End of Days (TV story)

End of Days was the thirteenth and final episode in the first series of Torchwood. It marked the revelation of Jack Harkness' immortality to the rest of Torchwood Three.

Synopsis

The rift is open and beings from all the periods of time are seeping through. What exactly does Bilis Manger know and what lurks in the rift and can Jack save the World?

Plot

The episode opens with Gwen and Rhys having a morning in, until Jack calls Gwen, instructing her to watch the news. UFOs have been sighted over the Taj Mahal and police have clashed with English civil war era soldiers. The two speculate, Gwen concluding it can’t be an act of terrorism—terrorists use bombs, this is different.

Gwen sees Bilis in a illusion on the police station.

At the Hub, Ianto recites biblical verses from the King James Bible, Daniel 12:8-9 (though he says it is 12:10). Jack cuts in as he moves onto an apocalyptic text on Abaddon the "great devourer," remarking how mankind is obsessed with anything that "denies the randomness of existence."

Institutions across the globe (including UNIT) have their eyes trained on Torchwood and the team question their responsibility. Running a simulation, Toshiko demonstrates how the rift—or more specifically, Torchwood 3—is the epicentre of all the temporal incidents. The rift is expanding and history is falling through the cracks. Jack is quick to put the blame on Owen who justifies opening the rift to save Jack and Toshiko.

Abbadon in Cardiff

Jack has instructed Owen and Toshiko to investigate a quarantined hospital where they find the bubonic plague has broken out after the admittance of a plague victim from the 14th century, the time of the Black Death. Owen is not only terrified by this development, but also blames himself for it, as the one responsible for opening the rift. He instructs the woman's doctor in what medicine to give her. Owen warns the doctors that this may happen more often, and leaves. Gwen and Jack go to investigate a Roman soldier who was arrested by PC Andy. The pair explain to him how the soldier arrived. Andy states that even if he believes them, he is still confused, not knowing how to treat the new prisoner. The pair solve this by drugging the soldier and taking him back to the cells at Torchwood.

Back at the hospital, Toshiko sees her mother who tells her in Japanese that the darkness is coming and that Toshiko must open the rift to stop it all. Her mother then vanishes.

At the prison, Gwen sees Bilis Manger in a cell. He apologises before disappearing. Back at the Hub, Ianto sees Lisa who tries to convince him to open the rift. Ianto does not believe that it is Lisa but being told to open the rift still makes him think. Owen and Jack fall out; Jack fires Owen, who goes to a bar to drown his sorrows. Diane appears and tells him to open the rift. He is tempted enough to do it.

Abbadon Falls

Jack and Gwen go to Bilis' clock shop "A Stitch In Time". There they question him and Bilis reveals that he can step between eras in time, before disappearing. Jack leaves, but Bilis returns and shows Gwen a vision of Rhys dead in their flat. She runs to the flat to find Rhys alive. He won't come quietly to The Hub, so she shocks him and gets Jack to help her get him to Torchwood's base. Once there he wakes up and is very angry at Gwen. She says that she only wants to protect him. The team, minus Owen, are all in the central area of the Hub when the power goes off. Gwen runs to the cells, shouting Rhys' name.

The power goes off and Rhys' cell doors open. He tries to open the door, but Bilis appears and stabs him twice, twisting the dagger.

Gwen arrives and sees Rhys dead and no sign of Bilis. In the autopsy room, she cries and shouts at Jack, who consoles her. Owen bursts in and tries to console her, but she shuns him. Owen then announces that he's opening the rift. Ianto follows him and Jack orders him to stop Owen, but Ianto says no. Toshiko and Gwen follow as well and begin to open the rift, however they are stopped by a security protocol that demands retina prints of all Torchwood personnel. Jack threatens Gwen with a gun, but she just walks up to him. He insults the gang by saying, "You're a united front now, Toshiko, the poor girl who'll screw any passing alien that gives her a pendant. Owen, so strong he gets in a cage with a Weevil, desperate to be mauled. Ianto, hiding a cyber-girlfriend in the basement. Your three comrades pumped bullets into her. Remember?" Gwen insists that she must get Rhys back and Jack answers, 'Yeah, because you're so in love with Rhys that you spent half your time in Owen's bed." Gwen subsequently punches Jack, knocking the gun out of his hand. Owen seizes Jack's revolver and turns it on him. They're relieving Jack of command and "getting back what (they) love." Jack tells Owen that if he wants to take charge, he'd need "significantly bigger balls." Jack picks himself up and walks forward and Owen opens fire. Jack is dropped by a head shot but Owen fires another two rounds into his torso. Ianto, stunned, drops to Jack's side and implores Owen, "What have you done?" Owen answers he's "sick of people doubting" him as Gwen tries to calm him down.

With Owen calmed, the team activate the machine with all of their retinal scans, including Jack's. As the Rift opens, Jack revives himself. He comes round and asks what they've done and the team all evacuate the Hub as an earthquake splits across Cardiff. Outside, the team find Bilis, who speaks of "[the] son of The Great Beast, cast out before time" named Abaddon trapped inside the Rift, before disappearing. Suddenly, a huge

The Team look on a dead Jack.

creature (similar to the Beast from Doctor Who's "The Satan Pit") rises above Cardiff. Anyone in its shadow immediately dies, giving Jack an idea: he can't die, so Abaddon can feed off his life. Gwen drives him to an open space and, screaming, she tearfully tries to stop him without success. Jack shoves Gwen away, shouting at her to drive to safety, but still she doesn't leave, crying by the SUV. Jack stands before Abaddon. The shadow begins to kill Jack, but a blue light flows out of Jack's chest and begins to destroy Abaddon. The creature is dead and the rift is sealed. Jack lies dead before Gwen as she holds him, crying over his body.

The timeline has been restored with the opening of the rift. Rhys is alive. But at a cost — Jack has not re-animated. Owen, Ianto, and Tosh appear resigned to the reality of his death but Gwen refuses to move from his side, telling them forcefully that she 'wants to sit with him'. Days pass, the team increasingly concerned for Gwen, but she remains faithfully by Jack's side, watching him, occasionally smoothing down and re-arranging the body bag he lies in on the morgue slab. Ianto is seen crying into Jack's military coat. Finally, Gwen appears to give up. She picks up Jack's hand, pressing her cheek lovingly to the back of it before hesitantly leaning over him and kissing his lips. Gwen stands and walks away, almost crying, from the morgue before hearing him gasp a breath and weakly calling, "Thank-you." Gwen sprints back to find him alive and smiling up at her.

Jack has regained some strength, although he is still pale, and Gwen accompanies him into the main Hub area, taking his hand and smiling up at him. Toshiko runs into his arms and Jack embraces her. Next, Ianto comes forward somewhat uncertainly, extending an unsteady hand but Jack pulls him into an embrace and then kisses him. Owen, clearly shaken, then steps up to Jack as the Captain walks towards him. He begins to stutter his apology but Jack cuts him off. "I forgive you." Breaking down, Owen sobs into Jack’s shoulder and clings to him.

Jack hears a familiar sound.

The scene shifts to Jack's office, where Gwen and Jack are in conversation. Jack tells her that although the rift is sealed, it will be more volatile than before. Gwen asks him what vision would have tempted him to open the rift. He says simply, "The right kind of Doctor." Jack walks out of his office to find the severed hand of the Doctor glowing, the preserving liquid bubbling actively, and its tank sounding some sort of alert. His excitement is obvious, a nervous smile mixed with confusion covering his face as a breeze sweeps through the area and the sound of the TARDIS materialising is heard. Jack turns his head to something we can't see and smiles widely, and as the shot cuts to Gwen, the sound of the TARDIS dematerialising is heard and Jack has gone.

Gwen enters the room, calling for Jack who is nowhere to be seen. The rest of the Torchwood team enter with coffee and Gwen asks them if they’ve seen Jack. Owen remarks that the Hub has been dishevelled after they had just cleared up. Gwen looks around the emptiness of the Hub, "He was just here." Crossing her arms over her chest, she frowns, "Something's taken him; Jack's gone."

Cast

Crew

to be added

References

Inside the Whoniverse

UNIT is mentioned.
The Beast is mentioned.
The TARDIS materialisation noise is heard.
The Doctor's hand is seen again.
Jathaa sungliders are seen flying above the Taj Mahal. (DW: Army of Ghosts)

Outside the Whoniverse

While in the police station, PC Andy calls Jack and Gwen "Mulder and Scully", referring to the FBI paranormal investigators in FOX's The X-Files.
When a Policeman at the hospital realises that the medication Owen has told them to use on the Black Death infected patients is for the condition, Owen says "Well done House", most likely refering to a character called Gregory House played by British actor Hugh Laurie on the American Medical drama 'House' a.k.a 'House MD'. Coincidentally, 'House' featured an episode that included a patient with the Black Death.
Captain Jack was going to be stored in morgue drawer 007.

Music

Begging You - Stone Roses
I Lost my Heart to a Starship Trooper - Sarah Brightman and Hot Gossip

Story notes

The same camera shot of the Taj Mahal was used in 2006's Army of Ghosts/Doomsday.
It was originally titled Apocalypse.

Ratings

BBC3 - 1.2 million viewers
BBC2 - 2.1 million viewers

Myths

to be added

Filming locations

to be added

Production errors

In the final shot of the Hub, the jar containing the Doctor's hand can be seen, even though Jack supposedly takes it with him as he runs to reunite with the Doctor and the TARDIS, as seen in Utopia.
Rhys's stomach moves up and down when he's on the autopsy table.

Continuity

If you'd like to talk about narrative problems with this story — like plot holes and things that seem to contradict other stories — please go to this episode's discontinuity discussion.

Jack catches up with the TARDIS in DW: Utopia, which was broadcast six months after the cliffhanger ending to this episode.
During the final aerial shot of Cardiff, something can be seen moving very fast across the ground. This is possibly Jack running toward the TARDIS as seen in DW: Utopia.
This episode is the second of the continuous arc (the end of one episode immediately leading into another) that starts in the episode Captain Jack Harkness, switches over to Doctor Who in Utopia and ends in Voyage of the Damned.
The Torchwood website states that Jack disappeared in early February.

Jack returns to Torchwood Three in TW: Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang.
Ianto sees a human Lisa appear to him (TW: Cyberwoman).
An apparition of Diane appears to Owen (TW: Out of Time).
Toshiko sees an apparition of her mother, with her head cut from Fragments
2,000 years later, the Torchwood Archive sends the Walker Expedition to Krop Tor, where Abbadon's father rests. (DW: The Satan Pit)
The concept of scavenging antiques from the past was first used in DW: The Evil of the Daleks.

Timeline

For Jack

This story occurs after: TW: Captain Jack Harkness
This story occurs before: DW: Utopia

For Gwen, Tosh, Owen and Ianto

This story occurs after: TW: Captain Jack Harkness
This story occurs before: TW: Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang

Home video releases

This episode was first released on DVD, with three other episodes entitle Torchwood: Series 1, part 3 on 26 March 2007. It was later released in Torchwood:The Complete first series on 19th November 2007

External links

Footnotes