The following contains MAJOR SPOILERS for "Reset," the sixth episode of the second season of BBC?s "Torchwood."

On "Doctor Who," Martha Jones was a fantastic companion to follow in the wake of Rose Tyler, and Freema Agyeman was flawless in the role. She firmly established herself in the series and even went on to save the world. And so her appearance on "Torchwood" comes with high expectations.

Luckily, Agyeman is more than up for the challenge and instantly owns the screen from the moment she sets foot into the Hub. It?s an interesting notion that when ?Torchwood? first launched, Russell T. Davies insisted that there would be no crossovers with the parent series and that both shows would remain totally separate entities. Since then however, Capt. Jack has made a stint on ?Doctor Who? and a host of delightful hints to the series have been made on ?Torchwood.? And now Martha has taken that to the next level.

Following a series of unexplained deaths, Jack gives his old traveling buddy a call in the hopes that she can shed some light on what is really going on in Cardiff. It?s not too long before Martha manages to pinpoint the culprit: a medical research facility called ?The Pharm.? What makes this location special? It experiments with alien beings, draining them of valuable fluids and experimenting with their chemical makeup in order to develop new drugs to change the world.

And Alan Dale is leading the whole operation. The man is a television legend, with a mass of credits to his name including ?Star Trek,? ?The X-Files,? ?Lost? and ?24.? So seeing him on ?Torchwood? shows exactly the league this series is reaching. He is a brilliant baddie and offers a very serious aspect to the out-there plot and helps keep the whole thing grounded. Because in a plot with giant bugs, Weevils in pods and alien medication it can be very easy to say goodbye to reality.

What Worked

The banter between Martha and Jack and their discussions of the Doctor was very tender and the back story on how Martha got her job at UNIT keeps a little bit of mystery up in the air. Who exactly was behind the job offer and is she connected to the mysterious fingers that collected the Masters ring in ?The Last Of The Time Lords?? There was also so many more hints, nudges and winks ?Doctor Who? that usual, mostly poking fun at the final episodes of the third season including Jack?s ?I had a bad experience with a politician? and Martha?s listing of the places she?s visited. There was also an amusing little link on how Jack and Martha know each other: ?Lets say we were under the same Doctor.?

In a similar vein, the dialogue for the episode was on par with the best of the series (Who would assassinate a student? The student loans company?), particularly between Martha and Owen. The dynamic between the two doctors is something that is desperately needed in ?Torchwood? as Owen finally meets his match. With the villain a pharmaceuticals company, the character finally has a chance to prove his worth and in the coming episodes will take center stage, taking the series to new levels.

Martha?s infiltration into the Pharm?s medical lab carried with it a fun intensity with some futuristic technologies that would not be out of place on ?Alias.? Martha brings exuberance to the act of industrial espionage that ?Doctor Who? is unable to offer but is perfectly at home in ?Torchwood.?

There was also some interesting use of Weevils as an interrogation technique, a bizarre mater plan involving a truck, a corpse and some sticky back plastic (here?s one we made earlier), a tongue in cheek homage to ?Alien,? and Alan Dale as a baddie (enough said). And then there is the ending ? right out of nowhere and exactly the shake the show needs to keep it from going stale. Bravo indeed.

What Didn?t Work

Owen setting up a date with Tosh was grossly out of place especially given his slight infatuation with Martha and his treatment of poor Toshiko since day one. Even given the fantastic arc that Owen is only just beginning, it wasn?t pleasant to watch and its high time the writers found another love interest for Tosh.

Also, with a plot involving a farm where aliens are harvested for their parts, juices and exotic fluids, it is more than a tad disappointing that the only two creatures shown off in the Pharm were Weevils and the Mayflies. Sure, the BBC budget won?t quite spread to include a whole cadre of weird and outlandish creature features but a few extra beasts from the beyond would not have been out of place even if they had no future use on the series.

Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due

"Torchwood" stars John Barrowman, Eve Myles, Burn Gorman, Gareth David-Lloyd and Naoko Mori, with Freema Agyeman and airs Wednesday nights at 9 p.m. GMT on BBC 2, and then on at Saturday nights at 9 p.m ET on BBC America. "Reset" was written by JC Wilsher and was directed by Ashley Way.

Alan Stanley Blair is the assistant news editor for Airlock Alpha and its sister site Rabid Doll. Contributing from his home country of Scotland, he is currently studying for a diploma in freelance journalism and can be reached at anytime at ablair@airlockalpha.com.

For the latest from the ?Torchwood? hub, don?t forget to read Airlock Alpha?s exclusive interview with Freema Agyeman by clicking here.