In Kentucky, convicted child killer Oswald Danes’ time has run out, but apparently not his luck: despite being given a lethal injection, Danes convulses violently but does not die. In Washington, CIA agent Rex Matheson is impaled in a traffic accident, but despite doctors’ predictions that he won’t make it, he too pulls through. Across the entire world, death simply stops happening to the human race.
This is nothing new to the object of research being conducted by Matheson’s colleague, CIA agent Esther Drummond. An unexplained intrusion into the CIA’s computer system has wiped out any trace of the word “Torchwood,” leaving her to search through the agency’s physical records, a search that leads to an enigmatic man named Captain Jack Harkness. She’s more than a little surprised to find Jack himself in the archives, evading someone who’s trying to kill him; Esther simply gets caught in the middle.
In Wales, the only other surviving member of Torchwood, Gwen Cooper, has settled into motherhood in seclusion. With her husband Rhys, Gwen has gone completely off the grid, avoiding any contact with the outside world until she receives word that her father has suffered a heart attack. She quietly slips into Cardiff to see him, where she learns that his doctors can’t explain how he survived. It’s only now that Gwen is learning about death taking a holiday in the rest of the world.
Esther’s research into Torchwood intrigues Matheson, whose injuries are slow to heal despite his miraculous survival. He stubbornly arranges a flight to Wales to track down Gwen. Gwen is less than happy to be tracked down – but then she learns that he’s not the only one who’s tracked her down, she has to save Matheson’s life. With a heavily armed helicopter in pursuit, Matheson finds himself on the run with Gwen and her family, saved only by a timely intervention (and a handy stash of weapons) provided by Jack.
But Matheson still insists on extraditing Gwen and Jack to the United States, where he’s sure they hold the key to what’s going on. Along the way, Jack discovers that, while the rest of the human race is suddenly immortal, that condition no longer necessarily applies to him.
written by Russell T. Davies
directed by Bharat Nalluri
music by Ben FosterCast: John Barrowman (Captain Jack Harkness), Eve Myles (Gwen Cooper), Mekhi Phifer (Rex Matheson), Alexa Havins (Esther Drummond), Kai Owen (Rhys Williams), Bill Pullman (Oswald Danes), Arlene Tur (Dr. Vera Juarez), Paul James (Noah Vickers), Marina Benedict (Charlotte Willis), Brian Guest (Alexander Peterssen), William Thomas (Geraint Cooper), Sharon Morgan (Mary Cooper), Tom Price (Sgt. Andy Davidson), Penny Bunton (Female Hiker), Ron Butler (Senior Professor), Jim Castillo (Male Anchor #2), Rick Chambers (Senior Male Anchor), Hymnson Chan (Male Nurse), Van Epperson (Archivist), Ellen Fox (TV Journalist), Laura Gardner (Female Expert), Lauri Hendler (Angry Nurse), Carla Jeffery (Teenage Girl), Clint Jung (Male Professor), Charlene Lovings (Nurse), Jessica Mathews (Female Anchor #3), Rocky McMurray (Senior Guard), Laura Morgan (Flight Attendant), Phil Nice (Male Hiker), Bunnie Rivera (Rosita), Robin Sachs (British Professor), Heather Ann Smith (Joan Cabina), Jackie Torres (Female Anchor #2), Nischelle Turner (Female Anchor), David Grant Wright (Male Anchor)
Notes: British-born (but U.S.-based) guest star Robin Sachs played numerous guest roles on Babylon 5 – usually behind Narn or Minbari makeup – as well as appearing in Buffy and Alias. He’s done voice work for video games such as Dragon Age: Origins and Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic, and was the leader of the evil aliens in the movie Galaxy Quest. He’s the son of the late Leonard Sachs, who played Borusa in the 1983 Doctor Who story Arc Of Infinity. Van Epperson is no stranger to SFTV, having appeared in three Star Trek incarnations (TNG, DS9 and Enterprise). Jack uses the alias of his deceased former Torchwood colleague, Dr. Owen Harper, to gain access to the autopsy (Owen, played by Burn Gorman, was a Torchwood regular until dying not one but two deaths in season two).
LogBook entry by Earl Green