Torchwood 2.7: Dead Man Walking

[selenay]

Moral of this episode: nobody ever really dies in sci-fi. Really, seriously,
they don't :-) Things to love:

- The best word for this episode is creepy. From Owen's black-eyed moments
to the scuttling hand, this was a creepy episode made more effective by the
subtle touches to it.
- I did actually squeak a little when that bloody hand dived at Martha,
even though I knew that it would because that was the way the story had to
go.
- Ianto with his hockey stick.
- The Owen/Tosh scenes were beautifully played and I adored them.
- Owen's realisation of what being dead meant and all the things that were
now impossible for him. It was sad and painful and I really felt for him.
- The writers have a bit of a hit and miss approach to continuity. But they
actually remembered that Owen's digestive system would have shut down,
although *ick!* as well for that one. I suddenly realised where that clip in
the previews came from and had my eyes shut, but the noises were more than
enough. Thank you.
- Jack's cockney accent is worse than James Masters'. Didn't know that was
possible :-) Although he didn't quite reach Van Dyke dimensions on it.
- The scene in the jail cell was so nicely done, I really felt for both
characters.
- Owen. Really, just everything Owen did.
- One of the reasons that I originally couldn't stand Owen was his almost
self-destructive selfishness. We've seen him grow and mature into a slightly
less selfish, more likable character lately and his decision to sacrifice
himself was beautifully played and really worked for him. It's been an
interesting character arc for him.
- They didn't go with the cliche and have the kid with cancer be the
sacrifice. Yay for non-cliches.

This was one of those episodes that had me completely absorbed, so much so
that I jumped a couple of times and felt quite rung out at the end. The core
story about Owen and his death was beautifully handled and the reactions of
the various members of the team rang very true for me. There was some great
imagery, particularly with Owen being led through the Hub to be embalmed.
The church filled with sleeping Weeviles reminded me of some Buffy episodes
and I was surprised by how effective it was for Torchwood.

That little scene with the Tarot girl seemed a little odd and I'm hoping
that we'll be getting a bit more background on who she is and where she came
from. There were some odd little bits of history thrown in that I'd love to
see more of because it hints that the rift has been causing problems in
Cardiff for much longer than we've previously been told about.

Possibly one of the coolest elements of this elements is that Owen is still
alive (undead?) at the end. That opens up a whole host of interesting
possibilities and I really want to see what the writers do with this one.
Burn Gorman is a fantastic actor and I think they'll be giving him some
excellent stuff to play. He's already managed to make me go from hating a
character with fiery passion to quite liking him - what can he do with a
dead Owen and all that implies?

Comments

[wadjet-theperv.livejournal.com]

I really, really would love to like Owen. This pathological *thing* I have is beginning to spoil my enjoyment and I don't know what to do about it.

I think the thing about this ep though, was the creepy. It freaked me out on several levels and I don't think I'll ever be able to watch it again and I *want* to watch the next one, but I couldn't be bothered to stay up last night and I'm just not sure I can bear to watch next week. It's the whole *death* thing. I just can't deal.

I think I might just take a break from TW until this arc is done.

[selenay]

Aw {{{hugs}}{ I think that there is only one more episode to this arc, if that helps.

I'm still not able to like S1 Owen because he is, frankly, an unpleasant tosspot. So I'm quite surprised that I'm liking him now. I'm not sure that I could have enjoyed the last couple of episodes if he hadn't improved on me, so I understand where you're coming from.

And this one really was very creepy.