Gabrielle Ketley reviews the latest Torchwood release
Torchwood has been with us for twenty years, and it feels fitting that the Big Finish range should close out with Ianto (Gareth David-Lloyd), barely a month after the Ianto Shrine in Cardiff Bay has been taken down. It’s certainly the end of an era, and Torchwood: Fare Well (Joseph Lidster) marks that end, not with flashes and thrills, but with a thoughtful and funny character study, and a subtle but poignant introspection as to the point of life and friendships, when both inevitably end with death.
Ianto is visiting an old friend, colleague and mentor, Tommy Pierce (Timothy Bentinck). Through flashbacks to Ianto’s early days at Torchwood, we see the start of Ianto’s friendship with Tommy, and his brief acquaintance with the fun and effusive Jason “Something” (Devante Fleming).
It’s a treat to see Ianto at the beginning of his Torchwood days. His evident excitement to be starting a job where he has to use a code word to get through the door is all too relatable and endearing. The flashbacks themselves focus less on Ianto’s epic, dramatic memories of Torchwood, than on the quieter, more mundane moments between himself, Tommy and Jason. The small, every day stuff that we only appreciate for how precious they are once they’re gone. Their friendship and camaraderie is shown through mutual teasing, trips to the pubs and minor office mishaps, and these prove as effective in affirming the ties between these characters as any grand speech or dramatic rescue attempts.
The drama is toned down in present day as well. There is no immediate peril, and when danger does come, it arrives at the end and is resolved fairly quickly. The gentle pace shows the well placed confidence in the interplay between the characters.
Sentiment is perfectly balanced with humour. Torchwood: Fare Well doesn’t hold back from having Tommy and Ianto say they love each other, but it never dwells too long in the soppy stuff. There is always some deliciously irreverent humour cutting through just at the right time.
Appropriately for the final entry into the Torchwood range, a major theme of the story is death. Tommy and Ianto both lived through the fall of Torchwood One, they witnessed the brutal deaths of their colleagues, and Ianto has gone on to suffer even more losses, having now come to the (understandable) conclusion that he might even be cursed.
Meanwhile, Tommy is also facing death’s rapid approach. For Tommy, it’s not aliens that will finish him off, nor his kidney (to his surprise), but his heart. As Ianto says,Tommy is getting old, and it’s just part of life, but Tommy still wants more time and is willing to risk a lot to attain it.
And Ianto, who knows from experience that utilising cyber-tech for even the purest of reasons can only end in disaster, is willing to risk a whole lot to give it to him.
Ianto’s loyalty to Tommy is reciprocated with Tommy’s own attempts to save Ianto’s life, specifically, telling Ianto to get out of Torchwood while he still can. Sound advice, but Ianto cannot bring himself to call it quits, not when he still values the experiences and bonds he gained through working with Torchwood. It’s tragically ironic that the dangerous and incredible experiences that cements those bonds are the exact same thing that cuts them short.
Still, just because something ends doesn’t mean it didn’t matter, but at the same time, just because something matters doesn’t mean it won’t ever end.
Farewell Torchwood, until we meet again.
Torchwood: Fare Well is available on CD or as a download from
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