Item - The Garden of Evil

David Martin's second entry in the series is disappointingly similar to his first. The gameplay is nonexistent, consisting of make-the-right-choice-or-die decisions, gratuitous die rolls that either end the adventure or don't, and meaningless word jumble puzzles. The story is long and convoluted (once again due to the linearity of the gameplay), yet it's not very satisfying. It pays no attention to series continuity, for one thing; no matter what vision of Gallifrey you choose to accept, it is most definitely not an intergalactic aid agency making room for refugees and aiding the needy. It's also not patrolled by snake-like monster-guards to the best of my recollection. While this book mercifully lacks the excessive inclusion of classic characters found in the previous David Martin adventure, I would actually have liked to have seen at least a few more indications that this really was a Doctor Who adventure; as it is, the flavor and characterization are off somehow (though not as far off as in Michael Holt's abomination), and the book feels rather like a piece of goofy (yet not overly thrilling) space opera in the Star Wars mold. Less combat, less metaphysical gibberish, and more wit would have been most welcome. A final nail in the book's coffin is the artwork; the human characters are captured adequately, but the monstrous threats they face are profoundly unimpressive. It seems they didn't pick the right person to deal with the story's more fantastic elements. All in all, this is another in a line of disappointments; it's a shame my favorite TV show couldn't spawn a better line of gamebooks.

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