More actions
The first series of Torchwood premiered in the UK between 22 October 2006 and 1 January 2007. It saw the introduction of Torchwood Three and its respective team.
The series ties into series 1, 2, and 3 of Doctor Who, with references to the Bad Wolf meme and Harold Saxon, as well as the presence of the severed hand which once belonged to the Tenth Doctor, and the emblem of the Preachers briefly appearing among graffiti. Most of the stories are contemporary, but the series delves into flashbacks and the occasional time travel adventures centered mainly around Jack Harkness. It featured thirteen fifty-minute episodes.
This season starred John Barrowman as Jack Harkness, Eve Myles as Gwen Cooper, Burn Gorman as Owen Harper, Naoko Mori as Toshiko Sato, Indira Varma as Suzie Costello (only star credited for the pilot episode), and Gareth David-Lloyd as Ianto Jones, as well as Kai Owen as Rhys Williams and Tom Price as Andy Davidson.
Indira Varma's character, Suzie Costello, was noteworthy for being billed as a main character in a ruse to deceive audiences into thinking she would be integral to the team and the series itself, only for writers to blindside the viewers with her sudden death and set the more dangerous atmosphere and tone Torchwood exhibited than Doctor Who.
Torchwood also took full advantage of its post-watershed time slot, establishing a much grittier and adult nature than its parent series with the use of material which would be unsuitable or otherwise immoral for younger viewers and not intended to be perceived as family-friendly. These attributes include intense sexual elements, strong profane language, heavily pessimistic themes, and gratuitous violence. Later series would somewhat downplay these controversial elements.
Starting with the second story of the first series, every episode opened up with an introductory sequence featuring an opening narration by Jack Harkness: "Outside the Government, beyond the police. Tracking down alien life on Earth, arming the human race against the future. The 21st century is when everything changes, and you've got to be ready."
Cast
Recurring
- Jack Harkness - John Barrowman
- Gwen Cooper - Eve Myles
- Owen Harper - Burn Gorman
- Toshiko Sato - Naoko Mori
- Ianto Jones - Gareth David-Lloyd
- Rhys Williams - Kai Owen
- Andy Davidson - Tom Price
- Weevil - Paul Kasey
- Suzie Costello - Indira Varma
- Bilis Manger - Murray Melvin
- Lisa Hallett - Caroline Chikezie
- Diane Holmes - Louise Delamere
Guest
- Carys Fletcher - Sara Lloyd Gregory
- Ed Morgan — Gareth Thomas
- Bernie Harris — Ben McKay
- Estelle Cole - Eve Pearce
- Jasmine Pierce - Lara Phillipart
- Evan Sherman - Owen Teale
- Mary - Daniela Denby-Ashe
- Eugene Jones — Paul Chequer
- John Ellis - Mark Lewis Jones
- Emma-Louise Cowell - Olivia Hallinan
- Mark Lynch - Alex Hassell
- Real Jack Harkness - Matt Rippy
Television stories
| Episode Number | Title | Writer(s) | Director | Notes |
| 1 | Everything Changes | Russell T Davies | Brian Kelly | First appearances of Gwen Cooper, Owen Harper, Ianto Jones, Suzie Costello, Rhys Williams, Andy Davidson, Janet and Myfanwy. Reintroduction of Jack Harkness and Toshiko Sato. First appearance of the Weevils. Death of Suzie Costello. First time Jack's resurrective powers are demonstrated, in front of Gwen. First canonical Doctor Who-related production to feature strong expletives. |
| 2 | Day One | Chris Chibnall | Brian Kelly | First Doctor Who-related onscreen production to explicitly have its conflict revolve around sex. |
| 3 | Ghost Machine | Helen Raynor | Colin Teague | First Doctor Who-related onscreen story to deal with issues involving rape. |
| 4 | Cyberwoman | Chris Chibnall | James Strong | First appearance of a classic Who villain on Torchwood. Introduces Ianto's girlfriend Lisa Hallett, a victim of cyber-conversion, followed by her death. |
| 5 | Small Worlds | Peter J. Hammond | Alice Troughton | Reveals Jack was formerly married to Estelle Cole. |
| 6 | Countrycide | Chris Chibnall | Andy Goddard | Features no science fiction elements beyond a mention of the Cardiff Rift. Gwen enters a sexual affair with Owen. |
| 7 | Greeks Bearing Gifts | Toby Whithouse | Colin Teague | Gwen and Owen's affair becomes known to the rest of the Torchwood team. |
| 8 | They Keep Killing Suzie | Paul Tomalin Dan McCulloch |
James Strong | Reintroduction and second death of Suzie Costello. |
| 9 | Random Shoes | Jacquetta May | James Erskine | Similar to a Doctor-lite episode in that it mostly revolves around an unrelated side character rather than Torchwood Three. |
| 10 | Out of Time | Catherine Tregenna | Alice Troughton | Contains the first onscreen gratuitous sex scene ever shown in a televised production belonging to the canonical Doctor Who universe. Owen falls in love with Diane Holmes and has trouble parting with her. |
| 11 | Combat | Noel Clarke | Andy Goddard | Introduces the mythos behind Weevils and Owen's unique supremacy over them. Follows Owen's spiral into depression after letting go of Diane. Gwen ends her affair with Owen. |
| 12 | Captain Jack Harkness | Catherine Tregenna | Ashley Way | Jack is revealed to be using an alias. First appearance of Bilis Manger. Owen betrays Torchwood Three. |
| 13 | End of Days | Chris Chibnall | Ashley Way | Appearance and death of Abaddon, son of the Beast. First appearance of Toshiko Sato's mother, via a vision, as well as the late Lisa Hallet. Torchwood Three turns on one another out of distrust, but later reconciles. Owen murders Jack and he revives, revealing his immortality to the whole team. Temporary death of Rhys. Owen shows remorse and is forgiven for his betrayal. Jack Harkness leaves to travel with the Tenth Doctor. |
Novels