Torchwood One – Latter Days

#3.02. Locker 15 ~ 6/10

◆ An Introduction

It would be fair to say that ‘Torchwood One’ ranks up there as one of my favourite ranges: it takes corporate culture and combines it with alien incursions, and the result is usually pretty damn good. We’ve yet to encounter an episode that can be classed as a misfire, but that might be about to change.

I think the most shocking thing about this episode is that BigFinish somehow managed to create an episode with Derek Griffiths that WASN’T solid gold. He’s been absolutely marvellous in every other story I’ve heard him in: both as Manchu Golding in ‘The Line’, and as Golas in ‘Curiosity Shop’.

◆ Publisher’s Summary

A mysterious force is wiping out Torchwood, and the only person who can save London is a cleaner called Dave.

◆ DISCLAIMER

It was only after pre-ordering ‘I Hate Mondays’ that I was made aware of the Islamophobic and transphobic rhetoric that Tracy-Ann Oberman continues to share on social media.

For this reason, I will not be purchasing any further releases featuring Oberman. I refuse to support someone with such despicable views.

I previously covered the first four sets for TimeScales, so will be porting those reviews over to this site: each of them will carry this disclaimer. They were all written prior to May 2023. Please remember not to take any of my comments in this review about Oberman’s performance – positive or negative – as condoning her frankly awful views.

◆ Yvonne Hartman

‘Locker 15’ is the first script for this range that I’ve been completely indifferent towards. Matt Fitton’s material just doesn’t add anything new to the characters, and I was actually bored listening to Yvonne here.

Tracy-Ann Oberman was severely let down by the script. Her performance is alright, but I know she can do much better.

Yvonne claims that the Torchwood pension package is very generous. She does have a conscience, she just doesn’t keep it on her.

◆ Ianto Jones

I wasn’t expecting much for our favourite coffee boy in this episode – not after the tour de force that was ‘Retirement Plan’ – but even this feels like less than what was expected. Incredibly generic.

Gareth David-Lloyd delivers an average performance in ‘Locker 15’.

Ianto isn’t totally comfortable passing himself off as Dave’s nephew when he can’t even remember what he had for breakfast.

◆ Story Recap

Ancillary workers are often forgotten about, but they play a vital part in keeping businesses running… even if that business happens to be an institute that deals with extraterrestrial threats to Great Britain and the Commonwealth.

Dave Cooke was a cleaner at the Torchwood Tower who retired in 2005. In a very short span of time thereafter, he suddenly suffered a rapid decline in brain function, along with physical deterioration, and began exhibiting ongoing signs of dementia. Within ten months of retirement, he’d been shipped off to the Blue Sky Vistas Residential Care Home… which is a huge problem for the Institute.

Dave was the last person to have had access to maintenance locker 15, deep in the bowels of the tower. Now some sort of psychic field around the locker is wiping people’s minds, and the field is growing. If Ianto and Yvonne can’t locate the key to get in the locker, then the Institute is surely doomed!

◆ Misfire

I would much rather review a full-blown train wreck of a story than one which plays it safe and fails to bring anything new to the table: that’s why I had such a wonderful time ripping into ‘Heroes of Sontar’ recently, which I described as congealed failure!

‘Locker 15’ was the dictionary definition of generic: a rehash of several themes we’ve already explored in this range, like staff being retconned and a containment breach within the Tower. There is very little to say about this episode.

◆ Sound Design

Meadows and Foxon do an alright job with the soundscape for this episode, but it’s basically nothing we haven’t heard before in this range; the office landscape of the Tower, a couple of short battles, etc. All very standard.

◆ Conclusion

“The Dead Zone isn’t just expanding, it’s more powerful too!”

A shapeshifter has taken over the form of a cleaner from Torchwood Tower, and rammed the actual cleaner’s body into a maintenance locker. Now the security device preventing anyone opening said locker has activated: it’s begun wiping the minds of anyone who gets too close.

‘Locker 15’ was the most uninspired story I have listened to for some time, but the most shocking thing is that it appeared in this range. I usually associate top tier performances and writing with ‘Torchwood One’… not whatever this dross turned out to be. It’s got all the artistic value of static on an untuned television set. Don’t even bother with this one.