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Torchwood returns for more sci-fi hijinks

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LOS ANGELES -- Attention, fans of quick-witted, Brit-flavored sci-fi television: Capt. Jack is back.

"He's still the same Jack but he's a little more lighthearted," says John Barrowman, who plays cheeky charmer Capt. Jack Harkness on "Torchwood," BBC America's flirty, fast-paced series.

"He's resolved a lot of his issues," Barrowman says of his time-traveling, alien-hunting hero who wears World War II-era togs and cannot die. "He's got a new sparkle in his eye."

Introduced in 2005 on the BBC series "Dr. Who," Jack is coy about his shadowy past as a Time Agent -- akin to an intergalactic CIA operative -- turned fast-talking con artist.

In the second season of "Torchwood," premiering Saturday, Jack returns to the clandestine Torchwood agency in Cardiff, Wales, where he watches over an alien-spewing rift in space and time beneath the city streets.

Together with his hip, young Torchwood team, Jack battles his old pal, the time-traveling psychopath Capt. John Hart (James Marsters of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer").

As always, Torchwood operates outside the law and the British government. It stands tall against all manner of monsters, including a recurring cast of nasty, sewer-dwelling weevils.

But Jack and crew still find time for office romance and ill-fated, inter-species love affairs -- of the sameand opposite-sex sorts.

"Omnisexual is the science-fiction word we like to use," says Barrowman, who sounds very American, both on and off camera. Born in Scotland, he grew up in Illinois.

"In the sci-fi setting we can talk about things that you probably couldn't talk about on a regular nighttime drama," the 40-year-old Barrowman says.

"I think audiences just get Jack because he's honest," he says. "To finally see a character who doesn't care who he flirts with, I think is a bit refreshing."

The ace Torchwood team also includes steely Dr. Owen Harper (Burn Gorman), techno-savvy Toshiko Sato (Naoko Mori), office administrator Ianto Jones (Gareth David-Lloyd) and compassionate former cop Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles), who is typically the conscience of the group.

All of Jack's cohorts are just as hormonal as he is.

"Yes, it is a science-fiction soap opera," says Myles, who is Welsh.

Last season Gwen hopped into Owen's bed despite her devotion to her clueless live-in lover, Rhys (Kai Owen).

"It was completely out of character for Gwen," Myles says. "But that's what good drama is all about. You don't want to spoon-feed a sci-fi audience. You want to challenge them. So none of these characters are safe."

To executive producer Julie Gardner, "Torchwood" -- an anagram for "Doctor Who" -- is "warm science fiction."

"It's the type of science fiction that has a proper kind of human grounding," Gardner says.

For more information: BBC America, www.bbcamerica.com; John Barrowman, www.johnbarrowman.com.

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  • APA 6th ed.: (2008-01-22). Torchwood returns for more sci-fi hijinks. El Paso Times .
  • MLA 7th ed.: "Torchwood returns for more sci-fi hijinks." El Paso Times [add city] 2008-01-22. Print.
  • Chicago 15th ed.: "Torchwood returns for more sci-fi hijinks." El Paso Times, edition, sec., 2008-01-22
  • Turabian: "Torchwood returns for more sci-fi hijinks." El Paso Times, 2008-01-22, section, edition.
  • Wikipedia (this article): <ref>{{cite news| title=Torchwood returns for more sci-fi hijinks | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Torchwood_returns_for_more_sci-fi_hijinks | work=El Paso Times | pages= | date=2008-01-22 | via=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=19 May 2024 }}</ref>
  • Wikipedia (this page): <ref>{{cite web | title=Torchwood returns for more sci-fi hijinks | url=http://cuttingsarchive.org/index.php/Torchwood_returns_for_more_sci-fi_hijinks | work=Doctor Who Cuttings Archive | accessdate=19 May 2024}}</ref>


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