TV Review: Torchwood - "Greeks Bearing Gifts"

Toshiko strikes up a friendship with a young lady called Mary, who gives her a pendant with the ability to let her hear people's thoughts...

Toby Whithouse wrote "School Reunion" for Doctor Who, an episode summarised as being serviceable with flashes of greatness. The same can almost be said for Whithouse's Torchwood episode, "Greeks Bearing Gifts", were it not for his stronger hold on the premise and enjoyable characterisations.

The premise behind this episode is simple — it's the age-old story of how hearing people's thoughts would alter your opinion of them. There's nothing particularly fresh about the approach taken here, but the concept is always ripe for drama and the script is pleasingly written. In particular, I enjoyed the depth and believability of everyone's thoughts (heard as echoing voice-overs), which provide most of the episode's spark.

Naoka Mori finally gets a story to herself, and the two-dimensional computer whiz Toshiko Sato becomes more rounded as a result. Torchwood often chooses to divide its stories between the hyper-reality of the Hub (with its alien tech) and the normal everyday life of its characters. It's a balancing act the show usually struggles with, as the difference between these two "worlds" are so pronounced they just clash. This is probably why you never saw Mulder and Scully in the supermarket or walking the dog.

Amazingly, "Greeks Bearing Gifts" successfully mixes the two worlds, presenting us with a believable social life for Tosh that doesn't jar with the exaggerated SF of Torchwood. A lot of this success is down to Mori and the performance of Daniela Denby-Ashe as Mary, who is superb as the episode's femme fatale. As a bonus, Denby-Ashe and Mori share genuine chemistry that helps immensely.

Ultimately, the storyline isn't anything to get excited about, but it's performed and written with such conviction that it works. However, the teaser, a period piece set in 1812, hints at a more interesting story than we're eventually given, and the finale is anti-climactic — again featuring one of Jack's patented controversial decisions!

Article Author: Dan Owen

I am a film buff and amateur film critic from the UK. My main interests tend to be in the world of horror, sci-fi, action/adventure and comedy. At the moment I'm watching: Heroes, Prison Break, Torchwood, Robin Hood, Battlestar Galactica and Lost.

Visit Dan Owen's author page — Dan Owen's Blog