Snake Oil

Prerequisites: None needed, although there are some references to the Mara from other stories

The Gloaming marks a decidedly mediocre story to end this boxset on. Nothing was terrible here, but frankly I just wasn't that interested. While I haven't seen the Classic Who serials featuring the Mara, it seems pretty un-engaging as a concept. Maybe it works better given the longer format of Classic? Whatever the case, here, I didn't quite buy it. The side characters are unmemorable, and it's all wrapped up in a basic moral against capitalism (which has been done much better before). Admittedly, there are some bright spots: the Doctor reminding Charlie of their adventures together was a nice moment, and ending the audio on a conclusion that Dekkar was simply too stupid to be possessed by the Mara was pretty funny. All in all, forgettable.