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Category:    Home > Reviews > Science Fiction > Thriller > British TV > Torchwood – The Complete First Season (2006/BBC Blu-ray Set)

Torchwood – The Complete First Season (2006/BBC Blu-ray Set)

 

Picture: B     Sound: B     Extras: B-     Episodes: B-

 

 

Though there had been attempted spin-offs of Dr. Who before, it took the recent, successful 2005 revival of the character to create the circumstances for a branched success.  That spin-off, Torchwood, featuring the adventures of Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman) who traveled with the Doctor at one time (and is among a long line of U.K. Government insiders who were his allies over the decades) and now runs the quasi-governmental title organization who tracks aliens and their technology.  We first covered the show when the BBC released their wildly successful DVD set:


http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/6699/Torchwood+–+The+Complete+First

 

 

Of course, if this sounds familiar, it has a precedent in the organization S.H.A.D.O. in the classic British TV series U.F.O., which had a great two season run starting in 1972 from the makers of Thunderbirds and Space:1999.  You can read more about that show at this link:

 

http://www.fulvuedrive-in.com/review/360/UFO+MegaSet+(British+TV+series)

 

 

Needless to say I like U.F.O. more, but at the same time, I feel Torchwood has been at least as much in the spirit of the original Dr. Who series as the current revival and maybe more so.  The show consists of hour-long shows and the cast has some good chemistry, though I have yet to be totally won over by the show.  Still, I can see the appeal and am curious to see where the show will go.  The second season is now on DVD and we’ll be covering that next.

 

 

The 1.78 X 1 digital High Definition image is generally credited as being 1080i, but the show was shot in both 720p and then 1080p HD formats and the result can be more motion blur than expected.  It is one of the better overall HD shoots of any TV show produced from any country to date with better form and editing than most and the Dr. Who revival has yet to go HD.  Maybe a change of actor will bring that on.  The DTS 5.1 mix is far better than the DVD’s Dolby Digital 5.1 sound and though the sound mixes are not aggressive or demo quality, they tend to have more character than most TV being produced today.  The extras are also the same.


-   Nicholas Sheffo


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