Taking a brief detour from the main Doctor Who rewatch, today’s retrospective focuses on the first episode of Torchwood, the adult-oriented spin-off series that debuted in 2006. While I won’t be revisiting every episode of the show, I will be covering a selection of key episodes that either tie into the broader Doctor Who narrative or are remembered personal favourites. First up is Everything Changes, the pilot episode, written by Russell T Davies and directed by Brian Kelly.
The opening moments of Everything Changes immediately establish that Torchwood is a different beast from Doctor Who. Gone is the whimsical, family-friendly tone of its parent series—this is a world of secrecy, alien conspiracies, and moral ambiguity. The episode introduces us to Gwen Cooper, played by Eve Myles, a Cardiff police officer whose life takes a dramatic turn when she stumbles upon the existence of Torchwood, a clandestine organization tasked with investigating extraterrestrial threats.
Gwen is, in many ways, the audience surrogate. Much like Rose in Doctor Who’s first episode, she is an ordinary person drawn into an extraordinary world. Her initial skepticism and gradual fascination mirror our own as we are introduced to Torchwood’s shadowy operations. The scene where she watches them casually revive a corpse in a morgue—a sequence that blends eerie sci-fi with dark humor—sets the tone for what’s to come. Unlike the Doctor’s world, where saving lives is paramount, Torchwood operates in moral gray areas, and their flippancy toward death is unsettling.
At the heart of it all is Captain Jack Harkness, played once again by John Barrowman. Having last seen him in The Parting of the Ways, resurrected by Rose Tyler’s godlike power, Jack now leads Torchwood with a mix of charisma, authority, and mystery. The more serious and pragmatic Jack we see here is a stark contrast to the flirtatious time traveler we met in Doctor Who’s first series. His immortality, a lingering consequence of Rose’s actions, has clearly changed him, and though the episode does not dwell too deeply on his past, there is an air of sadness beneath his bravado.
Torchwood itself is introduced as a morally dubious organization. Unlike UNIT, which works alongside the government, Torchwood operates outside of any official oversight. They steal alien technology for their own use, cover up incidents, and use their power in ways that feel questionable at best. The supporting team—Owen Harper (Burn Gorman), Toshiko Sato (Naoko Mori), and Ianto Jones (Gareth David-Lloyd)—are all competent but flawed, each with their own secrets and moral compromises. Owen, in particular, comes across as rather unlikeable in this episode, using an alien pheromone spray to manipulate women in a sequence that has aged poorly and highlights the show’s early struggles with its adult themes.
The episode’s central mystery revolves around a series of brutal murders linked to an alien known as a Weevil, a creature living in the underground passages of Cardiff. While the Weevils are effectively creepy, they ultimately serve as a background threat rather than the main focus. Instead, Everything Changes is about Gwen’s initiation into this hidden world and the ethical dilemmas that come with it. Her confrontation with Jack at the end, where she challenges Torchwood’s secrecy and demand for obedience, is a strong moment that sets up her character’s role as the moral compass of the team.
One of the episode’s most poignant scenes comes in the final moments, when Jack stands alone on the Torchwood rooftop, gazing up at the stars. When Gwen asks him who he is waiting for, he simply replies, "The right kind of Doctor." It’s a quiet but powerful nod to his unresolved connection to the Doctor, hinting at the emotional journey still to come.
Rewatching Everything Changes in 2025, it remains a solid introduction to Torchwood, albeit one that is still finding its footing. The darker, more mature approach is refreshing, though at times it feels like the show is trying a bit too hard to distinguish itself from Doctor Who. Nevertheless, the character dynamics, the intriguing mysteries, and the presence of Jack Harkness make it an engaging pilot, setting the stage for the twists and turns to come.
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