Gabrielle Ketley reviews the latest Torchwood release

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Cursed video tapes, mysterious knocking, ‘he is coming’ written on the walls of a dead man’s flat, and Sergeant Andy Davidson. Does it get any better than this?

Torchwood: The Flawless Man (Stewart Pringle & Lauren Mooney) opens with the recording of a police interview. Night Watchman Martin Binns (Rhys Jennings) has been found dead in the bath by his friend and colleague, Daniel Swanson (Matthew Woodyatt), and it’s up to DI Priya Sharma (Bharti Patel) and Sergeant Andy Davidson (Tom Price) to work out what’s behind Martin’s sorry end

What should be a routine interview is derailed by Daniel’s erratic ranting, and his insistence that there is tapping coming from the window, even though they’re three storeys up.

While DI Sharma is ready to call it a case of post-corpse-finding freakout, Andy knows by now what genre he’s in, and sure enough, as he and DI Sharma start to dig, they discover Martin’s death is one part of a much larger mystery, involving a half-made horror film from Martin and Daniel’s college days, the unexplained disappearance of their co-star, Iwan Jones (Arthur Hughes) and sightings of a terrifying entity, a ‘Tulpa’ (a creature materialised through thought and will) called The Flawless Man.

The Flawless Man is a simple ghost story. It begins with a mystery, and gradually builds the tension as information comes out in dribs and drabs. While it’s the standard formula, it’s the standard formula done really well. The use of tape and video recordings is well executed, satisfyingly combining tech and terror, and science and the supernatural. There is always something haunting about old home made videos, snapshots of time and people now gone, but lingering around just like a ghost. Far from just a gimmick, or a means of exposition, the use of found footage is very pertinent to a plot in which our victims are tormented by memories and monsters alike.

The cast is strong, with Ulrika Watt managing to bring wit and humanity to her portrayal of exposition heavy Doctor Sara Davies, and Hughes, Woodyatt and Jennings‘s performances particularly standing out in the old recordings of their doomed movie, as they deftly switch between playing bad actors hamming it up, to three young lads way in over their heads. Daniel’s distress as the horrors of his past catch up with him is brutally poignant.

Bharti Patel as DI Sharma is delightfully deadpan and down to earth, pointing out to Andy that whatever “feeling” he has that Martin’s death is more than it seems, they’re working under budget constraints. DI Sharma’s an excellent contrast to Andy, and she provides the small touches of humour needed to alleviate the tension.

Of course, the star of the show is, as ever, Andy. With the Torchwood Monthly Range coming to the end (big sob) it feels right that we get to dive deep into the psychological impact Torchwood has had on Andy. Andy has been there from the beginning, popping up in Everything Changes even before Torchwood swaggers onscreen, and he’s stuck around after the bulk of the main cast has been killed off. Interestingly, there’s no mention of Torchwood throughout The Flawless Man, but its presence is felt throughout.

From the start, Andy knows something is up. He’s dipped his toe deep into the world of Torchwood enough to sense when something is more than it seems. He is aware of things his colleagues aren’t, he’s frightened of things his colleagues aren’t. In this he parallels Martin and Daniel, hunted by a monster only they can see.

In a story all about isolation and trauma, it’s understandable how Andy is able to feel empathy for Daniel, even as it becomes clear that he’s no clear cut victim.

Torchwood: The Flawless Man is spooky, gripping, and works just as well as a stand alone horror story, as it does another entry in the much loved Torchwood universe.

Torchwood: The Flawless Man is available on CD or as a download from http://www.bigfinish.com