have anything to do now, since Mum and Dad are dead from the Night Travelers. LOL

I saw this one a few weeks ago, and remember being confused with the plot line back then, only to be more confused on reconsideration. Your recap is hilarious, btw--I love how the crappiest episodes give you the best material for snark. :)

For some reason, I was inexplicably stuck on the mermaid who was never in water. Why this was the logic straw that broke my camel's back I have no idea, but there it is. I know this is a small point, but it was just so weird--her wavy her arms around in front of a tank in a pair of culottes? They couldn't have had her swim around in the tank even a little bit?

I'm usually all about spooky carnival themed stuff, loved the creepy look of Carnivale, so was excited about this one. Plus the fact that we would get a lot of Ianto and Jack interacting, I thought overall this would be a great ep. As to the two of them...even though I am an avid Janto shipper--I actually really did like them interacting in a non-romantic, work partner-y kind of way, which still managed to make it obvious that they are romantically involved--finishing each other's sentences, Jack sharing things with Ianto that he doesn't the rest of the team.

But oy vey to the plot. I remember watching this thinking "Steven's going to be all lalahophop over this crap." I didn't completely hate it b/c I thought some parts looked absolutely gorgeous--in particular, as you mentioned, the film running overtop of Jack was beautiful, but the dialogue was clunky and the story so convulted that it made my head hurt.

Good news, episode twelve has Ianto backstory, but little about a family life. Mostly about getting hired by Jack (look for flirting and sexual tension!) Back news, next week's episode is Gwen-centric and has only one or two brief (but oh so beautiful) scenes with Jack and Ianto actually on screen. As for this episode, I agree the only really good part is Jack and Ianto's dynamic. Gareth (who is the best actor on the series, I'm convinced) and John have a real, believable romantic chemistry; much better than John and Eve's (Gwen), because you know deep down he doesn't want in her pants. Whereas Gareth is a sexy young man.

I want to be a hero like Captain Jack Harkness, kicking butt and snogging anything with a pulse! Besides, then I get a sexy receptionist of my very own.

I didn't hate this episode. Actually, I liked it up until the last few scenes. I guess I had hope that the Night Travelers would get some alien back story.

But you know what? The episode was gorgeous to look at. I wish I'd seen it on a big screen, and not on the tiny You Tube window.

Oh, I loved the scenes with Ianto and Jack. Others can bemoan the lack of kissing, but this episode truly showed intimacy between them.

I giggled everytime you wrote ‘Wow! The Electro!’, but I think maybe the idea of loosing old cinemas struck a chord with me. The Electro reminded me of The Orpheum, a beautiful old cinema in my city. I pass it nearly everyday, and I always smile when I see it. Inside there are black and white photos of the theater taken long before I was born. Someday, the Orpheum is going to be gone, but I hope I’m not around to see it happen.

Should start thinking about adding warning label to your recaps, Steve! "may cause side splitting laughter". :D

My apologies for writing a book last week. I typed it up after watching and hadn't realized how long it had gotten. Just copied & pasted. Sorry :(

So the writers went with a "can't win them all" story-line. (at least I think they did) Didn't have the punch I expect from such a storyline. If Christine had been affected, that would have hit me. As is? meh. And the "struggle to survive" plot? Done better in the "Adam" ep.

I actually hated this episode. No common sense in it, no clear story, doesn't fit in as sci-fi...I mentioned before that I'm not found of sci-fi shows going mystical and this ep shows why.

This ep brought up as many, if not more, questions than an episode of "Lost" but answered none. Here are a few basic common sense ones. I'll leave the "deeper meaning"/plot related ones for others:
ok, Who thought that the opening sequence was well done? oh, that was rhetorical. sorry, I already came up with an answer: Not me!
No umbrellas. Again?
And after "Countrycide" where Owen's berated for violating "standard operating procedures", Jack goes and leaves the SUV's motor running while he goes into the theatre. What's with?
Jack: "what kind of shadows?" light gray ones?!? bunny-shaped ones?!?! though I guess it's a fair question now after the Death-visits-a-hospital episode.
What was with the image of the sea showing up on Tosh's computer? It didn't seem to serve any purpose at all.
If Jack was sent to investigate the "night travelers", where's the report on it? Why redo the leg work that he must have already done?
Why did they "come out of the rain"?
Did we really need to hear the hurdy-gurdy music at the end? what are the chances that the Night Travelers really will return? We've already gone one season and yet no revenge from Billis and he could be anywhere.

And I'm thinking that the "Adam" ep should've aired between this and "Something Borrowed". 'Course they would've needed to change Rhys's use of the use the word "fiancee" to "wife" to make it work. result: Gwen's "Paris was lovely" and "did you miss me?" becomes about her being on her honeymoon and returning. And her being in this espisode would be resonable.

Episode's Up-side:
Janto Time! OMG :)
I think i'll see if youTube has the Janto conference room scene up. just too sweet!! Gwen's "is that what you're calling these days?" line (lol!) - Owen's influence, maybe? Or is it as some suggest more evidence that Gwack's been resolved. I reaally hope so. Janto's relationships working quite nicely.

and how good (my opinion) was the actress playing Christina? She made you believe her story (could've) actually happened. She had the sense to run when Pirelli approached her. Plus she had Janto all to herself. Lucky lady. ;)

Ok. Cue the ominous "[i'll] be back" hurdy gurdy music.

A request:
Will you, please, stop posting about upcoming eps?

I just rather form an opinion when the episode airs with only the teaser to shape my expectation(s). You don't have to stop. I just thought I'd ask/put it out there.

Thanks. 

in the subject line! Thanks.

Ok, I didn't think the episode was THAT bad, but I did watch it a few weeks ago. Then I found myself reading your recap, going "Oh yeah" and "WTF?" and "That makes absolutely no sense." So, no, definitely not the best of episodes, but I still think you were being unnecessarily harsh. I chose to appreciate the episode for it's lovely Jack/Ianto partnership, and the refreshing lack of Gwen(; Although I do wish she had gone on a honeymoon, maybe missed a few episodes . . . seasons. . . Surely Eve Myles needs a vacation. "Don't you think she looks tired?" (Teehee! And if you don't watch Doctor Who, sorry.) But I really did like that we got to see Jack and Ianto's relationship (and Ianto's character) develop a bit. It seems to me that in the past, people have been griping about how we never got to see the serious side of their relationship, or any kind of development, and now that we've got it, they're complaining about that. You can't have it both ways people . . . well, actually, yes you can. So stop complaining!

I like the spooky eps. Yes it's meant to be sci-fi, but we can have the occasional break, can't we? Yes it was never established exactly what the Night Travellers were, but a little mystery can be healthy. Jack shouldn't know everything about them, just like many fans get annoyed when the Doctor just happens to know every race in the universe. I believe that's why Who fans found "Midnight" so refreshing - there was an alien threat, but they never found out what it was.

Anyway, I thought this episode was great. It was well filmed, just to see Jack and Ianto interacting was wonderful (it was just like Jack and Gwen in Series 1), and I thought the Night Travellers were really quite terrifying. It was pretty sad though that the little boy wakes up to find his whole family dead.

If you think the amount of abandonned warehouses in Cardiff is bad, try going to Manchester.

A few years ago I was stranded, along with some friends, in town. We went to find a place to sleep and found dozens of abandoned warehouses. Most of them occupied by squatters, drunk homeless guys or drug addicts (sadly no hot and frisky aliens). It was like a warehouse graveyard. In fact, my definition of 'warehouse' is now "large, empty building serving no particular purpose"

So the fact that nearly every alien in this series finds a suitably large, empty, abandonned warehouse is not all that difficult to imagine. We're overrun with them.

And this is the only episode of my beloved, religiously watched Torchwood that I can't remember seeing. It is entirely possible that I just put it on, completly forgot about it and read a book. Made dinner. Watched paint dry.