Doctor Who: Flux

Last updated on: December 7, 2021 at 4:07 am by James F. McGrath

Doctor Who: Flux 2021-12-07T04:07:19-05:00 James F. McGrath

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I debated what would be best each time I watched part of the season-long Doctor Who story “Flux.” In the end I decided to blog about the whole all at once. The season combined the episodic multi-part storytelling of the classic show with the focus on season-long arc in the more recent series. It combined the recently-revived focus on the Doctor’s mysterious past that was such a focus particularly in the Sylvester McCoy era and its Cartmel Masterplan, but with earlier connections present in the show’s original concept and in the episode “The Brain of Morbius” from the Tom Baker era.

When it became clear that a major crux of the Flux (sorry not sorry) was a temple, the Temple of Atropos, it also became clear that this story would be really interesting for people like me who study religion on Doctor Who. Swarm says in part 3, “Once Upon, Time”:

Here we are, still engaged in the Founding Conflict. There is no greater battle than this, the battle between Time and Space. And Time shall not lose. Time shall never surrender to Space. No planetary mass, however sophisticated, can imprison the force of Time. This planet, this construction, is not just a fallacy, not just futile hubris, it is heresy.

The planet is said to be called Time and to be Division’s dirty secret. Atropos is the name of one of the Fates in Greek mythology. The Mouri who are to be found there probably derive their name from the Greek name for the Fates, Μοιραι. The fact that these were beings in Greek thought to whom all humans and even the gods were subject is worth reflecting on.

In the end we get to see Time personified, taking the form of whomever it addresses. This universe, as the show has acknowledged throughout its history, is full of gods, and in order to wring more order out of the universe or extend existence as we know it, we sentient beings regularly come up with convoluted attempts to control these powerful divine and quasi-divine forces and entities. The show regularly focuses on actions of hubris, while showing that the Doctor’s efforts to save everyone she can is also an expression of hubris. Swarm asks pointedly why fighting to delay the end of life, the universe, and everything is better than allowing Time to do what it will, when it will. This highlights something about religion that Doctor Who gives expression to: we are at the whim of forces we cannot control, and yet we weave stories to reassure us that either we can influence them (e.g. through prayers and sacrifices) or they are benevolent or at least controlled by an ultimate benevolence. Yet another approach is to accept our own inability in the face of the divine, the transcendent, the powerful.

Life as we find it worth living seems to strike a balance between humble submission and courageous disobedience, between passive acquiescence and desperate attempts to control or at least influence. As in Taoism, it is when one loses the balance between the two that things are awry.

When Swarm says that what he wants is to “reign in hell” he is quoting a line from Milton (one that also makes an appearance in the classic Star Trek episode “Space Seed”).

I wonder about Chris Chibnall’s decision on the one hand to bring back Tecteun as founder of Division only to have her killed off rather quickly, and have the Doctor recover the fob watch with her lost memories only to entrust it to the TARDIS to keep from her ‘unless she really asks for it.’ Creating mystery again has usually served Doctor Who well, and enigmas cannot be spun out effectively indefinitely. Choosing what to resolve before handing over the reigns and what to leave open must be difficult.

I also wonder whether Tecteun was one of the two time lords censured by Rassilon and indicated to be the Doctor’s mother in “The End of Time.” Could all of this be woven together into a coherent storyline?

Another line of religious significance given where it ultimately derives from is when Dan says “O ye of little faith” in part 5, “Survivors of the Flux.” I also want to mention this great bit of dialogue from part 3:

CYBERMAN: Love is not a mission. Love is an emotion. Emotions are not missions.
BEL: And that’s why you’re dead on floor, and I put you there. (shoots it again) Love is the only mission, idiot…

Ultimately “Flux” did what Doctor Who has had a propensity for doing lately: many of the Doctor’s classic enemies are involved as are lots of past allies, yet the “big baddie” is someone new; the whole universe is at stake but the Doctor saves everything quite quickly and neatly; and the result is a convoluted story resolved by the end which nonetheless feels emotionally satisfying against all odds. I’ve sometime thought it would be interesting to have a series of books on the theologies of fictional worlds. What would it be like if the universe really could be threatened as easily as the show depicts? The storytelling reflects our own contemporary awareness that our own existence as individuals and a species hangs by a threat, stands poised on a knife-edge balanced between survival and obliteration. Thus Doctor Who does what mythology and religion have always done: turned our sense of our place in the universe into stories that don’t always make logical sense because their point is not to narrate historical fact but to encapsulate and embody a worldview in narrative expression. Doctor Who does that quite effectively, and as such deserves close study in its own right as a form of (or at least a phenomenon akin to) religion and mythology.

Doctor Who isn’t going with a Christmas special this year. It will return with a New Year’s special and two more specials after that in 2022 (further details yet to be revealed). In the last of those, Jodie Whitaker will apparently pass the baton to someone else. She has been a compelling Doctor and I’ll be sorry to see her go.

What are your thoughts about “Flux”?

Doctor Who

Flux

time

Previous Post

December 2, 2021

The Blind God and the Blind Watchmaker in Conversation

Next Post

December 7, 2021 The Elohist Akedah

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 1 Corinthians 1 John 1 Peter 1 Samuel 1 Thessalonians 1 Timothy 2 Corinthians 2 Kings 2 Peter 2 Samuel 2 Thessalonians 2 Timothy academia Acts of the Apostles afterlife Akhaten Alcatraz American Academy of Religion Amos Anglican Arabic Aramaic archaeology art artificial intelligence astronomy atheism atonement Babylon 5 Baptists Battlestar Galactica Bible Biblical Studies Carnival biblioblogging Black Mirror Blade Runner Book of Job book review Buddhism Call for Papers China Christianity Christmas Christology Chronicles Coptic creation Daniel Deuteronomy Doctor Who Dune Easter Ecclesiastes economics education Eldad Keynan Enoch Seminar Ephesians eschatology Esther Evangelicals evolution Exodus Expanse Ezekiel Ezra fantasy Fringe fundamentalism Galatians games Ge'ez genealogy Genesis Gnosticism Gospel of Jesus' Wife Gospel of John Gospel of Judas Gospel of Luke Gospel of Mark Gospel of Matthew Gospel of Peter Gospel of Thomas Greek Harry Potter Hebrew Hebrews Hinduism historical Jesus history Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Holidays horror Hosea humor incarnation India inerrancy information literacy inspirational Intelligent Design Ireland Isaiah Islam Israel Italy James Jeremiah John the Baptist Jonah Joshua Judaism Jude Judges Judith Lamentations languages Latin Leviticus libraries literature Lord of the Rings LOST Mandaeans Mandaic memes Methodism Micah monotheism morality Mormons movies music mythicism NASSCAL Nehemiah new perspective New Testament news Numbers Orthodox paganism panentheism pantheism Patheos Paul and his letters Pentecostals Philippians Philippians 2:6-11 philosophy physics Planet of the Apes podcast politics Progressive Christianity Protestantism Proverbs Psalms pseudoscience racism religion Revelation Roman Catholicism Romania Romans Ruth scams science science fiction Secret Gospel of Mark Society of Biblical Literature Song of Songs Star Trek Star Wars Stargate Swahili Syriac Taoism technology Terminator The Handmaid's Tale The Hobbit The Matrix theodicy theology theory Timeless Titus tomb Torchwood travel TRON Uncategorized United Kingdom Westworld X-Files young-earth creationism Zechariah

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 February 2007 January 2001

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz