The Flames of Cadiz is interesting in its setting. I love it as an idea and in the first half of this story, I think it really pays off. You don't go with something like the Spanish Inquisition without suggesting the story will feature a great deal of darkness, dread, and tension, which is there in spades. Ian gets arrested trying to help a friend and nearly sentenced to death. The First Doctor is fun rescuing him, but after that point, it really starts to lose me. The whole Sir Francis Drake thing and Ian getting swept up in his fanboyism, coupled with Barbara and the Doctor butting heads over some mistake the Doctor makes, feels a little like forced character drama to me.  Still, overall I found a fun and engaging historical in this audio.

I love William Russell and Carole Ann Ford reprising their roles. The dual narratives works well at times, more in the first half more than the second, but also holds back this audio a bit. Russell isn't great when he does something like Barbara's voice, so parts of the performances are a little uneven. The audio effects and music really stand out too in setting the tone and feel of the story nicely. I used the word "dread" earlier, and that definitely comes from how this audio is paced and edited. Overall it is certainly passable, an audio I'm glad I listened to, for sure, but I am equally firm that I wouldn't be too motivated to listen again any time soon, especially given how long Cadiz runs overall.