This is a weird one for me. My first episode was World War Three (2005), when I was 5. I've grown up with this show and have watched every episode countless times since its broadcast. The same goes for 13's era, however I've definitely found myself less inclined to rewatch a number of episodes from this era (which can't be said for anything 2005-17), despite there being a dozen or so that I'll happily go back to. While there's some great ideas, nice stories and moments where it feels very Doctor Who, the overall quality just isn't there like it used to be - in every department. But fundamentally, I'll still tune in every week because it's 45 mins of escapism in my favourite universe.
'Flux' was weird, but personally, good weird. It was refreshing, did some great things with the Sontarans and Angels and genuinely had me excited for the next episode for 6 straight weeks (something which the last 2 seasons failed to do). Dan was an entertaining and harmless addition, while Yaz felt quite fresh and had a lot more character. I was really impressed with the guest cast and thought everyone did a great job, even if their scenes were brief. The Ravagers were a fascinating idea, felt genuinely menacing at points and looked great, even if their plan felt somewhat insignificant by the end. As for what was explored regarding the Timeless Child twist - which I don't love, but am happy to accept - I appreciated the development and the scenes with Tecteun, given that the pandemic chaos behind the scenes probably meant Chibnall had significantly less time to explore this thread (giving him the benefit of the doubt, I know). It's a shame we won't get to see this explored further as I'd love to know more about the crooked house and see what impact the knowledge that they're technically immortal has on the Doctor. Alas, what we got amongst the otherwise entertaining 'Flux' story was satisfying enough. Overall, you could tell that despite the difficult circumstances that it was conceived and produced in, a lot of hard work and passion had gone into the project and everyone really was doing the best with what they had.
In another universe, 'Flux' might have been a true television epic in the hands of another writer, under a studio with a bigger budget, in a different situation with no pandemic etc. And admittedly, what we got was a jumble of plot threads, characters, monsters and randomly interlinking locations. This finale, in my opinion, didn't successfully tie everything together into one satisfying conclusion: the Grand Serpent/UNIT plot should have been a full-season thing as this was a great concept; the Sontaran invasion felt like it came out of nowhere and left with little impact; the scenes in the Passenger with Vinder and Diane were bizarre and weirdly edited; the Williamson tunnels were a brilliant way to tie everything together, but glossed over far too quickly; for what purpose did Jericho and Claire head to the Sontaran ship?; it felt like the Ravagers didn't really have anything to do with the Doctor and seriously, is most of the Universe just in bits now?
And yet, having said all that... this is the most re-watchable episode of 'Flux' for me. Since it aired I've watched it about a dozen times (by comparison, I haven't revisited 'Legend of the Sea Devils' once in 2 or 3 weeks and don't intend to anytime soon). It's full of Chibnall's worst tropes and inconsistencies and it feels like 4 or 5 episodes worth of story crammed into an hour. But it's weirdly fun. It looks really, really great. The Sontarans are plain fun but still dark as anything, wiping out the Lupari fleet. I quite like the resolution with the Passenger and Bel felt like a surprisingly natural fit to the TARDIS. The Daleks and Cybermen getting wiped out was a cool touch, if a bit brutal on the Doctor's part (to be fair it seemed like a long day). It's campy in all the ways DW actually should be. It feels like Doctor Who! And personally, this is one of my favourite performances from Jodie. She really sells the character here and is a joy to watch, bringing life to every scene she's in - which is most, thankfully. I'm not her biggest fan but I've come to appreciate her take on the Doctor and this episode was her tour de force.
So yeah, overall it's not great. You'll have to watch all of 'Flux' and probably know the entire intricate and messy history of the show to maybe understand it, and even if you do you probably won't be satisfied with the conclusion. But personally, it's good fun. It made me excited to watch and I'm still going back to it. That's all I need from Doctor Who.
'Flux' was weird, but personally, good weird. It was refreshing, did some great things with the Sontarans and Angels and genuinely had me excited for the next episode for 6 straight weeks (something which the last 2 seasons failed to do). Dan was an entertaining and harmless addition, while Yaz felt quite fresh and had a lot more character. I was really impressed with the guest cast and thought everyone did a great job, even if their scenes were brief. The Ravagers were a fascinating idea, felt genuinely menacing at points and looked great, even if their plan felt somewhat insignificant by the end. As for what was explored regarding the Timeless Child twist - which I don't love, but am happy to accept - I appreciated the development and the scenes with Tecteun, given that the pandemic chaos behind the scenes probably meant Chibnall had significantly less time to explore this thread (giving him the benefit of the doubt, I know). It's a shame we won't get to see this explored further as I'd love to know more about the crooked house and see what impact the knowledge that they're technically immortal has on the Doctor. Alas, what we got amongst the otherwise entertaining 'Flux' story was satisfying enough. Overall, you could tell that despite the difficult circumstances that it was conceived and produced in, a lot of hard work and passion had gone into the project and everyone really was doing the best with what they had.
In another universe, 'Flux' might have been a true television epic in the hands of another writer, under a studio with a bigger budget, in a different situation with no pandemic etc. And admittedly, what we got was a jumble of plot threads, characters, monsters and randomly interlinking locations. This finale, in my opinion, didn't successfully tie everything together into one satisfying conclusion: the Grand Serpent/UNIT plot should have been a full-season thing as this was a great concept; the Sontaran invasion felt like it came out of nowhere and left with little impact; the scenes in the Passenger with Vinder and Diane were bizarre and weirdly edited; the Williamson tunnels were a brilliant way to tie everything together, but glossed over far too quickly; for what purpose did Jericho and Claire head to the Sontaran ship?; it felt like the Ravagers didn't really have anything to do with the Doctor and seriously, is most of the Universe just in bits now?
And yet, having said all that... this is the most re-watchable episode of 'Flux' for me. Since it aired I've watched it about a dozen times (by comparison, I haven't revisited 'Legend of the Sea Devils' once in 2 or 3 weeks and don't intend to anytime soon). It's full of Chibnall's worst tropes and inconsistencies and it feels like 4 or 5 episodes worth of story crammed into an hour. But it's weirdly fun. It looks really, really great. The Sontarans are plain fun but still dark as anything, wiping out the Lupari fleet. I quite like the resolution with the Passenger and Bel felt like a surprisingly natural fit to the TARDIS. The Daleks and Cybermen getting wiped out was a cool touch, if a bit brutal on the Doctor's part (to be fair it seemed like a long day). It's campy in all the ways DW actually should be. It feels like Doctor Who! And personally, this is one of my favourite performances from Jodie. She really sells the character here and is a joy to watch, bringing life to every scene she's in - which is most, thankfully. I'm not her biggest fan but I've come to appreciate her take on the Doctor and this episode was her tour de force.
So yeah, overall it's not great. You'll have to watch all of 'Flux' and probably know the entire intricate and messy history of the show to maybe understand it, and even if you do you probably won't be satisfied with the conclusion. But personally, it's good fun. It made me excited to watch and I'm still going back to it. That's all I need from Doctor Who.