such_heights | Torchwood 2x09: Something Borrowed

Some preliminary thoughts before I get down to the Srs Business that was the shipping in this episode:

Gwen! Gwen for the win, so hard! :D :D Eeee she owned this episode completely and I loved it. She was hilarious and kick-ass beyond belief and I have whole new levels of love. A gun in her wedding bouquet! It does not get better than that. ♥ And she looked beautiful in her wedding dress, too.

Tosh, also for the win! With backbone and getting Owen to go to the wedding and being all sleuthy around the place. Plus, that scene with her and Gwen and the dress was a thousand kinds of lovely - yeah, if you ask me, this episode totally belonged to the girls.

Shapeshifter!Jack - unintentionally hilarious, y/y? Oh, John Barrowman. Never change.

Rhyyyys! Saving his bride-to-be in a barn! With a chainsaw! ♥

Ok, right. As far as fandom's concerned, this is all about the shipping. Allow me to summarise my view on these Very Important Issues:

This entire episode was all about how much Gwen and Rhys love each other; completely, totally, having resolved all of their various issues and the crises that have cropped up over the past two seasons. This means that the Jack/Gwen subplot has been, effectively, completely sunk.

From Gwen's perspective, I think we see here that yeah, in a way, she does sort of have a thing for Jack - certainly in the way that he's not like anyone she's ever known, has completely changed her life, means to world to her, and let's be honest, you might be the same in her shoes! That doesn't mean, despite my fears to the contrary that cropped up earlier in the season, that she wishes she were with Jack instead, or that Rhys is any way second best. She has completely committed to her decision and knows that it's the right one. For her, it's my guess that Jack will always be Jack, however. This does not make an adulterous h0r, crazies of fandom, it makes her human.

Also, I don't Jack was particularly terrible in this episode, either. Yeah, he's quite possessive of Gwen - and actually, I think it's plausible to read that in an entirely non-sexual way though I suspect most people would disagree with me - but he was in no way trying to steal her away or screw up her wedding. Obviously the event was quite emotionally significant to him on a couple of levels, for one it's a member of his team (who, lest we forget, he loves very much), and even more so it's Gwen, who out of all of them is the one who's meant to get married and have that normal life the others are already too screwed up for, possibly. So watching that actually happen is going to be a bit of a moment for Jack. And plus, it clearly was bringing back memories of a marriage of his own from some byegone day. All in all, my point is that yeah, he seemed a little distant with Ianto at the end there - that's ok! It happens!

Related to that but more generally, I really don't think that Ianto is being mistreated by Jack in this whole saga. Firstly, because Ianto will know exactly what it is he's got himself into and is clearly ok with that, secondly because Jack really is not the type of person to be involved with someone just because they're bored or whatever, the very fact this has been going on for about a season now makes it pretty blatant the interest is mutual. Both of them actively downplay it in public, but as an audience we've had plenty of chances to see how much they care about each other, even if neither of them want to define themselves as being in a relationship. Jack taking a moment to look at Gwen at her own wedding reception does not suddenly take all of that away.

I know plenty of you have been reading this differently to me, and I get why, but you know what? I don't feel like I'm making any massive leaps here (and also, this is Torchwood writing, where characterisation is something of a fluid game and we have to make our own connections some of the time anyway), and all of the above leaves me in a happy place, so I'm going with that. But in conclusion, I loved this episode once again - oh, series two for the win! :D

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

No I actually think you may be right on most counts. I was kind of exploding in mine. I by no means think that Jack and Ianto don't care for each other a lot, they very obviously do. I also loved Gwen in this episode and think that she certainly loves Rhys and Jack but has chosen Rhys in the end. I think this makes her even more lovely in that she did really choose Rhys and has decided to push aside her love for Jack. (I mean we know she loves him, she said it in Adam)

Jack on the other hand I am still displeased with. I don't think the distant at the end thing was due to old marriage memories of his but more like memories of marriage and him imagining himself as married to Gwen. He's been married before as we have learned and all this must have woken up those marriage feelings some. I think he does love Gwen. I think it began with his protective feeling and wanting the best for her (he still does that's why he keeps supporting her getting/being married). However, I certainly think he is in love with her now.

That is the reason I am upset with him. I know he loves Gwen but as for Ianto I don't know. And then I have the whole problem of loving more than one person at a time. I know Jack is capable of that but I suppose I just want more for Ianto.

But whatever, Ianto seems happy and Jack confused so we'll see where it goes.

Yes, seeing that choice really played was wonderful, especially as the writers really made us feel that she was going the right way.

Mmm, yeah, I do see where you're coming from - I don't know that I'd go so far as to describe him as actually being in love with her, though. Hmm.

And oh heavens, yes, secretly I want them to get married and adopt Myfanwe after all, and the fact that at some point in canon it's probably all going to go horribly wrong kind of kills me. I hope that now Gwen's got married it might get a bit more developed in the happy place, though, for the sake of my poor invested heart.

Oh yes I do have that secret Jack and Ianto forever banner even though I know in the world of Torchwood no one stays happy for ever.

I do love seeing all the happy sweet moments between J and I now though. I mean Ianto dad stories, nice kisses, dancing, *sigh* They have such a fun caring as well as playful relationship or whatever they might call it that if I ignore the Jack/Gwen weirdness its perfect!

Denial via fanfic, right?

And eeee, I know! I still can't quite get over that they made my ship canon - I look back fondly to those pre-stopwatch days when I was totally rooting for it, and then being worried it would just get dropped this season, and look at what we get instead! I am such a happy fan. :D

I KNOW! I mean, the slash as canon. How often do we actaully get what we want? And get it with such cuteness? I mean "Adam" was the epitome of Jack/Ianto love and affection for me!

Also, fangirling aside, the fact there's a long-term (well, in TV land time anyway) gay relationship on a sci-fi programme on mainstream TV is really kind of amazing and gives me hope for the kids watching it. :)

And so positively portrayed, so normally portrayed not as like a terrible secret or deviant act. It's very refreshing and just makes me so happy!

Torchwood 2x09: Something Borrowed

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