Adrift

"You are not my son."

Writer: Chris Chibnall

Format: TV

Broadcast: 19 March 2008

Series: Torchwood 2.11

Featuring: Captain Jack, Gwen, Owen, Tosh, Ianto

Synopsis

When a local teenager disappears, Gwen is drawn into an investigation that reveals a darker side of Torchwood. Hundreds of people have disappeared without trace, but why is Jack obstructing attempts to find them? The answer seems to lie in the rift, and as Gwen follows the trail she makes a shocking discovery.

Verdict

Adrift was a decent episode to continue our second series Torchwood rewatch, but in saying that I think this must go down as the weakest of the season so far. That's not to say that it was bad by any stretch of the imagination, but it doesn't quite the level of the vast majority of the rest of the series. I like the idea of it focusing on Gwen and going back to her routes at the police with Andy and dealign with a missing persons case. That seems like a simple case on paper and not really something for Torchwood, but Andy was in no mood for messing around as he showed Gwen the involvement of Jack. I thought the disappearance of Jonah was intriguing and the CCTV footage conveniently only displaying a frame every six seconds was slightly amusing as technology, even in 2008, really ought to be better than that. The mystery of the Rift was good and I liked learning more about here and the fact that it didn't just bring things through, it could also take. Owen barely appeared in this episode and was a non-factor, but the quiet use of the other team members to contribute with Gwen's investigation was terrific. I liked the simplicity of Tosh finding the negative spike on the Rift readings and realising that it didn't just bring aliens through, and Ianto pushing Gwen into the truth was nicely done. I thought her walking in on Jack and Ianto in sexual relations was amusing and the innocence of them not covering it up at all was fun. Jack's stubbornness in not letting Gwen investigate and reiterating that she needed to let it go was a little harsh and I liked how that pushed her into wanting it more. Andy's explanation for not turning up to Gwen's wedding was a little saddening and Rhys laughing at hearing that he still fancied his old colleague was harsh. Andy was on edge throughout though and it was bad treatment for Gwen to go off without him on the boat to the island the GPS tracker was sending her too. I felt very sorry for him to be honest and I do believe he deserved better. Gwen actually finding Jonah and seeing what he'd become was a bit of a shock although I don't think he should have looked so changed despite looking into the heart of a Death Star. He was injured, ravaged and forty years older despite only being missing for seven months. The reaction of his mum Nikki was awful though and despite being warned by Gwen she was pretty horrid and referring to him as 'that' despite his appearance was appalling. I didn't like that at all. It was nice that she finally accepted him as her son, but then we learned that he only had a four hour window where he wasn't screaming after going mad thanks to the star exposure. Some life. It was a bit harsh of Nikki at the end to blame Gwen for helping her find her son and what he'd become because now she'd lost all hope as she had the answer. That wasn't nice as Gwen shouldn't be blamed for the truth not being what she wanted. This was an important episode in the development of the relationship between Gwen and Rhys too as they discussed kids and their heated exchange at the park was something I just couldn't imagine with Gemma. How people can coexist in a relationship like that is beyond me! Regardless, this was still a strong episode.

Rating: 7/10