The correct answer is D) dire.
The word "parlous" means dire.
If we search for it we find that the word has the following meanings: very dangerous, extremely bad or can be used to describe uncertainty.
Mike Kubic wrote the article "The Great Depression," for Newsweek in 2016. In the article, Kubic describes the harsh economic problems in the United States through the Great Depression years that started on October 29, 1929, after the US stock market crashed.