chani: (Default)
chani ([personal profile] chani) wrote2008-04-06 11:25 am
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Tv shows before Marking Hell

I'll write, later in the week ,a proper review on BSG when I have more time and after I watch the episode again, but here are a few thoughts on Torchwood finale...

I guess it was the perfect finale...to make me drop that show for good!

First off, they killed off my favourite character and without Owen and Burn Gorman's acting skills there's little interest left for me. I think it's a big mistake to deprive the show of its best actor but perhaps he had projects...

Secondly they reminded me how lazy and poor the writing can be. 


As I said on someone else's journal, I usually love the Abel/Cain stuff, but being a classic plot it must be carefully done, and I could not buy it on Torchwood. Grey was good-looking but had no depth and the whole plot was mostly botched-up and lame. 

The only part I enjoyed was Jack being found by the old Torchwood girls and ending in the morgue box which was a nice echo to the season 1 finale. 

But then they had to ruin it all by putting Grey in there (because it so made sense!) and trying to DrWhoise the show with the "I forgive you" stuff that worked with Ten and The Master but here not so much...And either Grey is really stupid and let Jack alone so he could fetch a tissue with chloroform in Owen's medical room or Jack managed to keep one in his pocket for all the years he spent in the morgue box without it losing its effectiveness!

There are so many plotholes in the episode that I don't even want to point them all.And don't get me started with the rising music that they insisted on playing for Jack and Grey.

And why did they have to change Captain John's character? 
He was supposed to be bad, and I recall how much it mattered for JM fans who pointed out it wasn't Spike on screen because Captain John was really nasty and enjoying doing evil. Now we're supposed to buy that it never enjoyed it but was forced and wasn't his own man. The First Evil Grey made him do it all! Even James, despite his efforts, couldn't sell such a crappy writing.

I suppose they want him back in season 4 to keep  a certain audience so they had to de-nasty him and give him a journey...*rolls eyes*

The problem with Torchwood is that everything it does, has be done before and usually much better.

Having said that, if there's one thing to save in the episode, it's the death of Owen and Tosh. It was well done, and really moving. Burn was terrific as usual and got a clean and yet effulgent death (even though I am not sure I get why he had to be in there since Tosh did all the work actually). I loved that he died standing with open eyes. And I must confess that Toshiko's death broke my heart.

Her death was really tragic. Owen thought she was safe and died believing it while Tosh not only was dying and knowing it but she had to "witness" and suffer the death of the person she loved most, just before meeting her own end. Poor Toshiko. And the video at the end increased the tragedy in retrospect when, in her post-mortem message, she spoke to Owen...That bit made me cry.

So no, I don't want to watch the next season. I prefer to stop on this tragic and yet beautiful note.


[identity profile] just-sue.livejournal.com 2008-04-06 08:12 pm (UTC)(link)
I have to agree with you to a large extent here, hun.

Owen was about my fave character, despite all his faults. And I always loved teh acting of him.

Tosh was not a fave of mine, but she stepped up to bat in her fnal moments and made me care for the tragedy of a path less travelled.

JM was good but restricted by the script. He was Capt John lite, not the full on version that captured the imagination in S2E1, aka KKBB.

For all its many flaws, I can't let go of TW and hope the rumoured reduced S3 will be padded out with eppies without JB. And more of JM, full on and in our face, would be most welcome. Oh, and any Jossverse-like coming back frm the dead...for Owen.

[identity profile] frenchani.livejournal.com 2008-04-07 06:43 pm (UTC)(link)
I wasn't a fan of Tosh either but she won me over in the end. *sniff*

"Capt John lite" is the perfect phrase to describe it!

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[identity profile] sister-luck.livejournal.com 2008-04-07 05:49 pm (UTC)(link)

I thought it was a rather disappointing finale - badly-written and in parts badly-acted. My dislike of John Barrowman is getting stronger and stronger - opposite James Marsters he seemed rather one-dimensional acting-wise. (But the 'twist' with John being forced by Gray didn't really seem that convincing though JM did what he could with it.)

The Owen-Toshiko scenes were good and didn't need lots of music to make us feel the emotions compared to several other scenes.

[identity profile] frenchani.livejournal.com 2008-04-07 06:47 pm (UTC)(link)
I know, it isn't in JB's interest to have JM around!

Have you seen the new Dr Who? I really liked it, it wasn't Blink-brilliant but great comedy (and David Tennanr was more adorable than ever!). I'll have to make a post but right now I'm buried in Marking Hell.

*kiss*

(Anonymous) 2008-04-07 09:00 pm (UTC)(link)
Everything must compare w/buffy. Or spike! ... Le trésor .