Torchwood #10: Out of Time

Torchwood Team;

• Captain Jack

• Gwen

• Owen

• Tosh

• Ianto

Notable Characters;

• Diane- Pilot of the plane that slipped through time

• John- Plane passenger 

• Emma- Plane passenger 

• Rhys- Gwen's boyfriend 

A real heartfelt emotional story with a fantastic concept. There were some brilliant characters for this episode and after my disappointment in Random Shoes, I was glad to see the high standard set in Torchwood so far had resumed here. It gets straight into the story right away as Jack, Gwen and Owen are on a runway waiting for an airplane to land. The plane is seen and looks rather retro. The passengers leave the craft and are greeted by the Torchwood members. They were also in traditional style dress, and understandably why. The plane departed in 1953, yet they were in the modern day! 

The flight passengers were taken back to the hub and their names were revealed. Dianne was the pilot, John an older man than the two women he was travelling with and Emma, a young girl in her late teens. It was claimed that their plane had slipped through a door in time and space, and they couldn't get back. According to history, the plane never returned. People from the 1950s were stuck in the 2000s. Fantastic. 

The passengers were finding it difficult to comprehend and they were talking of their families, those they'd never see again. The team were to look after the people out of their own time. Their intended destination was Dublin flying from Bristol, but somehow they'd travelled to the future and near Cardiff. It was all very hard for the three passengers to take in. It was also said that the people of the 1950s believed the plane had gone down at sea and the wreckage was unrecoverable. 

Torchwood gave the three passengers fake identities, they were going to somehow have to adapt to the major occurrence. John though was bitterly unhappy and wanted to be himself, he didn't want his name changed. It was all he had left. They weren't themselves. 

Ianto now had given the team money to spend and showed them around a supermarket. The three were amazed by the advancement in prices, technology and the DVDs. There were also a few funny moments where John saw some of the magazines with a lot of women revealing more than he was used to seeing, and also with Dianne when the cigarette packet read 'Smoking kills.' 

John now wanted to see the Millennium Stadium, but he wasn't close to it long and he was in search of his friends or family. Meanwhile, in the house Torchwood had put the three plane passengers up in, there were also two young female roommates. Emma seemed astounded by how they made tea. It was brilliant. 

Dianne though now wanted to check on her plane, and Owen took her to do so. Owen though was flirting with the Sky Gypsy pilot. She wanted to take her up to fly but she had no current valid license. Back with John, and I liked the references to football and the FA Cup final from decades ago. In the pub with Jack, John wanted to know about Jack. Jack made reference to the fact that he kind of fell through time himself. 

Emma now was in their put up house, but she was deeply saddened. The realisation hit her hard that she had nothing and that she wouldn't see her family again. But her roommates tried to fix it and console her with alcohol. Not the brightest ideas but she seemed to like it. John now wanted to trace his son, hoping he was still alive. 

Owen took Dianne out for a date of sorts and she was very traditional. She stood and waited for Owen to pull out her chair for her. It was great and I liked how Dianne wanted to know of the female strides taken in the gap between her departure and arrival in the plane. 

John arrived home and was angered to see Emma drinking alcohol, but she stood up for herself, albeit saddened, and disobeyed her elder. Meanwhile, with their date over, Owen took Dianne home and she laughed at all his beauty products. Gwen was there looking out for Emma as she was finding it difficult to cope with what was happening. She was taken out of time, and she seemed lost. 

Owen and Dianne shared a night together and slept together, this all but confirmed that any relationship Owen and Gwen had was lost. The humorous moment when Dianne responded to Owen's joking claim was brilliant. She asked 'what's a fuck buddy.' It was hilarious. Back at Gwen's house though and she had taken Emma in. Rhys, unaware, strolled around naked and she awoke to the sight of his 'morning glory' and screamed. It was pretty hilarious. 

There was now hope for John, as Tosh had tracked down his son. He was very elderly now and missed his wife Sally who had died a few years back. But Alan suffered from Alzheimer's disease. It was revealed he'd had no children so he was all that was left of John and his family. Alan didn't seem interested in John, not recognising him as his Father. 

Owen was now trying to help Dianne fly and took her to a flying range where she could fly for so long depending on the price payed. But all the flights were booked up and she was deeply saddened. Back with John and his son Alan, Alan recalled some of his childhood and referred to the FA Cup final. This pleased John mightily. 

Gwen, still looking out for Emma, took her out to a nightclub and there she found a lad and they started kissing. Emma didn't think he'd want more but he wouldn't get any as Gwen intervened and seemed annoyed. She explained to Emma that he was after a lot more than kissing and explained how sexual attitudes had changed greatly since the 50s. It was interesting how Emma misunderstood some of the explanation. Another humorous moment occurred when Gwen talked about her sex life and subtlety admitted Rhys was not the best she had. A reference to Owen maybe? 

Owen was now enthralled by Dianne and bought her a majestic red dress. Good news though for Emma as she was offered a job in London! It was much more than Gwen anticipated for. She didn't want Emma wondering too far. John was at the hub and wanted to drive, and stole some keys, just before Ianto arrived. 

The atmosphere soon changed in Gwen's house as Rhys had been on the phone to Gwen's Mother and she knew nothing of Emma whom Gwen had pretended was a relative. Rhys was bitterly annoyed and angered by the lack of knowledge he had from Gwen about her job. He seemed gutted, and rightfully so, with the ease in which Gwen could lie to his face. 

With the stunning red dress on, Dianne was taken out into the open by Owen and the pair seemed passionate about each other. They danced before returning home for another passionate night together. Back at the hub and Ianto had found that his keys were missing. The car was tracked and Jack went out in search of him. He'd gone home apparently. Jack found him and the two shared an emotional talk. Jack revealed how his time was gone, the future, that he hadn't happened yet. But John was now angered, he wanted to return home to his family. He was suffering- he wanted to die. He was finding it unbearable and didn't want to be condemned to live and claimed he had a choice. He wanted to die in dignity and not be forced to live. Jack was affected by these claims.

Meanwhile, Owen now questioned his 'fuck buddy' relationship with Dianne and it seemed like he wanted a relationship. He loved her, and she loved him. It seemed a bit soon however to declare such a huge remark. 

Emma now was to leave already, she got on her bus to London to start her job. Would she cope in modern day London with a new job all on her own? Dianne had now left a note for Owen, she wanted to fly. Owen caught her before she departed for the sky. She felt the same rift was open, Owen was eager to be with her and wanted to go with her. He pleaded with her but she knew he couldn't come. They had a last kiss and she left, seemingly successful in going through the rift. Jack was sitting in a car with John, extremely emotional, had John died like he wanted? It was unclear. 

The three passengers had all distanced themselves from each other and had much different views and ambitions. The episode ended with Dianne flying, Emmw on the bus and John with Jack in the car who was saddened. This was myonly major problem with the episode, there was a lack of clarity at the end. 

My analysis; 

To conclude, I really enjoyed Out of Time. Although there was no enemy or even risk of danger present, the concept was magnificent. I liked how each passenger affiliated themselves with one of the Torchwood team and went in their own directions. The humour present in the episode was fantastic! It'll be interesting to see the development of Gwen and Rhys' relationship after the events seen here. I do think though that in the next episode there needs to be a proper villain and good sci-fi connections because I think three episodes in a row without that wouldn't be good. But overall, some great characters and a fascinating concept!  

Rating; 9/10- I think the lack of a villain knocked off the mark. But it was brilliant!