Random Shoes
Encyclopedia
"Random Shoes" is an episode in the British
science fiction television
series Torchwood
, which was broadcast on 10 December 2006. It is the ninth episode of the first series.
victim (Eugene), obsessed with aliens while alive, realises only one person can solve the mystery of his death: Gwen Cooper. He searches for her in the hope that she can help him.
as they are brought in to investigate the accident; the team had several run-ins with Eugene before but had written him off as a crank. Eugene's mobile phone goes off, and Gwen
answers it, and explains to the caller, Eugene's mother, that her son is dead. Upon examining the phone, she finds pictures of random shoes, and becomes intrigued by it, investigating the matter further.
Much of the rest of the episode is presented as a mix of flashblacks to Eugene's past along with Gwen's investigation in the present, with Eugene following her around as memories come back to him. Eugene was an excellent student in maths, but blanked on an inter-school competition, losing it for his school, and disappointing his father; his father left that same night, and Eugene felt he was the cause, though believed his father to be happy with a new job in America. His science teacher tried to cheer him up by giving him an eye-like object, claiming it to have fallen from the sky. This piqued Eugene's interest in extraterrestrial life, and he began studying and collecting such alien artifacts, even approaching Torchwood several times but was always rebuffed.
The string of events leading to Eugene's death occurred when Eugene decided to try to sell the eye object on eBay
in order to raise enough money to buy tickets to Australia
for his co-worker, Linda. Initially, there were no bids, but the bids started to rise up to a few hundred pounds. A surprise bid of £15,000.00 was made near the end of the auction, and Eugene surmised it must have been the alien that had lost the eye, but was beat out by the final highest bid of £15,005.50. Eugene contacted the buyers and arranged to meet at the Happy Cook, a restaurant near where he later died. Arriving there, he found that Gary, a co-worker, and Josh, a DVD store clerk, were the actual final bidders. They had raised the price initially to get Eugene's hopes up, but when the first large bid came in from a large collector, they realized that if they could get the eye, they could resell it for that much. Eugene, realizing he has been set up, takes photos of Gary, Josh, and the waitress' shoes in case he needed the evidence for later, then swallows the eye and flees the restaurant. He was able to escape from Gary and Josh, but unwittingly walked right into traffic, causing the hit-and-run accident that killed him. Gwen is able to follow Eugene's footsteps, and learns the truth from his mother, Linda, Gary, and Josh.
In the present, Jack
reveals to Gwen that the eye was likely a Dogon Sixth Eye, which, if ingested, allows that person to gain a fresh perspective on their past life. Gwen finds that Eugene's father is actually working as a car mechanic nearby, and informs him about Eugene's death. Eugene's family and friends gather for his cremation, and Gwen is able to recover the eye from the ashes and travels to Eugene's wake with the rest of the team. As she watches across the street as Eugene's mother and father reunite, she is unaware of a car about to run her over; Eugene attempts to push Gwen aside and finds he is able to do so; to everyone's amazement he has become corporeal. Eugene knows he cannot stay without the eye in his body and that he has served a better purpose. As his family watches in amazement of seeing Eugene, Gwen gives him a goodbye kiss for saving her life and for being real. Eugene is bathed in a white glow as he is pulled into the heavens.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
science fiction television
Science fiction on television
Science fiction first appeared on a television program during the Golden Age of Science Fiction. Special effects and other production techniques allow creators to present a living visual image of an imaginary world not limited by the constraints of reality; this makes television an excellent medium...
series Torchwood
Torchwood
Torchwood is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. The series is a spin-off from Davies's 2005 revival of the long-running science fiction programme Doctor Who. The show has shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing audience, moving from...
, which was broadcast on 10 December 2006. It is the ninth episode of the first series.
Synopsis
A hit-and-runHit and run (vehicular)
Hit-and-run is the act of causing a traffic accident , and failing to stop and identify oneself afterwards...
victim (Eugene), obsessed with aliens while alive, realises only one person can solve the mystery of his death: Gwen Cooper. He searches for her in the hope that she can help him.
Plot
A young man named Eugene Jones wakes up to find that he appears to be ethereal, his body lies dead on the ground after a hit-and-run accident, but his memory of how he got there is missing. He recognizes the Torchwood teamTorchwood Institute
The Torchwood Institute is a fictional secret organization from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin-off series Torchwood. It was established in 1879 by Queen Victoria after the events of "Tooth and Claw". Its prime directive, is to defend the earth against...
as they are brought in to investigate the accident; the team had several run-ins with Eugene before but had written him off as a crank. Eugene's mobile phone goes off, and Gwen
Gwen Cooper
Gwen Cooper is a fictional character in the BBC television programme Torchwood, a spin-off to the long-running show Doctor Who, portrayed by Welsh actress Eve Myles. The series' lead female character, Gwen has featured in every episode of the sci-fi programme to date as well as two crossover...
answers it, and explains to the caller, Eugene's mother, that her son is dead. Upon examining the phone, she finds pictures of random shoes, and becomes intrigued by it, investigating the matter further.
Much of the rest of the episode is presented as a mix of flashblacks to Eugene's past along with Gwen's investigation in the present, with Eugene following her around as memories come back to him. Eugene was an excellent student in maths, but blanked on an inter-school competition, losing it for his school, and disappointing his father; his father left that same night, and Eugene felt he was the cause, though believed his father to be happy with a new job in America. His science teacher tried to cheer him up by giving him an eye-like object, claiming it to have fallen from the sky. This piqued Eugene's interest in extraterrestrial life, and he began studying and collecting such alien artifacts, even approaching Torchwood several times but was always rebuffed.
The string of events leading to Eugene's death occurred when Eugene decided to try to sell the eye object on eBay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
in order to raise enough money to buy tickets to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
for his co-worker, Linda. Initially, there were no bids, but the bids started to rise up to a few hundred pounds. A surprise bid of £15,000.00 was made near the end of the auction, and Eugene surmised it must have been the alien that had lost the eye, but was beat out by the final highest bid of £15,005.50. Eugene contacted the buyers and arranged to meet at the Happy Cook, a restaurant near where he later died. Arriving there, he found that Gary, a co-worker, and Josh, a DVD store clerk, were the actual final bidders. They had raised the price initially to get Eugene's hopes up, but when the first large bid came in from a large collector, they realized that if they could get the eye, they could resell it for that much. Eugene, realizing he has been set up, takes photos of Gary, Josh, and the waitress' shoes in case he needed the evidence for later, then swallows the eye and flees the restaurant. He was able to escape from Gary and Josh, but unwittingly walked right into traffic, causing the hit-and-run accident that killed him. Gwen is able to follow Eugene's footsteps, and learns the truth from his mother, Linda, Gary, and Josh.
In the present, Jack
Jack Harkness
Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. He first appeared in the 2005 Doctor Who episode "The Empty Child" and reappeared in the remaining episodes of the 2005 series as a companion of the ninth incarnation of the...
reveals to Gwen that the eye was likely a Dogon Sixth Eye, which, if ingested, allows that person to gain a fresh perspective on their past life. Gwen finds that Eugene's father is actually working as a car mechanic nearby, and informs him about Eugene's death. Eugene's family and friends gather for his cremation, and Gwen is able to recover the eye from the ashes and travels to Eugene's wake with the rest of the team. As she watches across the street as Eugene's mother and father reunite, she is unaware of a car about to run her over; Eugene attempts to push Gwen aside and finds he is able to do so; to everyone's amazement he has become corporeal. Eugene knows he cannot stay without the eye in his body and that he has served a better purpose. As his family watches in amazement of seeing Eugene, Gwen gives him a goodbye kiss for saving her life and for being real. Eugene is bathed in a white glow as he is pulled into the heavens.
Production
- This episode was originally titled "Invisible Eugene" up until two weeks before it aired. It was then changed to its present title. It was still listed as "Invisible Eugene" in the Radio TimesRadio TimesRadio Times is a UK weekly television and radio programme listings magazine, owned by the BBC. It has been published since 1923 by BBC Magazines, which also provides an on-line listings service under the same title...
and other television listings. - Screenshots of Eugene's website as posted on the Torchwood Institute website suggest it to be hosted on the fictional Cheapserve webhost. Cheapserve has been used before by the Doctor Who production team.
- This story bears some structural similarities to the Doctor Who episode "Love & MonstersLove & Monsters"Love & Monsters" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. In this episode, an ordinary man named Elton Pope becomes obsessed with a man called the Doctor and his strange blue box, and joins a group of like-minded people in hopes of finding him...
," in particular the heavy use of flashbacks and voice-overs by a guest character as narrative devices. - Producer Richard StokesRichard Stokes (producer)Richard Stokes is a British television producer and executive producer. He produced the first two series of the Doctor Who spin-off series Torchwood for the BBC...
likened this episode to the 1946 comedy/drama film It's a Wonderful LifeIt's a Wonderful LifeIt's a Wonderful Life is a 1946 American Christmas drama film produced and directed by Frank Capra and based on the short story "The Greatest Gift" written by Philip Van Doren Stern....
, in which the main character is afforded the chance to look back over his own life and reevaluate it, while remaining invisible to the other characters. - Like "Love & MonstersLove & Monsters"Love & Monsters" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. In this episode, an ordinary man named Elton Pope becomes obsessed with a man called the Doctor and his strange blue box, and joins a group of like-minded people in hopes of finding him...
," "BlinkBlink (Doctor Who)"Blink" is the 10th episode of the third series of the new production of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on 9 June 2007, and is the only episode in the 2007 series written by Steven Moffat; the episode is based on a previous short story written by...
," "MidnightMidnight (Doctor Who)"Midnight" is the tenth episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on BBC One on 14 June 2008. The episode placed much more emphasis on the role of David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor than in the rest of the fourth series, with the...
" and "Turn LeftTurn Left (Doctor Who)"Turn Left" is the eleventh episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by showrunner Russell T Davies and broadcast on BBC One on 21 June 2008....
," this episode is a "double-banked" episode, meaning that it was filmed at the same time as another episode, in this case "Captain Jack Harkness." This explains why this episode focuses so heavily on Gwen out of the regular cast, while the rest of the cast appear only briefly. Conversely, Gwen appears little in "Captain Jack Harkness," which instead heavily features Jack and Tosh.
Music
- The songs "StarmanStarman (song)"Starman" is a single by David Bowie, released in April 1972. The song was a late addition to The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, included at the insistence of RCA’s Dennis Katz, who heard a demo and loved the track, believing it would make a great single...
" by David BowieDavid BowieDavid Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
and "Hope There's SomeoneHope There's SomeoneHope There's Someone is a three-track CD EP by Antony and the Johnsons, released in 2005 on Rough Trade via Secretly Canadian Records. The title track is lifted from Antony and the Johnsons second studio album I Am a Bird Now with both "Frankenstein" and "Just One Star" being previously unreleased...
" by Antony and the JohnsonsAntony and the JohnsonsAntony and the Johnsons is a music group presenting the work of Antony Hegarty and his collaborators.-Career:British experimental musician David Tibet of Current 93 heard a demo and offered to release Antony's music through his Durtro label. The debut album, Antony and the Johnsons, was released...
are featured in this episode. - Eugene's father sings "Danny BoyDanny Boy-Background:The words to "Danny Boy" were written by English lawyer and lyricist Frederic Weatherly in 1910. Although the lyrics were originally written for a different tune, Weatherly modified them to fit the "Londonderry Air" in 1913, after his sister-in-law in the U.S. sent him a copy. Ernestine...
" at the funeral.
Outside references
- The InternetInternetThe Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
auction website eBayEBayeBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
is mentioned, but the actual website used in the episode is not eBay's own. - The DVD Owen is watching is the 1960s version of the BBC science fiction drama A for AndromedaA for AndromedaA for Andromeda is a British television science fiction drama serial first made and broadcast by the BBC in seven parts in 1961. Written by the noted cosmologist Fred Hoyle, in conjunction with author and television producer John Elliot, it concerns a group of scientists who detect a radio signal...
. - In the video shop the show playing is Walking with DinosaursWalking with DinosaursWalking with Dinosaurs is a six-part documentary television miniseries that was produced by BBC, narrated by Kenneth Branagh, and first aired in the United Kingdom, in 1999. The series was subsequently aired in North America on the Discovery Channel in 2000, with Branagh's voice replaced with that...
. - The restaurant where Gwen talks to Gary's coworker Linda can be identified by decorations as La Tasca, a Spanish tapas chain in the UK.