Doctor Who Gives Jodie’s Whittakers Era Real Consequences Two Years After The Flux
The Jodie Whittaker era ended with half the universe apparently destroyed by the Flux - and the Doctor Who anniversary specials have faced it at last!
This article contaiins spoilers for the Doctor Who anniversary special, “Wild Blue Yonder”
Doctor Who has given the Jodie Whittaker era lasting consequences for the entire universe, two years after the end of Doctor Who: Flux. There’s a sense in which Doctor Who season 13 (officially titled Doctor Who: Flux) was envisioned as the most spectacular event in the show’s 60-year history; a mysterious cosmic phenomenon known as the Flux tore through the universe, wreaking havoc on an unprecedented scale. Even Jodie Whittaker’s Thirteenth Doctor didn’t fully understand what she was dealing with, eventually discovering her own personal connection to this apocalyptic threat.
The Flux was created by the Division, an ancient group established millennia ago on Gallifrey. The Division’s leader, Tecteun, was the Doctor’s adopted mother; she sought to control all time and space, but had decided to destroy the universe as a failed experiment because of the Doctor’s interference. This made the Flux personal for the Doctor, but unfortunately it didn’t mean she was able to put matters right.
Doctor Who: Flux Destroyed Half The Universe
Tecteun’s attack wreaked havoc on time and space. The Flux literally destroyed half the universe, but there were hints the Doctor would find a way to reverse this – a reset button on a cosmic scale. Surprisingly, though, the actual plot swerved this; the consequences of the Flux were never resolved. Unfortunately, this didn’t seem to be a conscious decision; the script of the final episode of Doctor Who season 13 was somewhat rushed, and it was unclear whether this was simply an oversight. Doctor Who appeared to have destroyed half the universe, and then simply forgotten about it.
Doctor Who Confirmed The Doctor Never Fixed The Flux
The latest Doctor Who anniversary special, “Wild Blue Yonder,” confirmed the Doctor had been unable to fix the Flux. “Wild Blue Yonder” was an intense episode, one in which two extradimensional entities began to dig into the Doctor and Donna’s minds. At one point, a being taking the form of Donna forced the Doctor to confront the dramatic events that had taken place since the Doctor and Donna last met – notably the Timeless Child retcon and the Flux. The Doctor finally admitted he had been unable to reverse the Flux, meaning literally half the universe had been destroyed.
This moment subtly rewrites the end of Doctor Who: Flux, recasting the story’s failure to address this cosmic destruction as a character point for the Doctor. The Doctor has always been characterized as a person who runs rather than dealing with their own issues; indeed, there’s a sense in which this has been their defining trait for the last 60 years, ever since they stole a Type 40 TARDIS and left Gallifrey. This is presumably the real reason the Thirteenth Doctor never discussed the Flux. She felt guilty for her failure, and simply couldn’t deal with the tremendous weight of that guilt. True to form, she stayed on the move.
The Doctor Is Wrestling With A New Cause Of Guilt
This establishes an amusing parallel between the two different incarnations of the Doctor played by David Tennant. The Tenth Doctor was still fairly fresh from the Time War and Gallifrey’s destruction. He believed he had used the Moment to destroy his own homeworld, as well as the amassed Dalek fleet, and was desperate to outrun that sense of guilt. Now, the Fourteenth Doctor is similarly characterized by guilt; this time he doesn’t blame himself for anything he did, but rather for what he sees as a past failure. The universe needed the Doctor, and the Doctor had failed to save all those who needed saving.
Both the Tenth and the Fourteenth Doctors are principally motivated by guilt. The Tenth Doctor’s guilt turned out to be baseless, because the Time War hadn’t ended the way he thought it had; “The Day of the Doctor” revealed various incarnations of the Doctor united to save Gallifrey, moving the planet into a bottle universe. It’s possible the Fourteenth Doctor – or perhaps the Fifteenth – will find a way to put matters right as well, dealing with this guilt at last. Doctor Who season 13 initially seemed to be headed for a reset, and that could yet happen.
