Torchwood-Complete 1st Season (2007)

"...extremely well written, imaginative and innovative...The stories intertwine perfectly in the Doctor Who universe...  Ain't It Cool News
"...a spin-off of the recently revived Doctor Who - sort of like Russell T Davies' Angel to his Buffy...  BlogCritics.org
"...this semi-spinoff of the new "Dr. Who"...yields "X-Files"-ish charms with "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" bite...  Brian Lowry, Variety
"...essentially C.S.I. meets Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Like both of those shows, it is extremely well-acted...  John Floyd, DVD Verdict
"...Torchwood has everything: There's murder, mayhem and sex, of both the human and alien kind.  Ruth Jordan, Crimespree Cinema

Editor's Note This atmospheric DOCTOR WHO spin-off follows a clandestine group of investigators who delve into extraterrestrial phenomena. From the Torchwood Institute's underground headquarters in Cardiff, the team's edgy ensemble harnesses otherworldly technologies to battle both earthbound and extraterrestrial threats. Led by the mysterious Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman), the fresh-faced group includes compassionate cop Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles), crack engineer Suzie Costello (Indira Varma), arrogant medic Owen Harper (Burn Gorman), computer expert Toshiko Sato (Naoko Mori), and jack-of-all-trades Ianto Jones (Gareth David Lloyd). Together, they face unbelievable challenges as they put themselves in harm's way to protect the human race from danger. This collection presents all 13 episodes of the British sci-fi drama's debut season.

	Burn Gorman
	Eve Myles
	John Barrowman
	Naoko Mori
	Andy Goddard, et. al. - Director
	Chris Chibnall - Producer
	Chris Chibnall, et. al. - Writer
	Edward Thomas - Production Designer
	Kay Brown - Production Designer
	Keith Dunne - Art Director
	Mark Waters - Cinematographer
	Ray Orton - Cinematographer
	Richard Cox, et. al. - Editor
	Russell T. Davies - Executive Producer
	Stephen Nicholas - Art Director

Variety 8 of 10
The Brits have seldom excelled in science fiction relative to their strides in other genres, but this semi-spinoff of the new "Dr. Who" from its writer, Russell T. Davies, yields "X-Files"-ish charms with "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" bite -- a smart, occasionally salacious hour wryly populated by cheesy monsters. Built around another one of those crack teams assigned to protect the Earth, the quirky interaction within the group (which loses members here and there) elevates the material, as does John Barrowman's "Who"-originated perf as intrepid and mysterious Yank leader Capt. Jack Harkness...Davies and the other lead writer on the series, Chris Chibnall ("Life on Mars"), play much of it for laughs, but there's a bit of an edge in this British-Canadian coproduction as well. Beyond just a monster of the week, there's also a continuing element as Gwen adjusts to the team (and keeping her new gig secret from her boyfriend)...Briskly paced if relatively unimpressive in its sets and effects (one "alien" more than anything resembles a Vegas showgirl), "Torchwood" has the fixings of a thinking-man's sci-fi series that doesn't take itself too seriously -- as it should be, really, dwelling as the show does in that existential rift between really good and just OK, a treacherous zone if there ever was one. - Brian Lowry