Owen and That Spray

[dreamer_easy]

Posting this for my own reference more than anything else:

In fact, some of the fans who saw the UK airing of "Torchwood" were concerned about the scene early in the series where Owen uses a pheromone spray to attract a reluctant woman. They felt that the woman couldn't consent and so it was a form of sexual assault.

Chibnall states emphatically that they never meant to give that impression. "Obviously, people can read things the way they want, and that's the great thing about drama. That's not the intention of that scene. It's not directed in that way. It's not written that way. Also, why would we have that character as a hero? No. Maybe we didn't make it clear enough, I don't know, but it's absolutely not the intention."

"The spray only accentuates feelings that are already there," suggests Clarke.

"Yeah," agrees Chibnall. "And actually, if you look at the way the scene is directed - she's looking at him, she's eyeing him up. You know, it's meant to be comic. Really. It's a comic scene. And sometimes I think when you interpret comic scenes in a very serious way, it forces a misreading. It's a tricky one." Chibnall adds, "When you write something, you never know how it's going to be interpreted, you know, and you can't really correct that. You have to let the discussion go."

http://classic-horror.com/newsreel/torchwood_aliens_monsters_and_sex_coming_to_bbc_america

Comments

[vindaloo-vixen.livejournal.com]

- which would kind of make Owen's thinking and later reaction a bit parallel to what went on with the writing and the viewing of the scene - at the time he thought he was just having a stupid bit of fun (as the writing probably intended), but later on he realised he was on much shakier ground (as many viewers' reactions perceived him).

Personally I thought, yes, it was supposed to be a silly scene that illustrated Owen's irresponsibility, but ended up with a lot more attached in the delivery and perception (and hence, maybe could have used a rethink at the time).