|
Mrs Blubber spies on the suspicious new Editor of Stellar
Network Radio. Meanwhile, on the hijacked space cruiser, Maureen
completes her transformation... but into what? And on Xoolian
Major, Mydas and Turnidus attempt to raise capital for the
repair of their spaceship by competing in a race hosted by
a giant chicken...
The
mechanical foe that provided the thrilling climax to Story
Four is quickly dispensed with at the beginning of Story Five,
only to be replaced by another mechanical foe - android pall-bearers
whose job it is to enforce the subjugation of the Xoolians
by the despotic cockerel known as the Bantam Menace.
The
previous instalment's lampooning of Star Wars - Episode
One continues unabated with a racing event that is a far
cry from George Lucas' version. Turnidus and Mydas have to
compete mounted respectively on a pogo stick and a penny farthing!
A
more incisive bit of sci-fi spoofing comes in the form of
the meticulously unnatural descriptive dialogue spoken by
the unfortunate Jake Avara (Peter Ager) as he is chloroformed
into unconsciousness. Lines such as "Why are you beckoning
me over?" mercilessly mock the less prestigious moments of
audio drama storytelling by the likes of BBV and Big Finish.
This instalment also contains a fair few surprises for its
listeners. For example, when Aaran (Gareth Thomas) throws
off his latest disguise, he is probably not the character
you were expecting him to be. Meanwhile, the new Editor, Helmut
Snyder (Nick Kirby, sounding a lot like Hugh Laurie's German
villain in Blackadder II) reveals to Mrs Blubber (Alison
Taffs) a dark secret from Mydas Mydason's past.
At
least one major character is killed during this episode -
and there are plenty of potential fatalities to choose from,
with various parties getting shot, buried or eaten alive.
The CD isn't called Planet of Death for nothing! I
imagine that the matter of which characters will survive and
which will remain deceased will largely depend upon which
actors have made themselves available to perform in future
episodes.
Cunning.
Richard
McGinlay
|
