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Random Shoes is one of my favourite episodes of the show. It once again shows Gwen's humanity and how shes different from the rest of the team. It also explores the already established point that Torchwood have "Fan Clubs", and the Character of Eugene is much more interesting due to this.

Random Shoes killed me. I cried so hard watching this one! While Love & Monsters was ridiculously silly (that ending, come on!), RS was genuinely heartfelt and serious throughout. No comparison, imo,

Didn't even know this was underrated, it's one of my favourite episodes!

Y'know I'm on season 4 of Doctor Who and am just about to get into Torchwood S2 but I gotta say thank you for making these. I'm admittedly not the sharpest tool in the shed and sometimes meanings and story notes go over my head and these videos are a MASSIVE help

This episode was pretty enjoyable but I think Eugene's weird obsession with gwen was too much because there doesn't seem to really be any connection between the two characters. I don't think they've ever interacted other than the time Eugene said "gwen i have to show you something" then she just steps into the torchwood car and drives away.

This has always been one of my favourite episdes: I've never been able to quantify it, not sure that I even tried to; it's just one that I like a lot. I like that Gwen is able to hear him, even if she doesn't know it: her empathy and his love for her connect ever so subtly. And the irony of someone working in a small DVD rental shop calling someone else "a loser"! It's interesting that Eugene doesn't see "the darkness" that all other revived-dead report: different temperament?

I really loved this episode, right up until he ascended to heaven. I still had a smile on my face after watching it though, it was definitely a strong episode imo

I won't lie, when I first watched this episode, I genuinely cried at it, random shoes is such an underrated episode

I always enjoyed this episode, its the tale of a young man whose life was tragically cut short, I like how it explores how all the people who knew Eugene react to his death, how people grieve in their own way while others just move on. And the scene where Eugene's dad sings at his funeral never fails to make me tear up.

Didn't know this one wasn't loved, I just recently watched torchwood on my own and this one was my favorite episode

I really think this ep is a hidden gem, It genuinely made me quite emotional, I like one-off contained episodes like this and Love & Monsters.

Yay. the Torchwood reviews are back. Also this episode is interesting. I dunno how I feel about it but it is certainly different.

Random Shoes is very much the Love & Monsters of Torchwood Series 1. You either love it or hate it.

I love both Random Shoes and Love and Monsters. Both are excellent episodes that really hit the feels at the end of each episode. But even building up to that are good, strong stories that kept my eyes glues to the screen.

0:44 That’s Owain Hughes! And before you ask, no he doesn’t!

Wait, Gary and LINDA? I guess there is some of Love & Monsters here after all.

I've been waiting for this one, my absolute favourite Torchwood episode.

Easy episode to overlook. Very different stand-alone storyline. One of those life affirming ones, and Eugene's closing lines have choked me up more than once. The first 2 series of TW are the best, and I wish there had been a couple more with this format and cast.

This was my favourite episode. Thanks for highlighting it.

this episode is probably my favourite from series 1. its not a big action episode but its more of a contemplation of the speed of life and our position in the world which is something i know i've thought about many times before. the high emotion from his mother is so real and relatable it always makes me cry. Sure its not the biggest stakes most impressive episode but the quiet nature reflects real life so well and its just amazing

Random Shoes is pretty good I think, but it overstays its welcome and I don't think the main character is good enough to carry the episode.

Random Shoes is my tied favourite episode of Torchwood, it's tied with 'Countryside', I love the mystery of this story and the way it explores death and reactions to it, and human behavior, and how death works in the real world, Eugene was a good guy, and when he finally was happy he got hit by a car and killed, its tragic and true to life.

This episode is completely overlooked Eugene's Actor is portrayed great and the Plot is a unique one

I gave Torchwood another chance after seeing your reviews and finished Miracle Day a couple of days ago, loved most of the show. Also really liked this episode. Can't wait for the next reviews.

This and Countrycide were my two favorite episodes of this series.

I really love this episode from a concept standpoint, but Eugene as a character only really seems to come together near the end, and his interactions with Gwen always came off as a little bit creepy to me.

Harbo, I feel like you are the teacher that finds "hidden meanings" in everything.

I cried when i saw it, And now you made me cry again 😭 but in a good way. Poor mum though. I feel so bad for her. Losing a child is the worst that can happen to anyone.

The first time I watched Random Shoes, I definitely didn't appreciate it. I dismissed it as dumb and slow. But the second time around, the ending made me rather emotional. It's still not my favorite, and i do think it drags a bit, but overall it's a sweet episode that hits the right notes. I like the commentary on the fleetingness and randomness, yet meaningfulness, of life. I'm almost embarrassed that this episode makes me teary-eyed, but the ending just leaves a smile on my face and I think I can embrace that now. Definitely underrated and overhated, imo.

Maybe I'm missing something, but why was Torchwood investigating a routine accident in the first place?

It's a good episode, imo. I like how despite it's a character-based story, the built-up mystery surrounding it is still neat. My only pet peeves is the super dull title. I keep forgetting about this episode because of it.

Ngl I don’t see the comparison between this and “Love and monsters” cause I liked this episode but refuse to believe anyone enjoyed “love and monsters” 😅

Great review! I love Random Shoes and I'm also a Love and Monsters fan. Love exploring the human condition!

The entire point of episodes like these is to demonstrate the effect that the actions and responsibilities of the main characters and institutions has on the rest of the world. More particularly, it demonstrates the effect that alien devices and other such phenomena have on the victims.

Thank you for showing why this is one of my favourite episodes of TW.

so glad you like it as much as i do. i'm obviously gonna sympathise with those who don't like it but this episode really made me emotional in deep rooted ways, just because it encapsulates the goofiness of early new who even with none of the cast involved

I haven't seen this since it first aired, but I remember liking it. I should probably get around to rewatching and see how I feel now.

I loved this episode. Very emotional episode and eugene was a great character.

I remember watching this episode for the first time and feeling really bored. On a rewatch, it held alot more emotive meaning to me, even if the ending felt slightly rushed to me

I think I said this on the love and monsters episode that random shoes is like a better version of that and I love it

This is probably my favourite series on yt at the moment

I love the episode overall, but the guy's voice speaks as if it's a kids show and so it tonally feels inconsistent and makes it difficult to watch

I can't wait until the review of season 2's Adrift. That one was so compelling.

Honestly, I loved this episode the first time I saw it

This is a random comment but - the intro reads as though you’re about to say “WELL YOU DON’T HAVE TO DIE WITH TODAY’S SPONSOR...” Made me chuckle. Maybe one day that will be the norm if they create life extension lol.

My favourite episode by far!

One of my fav episodes like this is Adrift.

Just watched this episode yesterday. My phone is listening.

I’m sorry but I can’t help laugh at this episode due to my own stupid humour , because you know at the end of the episodes where he starts to “float” to heaven or whatever and Gwen is asking him not to go...I imagined half way during that scene a plane coming and hitting him proceeding to knock him flying while Gwen looks on in horror

This is an awesome episode, great review.

Ngl I always laugh my ass off at the ending with him going up to the heavens, it just feels so off.

I'll admit, I've forgotten this episode entirely until you started to describe it.

I hated Random Shoes when I was younger - possibly because it had that core-cast-lite feel like Love and Monsters (though I didn't realise at the time), but I watched it again last year and actually really like the change of perspective. Even so, I felt the reveals of Eugene's death were pretty anticlimatic. I just wanted more from the episode beyond the normality, y'know?

God...I LOVE this episode

I thought this was one of the better episodes from TW Season 1, there were quite a few misses for me but this episode wasn't one of them.

The Children of Earth review is gonnna be siiiick

On my first time watching I was just confused because I thought Eugene was a member of Torchwood who died XD I worked it out later In my defence I was young

As someone who believes in reincarnation, I quite like this episode. This and other episodes at least imply that conciousness isn't generated by the brain and that it continues to exist after death. And there have been accounts in Asia of people whose soul continued to linger on Earth after death roaming the spot where they suddenly died searching for a new body live in.

I think episodes like this and Love and Monsters get a lot of hate on first viewings at the time because they don't scratch the itch the show overall is catering to. In this case it's a break from the gory, sexy, shooty, "adult" (cough) character of the show, and actually appeals on a more mature level - ironically ;)

I remember the broadcast team accidentally put the cbbc logo on the screen for the first few minutes of this episode, for the longest time i thought this was a one off kids episode for torchwood but apparently it was an accident 😂

This episode was like Love & Monsters, but done right.

It’s the Love and Monsters of Torchwood tone-wise but that doesn’t mean it’s bad...

The BBC has taken your The Doctors Daughter review Someone go tell the BBC what fair use is

Love Random Shoes and Love and Monsters. ELO rocks!

The parallels between Doctor Who fans and Eugene made me realise why I think of Eugene as autistic. I'm autistic and Eugene is like me in a way. Just thought that was cool.

I'm getting *Ghost* vibes from this episode.

Ah! I was waiting for these to kick back again! (I watched children of earth back to back today... then went on to watch kiss kiss bang bang and Sleeper after that!- I’m torchwooded out!)

25:58 Petrol is 90p.

Completely forgot this episode, it's pretty OK, but it doesn't surprise me that it's somewhat forgotten.

Great episode

I really enjoy the episode. When I was younger I think I disliked it more than I do now, but it's definitely not on the list of episodes I skip when I'm rewatching. It full on ugly cry in this episode, which I think is high praise for the acting, writing and pacing. My least favourite part is how the narration sounds - but I don't know what I specifically dislike about it. Not the content - the actual audio. It's particularly noticeable when it goes from him monologuing on-set to the detached audio - but since narration is usually detached I don't know why I take such issue with this in particular.

i had almost no recollection of this episode, but it was kind of affecting at the time

I did really liked this episode until the guy saw Gwen at the end and I burst out laughing.

This episode is great

1/10, needs more ELO

I always thought it was a brilliant episode.

I really enjoyed about 97% of this episode

You are good at this , you could start writing for online magazines etc. as a sideline to help your income until your KZfaq base picks up , seriously dude it could help expose you more and bring you a lot more views on your channel

My opinion on this episode changes every time i watch it

I'm not a fan of Love and Monsters or this episode but it feels like an insult to this episode to compare it to that.

Most interesting part of this episode was Jack’s striped shirt

I’ll never not love a Man U diss

As uplifting as the final speech is I feel it also brings it back down a bit with how sharply it ends with the narration and music cutting out almost mid-sentence with all that joy gone in an instant.

Could the Doctor Who universe have more people die from getting hit by vehicles? It’s A LOT

Banana milkshakes and random shoes!

Wow, I did not appreciate the semi-final line...

This episode was super sad

I will say until the horrible ending where all the girl is good for is her mouth, that's wonderful... I really liked Love and Monsters... I also really liked Blink- so long as they aren't a ton of those (and there really aren't) I can appreciate outside looking in eps. I think the reason I was even able to deal with the monster in Love and Monsters was- wasn't it a kid who won a contest that designed it? I think so- well, I went into it thinking so and thought to myself "This is a particularly creative horror to have happen to you for a kid to think up...", and I went with it, because it's a kid's show. But I refuse to accept the girl's face being on a tile. I feel they didn't think that shit through at all, especially by framing it as a good thing and outright winking fun things could still be done- if I remember correctly. Just- nooooo, it's a kid's show... lol

10:44 Is that Owine Hughes?

If I died and then got to see my “friend” call me a loser I would be pissed as fuck 😂

Random shoes got me damn near an ugly cry the first time I watched it. And the second. And the third.

Goodness I love random shoes.

This episode is actually really one of my favourite's.

I think if the main character was better cast and written, then I think the episode would be one of the best of series one.

I prefer the original title, Invisible Eugene.

I liked the episode, but felt weirdly light hearted for Torchwood, and had a very cheesy ending.

man u is the best football team

It's a wonderful life.(TM)

In itself the episode is great, but for some reason it's not that interesting for rewatching. I love the interaction of the main characters and there is simply not enough of it. Also it not feels Torchwood enough. It's good scifi and maybe even serial television, but not great Torchwood.