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The Weevils |
Reviews
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The Weevils |
Aliens of Cardiff by Niall Jones 6/11/19
To my mind, Torchwood does not have the best record in creating alien species. The problem lies in the use of CGI; too often, the aliens seem intangible and don't quite manage to convince. The irony of this is that many of Torchwood's best episodes don't feature alien threats at all, relying instead of the drama created by time travel and alien technology, while several of those that do, such as the brilliantly unsettling Adam, feature aliens that appear almost 100% human.
The exception to this is the Weevils. One part of their success lies in their physicality: humanoid in shape, even wearing clothes, but animal in appearance, bearing a passing resemblance to the Hoix briefly glimpsed in Love & Monsters.
Another part of their success lies in their sense of innocence. While they roam the streets of Cardiff, mauling anyone unlucky enough to get in their way, they are not evil, merely hungry and probably frightened. Far from being invaders, they are inadvertent visitors, having fallen through the Rift. All too often, they are the victims of human exploitation, captured as an outlet for masculine aggression in Combat or for the unethical experiments of Aaron Copely in Reset. This presents a largely negative view of humanity and suggests parallels with our treatment of animals, a theme explored more directly in Meat. Even Torchwood aren't completely innocent in this regard, as Janet the Weevil spends much of the first two series locked inside the vaults, occasionally brought out to terrify suspects into submission, before being forced back into her imprisonment.
The fact that Torchwood's pet Weevil is named, however cynically, demonstrates a further aspect that makes them such a successful species: their sense of individuality. Despite being unable to speak, the movements of the actors playing them convey the nuances of their emotions. It is this combination of human and animalistic qualities that makes the Weevils such an intriguing and unique creation. As they reappeared in the first two series of Torchwood, they became more complex creatures; their response to the possessed un-dead Owen in Dead Man Walking suggesting heightened senses not possessed by humans, while their appearance as part of the Alliance in The Pandorica Opens places them as equals among Sontarans, Judoon and Sycorax.