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Published on: 4/25/2008
Last Visited: 5/9/2008
Capt. John Hart (Buffy the Vampire Slayer's James Marsters) returns to Torchwood for the final episode of season two, bringing the story from the season premiere full circle.The episode, titled "Exit Wounds," finds him creating havoc in Cardiff again.The action picks up directly from the penultimate episode, "Fragments," and the last-minute revelation that it was John who was responsible for the bombing that incapacitated much of the team.Jack (Barrowman) is also stunned to learn that John has found his long-lost brother, Gray.
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Marsters' Capt. Hart has a lot of potential as a character, but the show hasn't really figured out how to maximize that in his two appearances so far.
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Buffy fans may recognize a resemblance to Spike, and John has a similar function in Torchwood.A rogue who is out for himself above all, he is never fully committed to the side of good or evil, but the torch he carries for the central character tends to inspire him to work with the team rather than against it.While the Torchwood writers seem to understand that dynamic inherently, they are unable to keep Hart from becoming much more than a bystander in the second half of the finale.Here's hoping that the writers will be able to make up for that in season three.
Another minor problem with the episode is the character of Gray.His unmitigated hatred toward Jack isn't quite justified in the scope of the narrative.He tells tales of alien torture, but the audience isn't really given any indication of the extent of it, nor why it is that he blames a single, natural childhood response,Jack's letting go of his hand,for his years of suffering.He may well have legitimate motivation, but it's not provided effectively enough to explain his actions satisfactorily.The show may not be through with him yet, though, and it will be interesting to see if there's more to his story.
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