(New voice) "The Weird Circle. In this cave by the restless sea we are met to call out of the past stories strange and weird. Bell-keeper - toll the bell, so that all may know that we are gathered again in The Weird Circle!" (Bell tolling) (Old voice) "Out of the past phantoms of a world gone by speak again their immortal tale: Dr. Manette's Manuscript."
This episode, first broadcast on November 28, 1943, is a very loose adaptation of incidents from A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, first published in 1859. The original was a wide-ranging condemnation of both the French aristocracy and the horrors of the Revolution. This is merely a tale of violence and comeuppance, focusing on the ills resulting from the privileges of the ancien regime.
In this story we are promised a happy end from the start, which reduces the tension dramatically. The repeated abductions, the cruelty, and the wild chase don't make up for it. There just isn't a sense of stakes. Can't say that the added framing by a much goofier voice actor helped much, either. Another one to skip.
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