The Twilight Kingdom

Main Range #55

Released: 11 March 2004

Listened: 8/22/21

This entry isn’t nearly as odd as the last one, although it does have an unusual element. The crew happen upon a military force hiding in some caves in a jungle. Supposedly they’re rebels planning to overthrow a corrupt regime on their home planet, but something’s not quite right with the story. They’ve been here quite a while, and some of their equipment is falling to pieces. People periodically get transferred to other bases, and never come back. And nobody seems to want to leave the caves, ever. Charley assumes the Doctor will want to help the rebels, as that’s what he usually does, and she dives right in. C’rizz is even more taken by their cause, which disturbs him because he’s supposed to be a pacifist. The Doctor doesn’t trust any of this, mostly because he detects a psychic presence he can’t pin down. Because the army isn’t actually doing much of anything, the story unfolds a bit slowly. They don’t even want to take the Doctor prisoner, giving him pretty much the run of the place, which he admits is refreshing. After the last story, it’s a little repetitive to see the team acting out of character again, but at least they know there’s something wrong this time. The resolution has a somewhat higher body count than you’d expect, but it’s not particularly surprising. Probably not one of the better entries from this era.