Torchwood - Dr Who Spin off

I'm surprised at all the negativity in this thread, I support the argument that it is still Torchwood, it creaks and groans often and there is much better television.

But you have to compare Torchwood, the low budget BBC Wales edition. And this high-budget Warner Bros sponsered version. You have to be a pretty easy going telly user to not spot the improvements in production value and quality.

British TV has always bugged me for being cheap and cheerful. Even if the writing isn't there yet (Russell T. Davies needs to go jump off a tall building); Torchwood: Miracle Day is an example of the better looking stuff on the box today.

Compare the current Dr.Who with this and you can see the British.vs.Americanism differences in production. I'm not saying its awesome or even that the current Dr.Who sucks.

Just, I flail wildly when I read about the soaring costs of television in the UK and I have to wonder where all the money goes when I see the utter crap directing, editing, acting and writing that plugs up BBC, ITV, C4 and Five; every day.
 
qqg3 said:
I'm surprised at all the negativity in this thread, I support the argument that it is still Torchwood, it creaks and groans often and there is much better television.

But you have to compare Torchwood, the low budget BBC Wales edition. And this high-budget Warner Bros sponsered version. You have to be a pretty easy going telly user to not spot the improvements in production value and quality.

British TV has always bugged me for being cheap and cheerful. Even if the writing isn't there yet (Russell T. Davies needs to go jump off a tall building); Torchwood: Miracle Day is an example of the better looking stuff on the box today.

Compare the current Dr.Who with this and you can see the British.vs.Americanism differences in production. I'm not saying its awesome or even that the current Dr.Who sucks.

Just, I flail wildly when I read about the soaring costs of television in the UK and I have to wonder where all the money goes when I see the utter crap directing, editing, acting and writing that plugs up BBC, ITV, C4 and Five; every day.
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+1

Bring back John Sullivan :(
 
qqg3 said:
I'm surprised at all the negativity in this thread, I support the argument that it is still Torchwood, it creaks and groans often and there is much better television.

But you have to compare Torchwood, the low budget BBC Wales edition. And this high-budget Warner Bros sponsered version. You have to be a pretty easy going telly user to not spot the improvements in production value and quality.

British TV has always bugged me for being cheap and cheerful. Even if the writing isn't there yet (Russell T. Davies needs to go jump off a tall building); Torchwood: Miracle Day is an example of the better looking stuff on the box today.

Compare the current Dr.Who with this and you can see the British.vs.Americanism differences in production. I'm not saying its awesome or even that the current Dr.Who sucks.

Just, I flail wildly when I read about the soaring costs of television in the UK and I have to wonder where all the money goes when I see the utter crap directing, editing, acting and writing that plugs up BBC, ITV, C4 and Five; every day.
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Disagree, American TV shows are awful and they dramatise everything. The early Torchwood was a excellent and it was Torchwood, now its Hollywood! Over dramatic and boring. Just like Doctor Who it was brilliant in the UK, now they've gone to America with Doctor Who and it just doesn't feel like Doctor Who anymore.

Cheaper budgets normally result in better quality as they make full use of what they got instead of blowing huge amounts of cash and the result is poor.
 
I like the new feel to Torchwood don't get me wrong I prefer the originals with the cast it had but its still decent.

In regards to Doctor Who its not been as good for me with Tennent going, he just doesn't do as good job as he did as the doctor, I still watch it but its not as good and the viewing figures show this.

On the other hand I do like Amy Pond so that's probably a big reason I still watch it :p
 
Psyoletic said:
Disagree, American TV shows are awful and they dramatise everything. The early Torchwood was a excellent and it was Torchwood, now its Hollywood! Over dramatic and boring. Just like Doctor Who it was brilliant in the UK, now they've gone to America with Doctor Who and it just doesn't feel like Doctor Who anymore.

Cheaper budgets normally result in better quality as they make full use of what they got instead of blowing huge amounts of cash and the result is poor.
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Since when have they 'gone to america' with doctor who? could have sworn that only a few scenes were shot in the states in the first episode, and that since then it has all been filmed as it has for the last few years, in that great american state of south wales.
 
Torchwood MD fail to ramp up round the midway section of the series now we are left with them trying to fit ever thing into the last episode :(

Its a pity to because I like most of the new characters and the idea for the series was good, I think its having lots of different writers for the show has kinda torpedoed the pacing of the show.
 
Is it true that this is simply a platform for the lead actor to display extreme homosexuality? From what I've heard there's just gays going at it constantly with no benefit as to what is going on with the storyline.

There's a few guys in the office watch it but only because they've invested so much time into it. 10 mins + of gayness that doesn't impact the storyline whatsoever seems rather self indulgent.
 
The gay sex is just massively offputting. It barely fits in with the story and feels completely forced. Stuff like this is actually working against equality in the media imo.

See Willow in Buffy for how homosexual relationships should be shown, fitting in with the character and not feeling forced in to be contraversial or make a statement.
 
The guys I mentioned Sky+ it and fast forward past the gay scenes anyway as they're so redundant, so they might as well drop them out entirely. Seems few people actually watch them.
 
Psyoletic said:
Disagree, American TV shows are awful and they dramatise everything.
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You're watching the wrong American TV shows.

The early Torchwood was a excellent and it was Torchwood, now its Hollywood!
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The early Torchwood was pretty ropey. Children of Earth was the closest it ever got to any depth, and even that wasn't particularly great. But at least things happened in it.

Cheaper budgets normally result in better quality as they make full use of what they got instead of blowing huge amounts of cash and the result is poor.
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Cheaper budgets can work if you don't need to do too much - plenty of BBC dramas are decent enough. The trouble is Sci Fi looks incredibly pony, as the sets and effects just aren't up to scratch. With Doctor Who/Torchwood, you just kind of accept this, but qqg3 is right: compared to an American counterpart like BSG or Stargate, it's massively noticeable.
 
Tefal said:
MEH...
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Agreed. Though the production values were muched improved over the previous Torchwood stuff the story was very lacking, it would have felt stretched at 3 episodes. Hopefully they'll move back towards more self contained episodes but with an overall series story.

I does seem a bit odd that Jack just seems gay now when in the past he'd try and shag anything. I'm sure those compaing about all the gay scenes wouldn't have done so if they'd involved Ester and Gwen though :)
 
the sex scenes were just crammed in as if the writers were told "right you must put these sex scene's in, no i don't care that they make no sense and don't fit in at all just put them in."



ok if it had been women it would have been a nice bit of soft core but still completely irrelevant and unnecessary.


it's was bulking fodder designed to get views and controversial attention to an otherwise dull and pointless plot arc that desperately needed any reason to get people to watch.



In the whole thing the only worth while character was Oswald Danes and even he was **** but at least he evolved even if it was in a tedious overused redemption arc but he was clearly just them trying to rip off the success of teabag from prison break but done badly with poor writing and a valiant attempt by the actor but not given the same "**** it" freedom of the guy who played teabag instead being held back to try and fit the near comic/laughable villain of the late dr who's.
 
The ending was so cliche and made no sense. The whole thing was definitely been dragged out, you could've cut out most of the series and got on with the actual plot and you wouldn't have lost anything for the story.
 
atpbx said:
Torchwood had/has the disadvantages of having no real acting talent on show, and utterly dreadful writing.
The Mrs has wanted to watch this mini series, so I've sat and watched it with her, the plot is so full of holes it literally makes no sense, even for Sci-fi, as for John Barrowman, possibly the worst leading man in history.
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Same comments apply for this last series as the ones before.

It is a half arsed concept, with shoddy production values and 6th form writing.

And the worst leading man in history.

The whole show is written just like an episode of Batman.

Robin- Gee batman, what are we going to do now?, tied up and thrown in a vat of shark infested water?

Batman- Good job I bought my Bat-Shark repelent Robin.


Torchwood welsh woman- What are we going to now Jack? in this incredibly contrived situation we find our selves in?

Barrowman- Good job I have an incredibly contrived, jaw droppingly sloppy solution the writers have come up with to deal with it.
 
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I thought it was excellent and the ending was great.
The gay scenes didn't bother me either because if I had to save my family and be gay one night, it would be with John Barrowman (or Tom cruise or David Beckham).
 
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