I am not sure there's much to discuss here since it seems like we aren't watching the same programme; but I will take a shot at it.
I can assure you that protecting the Empire from alien forces was the original mandate because RTD made sure we saw Queen Victoria state this as the aim of a Torchwood Institute. I think you read the wrong tone into 'If it's alien, it's ours'. It's Jack's pithy summary of the Torchwood mandate. The Torchwood Institute becomes involved whenever alien influence or action is involved in a situation. They also claim any and all alien technology that they find.
They do not destroy every alien they come across, nor rip it off for equipment. Remember their response to a UFO over Cardigan Bay? They told it to leave, because it was scaring people. Likewise, there're a couple of hundred Weevils living in Cardiff's sewers. Torchwood Three is content to leave them in peace, only becoming involved when one goes rogue and starts attacking humans (something which might have been related to Episode 11, Combat). So they do seem capable of considering action, not just lumping all aliens together. They aren't xenophobic, but their responsibility means they must be suspicious.
On the matter of the Doctor, it's part of their original mandate that they look out for him. It's pure prejudice there, because Queen Victoria regarded the Doctor as an agent of chaos and instability. But it's also something that RTD's stories have attempted to show: that from the outside, the Doctor is pretty frightening, because he sweeps into situations - often crises - acts, and then vanishes again. He doesn't explain what he's doing and he generally avoids locals. He gets lumped into the bad things just by being present. We as the viewer know he's the hero, and we're meant to root for him, but if we only saw him as those about, I think we'd have a far worse opinion.
I agree that the Torchwood Institute suffers from having no effective oversight. But then I see that as part of the story - decent people doing bad things because of institutional bias. That makes Torchwood interesting to me, and following Gwen at least partly worthwhile, because she can remind them what they are supposed to be doing. From my point of view, your reading - where the Institute is rotten ab initio - sort of makes her involvement rather pointless, and indeed the series pretty empty too: when Bad People Do Bad Things to Outsiders.
I hope this makes sense, and doesn't come across as an attack. It's just that your reading is so at odds to mine, like I said, it feels like we're watching different programmes. :)
no subject
I can assure you that protecting the Empire from alien forces was the original mandate because RTD made sure we saw Queen Victoria state this as the aim of a Torchwood Institute. I think you read the wrong tone into 'If it's alien, it's ours'. It's Jack's pithy summary of the Torchwood mandate. The Torchwood Institute becomes involved whenever alien influence or action is involved in a situation. They also claim any and all alien technology that they find.
They do not destroy every alien they come across, nor rip it off for equipment. Remember their response to a UFO over Cardigan Bay? They told it to leave, because it was scaring people. Likewise, there're a couple of hundred Weevils living in Cardiff's sewers. Torchwood Three is content to leave them in peace, only becoming involved when one goes rogue and starts attacking humans (something which might have been related to Episode 11, Combat). So they do seem capable of considering action, not just lumping all aliens together. They aren't xenophobic, but their responsibility means they must be suspicious.
On the matter of the Doctor, it's part of their original mandate that they look out for him. It's pure prejudice there, because Queen Victoria regarded the Doctor as an agent of chaos and instability. But it's also something that RTD's stories have attempted to show: that from the outside, the Doctor is pretty frightening, because he sweeps into situations - often crises - acts, and then vanishes again. He doesn't explain what he's doing and he generally avoids locals. He gets lumped into the bad things just by being present. We as the viewer know he's the hero, and we're meant to root for him, but if we only saw him as those about, I think we'd have a far worse opinion.
I agree that the Torchwood Institute suffers from having no effective oversight. But then I see that as part of the story - decent people doing bad things because of institutional bias. That makes Torchwood interesting to me, and following Gwen at least partly worthwhile, because she can remind them what they are supposed to be doing. From my point of view, your reading - where the Institute is rotten ab initio - sort of makes her involvement rather pointless, and indeed the series pretty empty too: when Bad People Do Bad Things to Outsiders.
I hope this makes sense, and doesn't come across as an attack. It's just that your reading is so at odds to mine, like I said, it feels like we're watching different programmes. :)