"Village of the Angels", prefixed frequently with either "Chapter Four" or "''Flux''", is the fourth episode of the thirteenth series of the British

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

television programme ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'', and of the six-episode serial known collectively as ''Doctor Who: Flux''. It was first broadcast on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

on 21 November 2021. It was written by

showrunner A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also th ...

and executive producer

Chris Chibnall Christopher Antony Chibnall (born 21 March 1970) is an English television writer and producer, best known as the creator and writer of the award-winning ITV mystery-crime drama ''Broadchurch'' and as a showrunner of the long-running BBC sci-fi ...

and

Maxine Alderton Maxine Alderton is a British screenwriter, best known for her work on the BBC science fiction television series ''Doctor Who''. Career Beginning as a script editor in the mid 2000s, Alderton graduated to writing for the long-running ITV soap ope ...

, and directed by

Jamie Magnus Stone Jamie Magnus Stone (born 15 December 1985) is a Scottish film director and animator, who studied at the National Film and Television School. He is the son of Sally Magnusson and grandson of Magnus Magnusson and Mamie Baird. Career Stone st ...

. The episode stars

Jodie Whittaker Jodie Whittaker (born 17 June 1982) is an English actress who is best known for portraying the thirteenth incarnation of the Doctor in ''Doctor Who'' (2017–2022) and as Beth Latimer in ''Broadchurch'' (2013–2017). She came to prominence ...

as the

Thirteenth Doctor The Thirteenth Doctor is an incarnation of the Doctor, the fictional protagonist of the BBC science fiction television programme, ''Doctor Who''. She is portrayed by English actress Jodie Whittaker, the first woman to portray the character, sta ...

, alongside

Mandip Gill Mandip Kaur Gill (born 5 January 1988) is an English actress. Her first television role came in 2012 when she was cast as Phoebe McQueen in the Channel 4 soap opera ''Hollyoaks''. After departing the series in 2015, Gill went on to have guest ro ...

and

John Bishop John Marcus Bishop (born 30 November 1966) is an English comedian, presenter, actor and former footballer. Bishop formerly played football as a midfielder for Winsford United F.C., Crewe Alexandra F.C., Runcorn F.C., Rhyl F.C., Witton Al ...

as her companions,

Yasmin Khan Yasmin Khan is a historian of British India and Associate Professor of History at Kellogg College, Oxford. Education and career Born in 1977 to Pakistani and Anglo-Irish parents in Kingston-upon-Thames, Khan completed her BA in history at S ...

and Dan Lewis, respectively.

Plot

The Doctor reboots the TARDIS to force out the

Weeping Angel The Weeping Angels are a race of predatory creatures from the long-running science fiction series ''Doctor Who''. They were introduced in the 2007 episode "Blink", making repeat appearances in later episodes. They also appeared in the spin-off s ...

, but it strands her, Yaz and Dan in the village of Medderton, on 21 November 1967. Yaz and Dan join the search for Peggy, a missing girl, while the elderly Mrs. Hayward warns the villagers to evacuate. The Doctor finds a laboratory where Professor Jericho is conducting psychic experiments on Claire, who was sent back in time from 2021 ("

The Halloween Apocalypse "The Halloween Apocalypse", prefixed frequently with either "Chapter One" or "''Flux''", is the premiere episode of the thirteenth series of the British science fiction television programme ''Doctor Who'', and the first part of the six-episode ...

"). Jericho’s home is surrounded by Angels interested in Claire, who reveals to the Doctor that Medderton is the site of a mass disappearance that occurs that night and in 1901. An Angel sends Yaz and Dan back to Medderton in 1901 where they find Peggy. They encounter Mrs. Hayward in 1967, on the other side of an energy barrier. Mrs. Hayward reveals she is Peggy’s future self. Back in 1967, the Doctor, Claire, and Jericho barricade themselves in the basement, while Claire reveals she is slowly becoming an Angel. As a seer, she had a premonition of an Angel which led to its image seizing her mind. The Doctor enters Claire's mind to get rid of the Angel and learns it hijacked the TARDIS and is hiding from the other Angels, members of the Division’s extraction squad. The rogue Angel claims to have knowledge of the Division, offering to return the Doctor's missing memories if she helps it escape. Jericho disrupts the link because the Angels are breaking in. They escape through a tunnel, but the Angels send Jericho to 1901 and corner Claire and the Doctor. The Doctor learns the Angels have taken the village out of time and space in order to capture the rogue Angel. The Doctor tries to make a deal with the Angels, but the rogue Angel reveals it offered the Doctor to them for its own safety. The Doctor is recalled to the Division as she is turned into a Weeping Angel. Meanwhile, Bel lands her ship on the planet Puzano, where she witnesses many Flux survivors tricked into being imprisoned in a Passenger by Azure. She gives Namaca, who she saved from Azure, a message before pursuing Azure. In a mid-credits scene, Vinder arrives on Puzano, finds Namaca alongside Bel's message, and vows to keep searching.

Production

Development

"Village of the Angels" was co-written by showrunner and executive producer

as well as Maxine Alderton who returned from the twelfth series. It is the only episode of the series to feature a writer other than Chibnall. The episode also featured a

mid-credits scene A post-credits scene (commonly referred to as a stinger or credit cookie) or mid-credits scene is a short clip that appears after all or some of the closing credits have rolled and sometimes after a production logo of a film, TV series, or video g ...

, something that is unusual for the series.

Casting

The series is the third to feature

as the

, and

, with

having joined the cast for the series as Dan Lewis. Kevin McNally previously appeared in the serial ''

The Twin Dilemma ''The Twin Dilemma'' is the seventh and final serial of the 21st season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four twice-weekly parts from 22 March to 30 March 1984. In the serial, the al ...

'' (1984). Vincent Brimble also previously appeared in the serial ''

Warriors of the Deep ''Warriors of the Deep'' is the first serial of the 21st season of the British science fiction television series ''Doctor Who'', which was broadcast in four twice-weekly parts on BBC1 from 5 to 13 January 1984. In the serial, two human power b ...

'' (1984).

Filming

directed the first block, which comprised the first, second, and fourth episodes of the series.

Broadcast and reception

Broadcast

"Village of the Angels" aired on 21 November 2021. The episode serves as the fourth part of a six-part story, entitled ''Flux''.

Ratings

Overnight the episode was seen by 3.45 million viewers. The episode received an

Audience Appreciation Index The Audience Appreciation Index (AI) is an indicator measured from 0 to 100 of the public's appreciation for a television or radio programme, or broadcast service, in the United Kingdom. Until 2002, the AI of a programme was calculated by the B ...

score of 79. The seven day consolidated rating (counting all views across all platforms within seven days of broadcast) was 4.57 million. The episode was the eighth-highest rated programme on BBC1 for the week, and the 18th-highest programme across all channels for the week.

Critical reception

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, a

review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website, 100% of seven critics gave the episode a positive review, with an average rating of 8.0 out of 10.

References

External links

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