Opinions, please…

It’s intended to be a more adult show. That being said, I agree. I think they went a bit overboard in the first series in trying to be sexy and rude ‘cos it’s adult’. It was toned down to some extent in series 2 though.

I overall liked it though, although it could have been better. And actually was with Children of Earth which was cracking.

Start from series 2 at least…

I can only echo the comments above. Series 1, like all first seasons, has a bit of trouble finding its feet. On the one hand you have wonderful stories like ‘Small Worlds’, ‘Out of Time’ and ‘Captain Jack Harkness’, but then you get stories that would only seem adult to pubescent boys. I.e. ‘Day One’ has a monster that is powered by sex and ‘Cyberwoman’ has a cyberwoman complete with metal brassiere and three-inch steel heels.
By the time Series 2 and ‘Children of Earth’ came around, Torchwood had found its feet and has been consistantly good ever since.

You’re saying episode one ISN’T ropey?

I think it’s a disservice to the series to discount most of the stuff before Children of Earth. It was certainly at it’s best there, but there’s plenty of good stuff before that.

Mind you I find my reactions to a lot of programmes is less extreme than other posters. When others say ‘rubbish’ I’m usually thinking ‘could be better.’ I usually find even the worst episodes entertaining, although I’ll admit I’m sometimes wincing a bit inside.

And I quite liked the Cyberwoman, although probably for the wrong reasons. Or right. Depending on how you look at it.

I liked the early series 1 episode about the fairies in the garden. A couple of years ago I read an online chat transcript with Terry Pratchett, in which he said that that episode had been his favourite thing about New Who and Torchwood so far. I was actually quite surprised that he’d pick something so close to a subject he’d covered himself.

Also, “Countrycide” had a brilliant title – can’t remember much about the quality of the episode itself, though.

I stopped watching series 1 not long after that. I think I saw the first couple of episodes of series 2, and they were an improvement, but I didn’t keep up with it. The LHC radio show last y… I mean, in 2008, didn’t really make a big impression on me.

I regret missing Children of Earth, though.

> I liked the early series 1 episode about the fairies in the garden.

Lots of nice stuff in that ep, but it’s utterly ruined by the fact that the Torchwood team do NOTHING in it. They know, they see, they watch – but the events and outcome would have been pretty much the same if they’d never shown up. Which is a bit duff, story-wise.

> Also, ?Countrycide? had a brilliant title – can?t remember much about the quality of the episode itself, though.

Shockingly bad. Awful Owen/Gwen ‘fucking’ dialogue and a story that ends like that Scary Door episode in Futurama: “Most evil thing in the universe: It turns out it’s man.”

> I loved Captain John.

I could never get past the lazy creative process there: ‘Get the Spike actor…and have him bring the Spike character with him’.

What’s the concensus on Being Human btw? Only the ads for Series 2 are really pulling me in. I’ve yet to see any of it, pilot or first series.

I really liked Being Human. It had an ok pilot. They made some changes for the series which I think made it better. (They dropped the gothic vampire thing for example, which, while ok in’ it’s own right has been a bit overdone. It’s still considired ‘in continuity’* though. Shame they didn’t include it in the box-set.) I was disappointed they lost the original girl who played the ghost but the new actress turned out quite endearing in her own right.

I felt they overdid it a bit with some deviant sexuality which got rather disturbing (which was the whole point I guess) but that’s certainly not all the show had to offer by a long shot.

The finale was brilliant. I wish Russell Tovey would tone down the squealing and over enunc-ia-ting though.

I’m looking forward to the new series.

*or ‘canon’ if you prefer that word.

As way of example, (small spoiler here), there’s a vampire porn video with a vampire woman and a human man. And vampires don’t appear on cameras in this world.

It did serve the plot though but it rather shocked me at the time. (And made me laugh if I’m honest.* It was very, very dark…)

Don’t let that put you off though, it’s a very small part of the programme is about.

*What’s that when you get two different emotions that make you look like a dog with peanut butter on the roof of it’s mouth?

> But then, I wouldn?t say it was especially overdone with ?deviant sexuality? though. At all. The scene being described was (to my best recollection) about consenting adult sex, videoed. Which is a long way from deviance. The vampires murdering people, and the sex that goes along with it, IS what you might call deviant – in that the killing ain?t consensual – and in some (not many) instances that?s connected to, or directly in the course of, sex. But that combination is par for the course given nature of any vampire?s implicit subtexts.

Right.

> Videotaping a murder for selfish and nefarious purposes is deviant. Straight sex ain?t. Doing it for the wrong reasons isn?t fabulous, but that?s a long way from suggesting the show overdoes it with deviant sexual content – that seems to me an an oddly puritanical huge-over-statement. I don?t think it informs the nature of the programme at all.

Uhuh.

Being Human is a fantastic show – I love the way it swings between comedy and black drama. Just as something is making you laugh, something really dark can leap in, and vice versa.

Does anyone know the release date for series 2? The ads I’m seeing keep saying ‘Coming soon’.

Does anyone know the release date for series 2? The ads I?m seeing keep saying ?Coming soon?.

It’s on 10 January BBC3.

Misfits passed me by (well, the talk and publicity and hype and everything didn’t – but actually watching the show did), I really need to sit down and plough through the whole thing. Same with Being Human, actually – I loved the pilot, so should really watch the rest (although by the same token was a bit miffed about the recasting. Everyone says it works, but I thought the pilot cast worked brilliantly).

I’ll second Misfits as a pleasant surprise. The hype turned me off, but word of mouth eventually made me check it out. Watched the first five episodes on 4oD in one night, and the finale as it aired the following evening. Well worth checking out.

> My friend?s partner is in it – she plays Alisha.

She be hot!

Wait, wait, wait, go back to the talk about deviant sexuality… ^_^
I haven’t seen Being Human yet, but on the vampire-human sex front, watch True Blood. There’s at least one sex scene in every episode. It’s a little bit deviant in the way that he drinks her blood whenever they have sex (but only a bit).
Torchwood is fantastic for gay storylines, by the way. I showed my friend this video to get her to watch it – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xekxd9WgAlQ ;)

Yep, showing that humans just have to discriminate against SOMEONE ;)

I haven’t seen any from series 2 of Being Human or the last episode of Series 1 yet, but I have to admit it is bloody hilarious sometimes. You know, when it’s not intense. Actually, even when it’s intense it’s funny. I’d give examples but I don’t want to spoil any scenes for anyone because if you haven’t seen BH yet I advise you to temporarily devote your life to seeing an episode. It’s THAT good. Anyone who argues with me is just, well, wrong.