Excellent! This evening’s episode of Torchwood opens in 1918, with a crossover in the fabric of time and the Torchwood of the time are investigating something strange in a military hospital.

The action centres around Tommy Brockless, a soldier who exists in 2008 as well as in 1918. It turns out that Tommy is in stasis in present day Torchwood, being held in anticipation of some future crossover event in time. Jack explains that the wartime Torchwood left notes that are locked in tune with the rift. They believe that Tommy is the key to this event and protecting the Earth.

Gwen visits the military hospital and sees an amputee on crutches. He approaches her, but disappears. Like a ghost. Jack meets her at the hospital and explains that the building is being demolished, which may have triggered the time shift.

Tosh has taken Tommy out for the day, and the two are on a kind of date. They talk about the passage of time and how there always seem to be wars raging somewhere in the world. Tommy admits to being infatuated with Tosh.

In the military hospital, Gwen and Jack continue to witness the wartime hospital workers through the temporal rift. Evidence that the rift activity is intensifying. Just as Tosh and Tommy seem to be growing closer, Jack calls them back to Torchwood to explain that the disturbance seems to be happening now.

The sealed capsule mysteriously opens at Torchwood and Jack reads the notes. Basically, Tommy must return to 1918 during the crossover and use a device to close the rift in time. However, Jack takes Tosh aside and explains that three weeks after the event, in 1918, Tommy is shot by firing squad for cowardice due to his shell shock. Tosh doesn’t want to send Tommy to a certain death, but Jack shows her the notes and evidence that she is the one who’s present with Tommy during the rift.

And in true Torchwood fashion, Tosh takes Tommy home for a last night of passion. She lets him know that he’s not going to live long after crossing back to 1918.

The next morning, they go to the hospital and prepare for the timeshift. However, Tommy has second thoughts and freaks out about being sent back to his death. Tosh convinces him to go ahead, and he walks through the rift back to his own time. The Torchwood agents in 1918 abduct the earlier incarnation of Tommy which they cryogenically freeze for the future Torchwood to take care of. However, the version of Tommy from the future is shell-shocked and forgets what he’s supposed to do – Jack has given him a time key which will close the rift.

In 2008, rift events are happening all over the place, and the team realise that Tommy hasn’t used the key. They figure out a way of communicating with Tommy in the past and Tosh volunteers to talk to him and convince him to go activate the key. He does so, and things return to normal.

Back in the present, Tosh is angry at Jack for having to force Tommy to return to the past, despite the fact that it was inevitable.

Good episode, especially bringing in the points about how shell-shocked soldiers were treated in the war – having no notion of trauma issues, the military branded traumatised soldiers as cowards and had them shot by firing squad. The Government issued a pardon to those executed in 2006.