Out of Darkness (Doctor Who)

Rating:
Summary: Two great stories and one miss
Review: 'Out of the Darkness' is a trio of stories featuring the Sixth Doctor, portrayed by Colin Baker. The stories are read by Baker or his major companion, Nicola Bryant who played Peri in the series.

The longest story, 'Moon Graffiti' is read by both, and features a small amount of acting out of scenes as opposed to the straight narration of the other two stories. It is also my favourite of the three. This is a story which competes favourably with the best of Baker's televised stories, and the interaction between the two actors increases enjoyment. In the far future, the Earth has been invaded by the Pararachnids and humanity has been driven underground. The title derives from the disfiguration to the lunar surface visible from the Earth's surface. The travellers are on Earth for a particular reason, but are caught up in events surrounding the conflict between humans and Pararachnids.

'Wish You Were Here' is, in my view, the worst of the three. Read by Baker alone, it epitomises some of the worst aspects of the show's history. Clichéd characters responding in questionable ways. As an Australian, I was particularly annoyed by K'Tarth from "the Aussie colony". It tries to hard to be funny to succeed. Probably the best aspect is Baker's narration.

'Vigil', read by Bryant alone, is quite a good story from which the collection takes its name. The Doctor and Peri become involved in parallel and slightly linked adventures. Both are confronted by the outcomes of their own actions, and the emotional content of the story is the highest on the collection.

If nothing else, listeners get to hear Baker and Bryant's vocal interpretation of each other's characters, which are sometimes amusing. But this, like the collection overall, is really for Doctor Who fans more than casual listeners.