Torchwood Miracle Day has so far been a bit uneven for me, Ep 1 was brilliant, Ep 2 was poor and Ep 3 was okay at best. I think the main problem so far is that with such an interesting premise, the show fails to live up to that concept, mainly focusing on some stupid drug company without really delving deeper into the heart of this mystery. Also, I find the tone a bit odd, normally Torchwood is more dark and grittier than this and most of the Episodes so far have had rather awful comedy moments tacked onto them. I won't pretend to not be disappointed, but who knows, perhaps Eps 4 & 5 of this show are really quite good? Here's my opinion:
Escape to L.A starts off slow (true to Miracle Day fashion of course, FOR GOD'S SAKE NOTHING IS HAPPENING!) but improves at the end. Torchwood is still refusing to show us the true impact of the Miracle (wait til' next Week) and continues this sort of CIA, Mission Impossible style investigation that the last two Episodes have focused on. This time instead of breaking into a PhiCorp meeting they're trying to infiltrate one of the pharmaceutical company's facilities, in an attempt to grab a valuable server connected to their network. This plot was fine but they could be focusing on more interesting things, oh well it made for some cool Mission Impossible style infiltration scenes. That bit with Gwen faking an American accent was comedy gold by the way. Oh and remember that Oswald Danes bloke? He's actually turning out to be quite interesting now, and strangely enough I'm kind of starting to really like his character now. Forget the Torchwood aspect, Bill Pullman stole the show. Another thing I like is that Esther is FINALLY given something to do and it pays off nicely at the end, but Rex and Rhys scenes were a bit pointless. And the ending, total cop-out. Just as that guy is about to spill the beans he gets frigging shot! Come on Torchwood, we're FOUR episodes in now, at least give us a HINT about what's going on behind this Miracle! So Overall a good episode, not just 'Okay' or 'A bit poor'. Torchwood is only just warming up...
The Categories Of Life: Oooh, things get dark in this one. To be honest, this is the Torchwood I've been waiting for since the Season has begun. Great acting, Brilliant Ending and Superb Suspense and Drama are just some of the adjectives I'll use when describing this Ep. The only downside is that by the end, we still have no idea about what caused the Miracle and who is behind it. Having said that though, there still is half a season left. This is what Torchwood should be in my opinion: dark, gritty and disturbingly realistic all at the same time. Basically the Human Population is now divided into 'categories', which is a way of the Government to determine who is technically 'alive' (conscious, functioning normally) and who is 'dead' (i.e they should be dead, unconscious). The category 1 and 2 patients are taken to Overflow camps, where they're poorly treated, and in the case of the category 1's are packed up like boxes and hastily BURNED ALIVE. Its one more of those scary science fiction concepts that Torchwood is very good at executing. And with this, we say goodbye to Doctor Vera, which certainly raises the stakes and sets up the next Episode tantalisingy (GIVE IT TO ME NOW!) while also showcasing what an awful world this has become. This Episode also marks Oswald Danes' finest hour, that great speech to a football stadium of people at the end was truly great telly (I'm sure some would disagree with that though). Bill Pullman acts his socks off, as well as Captain Jack, who is given a bit more to do this time around. Esther and Rex kinda go back to doing absolutely nothing again, most of the episode is either focused on Vera, Jack and Oswald or Gwen trying to rescue her father from a concentration ca...oh sorry, an 'Overflow' camp! Anyway, I think after a slow start, we're now entering the territory that I want Torchwood to explore, so you could say its gotten it's 'mojo' back. Roll on Episode 6 I say!
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