lizabethstucker's review
4.0
Inside the Hub is entitled The Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to Torchwood Series One. It is an indepth look at the first series, beginning with the start of Torchwood, moving to the crew and cast, then delving deeply into each episode. The book is a great companion for those who are more involved into the bits and pieces of the series as well as a great reference for fanfiction writers.
It can be ordered from Amazon.UK, which is where I ordered it and the one that looks at Series Two, but doesn't show up if you use Amazon.US. Seriously, check it out. I may not always agree with the writer's analysis of the episodes, but I enjoyed the read.
It can be ordered from Amazon.UK, which is where I ordered it and the one that looks at Series Two, but doesn't show up if you use Amazon.US. Seriously, check it out. I may not always agree with the writer's analysis of the episodes, but I enjoyed the read.
autumnsorcery's review
1.0
Inside the Hub: The Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to Torchwood chronicles the hit BBC series from the first announcement of the Doctor Who spin-off through the time that Series 1 aired in the UK. The book features many quotations from magazine and newspaper articles, biographies of the cast and crew, and a very thorough episode guide.
The episode guide and the section detailing the influence American science fiction shows (such as The X-Files and Buffy the Vampire Slayer) on Torchwood are interesting and probably the best parts of the book. It's obvious that a lot of time and thought went into both of these sections.
Unfortunately, the book's flaws are more prominent than its attributes. Run-on sentences abound; the most egregious example of this is a 170-word sentence in the Introduction. There are no pictures, which I assume is due to the unauthorized nature of the work. The text is small and hard to read at times. The book often gets bogged down with minutiae; things like air dates for 30-second trailers are listed in detail.
With the exception of the episode guide, most of the content of the book is available elsewhere. There are many quotations from popular British magazines, British TV critic web sites, and even "fan reactions" taken from sites such as LiveJournal. As an American, it was interesting to see how the launch of the series was covered by the British press. While having all of this information collected into a single book is nice, I would have preferred more original content from the author.
I heartily recommend both [b:The Torchwood Archives|3053353|The Torchwood Archives|Gary Russell|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1267739796s/3053353.jpg|3084248] and [b:The Official Torchwood Magazine Yearbook|6443697|Torchwood The Official Magazine Yearbook|Titan Books|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51V0OD-F7fL._SL75_.jpg|6633708] to Torchwood fans. Give Inside the Hub a miss.
The episode guide and the section detailing the influence American science fiction shows (such as The X-Files and Buffy the Vampire Slayer) on Torchwood are interesting and probably the best parts of the book. It's obvious that a lot of time and thought went into both of these sections.
Unfortunately, the book's flaws are more prominent than its attributes. Run-on sentences abound; the most egregious example of this is a 170-word sentence in the Introduction. There are no pictures, which I assume is due to the unauthorized nature of the work. The text is small and hard to read at times. The book often gets bogged down with minutiae; things like air dates for 30-second trailers are listed in detail.
With the exception of the episode guide, most of the content of the book is available elsewhere. There are many quotations from popular British magazines, British TV critic web sites, and even "fan reactions" taken from sites such as LiveJournal. As an American, it was interesting to see how the launch of the series was covered by the British press. While having all of this information collected into a single book is nice, I would have preferred more original content from the author.
I heartily recommend both [b:The Torchwood Archives|3053353|The Torchwood Archives|Gary Russell|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1267739796s/3053353.jpg|3084248] and [b:The Official Torchwood Magazine Yearbook|6443697|Torchwood The Official Magazine Yearbook|Titan Books|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51V0OD-F7fL._SL75_.jpg|6633708] to Torchwood fans. Give Inside the Hub a miss.
esperata's review
3.0
Incredibly detailed, this book surely has every piece of information you might need on Torchwood series 1.
In some respects there was too much information. Most fans would not be interested in the transmission times of promotional trailers. However you cannot fault a book for too much detail when it is so clearly and systematically laid out. If all you want is an episode synopsis, it's easy to skip to the page you want.
The episode guides themselves are also well structured with sections for continuity, Dr Who references, fan reactions etc. Some images would have added to the book's appeal but it's safe to say I got a lot from this book and will re-watch the series with new eyes.
In some respects there was too much information. Most fans would not be interested in the transmission times of promotional trailers. However you cannot fault a book for too much detail when it is so clearly and systematically laid out. If all you want is an episode synopsis, it's easy to skip to the page you want.
The episode guides themselves are also well structured with sections for continuity, Dr Who references, fan reactions etc. Some images would have added to the book's appeal but it's safe to say I got a lot from this book and will re-watch the series with new eyes.
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