Product Description

Studio: Warner Home Video Release Date: 07/28/2009 Run time: 300 minutes Rating: Nr

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4009 in DVD
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2009-07-28
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Formats: AC-3, Color, Dolby, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 293 minutes

Features

• Torchwood follows the adventures of a team of investigators, led by the enigmatic Captain Jack. Set in the UK in the present day, the team use scavenged alien technology in a very real world to solve crime; both alien and human. Separate from the government. Outside the police. Beyond the United Nations. Everyone who works for Torchwood is young, under 35. Some say that's because it's a new scienc

Amazon.com
After two engagingly frothy seasons of action-packed science fiction TV, the Russell T. (Doctor Who) Davies-produced Torchwood takes a decidedly dark and thoughtful turn in its abbreviated third season miniseries, Children of Earth. Here, Captain Jack Harkness and the Torchwood Three team, still reeling from the deaths of two of its key members in the previous season, investigate a outbreak of hypnotic chanting by children across the globe. The phenomenon heralds the arrival of an invading alien force, the 456, who plan to destroy the human race if 10% of the Earth’s children are not given to them. Captain Jack and his cohorts must find a way to stop the 456’s plan, but encounter formidable obstacles along the way, including enemies in the British Home Office and Jack’s own past, which is intertwined with the 456. Penned in part by Davies, Children of Earth does an impressive job of bringing the Torchwood characters and mythology into a more complex and mature storyline (which borrows and elaborates pleasantly on John Wyndham’s novel The Midwich Cuckoos and its film adaptation, Village of the Damned). Dedicated fans of the series may decry some of Davies’ decisions regarding some of the show’s characters (and new ones are introduced here), but most should enjoy this attempt to bring weight and suspense to the Torchwood universe. The Blu-ray release contains all five episodes of Children of Earth (which were broadcast on consecutive nights on the BBC and its affiliated stations), as well as a 31-minute episode of its companion series, Torchwood Declassified, which addresses the season’s production (and under no circumstances should be viewed prior to watching the episodes). --Paul Gaita

Customer Reviews

The darkest, sharpest series of 2009
Russell T. Davies, freed from the restraints of the family-friendly brief of DOCTOR WHO, takes full control of TORCHWOOD and fulfills the spin-off series' more adult, tragic and even political agenda.

This is Davies creating a show with the safety wheels off. Where the previous two seasons often promised the characters would be pushed to their limits, this season really means it this time. A mysterious, seemingly unbeatable alien race makes contact with Earth by controlling and manipulating every child in the world, their demands as unfathomable as their threat to the human race, and the politicians are driven to both cover their own skins while committing a monstrous act in the name of the greater good. The question is whether Captain Jack Harkness and Torchwood are up to the challenge of averting a worldwide tragedy without losing their lives and their souls, and how much they're willing to sacrifice. Davies uses the medium of Science Fiction to explore issues of government corruption and cravenness, complicity and moral failure. This is adult Science Fiction drama, not the silly, adolescent teases of previous series of TORCHWOOD.


As some reviews have already noted, this 5-part miniseries changes all the rules of the show, raises the stakes and suspense to an almost unbearable degree, and by the end, nothing will ever be the same again. The changes to the show are tragic, permanent, and leaves the continuation of the series in doubt. However, it is also the angriest political drama the BBC has produced in years, the story openly states that governments are corrupt and untrustworthy, and practically encourages class warfare. This is on par with classic Old School British Leftist series such as EDGE OF DARKNESS, BOYS FROM THE BLACKSTUFF and STATE OF PLAY. It's attitude towards the government is consistent with what the British public currently feels about their government, and proves that Russell T. Davies has his finger firmly on the pulse of the nation.

This is the best political Science Fiction miniseries of recent years. No US drama would dare push things this far. It takes its influences from QUATERMASS, CHILDREN OF THE DAMNED, Lovecraft, and creates an angry indictment of government that took me by surprise.

Excited to have this on blu-ray
Because this show is a spinoff of Dr. Who, I have watched it from the beginning. I love scifi and this is very clever. The characters are very quirky and super intelligent and work well with each other. Sadly, two of the characters died in the last season, which leaves Gwen, Capt Jack and Ianto to solve this mystery. I saw the first episode on tv and the premise is that aliens take hold of the childten of the earth and use them to let the adults know that they are coming to take over. What happens next-stay tuned for the next exciting episode! This disc comes with specials that were shown on tv - such as a tour of Torchwood headquaters, interviews with cast and crew. A must see for sci fi fans. The only thing that I find objectionable is the affair between Capt Jack and Ianto but usually they are brief and then the action starts up again. I am glad that this title is on blu-ray.

Brilliant
Torchwood: Children of Earth is brilliant. Action packed, moving, and suspenseful, it has it all. This was my first Blu-Ray purchase and the picture is stunning. The packaging notes that the music heard on the disc for Day 5 is not the same as heard on the BBC broadcast. I haven't gone back and listened to both to hear the differences, but nothing is really jarring or immediately noticeable as being different.

If you are a fan of Doctor Who and Torchwood, this is a must-see.