Tag: Torchwood (Page 2 of 2)

Torchwood – Children of Earth (and a new companion for the Doctor!)

May 30, 2009 / Ross Ruediger

It’s been two days of steady announcements for fans of both “Doctor Who” and “Torchwood.” Yesterday came the news that instead of Sci Fi airing the latest episodes of “Who,” BBC America would instead be premiering the final five David Tennant adventures beginning in June with “The Next Doctor,” and then July will see the premiere of “Planet of the Dead.” Granted, it’s a shame that BBC America isn’t in as many homes as Sci Fi, but isn’t BBCA really the proper place for the Doctor?

This morning the BBC issued a press release naming the newest companion to travel with the Time Lord. Her name is Karen Gillan, and she’s Scottish and all of 21 years old. She’ll be time travelling with new Doctor Matt Smith when Season Five gets under way in 2010.

Incoming head honcho Steven Moffat had this to say about Gillan: “We saw some amazing actresses for this part, but when Karen came through the door the game was up. Funny, and clever, and gorgeous, and sexy. Or Scottish, which is the quick way of saying it. A generation of little girls will want to be her. And a generation of little boys will want them to be her too.”

And last, but certainly not least, the latest trailer – clocking in at just over 2 minutes – for “Torchwood: Children of Earth” has been unveiled. It’s still so difficult to tell anything about this miniseries. Will it rock, or will it just roll? Will the ante be upped, or will it flail around on the ground? Chances are this thing’s going to be a solid five hours of entertainment, based simply on the quality of the first two seasons, and yet the whole “kid” thing seems like a huge gamble for this series. Fingers crossed! Take a gander for yourself:

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BBC America David Tennant Doctor Who Karen Gillan Matt Smith Planet of the Dead Steven Moffat Torchwood Torchwood: Children of Earth

New York Comic-Con 2009: The Wrap-Up

February 12, 2009 / Will Harris

You know you’re on the right bus for Comic-Con when a guy comes aboard wearing a Flash t-shirt…and he’s followed a guy toting two enormous bags in which to carry swag…and then that guy is followed by Darth Vader.

Actually, now that I think about it, maybe Lord Vader wasn’t actually on the bus with me, but he was most certainly present – and in various heights, weights, shapes, and sizes, no less – during the course of the New York Comic-Con, which took place at New York’s Javitz Center from February 6th through the 8th.

Our man Jason Zingale has been our resident San Diego Comic-Con attendee for the past couple of years, but Bullz-Eye was also in the house for last year’s NYCC, thanks to our man in New York, Jonathan Flax. (Granted, he’s often a quiet man, but he’s still there for us when we need him.) This year, however, I couldn’t resist the chance to take in Comic-Con for myself. The San Diego event takes place immediately after I’ve already spent two-and-a-half weeks in L.A. for the July TCA Press Tour, and by that point, I just can’t be away from my wife and daughter any longer; fortunately, the NYCC takes place long enough after the January TCA tour that I was able to feel comfortable heading out of town to attend. It was disappointing that I had to take in all of the sights, sounds, and events all by my lonesome, but lord knows there were plenty of other people with whom I was sharing the experience. I might’ve come by myself, but I was in no way alone.

Day 1:

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Alien Trespass Bruce Timm Chris Fedak Christian Bale Chuck Comic-Con Dan Lauria Danny Elfman Darth Vader Dollhouse Friday the 13th Fringe Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder Jonathan Murphy Josh Schwartz Joss Whedon Life on Mars McG Michael Imperioli New York Comic-Con NY Comic Con 2009 Pixar R.W. Goodwin Robert Culp Surrogates Terminator Salvation Thom Yorke Torchwood Up Watchmen William Katt Wonder Woman Yvonne Strahovski

Coming soon to BBC America: “Torchwood: Children of Earth”

February 5, 2009 / Will Harris

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2008: The Year in TV – Ross Ruediger

December 9, 2008 / Ross Ruediger

Unfortunately I’m the kind of guy who’s lousy at making lists, because I always feel I’m going to leave off something important. So this year, my list is the shortest so it’s obvious I left many things off. It was a pretty good year for TV, and with so many good shows bidding adieu, I worry that next year’s list will be short simply because there won’t be enough quality stuff to fill it out.

TOP 3 SHOWS

1. “Torchwood,” BBC America

Normally, “Doctor Who” would take the top spot on my year-end round up of favorite shows, but this year the spin-off series “Torchwood” was so strong that I’m giving it up to Captain Jack. Its sophomore season navigated an intense and fresh sci-fi vibe that was perfect for the here and now. The thing is that at this point both series (along with the more kiddie-oriented “The Sarah Jane Adventures”) have all become slices of one another. It’s the “Who”-niverse…and in order to see the bigger picture, one must be aware of every facet. The three series work apart from each other, yet gel into a whole via awareness. In any case, this year “Torchwood” delivered stronger material than Season Four of “Who,” which, while refreshing, is a trend I’d like to see reversed once Steven Moffat begins guiding the Doctor in 2010.

2. “Boston Legal,” ABC
After a somewhat tepid fourth season, the halls of Crane, Poole & Schmidt came roaring back to life for an abbreviated 13-episode final season. Nearly every installment this year has been a keeper, and David E. Kelley has done a fantastic job of balancing his usual political grandstanding with eloquent moments of character-driven drama and comedy. At the time of writing, the 2-hour series finale has yet to be unveiled, but there isn’t any reason to believe it’s going to be anything short of an ideal sendoff for James Spader, William Shatner, and Candice Bergen. The show began life as a spin-off of “The Practice“; now, if only the TV gods would allow Kelley to spin a series off “Boston Legal” that follows the relationship of Jerry Espenson (Christian Clemenson) and Katie Lloyd (Tara Summers), I’d be perfectly content to see this show ride off into the sunset.

3. “The Shield,” FX
For some reason, it almost seems easy to want to dismiss the end of the saga of Vic Mackey…but, really, that would be just plain wrong. Shawn Ryan and his cohorts have steadily delivered under-the-radar goods for 7 seasons, and the missteps have been few and far between along the way. I’m not going to miss “The Shield” like I would many a show that’s wrapping things up…like “Boston Legal,” for instance. No, this show ended at exactly the right time and on exactly the right series of corrupt, violent notes. But speaking of spin-offs, who wouldn’t want to see a half-hour cop comedy series centered around Dutch Wagenbach (Jay Karnes) and Steve Billings (David Marciano)? OK, perhaps that’s a tad over the top, so I’ll settle for a drama focused solely on Dutch, who’s had the good sense to move as far away from Farmington as possible.

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2008 Year in TV Boston Legal Swingtown The Shield Torchwood Year End TV Review Year End TV Ross Ruediger

A Chat with Naoko Mori of “Torchwood”

September 11, 2008 / Will Harris

If you’re an Anglo-centric sci-fi fan, then I won’t be telling you anything you don’t already know when I say that “Torchwood” is one of the best shows of its type to come around in ages. Spun off from “Doctor Who,” the series focuses on the Cardiff branch of the Torchwood Institute, an organization which was founded in 1879 by Queen Victoria to research and combat alien threats to the British Empire. If you’ve never watched “Torchwood,” it’s time to start playing catch-up. Season 1 is already available on DVD, and Season 2 makes its DVD debut on September 16th.

In conjunction with the Season 2 release, we were granted the opportunity to speak to one of the show’s cast members: Naoko Mori, who plays computer specialist Toshiko Sato. Like everyone affiliated with Torchwood, Toshiko…or Tosh, as she’s more familiarly known…has gone through quite a lot in her time with the Institute, but she definitely had more than her fair shares of issues in Season 2. We spoke with Ms. Mori about how she came aboard “Torchwood” in the first place, asked what it was like working during James Masters, quizzed her on her favorites episodes of the show, and – perhaps most crucially – asked if she still gets secretly excited when she recalls how she had a role in “Spice World.”

Stay tuned for…