{"id":8260,"date":"2021-12-05T20:20:16","date_gmt":"2021-12-05T19:20:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1532303"},"modified":"2021-12-05T21:00:12","modified_gmt":"2021-12-05T20:00:12","slug":"doctor-who-the-vanquishers-review-flux-draws-to-a-satisfying-if-frenetic-conclusion","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/doctor-who-the-vanquishers-review-flux-draws-to-a-satisfying-if-frenetic-conclusion\/","title":{"rendered":"Doctor Who \u2013 The Vanquishers review: Flux draws to a satisfying, if frenetic, conclusion"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Patrick Mulkern\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Sunday, 05 December 2021 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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<\/div> 4.0 out of 5 star rating<\/span> <\/span> <\/div> <\/div>

In the face of adversity may we find what makes us strong. This has certainly proven so for Chris Chibnall, the man with a show to run in the face of a pandemic. Forced to scale back, to operate in a climate of fluctuating COVID restrictions, he redrew his parameters in pursuit of the best Doctor Who<\/a> he and his team could deliver. In that respect, they have achieved an impressive feat in the six-part Flux.<\/p>\n

Returning the programme to its original serial format has been the key win. It has allowed an engaging, occasionally gripping, series of storylines to evolve and interweave, build to effective cliffhangers, and then to resolve satisfyingly in this sixth and final episode.<\/p>\n

At times, it\u2019s been apparent that everything but the kitchen sink, the dog basket and the loo brush was being chucked into the mix. Multiple locales, time zones, Doctors\u2026 A barrage of old foes dusted down and given a chance to play outside again\u2026 Sontarans chiefly, but Daleks and Cybermen too \u2013 all looking foolhardy in this final conflagration\u2026 Even a friendly Ood joined the fray, while the Weeping Angels polished their badges as Who\u2019s chill-supremoes.<\/p>\n

Note that none of the creations from Chibnall\u2019s past two series were called upon: no Stenza, no whispering-rag Remnants, no froggy Solitract, no shimmering Kasaavin, no Pting, no Dregs\u2026 Consigned to oblivion, perhaps. What\u2019s positive is that he has now fashioned memorable opponents in the Ravagers, Swarm and Azure. Outstanding performances from Sam Spruell and Rochenda Sandall allied to fabulous costume, masks and make-up \u2013 \u201cCondragulations!\u201d to the design team. RuPaul\u2019s Drag Race champions, eat your hearts out!<\/p>

\u201cWe have everything we need \u2013 Division, the power to destroy your universe\u2026 and you!\u201d gloats Swarm. They not only relish destruction (\u201cThe end of all spatial objects,\u201d purrs Azure helpfully), they long to replay the final throes of our cosmos, in a constant loop. Their finest moments involve tormenting the Doctor: Azure proffering the MacGuffin fob watch, \u201cIt will break your mind\u201d; Swarm literally tearing the house down, as he rips apart and reassembles the crooked building that represents the Time Lord\u2019s missing past. Then Azure finally steps from her sibling\u2019s shadow to discuss with the Doctor their diametrically opposed faiths: life versus obliteration.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s an anti-climax when the ghastly pair meet their comeuppance and are frittered away by the embodiment of Time. They seem ecstatic about their exit. \u201cAscension\u2026\u201d coos Azure as she disintegrates. Maybe she is going to a better place. When Time takes on the form of the Doctor, with Jodie Whittaker\u2019s benign face, I half-expected a reference to Kronos the \u201cchronovore\u201d from The Time Monster<\/a>. It portends doom for this Doctor and heavy-hints a rematch with the Master.<\/p>\n

Way before this, we\u2019ve seen a fresh spin on The Three Doctors<\/a>. \u201cWow, you\u2019re cute!\u201d she says to herself. \u201cI\u2019m being trisected across disparate dimensions. I\u2019m split across three realities now. It\u2019s quite draining and confusing and breaks every known law.\u201d It would be easy to take the mickey here, but Chibnall and Whittaker handle all this guff confidently, and provide a clever, new and very Who-ey way of telling a story and spinning plates.<\/p>\n

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Chibnall\u2019s Flux has trodden an eventful if uneven path, with one swill-bucket of bad dreams (Once, Upon Time<\/a>) and one bona fide classic (Village of the Angels<\/a>) along the way. The greatest triumph of this six-parter is that, while frenetic, it has given its characters space to breathe and come alive, which can\u2019t be said of the usual, limited 45-minute format. We might not know much more about them at the end than at the start but they\u2019ve become familiar and likeable and we root for them.<\/p>\n

Warrior-lovers-reunited Bel and Vinder go off to make babies, in the company of Bungle-from-Bolton Karvanista, now the last of his kind. \u2018Claire-voyant\u2019 survives the Sontaran mind probe and arrives back in her own time with her 2021 hairdo miraculously restored. Resourceful Diane \u201cmay just have saved what\u2019s left of the universe\u201d, but she still turns down Dan. The Grand Serpent gets hissy with the Doctor but she tames him (\u201cI\u2019ve put you on the very naughty step\u201d) and he\u2019s abandoned on a minuscule asteroid.<\/p>\n

With so much going on, Kate Stewart draws the short straw. So strong is Jemma Redgrave\u2019s presence, there are scenes where I\u2019m willing her to intercede with more than the few lines she\u2019s allotted. She signs off with: \u201cI like this regeneration. Hope I meet it again.\u201d Let\u2019s hope that transpires in the coming specials. Kevin McNally is the other winner, in a way. His have-a-go-scientist, old-soldier Jericho is a splendid old chap but was always destined to be the one hero sacrificed in this piece. \u201cWhat an awfully big adventure\u2026\u201d We salute you, Jericho.<\/p>\n

A bedazzling CGI Flux-obliteration of planets, spaceships and archenemies is all conveniently hoovered up by one of those Passengers, whose silhouette still hits me as \u2018Ena Sharples in gimp mask\u2019. Straggly ends are tied in a leisurely but satisfying wind-down. Dan (John Bishop) has earned his place among the Tardis crew, and the Doctor makes peace with Yaz (Mandip Gill). As it should, the focus narrows in on this pair, their heartfelt \u2018womance\u2019 and a well-placed tear. Both characters\/actors have benefitted from this revised format.<\/p>\n

In the final moments, though, Chibnall offers another reset, possibly just a pause. The Doctor drops her fob-watch memories into the heart of the Tardis \u2013 determined to remain \u201cDoctor Who?\u201d. Perfect.<\/p>\n