Top Five Big Damn Hero Moments: Gwen Cooper (Torchwood)

Not gonna lie; this is one of the toughest Big Damn Hero Moments I’ve done.  Gwen’s not a favorite, making me less patient with her than other characters, so it’s easier to remember her screw-ups than her wins.  After a fair amount of mulling, this is what I came up with (spoilers.)

Trying to Remember Torchwood (“Everything Changes” – Series 1, Episode 1)

Having just uncovered a secret alien-fighting organization, and having just learned that the organization’s head put an amnesia pill in her drink, Gwen is on a mission not to forget.  Frantically documenting everything she saw at the Hub – before the Retcon’s sedative kicks in – is a smart move, and Gwen isn’t to know Ianto can delete her computer file remotely.  When he does, she’s is too far gone to write it all down again, but she manages to scrawl “REMEMBER” on a pamphlet for the Millennium Centre in the hope of jogging her memory when she wakes.

Shooting the Nostrovite (“Something Borrowed” – Series 2, Episode 9)

Nothing like having your wedding day spoiled by the shapeshifting alien who asexually impregnated you and is now stalking you to rip its offspring out of your body, all while wearing the faces of everyone you know.  The Nostrovite is disguised as Gwen’s new mother-in-law when she shoots it with a gun concealed behind her bouquet, and I’m sure Gwen tries hard not to point out how much easier it was to shoot it when it was disguised as her mother-in-law

Searching for the Negative Rift Spikes (“Adrift” – Series 2, Episode 11)

I debated about this one, because a lot of the actual work is done by Tosh (researching the connection between negative Rift spikes and missing people) and Ianto (surreptitiously giving Gwen the location of Flat Holm.)  Gwen’s contribution, though, is latching onto the problem like a dog with a bone.  She’s horrified at the thought of the Rift depositing people God knows where in time and space, and she won’t rest until she finds out what Jack knows that he’s not telling.

Recruiting Lois (“Children of Earth:  Day Three” – Series 3, Episode 3)

“Children of Earth” isn’t an especially sterling showing for our Torchwood crew.  They’re on the run, mostly without resources, and a high-profile alien encounter is all happening behind closed doors.  Thanks to Gwen and Rhys’s proclivity for playing sex games with the I-5 contact lenses, they have the lenses’ hidden cameras at their disposal.  Gwen gets the idea to take a chance on the only friendly voice they’ve encountered in the Home Office, and she convinces Lois to meet her, demonstrating the I-5s and explaining why it’s so vital that she help.

Destroying the Camp (“Miracle Day:  The Middle Men” – Series 4, Episode 6)

For the most part, “Miracle Day” isn’t my cup of tea, but Gwen’s big revenge moment – blowing up a Category One death camp, releasing a film of it to the public with a “this is what Phicorp is really up to” explanation – is definitely satisfying.  The act itself, with the huge fireball and the motorcycle, is good for badass points, but I think the real victory here is getting the truth out.