"Torchwood: Children of Earth: Day Two" minicap

After last night’s rollicking, adrenaline-fuelled cliff-hanger ending, it comes as no surprise that the second episode of Torchwood’s compressed third season, would be a bit of a let down in comparison. Without the relentless histrionic fits of frenzy, Day Two of Children of Earth decides to adopt a more subdued approach.

Warning: Spoilers ahead….

The episode begins with the now daring and handsomely dishevelled Ianto Jones and female super-vixen, Gwen Cooper clambering out of the crumbling Hub.

And with our virile everyman, Captain Jack apparently blown to smithereens (or is he?), the story decides to focus on some of the more intimate story points.

With Torchwood forced underground, and the government still hell-bent on cracking down on them, newly pregnant hetero-vixen, Gwen decides to escape to London with her Joe Blog of a boyfriend, Rhys and their saccharine moments together are paralleled with private moments spent with Ianto and his family.

Then there are the agreeable scenes where the amiable police cop, Andy tries his best to defend Gwen’s reputation as well. These pared back instances with the Torchwood team will seem refreshing to ardent followers that are eager to get some personal face time with their favorite characters.

But soon enough, one is left hankering for a bit of the guttural panache that we have come to associate with the alien bashing squad.

What is Ms. Johnson up to anyway?

All is not completely lost however, as we follow the cunning Johnson, as she continues her covert quest to infiltrate the Torchwood team. And there is a slight pseudo shock when someone especially dear to stud muffin Captain Jack Harkness, surfaces on to the screen.

And of course, there is the whole stress with Mr. John Frobisher, who is preparing for the arrival of the 456/the aliens, and the whole drama surrounding new government official, Lois Habiba, who feels torn between her new position as a junior PA in Mr Frobisher’s office, and her gut feeling, which tells her that the Torchwood gang are indeed the good guys!

All in all, Day Two is a respectable, if less ambitious effort from Torchwood’s thrilling BBC ONE debut yesterday. Still, I think that tonight’s episode was a primer for bigger things to come in Day Three … and with over 25% of the UK audience watching last night (nearly 6 million viewers), I am sure that Children of Earth, will manage to keep a hold of its core fan base, and then some.

Even better, many self-confessed geeks out there will relish seeing Ianto play the hero for a change, proving that even an awkward, lanky bloke with a funny little Welch accent can save the day too.