A lot of this episode was clearly set-up for the final two episodes, which is no bad thing, but meant some of it dragged. I also don't think John Barrowman is all that great an actor, something that doesn't come up much in earlier (dare we say, less good) Torchwood, but is very evident when he's acting opposite Peter Capaldi

Still, though, Children of Earth remains some of the best Torchwood yet, with the scenes between Frobisher and the 456 being very strong highlights

Another solid chapter in Children of Earth.  A lot is just devoted to keeping up that build-up to the big moves coming next episode, but this entry on its own is pretty great at ratcheting up that tension and political bleakness.  A solid entry in Torchwood overall.

This part if anything has only got more topical in 2020. The stuff about the schools being closed and a curfew being put in place sounds so much like the Coronavirus pandemic, and sending John Frobisher to deal with the 456 because they see him as expendable is totally something you could see our current government doing.

I love that our Torchwood team have to turn to a crime of thievery in order to survive whilst on the run, and that twist where Jack originally gave kids in the 60s to the 456 is still one of the very best in sci-fi history. It's so shocking to see a character we all know and love having stooped so low in the past. Somebody who we always think of as being on the right side in the fight against aliens.