Torchwood: Combat (S1,E11)

"He did this to himself. He had no fear."

Combat (Season 1, Episode 11)

("Owen is sent undercover to discover why aliens are being kidnapped from the streets of Cardiff.")

What I Liked

* Gwen & Owen's fight, including Owen storming out of the car with the line "Fine, let's not. I was getting bored of your fuck tricks anyways."

* The actor playing the head of the "Weevil Fight Club." He did a great job portraying cocky masculinity fighting for an outlet.

* Jack & Owen's hospital scene near the end--it's clear Owen doesn't really like Jack and vice versa. There's not going to be a happy ending or reconcilliation here.

* Tosh's fake website--it was an impressive display of what she brings to the table, and it was cute to see her so proud of herself.

What I Didn't Like

* The continuing insistance that Gwen is the "soul" of Torchwood because she has a normal life outside of the Hub. It just rings false and forced to me.

* Gwen confessing to Rhys and then ret-conning him so he'll forget it happened--pathetic!

* The episode as a whole--it's okay, but always seemed a little rushed to me (confirmed in the commentary) and I don't think that the weevils are interesting enough to carry the weight they've been given.

What I'm Not Sure About

* When Torchwood first recovered a cellphone from a Weevil Fight Club victim, the Club took precautions like erasing all the numbers so it couldn't be tracked back; why would they then be so sloppy as to later send that same phone a text message with the coordinates of the next Fight Club meeting?

Commentary

By: Chris Chibnall (co-producer), Burn Gorman ("Owen"), Andy Goddard (director)

Tone: Interesting and Collegial

* This episode originally aired on Christmas day--what an uplifting holiday parable :)

* The real-estate agency is named LynchFrost, a Twin Peaks shout-out.

* Only one mention of the movie Fight Club in the commentary, surprising given how strong of an influence it obviously was.

Deleted Scenes

None

Torchwood Declassified: "Weevil Fight Club"

* Talking heads: Owen being in a dark place; Owen finding a charismatic leader/friend in the leader of the Fight Club

* A brief feature on the stunt fighting in the bar and in the cage match

* John Barrowman's provocative theory that maybe the weevils are largely docile creatures who fight only when forced to, and that therefore the weevil attack in Episode One is directly traced to the Fight Club which was already in existence at the time.