4. Narcissus

The final episode of the March the 8th delivers two Osgoods for the first time over audio. In addition, it also features Jacqui McGee working for UNIT (something we've been promised since Series 3 of UNIT.) The story centers around a series of disappearances all tied into the same dating website. The key concept is clever, but I think it's made a bit too complicated, particularly towards the end. Overall, an okay, but slightly over-complicated tale that still makes for a mostly pleasing conclusion to the set.

Narcissus is an okay story to close out The Eighth of March with, featuring strong performances, but a more mixed script this time around. Jemma Redgrave stars as Kate Stewart and Ingrid Oliver stars as Osgood, alongside guest star Tracy Wiles as Jacqui McGee. Oliver is a highlight here, getting the chance to shine as two separate, yet similar Osgoods. I was distinctly impressed at how well she was able to distinguish the two different Osgoods in each scene, making it abundantly clear which one was which throughout. Wiles was also an enjoyable guest star, especially in the final act of the story. Sarah Grochala delivers the final script of The Eighth of March, and it’s got some strong parts and weak parts throughout. The plot is a mostly enjoyable affair, with an interesting premise of a, “killer app”. It’s the kind of premise that won’t age well, but in this day and age, it works rather well. The eventual reveal of the alien menaces plays out fairly well as well, but I felt that the ending was a let down. The writing was solid up until the end of the story, as Grochala gave Osgood a chance to shine in a role. However, the main message of Osgood’s character development feels extremely poorly written, and derails an otherwise enjoyable, if not brilliant, adventure. Grochala tries to make a point about Osgood being a satisfied person, but it comes off almost as a parody, that Osgood is so wonderful and special that she doesn’t need a man in her life. It’s a weird bit of writing that just didn’t work out well. Overall though, Narcissus is an decent story, with a strong cast and good writing, save for the ending.

'Narcissus' ends the set on a high note and a great UNIT adventure with some interesting twists. From what I recall about the other UNIT audio stories we've gotten, this is the first one to actually make the double Osgood situation an integral part of the narrative and actually work with it in both a positive and negative light. You'll know it when you hear them actually happen but some of the actions the pair take in the course of finding Captain Carter are actually rather rash for them with the potential for major damage. It's not their best story but it's nice to see both of them feel more relatable and Ingrid Oliver again really sells the hell out of the dual role.

The plot is a tad on the basic side with some plot elements adapted from Torchwood's "Day One" and the runtime does feel shorter on this one for some reason. But the script from Sarah Grochala keeps you guessing more than once while giving everyone just enough to do to make them feel necessary. Ingrid Oliver is the major standout but it's always great to hear personal favorite Jemma Redgrave again as Kate Stewart and journalist Jacqui McGee played by Tracey Wiles gets some nice time in the spotlight. It makes each cast member feel powerful but also very real as characters and it's invigorating to see them utilize their own weaknesses against something that literally feeds on beauty. The ultimate climax and messages of the story end up being incredibly strong as well and ones that you don't get to see play out quite as literally as they do here.

I was honestly expecting a UNIT story from this set to be one of the weaker ones but just like the message of the story, looks aren't always as they seem. 'Narcissus' is a fantastic story for Kate and company, a good one to end the set with, and a nice way to get me excited to see them back in UNIT 8 next month.