Torchwood: Children Of Earth – DVD Review

Written on August 10, 2009 by Marc Eastman in Television

If you aren’t already a fan of Doctor Who, you may not be familiar with its spin-off, Torchwood. Torchwood, a secret organization in Britain tasked with fending off hostile aliens, was established in an episode of Doctor Who and was afterward referenced somewhat frequently. The show also transplants its main character, Captain Jack Harkness.

At a certain point during the run of Doctor Who, one of his assistants basically became God for a short time. While God, she brought Captain Jack back to life, as he had quite recently run into some nastiness. Due to the tricky nature of genies, and godhood, and so on, Jack was in fact brought back to life… forever. He’s been killed countless times, it just doesn’t seem to stick.

The Torchwood series began with police officer Gwen Cooper’s murder investigation going a bit funny when the victim came back to life. She eventually becomes a member of the team, and the show is off and running. The varied and interesting crew take on all manner of oddities, in a show that spins rather a darker version of things than the one that spawned it.

Torchwood: Children of Earth is a massive five-episode event that closes out the second season. The mini-series within a series plays out like a film, and serves equally for fans and newcomers due to a great deal of explanation. It would not be difficult for someone with no exposure to the show to jump right in here. It was also brilliantly released mere days after airing on BBCAmerica.

Children of Earth begins with the members of Torchwood still reeling from the loss of two friends. There’s no rest for the weary though, because just when it seemed we might have a brief lull in the alien adventures, every child on Earth starts delivering a message at the same time.

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There seems to be some connection to events that took place in 1965, and that connection leads the British government to turn on Torchwood at a time when we would think they need them most. Soon everyone is on the run from everyone, and Jack’s inability to stay dead is going to be put to the test.

The moral issues that are brought to bear on nearly everyone in the show are simply astounding. That a show would put so many dilemmas in one effort, and actually pull it off, is surprisingly daring.

The sometimes torturous drama that unfolds within the many groups and sub-groups is fairly riveting considering the kind of show we have going here, and some of the decisions that are forced on people in the show are chilling. One thing is certain, things will never be the same. Not for Britain, and not for Torchwood.

The DVD release is a solid, if slim, effort. There is only one special feature, and that is a 30-minute making-of which is about standard. It will be interesting for fans, and it has some value just in seeing what a serious undertaking this five-hour special became.

Check out Torchwood’s Official Site for a lot more information on the show.

Own it on DVD & Blu-Ray Today!

Below find a trailer, and a few clips.

[quicktime]http://raincloud.warnerbros.com/wbol/us/whv/med/bbc/torchwood/coe/tvspots/Torchwood_COE_POST_Trailer_II_qt_300.mov [/quicktime] [quicktime]http://raincloud.warnerbros.com/wbol/us/whv/med/bbc/torchwood/coe/promos/TW_COE_Clip1_qt_300.mov [/quicktime] [quicktime]http://raincloud.warnerbros.com/wbol/us/whv/med/bbc/torchwood/coe/promos/TW_COE_Clip2_qt_300.mov [/quicktime] [quicktime]http://raincloud.warnerbros.com/wbol/us/whv/med/bbc/torchwood/coe/promos/TW_COE_Clip3_qt_300.mov[/quicktime] [quicktime]http://raincloud.warnerbros.com/wbol/us/whv/med/bbc/torchwood/coe/promos/Torchwood_COE_Comicon_qt_300.mov [/quicktime]