Wow. What a wild ride that was! Class has been on a rollercoaster of ups and downs over the last two months, but the series definitely goes out with a bang.
The premise of the finale picks up six days after where Detained and The Metaphysical Engine left off. Set to a beautifully haunting musical performance from April, we see the gang’s split in full flow. They’re completely torn apart and the wounds have yet to heal. Meanwhile, a newly free (and pregnant!) Miss Quill is still recovering from her ordeal. But as the song over the montage ends, so must their division. Corakinus is back, and this time he means business. Serious business. He preys on the group while they’re alone and vulnerable in the most terrible ways possible. The only way to stop him for good is to put aside their differences and work together: but are they already too late to save the day?
The grand finale might only be a single parter, but it draws together everything from the series so far. All the dangling plot threads and tropes pop up again in some shape or form. Ram’s terrible luck? Check. April’s connection with Corakinus’ heart? Check. The gratuitous gore? Check. The focus on family and relationships? Check. Even narrative points that have previously been pushed to the forefront, like the Cabinet of Souls, are used again – and this time there’s no get-out alternatives. It’s a (literally) explosive finish that wraps things up in a nice neat bow, while posing a few more questions all at the same time.
United We Stand
Hands down, the best thing about the episode (and arguably the series) is how strong the acting is. After last week was almost exclusively adult-led, the kids are back in town – and they more than prove their worth. This is probably the best they’ve ever been, bowing out with a solid showing all round. The characters are already in a broken state at the start, and they’re visibly put through an awful lot more pain by the end. Their emotions and their torment build across the episode, culminating with a dramatic climax in the school hall. Even Tanya, who has notably been the weakest link throughout the series, finally gets her moment to shine as she develops a deeper (and darker) personality. Katherine Kelly does not disappoint either, now a far more ruthless and unhinged Miss Quill. Together, the cast forms a definitive and tight-knit unit of powerhouse performance.
Similarly, the Shadow Kin receive their strongest outing to date. They made a great impression in the debut episode, but their threat was somewhat diminished by the events of Episodes 4 and 5. Now, Corakinus himself is more imposing than ever, and his evil sights are set on a wider scale than before. For the show’s most recurring and iconic villain, the Shadow Kin certainly manage to convince as the ‘big bad’. Their story is as integral to the show as any other, and they too have a part to play in the narrative’s ultimate resolution. They might not quite be what the Daleks are to Doctor Who, but they’re a fearsome foe all the same.
Final Grade
For once, there isn’t really a lot to say on the negative side of things. Considering how many things the episode has to juggle – and all within 45 minutes – it’s impressive just how cohesive and well-paced it is. Not everything gets quite as much attention as it should, but by no means does anything go ignored. In fact, quite the opposite. There’s more here than you might ever have expected, with shocks and twists galore. Patrick Ness must have had a field day writing all the sudden surprises into this script.
Class had a bit of a rocky start and took some time to truly find its feet, but this episode will surely go down as a moment when it finally, unquestionably stands tall. There’s plenty of action, plenty of drama, and plenty of pay-off for those who have stuck with it since the beginning. And what’s more, there’s plenty of teases that tie the spin-off even further into its parent show. As the credits rolled, we were definitely left to wonder: just how much will Class impact upon Doctor Who Series 10?
Time will tell. But if there’s one thing we’ve learned from Class, it’s that time never forgets…
It was a good episode, but being American, Patrick Ness structured the episode like an American ‘season’ finale, where it’s just a break in a narrative and it will only be 3 months until the show is back, rather than a British ‘series’ finale, where it provides a satisfying conclusion to the narrative should no more episodes be commissioned and it will be the best part of a year (or more) before the next series.
This show just hasn’t done it for me, but then again I guess I wasn’t the target demographic.
I’m a Whovian from childhood and just can’t get my head around the premise. A rift in time and space (in Cardiff) left to be protected by a fully qualified time agent and a team of professionals who yes, I grant you mostly end up dead. That I can process.
Cracks in time, OK caused by the TARDIS exploding and affecting someone the Doctor is close to therefore important enough for the Doctor to stick around and deal with.
Multiple cracks in a place with “So much artron energy” also it has to be said the fault of my favourite timelord a place that “will continue to act as a beacon across all of space time to any beings who want to cause mischief” and what does he do? Leaves the defence of the planet to a bunch of kids and an alien psychopath. resulting in carnage.
Shoe-horning the angels into the finale didnt really work for me either as from previous appearences they have only seemed to hungry all the time and wanting to feed, I’ve never considered them to be evil masterminds with an end game although I’m guessing the unfinished patchwork angel is going to be something special. it’s going to have to be something very good to beat the Statue of liberty one from The Angels Take Manhattan.
I found myself wanting to punch Mattheus (not sure on the spelling sorry) repeatedly, for telling Charlie not to use the weapon again and again. Charlie dies or the whole planet dies….I’m a reasonably selfish person but even I would sacrifice myself to save the planet and everyone on it. But then again I’m not a teenager in love.
The Governors? What? Why? WEAK!
If it does get another series maybe Luke Smith (SJA) who must be about that age now could join the school or Captain Jack could pop up to lighten the mood of the show a bit. It just felt so miserable all the way through.
People were getting bumped off in Buffy which I recall Class being compared too when it was announced all the time but every episode had some comic relief something Class desperately needs.
The finale for me felt like a desperate effort to chuck as many bids for a second season into one episode as was possible.
As I said at the beginning I guess this just wasnt the show for me, and I wanted it to be to fill the Doctor’s gap year.