Review of Flux: Survivors of the Flux
Warning: This review contains episode-specific spoilers and wild speculation about future episodes.

I’m starting to wonder whether or not I will be among the survivors of Flux. I really thought the story was rolling along well, going in an interesting direction last week, but this week… Well, at least all the major threads are finally coming together.

To be honest, I wasn’t quite sure last series how I felt about rewriting the Doctor’s history so thoroughly. I like the idea of shaking things up and throwing a spanner in the works, so to speak, but making it so Everything Is About the Doctor™ is less interesting to me. And Chibnall is definitely doubling down on that angle with this year’s Flux storyline.

I haven’t quite put my finger on what changed between part four, where I was all in, and part five, which left me feeling somewhat flat. Perhaps it was the assertion/confirmation of how over-the-top “special” the Doctor is in Chibnall’s version of the show: the entire universe is under attack because of her, and she may or may not even be from our universe!

At least Chibnall has been consistent in switching up the style of each episode. That part I still like. This time we’re flipping from plot thread to plot thread with notations for the various time zones (which, in the case of Yaz and Dan (and Jericho), includes various locations). We come in mid-adventure for Yaz, who is taking on a very Doctor-y role, with Dan and Jericho effectively acting as her Companions. It’s a bit reminiscent of Clara in her later days (somewhat worrying, when I think about it like that…).

Meanwhile, the Doctor’s been hijacked and taken to Division, where the mysterious woman she encountered before fills her in on some important details she’s been missing. Predictably, the Doctor is pissed and has plans to make a plan to save the universe before the woman (whom the closed captions confusingly label as “Awsok,” despite her own, different self-identification) can destroy it completely.

In other parallel plot threads, Bel and Vinder just miss each other, thanks to a very cranky Karvanista. Bel ends up going toe-to-toe with the Lupar before they end up under attack by a mutual enemy, while Vinder gets “ambushed” by Swarm and taken inside Transport. It looks at first like Vinder’s being really stupid, but that doesn’t mesh with what we’ve seen of him so far, and his subsequent interaction with Di bears out the idea that things went according to his plan.

And speaking of plans, we get to see the Grand Serpent, of “Vinder’s worst moment” fame, carefully insinuate himself into UNIT over the course of sixty years (in even-decade increments). This, of course, gives us a lovely chance to hear the Brigadier’s voice (back when he was still a Colonel), get some further Classic references, and get an idea of why UNIT had been shut down and Kate Stewart out of contact during the events of Resolution.

Throw in the long-awaited explanation for the inclusion of Liverpool’s famous tunnel-builder Williamson, and all the threads finally begin to sketch out a coherent picture. My problem is, I’m not sure I like what I see.

For the most part, I’ve really enjoyed the mad pace, the slew of both new characters and call-backs, and the gradually unfolding mystery. Overall, Flux has been great. But the part where the Doctor gets upheld as a unique being in the universe, and one whose existence and identity are the keys to the fate of the universe as a whole, are off-putting to me. That the Doctor is extraordinary is something integral to the makeup of the show, and I accept that without question. That she is “big” enough to warrant destroying the universe to make up for her meddling stretches my credulity almost beyond the breaking point.

I guess we’ll have to see how things pan out in the final installment next week; I get the unpleasant feeling that I’ll either love it or hate it (and that it might end up being the latter). No matter what happens, though, there are a lot of things in this series that have really delighted me. I’ll keep holding onto those to help me survive Flux with my love of the show intact, no matter how it ends.