The second Torchwood One box set, following Before The Fall, Machines features three different stories, interlinked by plot elements and themes.

There’s a strong theme running through the box set concerning humanity being replaced by technology, as well as plenty of elements based around memories; real, false and even removed.

The latter being a fairly common element within Torchwood stories, of course.

The first story, The Law Machines (by Matt Fitton) sees the rollout of automated, robotic cops go immediately, disastrously wrong – leaving Torchwood to try and pick up the pieces, despite them being at least partially to blame for the rather deadly problem in the first place.

It’s notable for featuring a Doctor Who villain from the very distant past, though you don’t need to be familiar with them in order to appreciate just what a threat they pose.

Next up is Blind Summit, written by Gareth David-Lloyd, who also plays Torchwood’s Ianto Jones. Interestingly, this is a spotlight on Ianto’s origin, in terms of how he came to be employed by Torchwood One.

Thirdly, there’s Tim Foley’s 9 to 5, which gives us another critique of automation and even the general exploitation of employees, with a conspiracy that sees temporary workers become far more temporary than ever before.

It’s another fantastic set of stories, with strong performances from a cast who have really settled into their roles.

Numerous guest stars also do a great job with the material too, though it’s perhaps not a surprise that Gareth David-Lloyd impresses most as Ianto, who brings a much needed human element to the generally rather cold outlook of other Torchwood One agents, Tracy-Ann Oberman’s Yvonne Hartman most definitely included.

Though the Torchwood TV show could be rather hit or miss, it’s found a great home in the audio format, with strong writing, excellent performances and some really meaty and thought provoking themes to sink your teeth into.

Machines is another Torchwood One box set that I can highly recommend – especially for fans of Ianto, whose tragic backstory fills in some gaps for the much loved, much missed Torchwood operative.

You can buy Torchwood One: Machines directly from Big Finish here, on CD plus digital download or just as a digital download, which you can listen to using the excellent Big Finish app.