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I just re-watched From Out of the Rain for the first time since it's initial showing on television. And, after having done so, I realize that I really do have a "love-hate" relationship with this episode.
Review, and a little bit of ranting under the cut.
The Rundown:
The episode opens in the timeline of approximately the 1920’s with a mother and daughter walking up to what appears to be a traveling carnival. A creepy man hands over a pink ticket to the little girl, and she proceeds to run inside. The mother then hears a fox off in the distance, and it spooks her. She spins around to see if there’s anything behind her, but alas, there’s nothing. She then turns back around and poof… the traveling carnival has disappeared along with all of the people inside…
Bam! We then get our opening credits. Alright, this episode’s looking good so far…
Cut to present day -- we’ve got a young man going through some old film footage that he seems to be preparing for the opening of his parents’ theater: the Electro. While going through it, he sees footage of what appears to be “Carnival Folk” -- which includes the man who gave the little girl her ticket in the very beginning of the episode. So, the guy comments that they’re not supposed to be there, and he decides to cut them out of the film. He removes the film from the projector, and slides it into the cutter… Then, BAM! The windows fly open, and scare the poor guy half out of his wits.
Come on, who didn’t see that coming?
He runs over, shuts them, and then makes his way back to his work station only to discover that the film is back on the projector playing itself. Ooh, creepy… The boy then realizes that he’s late, so he grabs the film footage and runs off towards the theater.
Back at the Hub, Jack’s “spidey sense” seems to kick in and he asks Toshiko where Ianto is. She tells him that he’s at the cinema. Jack then proceeds to leave right in the middle of the conversation. Talk about manners… Or lack there of I should say. You would think that a man who’s been around as long as our dear captain would’ve at least learned to not walk out on a lady while she’s talking.
*rolls eyes*
We now cut to Ianto, Gwen and Owen, and as it turns out, Ianto has convinced them to go to the grand opening of the Electro with him. It seems that Ianto’s quite the geek when it comes to old cinemas (aw, cute!). He also states that he used to go to the cinema with his father when he was a kid.
After Ianto confesses this, the young man who was working on the film earlier runs in and apologizes to his parents for being late. He then runs upstairs, and fixes the film onto the projector.
There’s scenes of old
Meanwhile, Jack’s exceeding the speed limit in an attempt to get to the Electro as fast as possible. Why you ask? I haven’t a clue. Maybe he thinks his boyfriend’s in trouble?
Hurry, Jack! Hurry!!
We cut back to the inside of the theater, and somehow or another, the father and son succeed in cutting off the projector. I can’t exactly remember how… I just remember that they do. However, once they succeed in shutting it down, a set of shadows rush past Ianto as he’s preparing to walk out of the theater.
As it turns out, these mysterious shadows were the Ring Master along with his Mermaid Girl,
Personal Thoughts:
This episode had a great premise, but it was, unfortunately, poorly executed.
For one thing, this was the perfect opportunity to demonstrate to us [the audience] that Jack and Ianto’s relationship goes beyond that of an “office romance,” and to a certain degree, it did. But, as a whole, it was seriously lacking and that’s thanks to poor writing. Now, there were indeed some great moments between the two. I especially enjoyed the talk between them at both the theater and the Hub because of just how intimate it was. The chemistry between both John and Gareth is just simply amazing, and it shined during both of those said scenes. It also showed us that Jack and Ianto could indeed have a conversation that didn’t involve flirting or the mention of “measurements,” which was refreshing. But, as for the rest of the episode, there were quite a few missed chances at some serious “relationship” moments.
Case in point: At the end of the episode, when the team discovers that they had only saved one of the victims [the little boy], Ianto was heart-broken. The poor guy was actually pitiful, and from my point of view, this was the perfect opportunity for the writer to have Jack console him. But instead, there was nothing…
Damn it, Jack! The boy’s standing there crying and you do nothing to comfort him?! What is it with you and expressing your emotions? Is it so hard to look at somebody -- especially your lover -- and at least try to comfort them when they're going through something like that?
I swear, that man has got to be one of the most contradictive characters I've ever seen on television. At times he can be caring, and ever so gentle. And at other times, he's completely shut-off and self-absorbed. He drives me insane!
Another problem I had with this episode was the plot-holes. Just what exactly were these “Night Travelers?” Also, were these people’s souls actually trapped on the film, or was this a type of “residual haunting” -- for lack of a better term -- and the Rift gave them life? In other words, did these people still exist in the real world, and the images on the film were just captured moments from the past?
I’m not making any sense, am I? Ugh... It’s late, and the insomnia is taking its toll. Bear with me…
Now, as for the lack of Owen and Gwen, I had absolutely no problem with it. Owen had his story-arc, and Gwen had an entire episode dedicated to her wedding. She also had the episode “Adrift.” Actually, the person whom I felt got shafted in this episode was poor Toshiko… The girl really caught it this season. First, she was forced to send Tommy to his death. Then, she was taken advantage of by Adam -- although, thankfully, she doesn’t remember any of it -- and then she had to go through that whole horrific ordeal with Owen. And, finally, she met a cruel fate at the hands of Gray.
Damn, these writers are cruel...
All in all, I found this episode to be along the lines of "ok." It wasn't all that bad, but it wasn't all that great either. However, despite all of its short-comings, I still have to admit that it was pretty damned creepy and atmospheric. It was also Ianto-centric, which satisfied that horrible little fangirl who resides within me. I was also rather happy with the fact that Jack and Ianto got to work alone on a case. So, I guess if I were to put all rational thinking aside, I could grow to love this episode...
Kitsu's Final Grade: C
