Jack Harkness

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This article is about the 51st century con man known as Captain Jack Harkness. For the "real" Captain Jack Harkness, see Jack Harkness (1940s). For the episode where the two men met, see Captain Jack Harkness (Torchwood story).

Captain Jack Harkness (sometimes simply "Captain Jack" to those close to him), was the name adopted by a con man from the 51st century and associate of the Doctor. His original identity remains a mystery. Reluctantly immmortal and stranded on early 21st century Earth, he headed Torchwood 3.

Biography

Given his frequent time travelling, much of Jack's personal chronology remains confused. However, we can say with some certainty that certain effects happened to Jack before he met the Doctor. However, we can't nessecarily regard much of anything Jack says as true.

Early years

Originally, Jack used a different name, though we do not know what it was. (TW: Captain Jack Harkness). He grew up sometime around the year 5000, an era of more open sexual mores than the 21st. Humans had begun to expand outwards to explore the universe and, meeting other species, often pursued sexual relationships with them. (DW: The Doctor Dances)

As a young man, he persuaded a friend to "join up" with them to fight against unspecified some enemies who Jack did not describe or name other than to call them horrible. Considering Jack's friend the weaker of the pair, the enemies tortured him as a lesson for Jack. Jack bore the guilt of his friend's fate. (TW: Captain Jack Harkness)

Escapades

Once, when sentenced to death, he ordered four hypervodkas as a last meal and ending up bedding both executioners (at the same time). (DW: The Doctor Dances)

He also had a memorable experience once on a hunting expedition. (DW: Boom Town)

As a Time Agent

Jack Harkness worked as a Time Agent until he discovered that the Agency had erased two years of his memory, two years he wanted to have back. (DW:The Empty Child)

As Jack Harkness

He assumed the alias of an American volunteer Captain Jack Harkness, serving as a volunteer in the 133rd Squadron of the Royal Air Force. (DW: The Empty Child)

The real Jack Harkness had died in action in January, 1941, though the impostor knew very little about the "real" Jack, other than basic information, such as the former's date and manner of death. (TW: Captain Jack Harkness)

Prior to Feburary 1944 (torchwood.org.uk), he met Estelle Cole. The pair spent some time in London together. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. Somehow, however, this never happened, and they lost touch with one another. (TW: Small Worlds)

Travelling with the Doctor

Jack worked as a con man, finding pieces of space junk and directing them to soon-to-be disaster sites, selling them to passers by, and letting them get destroyed before the buyers could pick up their merchandise. He would, at some point, acquire a sleek, small Chula spacecraft, fitted for human use, which could turn invisible.

In 1941, while pulling a con with a Chula Ambulance during the London Blitz, he spotted Rose Tyler hanging from a barrage balloon and rescued her, taking her aboard his Chula ship. Quickly finding out Rose came from the future, he suspected that other Time Agents had discovered him. (DW: The Empty Child). Shortly after, Rose introduced him to Ninth Doctor.Together, the trio worked to stop the Empty Child plague brought about by the Ambulance's nanogenes. Just before the destruction of his ship, with him in it, carrying as it did a German bomb about to explode, he was rescued by the Doctor and Rose just before his original ship exploded. (DW: The Doctor Dances) He accompanied them on their subsequent adventures.

Jack was aboard Satellite 5 when the Daleks launched their assault on Earth, and was exterminated while defending the satellite from their advance. He was apparently resurrected by Rose Tyler, who at that time had the powers of the Bad Wolf entity. Returned to life, Jack discovered he was immortal, although he was unable to rejoin the Doctor and Rose before the Doctor's TARDIS departed, and was left stranded on the satellite. (DW: The Parting of the Ways) The Doctor, who had just regenerated, believed that Jack could begin the process of "rebuilding the Earth". (DW: Children in Need Special)

Torchwood 3

At some point, Jack joined the Torchwood Institute and became the leader of Torchwood 3, based under the Cardiff rift. Jack held on to the hope of re-establishing contact with the Doctor, who he believed could help him. (TW: Everything Changes onwards)

He revealed very little of himself or his origins to his team, even when pursuing a flirtatious relaionship with Gwen Cooper (TW: Ghost Machine) and a fling with Ianto Jones. (TW)

Transported back to 1941 by the Cardiff rift, Jack met his namesake, the original Jack Harkness, and briefly romanced him, before returning to the 21st century. (TW: Captain Jack Harkness).

After the rift was finally opened by Owen Harper, Jack was forced to confront Abaddon, released from the rift by Bilis Manger. The beast was destroyed while attempting to leech Jack's life, though the exertion rendered Jack dead for three days, his immortality apparently unable to save him. He was brought back to life by a kiss from Gwen.

Shortly after his resurrection, Jack noticed the Doctor's hand was beginning to glow within its hyperbaric chamber. The sound of a TARDIS materialising was heard inside the Hub. By the time the rest of the Torchwood team arrived to investigate the sound, Jack had gone. (TW: End of Days.)

Special items

When Rose and the Doctor first met him, Jack possessed his small private Chula ship, fitted for human use, as well as psychic paper and a store of nanogenes in the ship. The ship accidentally got destroyed by a German bomb stowed away in it. (DW: The Empty Child, The Doctor Dances)

Weapons

Jack possessed a sonic blaster. (DW: The Doctor Dances) He also stored a Compact Laser Deluxe away anally, in case of emergencies. (DW: Bad Wolf). As Torchwood 3 leader, Jack liked to carry a World War II service revolver. (TW: Everything Changes onward).

Special abilities

Since his resurrection by the Bad Wolf entity (DW: The Parting of the Ways), Jack can "die" and come back to life almost instantly (TW: Everything Changes onwards). So far he has "died" of a gunshot to the head (TW: Everything Changes, TW: End of Days) and multiple electrocutions (TW: Cyberwoman). Jack's confrontation with Abaddon forced him as close he could come to true death. (TW: End of Days) Jack views this power as a curse as much as a blessing. Each time he has died he has not experienced anything at all, good or bad. (TW: Everything Changes)

It may be that the Bad Wolf's 'alteration' of Jack was retrospective - that is, that Jack was immortal prior to his first death aboard the Game Station, but for obvious reasons the power never manifested itself. The fact that on every occasion since the first he has resurrected without apparent intervention by the Bad Wolf suggests a fundamental alteration was made to his nature rather than his original body simply being revived.

Tosh could not use Mary's telepathy pendant to read his thoughts, although he could project thoughts to Tosh if he so chose. (TW: Greeks Bearing Gifts)

Unrecorded adventures

  • Jack once quipped about the time he got pregnant, a memorable experience, though not necessarily in a good way. (TW: Everything Changes)
This could imply that Jack has changed gender at least once or it could imply 51st century technology, or alien involvement -- or that he likes to joke about such things to shake up his 21st century team.
The fairies spared Jack, for unknown reasons, for perhaps, having already gained immortality by then, he couldn't die.
  • In the early 20th century, Jack pursued a serious relationship with Estelle Cole. They had wanted to spend the rest of their lives together, but it never happened. Estelle never found out about Jack's life as a space-time traveler. (TW: Small Worlds)
  • Jack related to a captive that he had experience in torturing prisoners, and that, "a long time ago", he had "quite a reputation as the go-to guy" in the event of needing to force information out of a person. (TW: Countrycide)
Given that he wanted to frighten a prisoner into divulging information at the time, he may have lied or stretched the truth. However, given the treatment of Jack's friend at the hand of his torturers, Jack may well have sought revenge against their enemy in this way - and it is not known what skills his job as a Time Agent required him to develop and utilise. The Torchwood 3 Team do not seem to know of any such past. This might give more credence to the possibility that he lied, but, taking into account the secrecy Jack surrounds himself with, it is more likely that he simply did not want to show that side of his personality to them, or preferred to keep such talents to himself until necessary.
  • He once worked for an employer named Victor, who surprised "his" staff by coming out as a male-to-female transsexual. (TW: Greeks Bearing Gifts)

Key life events

  • Jack's enters the the military with a friend, who also joins, at Jack's urging. The friend undergoes torture by their foe.
  • Jack works as a Time Agent until, finding two years of memory gone, leaves the Agency.
  • Transported to Earth in 1869 using his Vortex Manipulator he used as a Time Agent. The Manipulator burnt out after this journey and forced Jack to live through the 19th and 20th centuries, and he eventually joins the Torchwood Institute in hopes of locating the Doctor. He assumes the role of head of Torchwood 3.

Behind the Scenes

  • Jack Harkness' first name was originally "Jax", in Russell T. Davies's original production outline. In this Jack's proper name was Jax and he was using the Jack alias as a cover in World War II. This idea was later abandoned due to its similarity to other names in the wider Doctor Who Universe.

External links

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