Theory:Torchwood television discontinuity and plot holes/Children of Earth: Day Five


 * With Day Five being set on a Saturday (if the newspaper Ianto picked up is anything to go by), then why are the children at school? Obviously the government told them to but why would they go?
 * Not all of them did - and seeing as they missed a day of school, their parents may have wanted them to make up for it. Plus, parents may send children in for the injection they were suppossed to receive. Also it may have been seen as a safe option for the children. Or a typo in the newspaper (due to panic writing).


 * Why does Jack's vortex manipulator work?
 * It didn't, at least not as a teleport. Jack simply used it to send a signal. The ship then teleported him up.


 * How does Jack know when a vessel is passing through the Solar System?
 * His vortex manipulator has previously been seen to include a communication device, which he presumably used to contact a sufficiently advanced nearby ship. Also, there's a good possibility he was aware of the ship due to his knowledge of Earth's future.


 * The way Gwen talks about the Doctor on her video, you'd think she'd never seen nor met the man.
 * She only saw him on screen during Journey's End, for a few moments, not much time to form a opinion.


 * Why do the soldiers that chase Gwen and the others suddenly stop after the children had used their voices to kill the 456 in Thames House and why does Gwen instantly know that the children saved themselves?
 * Perhaps the soldiers were informed of the 456's defeat, and relayed the information to the soldiers, ceasing the pursuit. They may have also been informed of the captive childrem emitting the high pitched soundwave, and relayed that info to Gwen, who they knew was with Torchwood.They may have been shocked by the children emitting this sound enough for them to stop.


 * If Gwen doesn't want Jack to leave Earth why does she give him his Vortex Manipulator?
 * He asked her for it. Even if she knew that he was going to use it to leave, it would have been childish to keep it from him and try to force him to stay against his will. She realises this is what Jack needs.


 * Why, so soon after Journey's End, did Jack forget about Mr Smith? Mr. Smith was capable of ringing every mobile in the world; surely he'd be able to broadcast the signal Jack needed?
 * The children are directly connected to the 456, necessitating to the best of Jack's knowledge that the signal be sent through them. Plus he has no way to contact Sarah Jane.


 * The premise of children producing chemicals (not some other form of matter or energy) that give the 456 a "hit" requires suspension of disbelief. While not an immediate solution to the crisis, it would be simple enough to synthesize a drug that would have the same effect. At the very least, it should be possible to "harvest" the necessary "chemicals" from children on Earth without having to surrender them to the aliens or kill them outright. Given the level of technology available in the Doctor Who/Torchwood universe, (clones, terraforming, etc.) there would be several alternatives available, none of which are mentioned in the story.
 * We never actually see any 456 technology in the story- especially not anything to suggest that they have cloning or terraforming techniques.
 * The fact that we can synthesize THC doesn't prevent people from smoking marijuana leaves. In fact, I'd say the vast majority of them would still try to buy and use the "organic" drug even if you offered them free and legal THC. For that matter, we can synthesize ethanol, but how many people would choose 8ml of ethanol over a shot of whiskey, a cocktail, a glass of wine, or a can of beer? And it's not just the mythology about "organic" drugs; people are also addicted to the act of rolling and smoking joints (or cutting and snorting lines, or whatever the ritual is for their drug of choice). So, why should alien drug addicts be any different from ours?
 * The fact that we can synthesize THC doesn't prevent people from smoking marijuana leaves. In fact, I'd say the vast majority of them would still try to buy and use the "organic" drug even if you offered them free and legal THC. For that matter, we can synthesize ethanol, but how many people would choose 8ml of ethanol over a shot of whiskey, a cocktail, a glass of wine, or a can of beer? And it's not just the mythology about "organic" drugs; people are also addicted to the act of rolling and smoking joints (or cutting and snorting lines, or whatever the ritual is for their drug of choice). So, why should alien drug addicts be any different from ours?


 * Why didn't Frobisher try and flee with his wife and children? They hadn't gone to school and there was no sign of military in his house to forcibly collect them. He could have bundled them into the back of his car and driven off to hide somewhere. Even if London was blockaded, the military wouldn't have questioned a high-profile civil servant moving around within the city and, at the very least, he could have evaded them for a while, possibly long enough for the 456 to get their 10% and leave. He probably would have been arrested after that, but his wife and children would have been alive and likely unpunished.


 * The resolution only succeeded in getting rid of the particular member of the 456 in the glass case at Thames House. It didn't do anything to deter potential invasion or retaliation from the rest of the species. In an earlier episode, they even discuss destroying the one in Thames House and dismiss it as a way of potentially escalating the threat.
 * Given the revelation of what the 456 wanted the children for it may be that its tactic relied on an awful lot of bluff and it was not representative of it species. It may even have been solitary drug lord with no support whatsoever except those back home waiting for the "merchandise". It's also possible more damage was done to the 456 than it appeared.