Torchwood: Children of Earth debuts on BBC America

Torchwood: Children of Earth is set to debut tonight on BBC America, pushing the new HD programming lineup on the channel.

This, the third series of the Doctor Who spin-off series, aired only two weeks ago over in the UK, on BBC 1, and is now available on DVD and BluRay in the UK. Children of Earth is a five-part series that will run each night this week.

Torchwood: Children of Earth has the 9:00PM – 10:15PM EST time slot each night this week.

If you’ve not seen the show (or even if you have already seen this series), it’s definitely a recommended watch.

James Moran responds to “fan” community

This past week saw BBC 1 air Torchwood: Children of Earth. James Moran, who has written a number of Doctor Who episodes (the show from which Torchwood is a spin-off), cowrote the episode “Day Three” with show creator Russell T. Davies. However, the following day saw an episode air that created a huge storm of controversy on both Twitter and among blogs.

The controversy started when a plot point (which will not be stated here) took place at the end of “Day Four”. Moran did not write the episode, nor did he have any hand in the episode’s creation, but because he is a presence on Twitter, he has become a lightning rod for fan frustration.

After the episode aired, the plot point became a trending topic on Twitter, where people were mostly angry about what they had seen happen. They began in on Moran, assuming he was responsible for the plot point.

None of this “Twitter rage” was well-founded, nor was the target of the rage deserving of the complaints.

Moran has posted an entry on his blog in response to all of this controversy. From his entry comes the following:

Here’s my position: I’m not going get into any more discussions or debates about what happened in Torchwood this week (being vague, in case people come across this and haven’t seen it). Not now, not in the future.

Why? I started trying to discuss it, but swiftly realised that it was pointless. It simply turns into “No it isn’t” / “Yes it is”, and there’s no way I can win the argument, because in certain people’s opinion, I am wrong, and that’s the end of it. And it’s all just opinion anyway. It would also feel like I was trying to justify the show, and I’m not doing that. I have absolutely no need to. The show is the show. Whether you like it or dislike it, that’s up to you.

I helped plot the whole storyline, and I stand by every single decision. Yes, including *that* one – I had my hand on the death lever along with everyone else, and was fully involved. I think it’s a fantastic, brave, challenging drama, and contains some of the best moments on TV all year.

The rest of the poignant article can be read here.

As someone who loves Torchwood (and especially the “parent” show, Doctor Who), I am ashamed that all of this controversy is now irrevocably attached to the fan community, no matter how incorrectly applied it is. Moran’s response is entirely correct and deserves to be read in its entirety.

Torchwood: Children of Earth “Day One” Quick Review

Series three of Doctor Who spin-off series Torchwood has begun on BBC 1, and I’ve managed to catch the first episode. Was the episode worth the wait? Has this mini-series started off on the right foot or has it had a bad start? Find out in my review of the episode, after the jump.

Torchwood: The Dead Line

The last of the three radio plays (four if you count “Lost Souls”) to bridge the gap between series two and three of Torchwood airs today on BBC Radio 4.

This episode, called “The Dead Line”, was written by Phil Ford. Episode description follows:

The team investigate a series of patients at Cardiff hospital, who have fallen into coma-like trances as a result of calls made to them from a number that hasn’t worked for 30 years. Jack calls the number to find out who has been doing this, but the line is dead. Then he gets called back…

The two previous stories are available to download, and you can find them via the following links:

Asylum
Golden Age

Each story is about 45 minutes in length.

Torchwood: Golden Age

Just a reminder that BBC Radio 4 will air Torchwood: Golden Age today at 2:15PM GMT (9:15AM EST). This is the second of three audio plays that will lead in to series three of Torchwood, “Children of Earth”, on television later this month.

Here’s a description of “Golden Age”, written by James Goss:

On the trail of a dangerous energy field, Torchwood are led to Delhi. As the energy field grows once more, they witness the simultaneous disappearance of hundreds of people. Jack discovers that the field centres on an old colonial mansion – Torchwood India. Shocked to find that Torchwood India is still going strong – he shut it down himself over 80-years ago – he’s even more surprised to find that its members, including his old flame the Duchess, haven’t aged a day.

Torchwood: Asylum airs on BBC Radio 4

Earlier today BBC Radio 4 aired the first of three Torchwood audio plays, called “Asylum”. The episode can be found here, and can be downloaded until next Wednesday. However, keep in mind the downloads are region-locked, meaning that you can’t access the download unless you have a UK IP address.

The episode description reads thusly:

When PC Andy arrests a teenager for shoplifting, he thinks it is going to be a routine case. Then he sees the weapon she is carrying and decides to call in the Torchwood team. Under questioning from Gwen, the girl remembers her name but little else, and when she speaks it is in a strange mix of English and Scandinavian, but with a Cardiff accent. Then the girl’s blood tests come through and the team is faced with a dilemma.

The second audio play, “Golden Age”, will air at 2:15PM GMT (9:15AM EST) tomorrow on BBC Radio 4.

After listening to “Asylum”, I’m getting the feeling that these might not each be stand-alone adventures. Without spoiling anything from the first episode, I’ll just say that the episode ended with a number of unanswered questions.

Anyway, “Golden Age” airs tomorrow, with the third episode, “The Dead Line”, airing at 2:15PM GMT (9:15AM EST) Friday.