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| The Doctor has a mental link with the evil Swarm (Sam Spruell). |
THE PLOT:
The Doctor's attempt to get information from Karvanista (Craige Els), of the dog-like Lupari species, goes predictably awry, leading to Karvanista escaping. The Doctor pursues, tracking him to present-day Liverpool... but arrives too late to stop him from kidnapping Dan Lewis (John Bishop), a seemingly ordinary human.
The Doctor and Yaz continue their pursuit, unaware that the universe itself is unraveling. Swarm (Sam Spruell), a being who has been imprisoned by The Division since the beginning of time, has escaped, and The Flux has begun...
CHARACTERS:
The Doctor: Continues to be secretive about her motives. She refuses to tell Yaz exactly why she's so intent on confronting Karvanista. When they infiltrate his ship, she sends Yaz to rescue Dan... in part to rescue the kidnapped man, but I think primarily so that she can talk to her quarry alone. When Yaz calls her on her behavior, the Doctor becomes instantly defensive, and I suspect a part of her is almost relieved when a crisis stops their argument before she has to actually share her goals.
Yaz: When Yaz meets Dan, she introduces herself as former police. To invoke Amy and Rory, she has now made the choice between "real life" and "Doctor life" - and she chose the Doctor. Which likely makes it all the more frustrating that the Doctor is still keeping secrets, something Yaz already lost patience with back in Series 12. With the TARDIS newly un-crowded, the dynamic between her and the Doctor feels much fresher and livelier, and Mandip Gill's performance here is wonderfully energetic.
Dan: Comedian John Bishop makes a strong first impression as the newest member of the TARDIS team. Introductory scenes arguably oversell the character: He's a proud Scouser who gives impromptu tours at the Museum of Liverpool despite not actually working there, who has an endearing flirtation with museum worker Diane (Nadia Albina), and who volunteers in a soup kitchen. What, no rescuing a kitten from a tree? For all this, Bishop is authentic and likable, and the scene in which he mistakes Kavanista's alien appearance for a Halloween costume is quite funny (and unlike some comedy scenes, knows to drop the gag before it wears out its welcome).
Returning Enemies: This episode briefly features both The Weeping Angels and the Sontarans. Neither enemy interacts with the Doctor, and it's obvious that they are being established for future episodes. The Weeping Angel is the centerpiece of the episode's most effective scene, as a lone angel stalks the mysterious Claire (Annabel Scholey) as she tries to make it to safety before it can catch up with her. The Sontarans receive two scenes, principally comic in tone - as has been the New Series' general treatment of them - as they relish the thought of the destruction heading their way.
Swarm: Set up as the main enemy of the season. He is introduced as a Hannibal Lecter-like character, taunting and psychologically manipulating his jailers even as he is confined. He has a history with the Doctor, presumably from when she worked for the Division, and uses a thus-far unexplained psychic link to taunt her with a past that he remembers and she does not. "There is not a tiny corner of you that remembers," he exults. "I remember every battle - which gives me the advantage." Sam Spruell does wonders with his limited screen time, his voice and bearing exuding presence. It helps that the makeup job is terrific, with him just alien enough to be unsettling without tipping over into silliness.
THOUGHTS:
The Flux begins! ...And I have only the vaguest notion of what might be going on, but at least so far it's fun to watch.
The Halloween Apocalypse is light on explanation, succeeding largely through sheer momentum. This has not traditionally been a strength of writer/showrunner Chris Chibnall's. Too often in this era, the action has screeched to a grinding halt to deliver character or plot exposition, leaving the stories to have to restart the pace instead of letting it build.
Well, that doesn't happen here. There are still good character moments, but they arise naturally during the action rather than feeling crowbarred in. Yaz confronts the Doctor about her secretiveness while they work on their pursuit of Karvanista, and they talk only for a couple minutes before being interrupted by more plot. The action is near constant, with the episode offering up no less than five different set pieces across its brisk 50-minute running time.
I wonder if it shouldn't have been a little longer. The main thread of the Doctor and Yaz pursuing Karvanista and rescuing Dan is a bit thin, and it is sometimes overwhelmed by all the "stuff" happening around it. The Division! Sontarans! Claire, who meets the Doctor out of sequence before fleeing from a Weeping Angel! And at least two other threads I'm not mentioning simply because I have no clue what's actually going on in them. The Halloween Apocalypse is the "busiest" episode of the series since the departure of Steven Moffatt, and I think an extra ten minutes might have done wonders to help all these individual bits feel like they're genuinely connected.
That said, not since Fugitive of the Judoon has a new Doctor Who episode passed so quickly for me. When the episode ended, I was actively surprised that a full 50 minutes had already elapsed. I may currently be confused about how (or whether) the pieces will end up fitting... but I wasn't bored for a second, and I'm at least cautiously optimistic that Flux might manage to deliver on its potential.
Overall Rating: 7/10.
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