Upon entering an apparently deserted village in the Brecon Beacons, the Torchwood team is separated. Finding his people are the prey in a savage game of cat and mouse Jack faces a team of ruthless hunters far more skilled in surviving outside the confines of the city than he.
Length 46’26”
First Transmitted
10pm, 19th November 2006, BBC Three and BBC HD
9 pm, 22nd November 2006, BBC Two
Guest Cast
Kai Owens (Rhys); Owen Teale (Evan Sherman); Maxine Evans (Helen Sherman); Calum Callaghan (Kieran); Rhys ap Trefor (Huw); Emily Bowker (Ellie [Johnson]); Robert Barton (Martin)
Writer Chris Chibnall
Director Andy Godard
Setting
Brecon Beacons and the surrounding Welsh countryside, over what appears to be 24 hours. There have been 17 disappearances in the last five months, all within a 20 mile radius of Brecon Beacons. The village is 30 miles from anything else, according to Gwen. Owen had it right – “Aliens wouldn’t bother hanging around out here!”
Did You Spot?
For the first time in the series, Torchwood’s status as a secret organisation really was a secret (from Huw at least). What was that glance exchanged between Jack and Ianto following the snogging conversation? Further suggestion that there is something a bit deeper than friendship?
Twisted Reality
The ingestion-transmitted variation of Hepatitis (variant A), while serious, is one of the milder ones, and most people in the UK are automatically vaccinated against it at a young age, so Tosh’s concern seems unjustified. According to Jack, no other race in the universe goes camping except Humans. Helen’s comment of “Every 10 years, it takes us,” should have been warning enough to Tosh and Ianto that this woman surely would not be around to escort them anywhere if she had witnessed this sort of thing before. It has to be said, sex after a major gunshot wound is very risky!
Love is in the Air
Tosh looks hurt when rebuked by Owen after asking if he “needed a hand getting it up” (that would be his tent). The team later plays a game of “who’d you snog last”, where it’s revealed the last kiss Tosh had was from Owen. And, Owen reveals the kiss he and Gwen shared in Cyberwoman; which appears to make Tosh jealous. Jack doesn’t answer, but is curious if non-human life forms count. Then the conversation turns serious as Ianto remembers kissing Lisa, which quickly breaks up the discussion. Gwen and Owen then have a “close encounter” in the woods. And, later, even in pain, Gwen gets closer to Owen as he operates. There may possibly be some tension brewing between Jack and Owen over Gwen. Gwen and Owen eventually get together back in Cardiff.
If it’s Alien, it’s Ours
Gwen is horrified to discover that there are no aliens behind the murders – just people.
Captain Jack’s Large Weapon
Jack sports his Smith & Wesson again, while Gwen handles a rather mean looking automatic. Owen and Sato later brandish the same model, while Ianto’s is a slimmer type. Kieran shots Gwen with a shotgun, and Helen threatens Ianto and Tosh with another shotgun later. Jack also appears to have a good deal of knowledge about torture. Jack appears to fire off 14 twelve-gauge shotgun shells, and 4 bullets in twenty seconds to take out the villagers. And, then once more when Huw reaches for a gun.
Torchwood Shop: Now Open for Business
The Torchwoodmobile is stolen, but thanks to the handy tracking device, it is easily located again.
Cymru am Byth
None of the police vehicles or ambulances appear to have the customary Welsh translations, which might be just fine, but it is unusual that Huw’s jumper isn’t bilingual.
To Live and Die in Cardiff
We see a body lying on the road in the pre-credits, but this turns out to be a fake. The girl in the car, Ellie, is probably another victim. Gwen and Owen find the emaciated remains of a middle-aged male in the woods. Gwen finds another partially decayed body in the kitchen and another in the house next door. Tosh and Ianto find parts of several bodies stored in the larder. Jack assumes all 17 disappearances have ended in death.
Sounds Brilliant
‘Monster’ (heard in the pre-credits sequence) was the third single released by the Automatic in June 2006, and reached #4 on the UK charts. The band’s debut album, Not Accepted Anywhere, was released two weeks later, also containing the song.
Quotables
“I hate the countryside. It’s dirty; it’s unhygienic; and what is that smell?” – Owen
“That would be grass.” – Gwen
“It’s disgusting.” – Owen
“There’s another body in there.” – Gwen
“Same as the other.” – Jack
“What did this, Jack? ‘Cause whatever it is can’t be human. How far is this gonna spread?” – Gwen
“Stay focused.” – Jack
“I should be at home having dinner with Rhys; what am I doing here with you! Don’t you ever get scared, Jack? Huh?” – Gwen
“Right, do you want a quip about feeling a small prick?” – Owen
“No, but thanks for offering.” – Gwen
“Do you miss being a doctor?” – Gwen
“Excuse me, still am a doctor. I just don’t deal with patients anymore, that’s all. It’s ideal – that was the bit I always hated.” – Owen
“What about Tosh and Ianto? Should we go after them?” – Owen
“Not till we know what we’re dealing with.” – Jack
“What if it’s too late!” – Owen
“They’re not children. They know what to do. – Jack
“You’re used to this aren’t you? That facial expression you all share when things get a bit out of control. Like you enjoy it. Like you get a high from the danger.” – Ianto
“You want me to apologise for that?” – Tosh
“Don’t you ever wonder how long you can survive before you go mad, or get killed or lose a loved one?” –Ianto
“It’s worth the risk! To protect people.” – Tosh
“And, who protects us!?” – Ianto
“It’s pitch black. You don’t have any tracking devices. Do you want to get yourself killed? – Jack
“Get out of my way!” – Gwen
“Look, whatever’s in that cellar took three bullets. I heard it fall. Once we know what it is, then we’ll know how to deal with it.” – Jack
“You do that, we’ll go after Kieran and the others.” – Gwen
“You are wounded!” – Jack
“Do you think that’s going to stop me!” – Gwen
“Be careful.” – Jack
“Who is he?” – Tosh
“He’s meat. Afraid, we’re all just meat.” – Evan
“No Jack, don’t do it.” – Gwen
“These people don’t deserve warnings!” – Jack
“Let me question him. I have to understand. I want to know why, otherwise this… this is too much!” – Gwen
“Why do you do it? Come on, make me understand.” – Gwen
“Why do you care?” – Evan
“I have seen things you would never believe, and this is the only thing I can’t understand.” – Gwen
“So keep on wondering.” – Evan
“Tell me, I need to know why!!” – Gwen
“That’s enough. Time to go.” – Jack
“I’ll tell you something, if you let me whisper.” – Evan
“OK.” – Gwen
“’Cause it made me happy.” – Evan
“I had a good job before this. I thought in a year or two perhaps a baby, I know Rhys would be a good dad and I could try for desk sergeant. Well, it was all sliding into place. And, then I met you lot. All these things, all these things that are changing me. Changing how I see the world. And, I can’t share them with anyone.” – Gwen
“You can now.” – Owen
Weren’t You In?
Owen Teale has had a long career, including several science fiction series, starting with playing Maldac in Vengeance on Varos (1985). Other appearances include Knights of God (1987), Robin Hood (1991), The Thin Blue Line (1995), Spooks (2004), Midsomer Murders (2005) and Murphy’s Law (2005). Calum Callaghan starred in the series Stitch Up (2001), as well as several episodes of The Bill during the 2002 series as Tommy Reynolds. Robert Barton appeared in the 2005 series of Doctor Who playing the registrar that marries Pete and Jackie in Father’s Day. The week of broadcast, the Radio Times noted with the 22nd Wednesday listing that “John Barrowman is a guest on Never Mind the Buzzcocks tomorrow at 10pm.”
Unanswered Questions
Why is there a lunch van in the middle of nowhere? If 17 people had gone missing, why was it Ellie’s disappearance that causes the team to finally investigate? Is there a “magic” number that they use to indicate alien intervention? Just a few episodes before, the team didn’t seem to know much about Jack, but here they don’t bat an eye that he may have kissed aliens, or that he has knowledge about the non-camping habits of extraterrestrials. How do Jack and Gwen fail to notice one of the villagers watching from beside the tree? Why is Ianto with them? Doing field agent work obviously isn’t his “scene” given his “and who protects us?” rant. How does Gwen survive such a close shot? Or, at the very least why does Owen only remove one shotgun slug when she has many entry wounds? Why doesn’t Jack offer to give her one of his patented “kisses of life”? Why doesn’t Gwen shoot Huw before he cocks his gun? As a police officer, her training should be kicking in by this point – Huw is providing a clear and immediate threat to a civilian, and until he actually cocks the gun it’s not only safe but reasonable to shoot him without the risk of a reflex action causing Owen’s death. How many generations has the “harvest” been going on? How can no authorities have noticed the disappearances, especially during modern times.
Fuck Ups
Gwen’s hand keeps changing positions between camera angles during the surgery scene – alternately near Owen’s head, and on his neck and back. Jack assumes all 17 disappearances have ended in death, but Kieran, presumably one of those missing, is lying just a few feet away from him at the time. How is Jack able to fire off 14 shotgun shells in succession? (While it is possible to get some shotguns that can fire off 14 rounds, most shotguns, including a Winchester – which is what Jack’s shotgun appears to be – only handle seven rounds at a time.)
Torchwood: Declassifed Episode 6 (Length: 10’25”)
Broadcast BBC Three, Monday 20th November, 2:40am.
Russell T Davies, John Barrowman and Eve Myles open this look into episode six.
Davies and Chris Chibnall discuss their starting points for the episode, while Burn Gorman fills us in on the plot, Andy Goddard compares the episode to childhood holidays and Naoko Mori, Barrowman and Chibnall talk about what makes the episode scary.
Richard Stokes, Davies, Myles, Gorman and Barrowman on Gwen’s journey.
Myles, Gorman, Barrowman and Davies share their memories of the effects pieces. Neill Gorton shows us how some of them were made. Chibnall, Davies and Stokes on the possibility of pushing things too far – Mori confirms that even a glimpse into this world can be horrifying.
Julie Gardner, Goddard and Barrowman talk to us about the climax and the choices made about it. The next episode is previewed by Stokes, Myles and Mori.
Site Review by Rob Tizzard
Here we have Countrycide, a title which makes me want to dislike it but is just too brilliant, and it presents an episode which is very clever indeed.
Right from the next time trailer, we are duped into thinking we can at least have some idea of what to expect now. The Torchwood team is investigating a strange incident leading to high drama and an alien encounter.
So used to character focused stories am I, that this ensemble piece took me by surprise. For the first time, each team member has some action and development, most importantly Toshiko, who has so far been a little wasted.
Far away from base for once, there are bubbling tensions between the group at a time when they need to rely on each other more than ever.
The lush setting is well used and stunningly directed, giving the tale real bite. And the cleverness I mentioned, well right up until the whispered reason I was expecting alien, but how much more chilling that it is not for once. It’s easy to accept strange behaviour from a creature you know so little about, that is so different, but when it’s another human being…
There’s some real development here, Jack is someone we really don’t know and he has love for Gwen. The opening and closing pieces remind us that these people are cut off and Owen’s need for Gwen feels as though he is settling or grabbing for the only chance of real companionship he can. Gwen also slowly begins to realise exactly what her curiousity has done to her. Ianto was so desperately in love, but Lisa was also a rare bread, someone he could share everything with. And as for Toshiko, her negative reaction to Gwen and Owen speaks volumes, as does her passion for what she does, but I suspect we’ll get a little more next week…
Reader Reviews
Finally, in its sixth week, Torchwood has taken a step towards a true sci-fi thriller. Whilst the events in Cyberwoman were, for the first time in the show’s brief history, able to build a suitable amount of tension in its audience, Countrycide was truly a blood-chilling 46 minutes of television.
The episode starts off by delving straight into mystery and horror when the ill-fated Ellie poked at the “body” in the road, accented by the atmospheric soundtrack running in the background. Immediately my thoughts were, “What sort of sick-minded aliens are we dealing with?” – a question I kept asking myself as more gruesome deaths were revealed.
It was refreshing to see the entire ensemble working outside of the base, juxtaposed to Cyberwoman’s entirely intra-hub action. Ianto’s presence out in the field was somewhat puzzling, but it gave the audience an avenue to sympathise with his character’s plight as he’s obviously not used to the danger that the rest of the team deal with on a regular basis.
In one more nod to the series’ fourth episode, there is further development between the characters of Owen and Gwen. Whether this will be a lasting relationship remains to be seen, but it’s clear that none of the characters really have a stable romantic life. Poor Ianto is still mourning the loss of Lisa, Tosh hasn’t seen any action aside from a single kiss the previous Christmas, and Jack is… Jack – sexually promiscuous enough to admit that the last person he slept with was probably not human, but also ‘human’ enough to emote some jealousy towards the surfacing sexual attraction between Gwen and Owen.
The plot twist at the end of the show was the most incredible example of irony I have witnessed on television. The simple assumption that the team, and indeed the audience, had made about the attackers being alien was thwarted in such shocking fashion that even when it was clear the show was winding up, I was still waiting for the aliens to reveal themselves. Surely, tentacles were going to come out of Evan’s mouth at any moment while he was being interrogated! Surely, these were creatures with technology like the Slitheen and they were aliens in human skin suits! No, these horrible monsters were human; the collective shudder of the audience will undoubtedly still be reverberating in future episodes, as we have been poignantly warned that even humans aren’t alien to inhumanity.
Ceres D’Aleo
Countrycide is an episode that has undeniably split fandom down the middle. Having missed it on original transmission, I’m belatedly catching up on DVD. Despite my intention of approaching it with an open mind, I must say it was a little difficult, as I’d heard some quite scathing reviews. As it happens, I needn’t have worried, as the episode kept me on the edge of my seat and constantly shocked and surprised. I loved the twist that the killings had nothing to do with alien intervention, or even with the spreading of the rift, which I take it was something of a red herring. A very dark tale in an isolated setting. I approve wholeheartedly.
Alan Hayes
