Well, I agree (Ianto is important and unique to Jack, and Jack says so in this story), but I also disagree... Polyamory is a thing that exists, and Jack – being both immortal and from the future – would have his own particular version of it! Jack's relationship with Ianto is certainly different from how he feels about the rest of the team, but to me his bond with Gwen (though it's not a sexual/romantic one, necessarily) is a very important thing, too...
And honestly, Series 2 reads to me like Jack himself is still trying to figure this stuff out. In S3, he and Ianto are explicitly, canonically established as a "couple," but in S2 their relationship is less defined, and Jack also seems to be figuring out how to feel the way he feels about Gwen – and yet let her go. Indeed, there are quite a few points when he probably could have "chosen" Gwen over Ianto, but he decided not to – all through "Something Borrowed" he's clearly signaling his decision not to – and the fact that he makes that decision says something, too. (Not that I *like* how dismissively he talks about Ianto in "Something Borrowed"...but I choose to take it as being part of an arc of Jack Figuring His Shit Out.)
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2015-04-24 12:17 am (UTC)And honestly, Series 2 reads to me like Jack himself is still trying to figure this stuff out. In S3, he and Ianto are explicitly, canonically established as a "couple," but in S2 their relationship is less defined, and Jack also seems to be figuring out how to feel the way he feels about Gwen – and yet let her go. Indeed, there are quite a few points when he probably could have "chosen" Gwen over Ianto, but he decided not to – all through "Something Borrowed" he's clearly signaling his decision not to – and the fact that he makes that decision says something, too. (Not that I *like* how dismissively he talks about Ianto in "Something Borrowed"...but I choose to take it as being part of an arc of Jack Figuring His Shit Out.)