This is one of the better offerings from Torchwood’s first season, a Tosh-centric episode that still features memorable moments for the whole team and a strong guest star. Even if it’s based on a well-worn premise, the show does well with it.
Toshiko is used to being one of the most overlooked, underappreciated members of Torchwood, not that it gets any easier. When a woman named Mary approaches her with an alien pendant, Tosh is seduced, both by Mary’s attentions and by the pendant’s power to grant its wearer telepathic abilities. She begins overhearing what her coworkers really think of her, and she’s driven deeper and deeper into Mary’s influence.
“Hero gains temporary telepathic abilities” is an archetypal episode plot for genre shows, and this episode hits all the major beats: the thrill of listening to people’s thoughts, the horror of realizing how people really see you, the way telepathy can aid in preemptive heroics, and the overwhelming crush of too many thoughts swirling around you. But even if it doesn’t really tread new ground—even Tosh’s position as the quiet, underappreciated one on the team lends itself to this type of story—it’s still done well.
Naoko Mori does a nice job leading the episode as Tosh is pulled in every direction by both the pendant and Mary, compellingly played by Daniela Denby-Ashe. (Side note: this is still the only thing I’ve ever seen Denby-Ashe in, but she’s always one of the first faces who comes to mind when I think of memorable guest stars on Torchwood.) I like getting a peek into the thoughts of everyone else on the team, as well as Tosh’s reactions to the unstated insults and surprising reveals.
I remember reading that, before Torchwood came out, a lot of the promos were very “everyone is bi!!!”, but season 1 doesn’t really bear that out in practice. Obviously, there’s Jack, and we get teases about his relationship with Ianto at different points in the season before having it confirmed in the finale. Owen and Gwen both have very brief same-sex encounters, but I wouldn’t say either “counts” in any meaningful way. That leaves Tosh, who does get a full episode to enter into a relationship with a woman, although there are red flags from the start. As such, it isn’t exactly “good representation,” but it does make for a pretty interesting story, and again, Mori is excellent in it.
The rest of the main cast are used mainly in relation to Tosh. Gwen and Owen are, collectively, probably at their most aggravating here, even before Tosh can get inside their heads. However, that’s very much the point. They’re cliquey with each other and dismissive of Tosh, making her feel left out as they throw how well they’re getting along in her face—and given how recently Gwen has joined the team compared to Tosh, it’s understandable that it hurts to see that. Meanwhile, Ianto has a smaller role, but it furthers his ongoing plot in the first half of the season.
It’s a good episode for Jack, even if he doesn’t have an enormous part, which is very welcome—one of the biggest issues with Torchwood’s first season is that it sometimes feels like it wastes Jack. (Note: I’m talking about Jack as a Whoniverse character here, which is not the same thing as John Barrowman’s on-set behavior.) But here, Jack is both fun and clever, and a few key scenes showcase his friendship with Tosh. I always enjoy seeing their relationship highlighted on the show; his interactions with Gwen and Ianto tend to get the most play, but the Jack-Tosh and Jack-Owen relationships are both underrated.
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