Personal Highlights
Radio Elusia: 17 . Albert. Well, those were some big surprising revelations! After only seeing different parts of the big picture this season, it’s clear now that the secrets and lies have been adding up in Elusia, and on a huge scale. The episode also emphasises a key aspect of the story – the freedom to listen to recordings – as the audience loses important pieces of information, when recording devices are switched off.
The Strange Case of Starship Iris: 2.08 – Signs and Signals. Oh boy. With the season soon coming to an end, the story is ramping up to one heck of a conclusion, especially with that cliffhanger of a final scene! I loved the reunion between the crew, it was so heartwarming, and I’m so glad they got back together in time. I also really enjoyed how the clips of radio transmissions that we’ve been hearing from Radio Free Telemachus have now crossed over directly into the main plot, and that the station is now going to be part of the Iris 2’s fight.
Unwell: 3.08 – Celerity. So that was creepy as heck! I love how there are still so many new and unexplained discoveries to make about Mt Absolom, even so far into the show’s third season. The threads do seem to be slowly coming together, though, with a very clear emphasis recently on how important the house is. I loved the image – and the sounds! – of the strange, hidden away, soda bottling factory.
Temporal Light: 24 – Regrets Part 4. Zaneta has to face some very hard truths in this season finale, and the end of the episode is truly heartbreaking. So much new information came at a shock, things I could never have imagined, and I genuinely cried at that reveal. Zaneta may have managed to run away from her dad, but this episode only highlights the feeling that she’ll never truly be free of him and his power.
Second Star to the Left: 10 – And Straight On Til Morning. Few pieces of media have made me cry as much as the Second Star to the Left finale. The structure of the episode is different, due to Bell being imprisoned, and what we have is a series of letters going back and forward, mostly from Gwen to Bell. And through these letters, we see just how close Gwen and Bell have got over three years, even though distance has always kept them so far apart. The end of the episode takes us to the point that Gwen had been working towards since episode one, and seemed so far away then – the arrival of her settlers. What a beautiful story, and what a wonderful ending.
Debuts
Ophiuchus Radio is ‘the advice show you didn’t know you needed’, hosted by Bluejay Midnight and Coconut Silver. The two talk through a problem which comes from a janitor, who is stuck in a rut in her job. Coco comes up with some advice which, initially might not seem all that useful, on explaining it, turns out to actually be very sensible and provides some perspective that will hopefully change janitor Rosie’s outlook on life.
Electromancy (Note: I play Anji in episode one of Electromancy). A modern magical fantasy created by Nathan Comstock, one of the creative team behind Solutions to Problems. Jenna Donovan is a lightning mage, and both she and her dad have been hiding her powers. That is, until she’s discovered, and is taken away to have a ‘proper education’ at the Royal Institute for the Study of Sorcery in the capital. On arriving at the school, both she and the audience discover that her power might be something incredible.
Trailers and Prologues
The trailer for Mockery Manor’s second season introduces both a new location and year for the show. It’s an advert from 1992 for a new theme park, Dunkelschloss in Germany, and the early 90s music is just so ridiculously accurate. And of course, it wouldn’t be Mockery Manor without some seriously dark undertones and eerie effects.
Lost Terminal is back, and this fifth season promises to be very different! Unlike other seasons where big plans and the season arc have developed after a few episodes, here we’re thrown straight into Seth’s mission to rescue Antarctica, all the way down at the south pole. We first met Antarctica way back in season one, and I love how her story has gradually developed to this point, that Seth gets to repay the favour. It’s an extremely ambitious plan, and as exciting as it is, I can’t help but feel apprehensive about such a long journey.
Harlem Queen, the historical drama about ‘Numbers Queen’ Madame Stephanie St. Clair during the Harlem Rennaissance, is back for its third season. While we’re re-acquainted with Michele in the opening scene, the focus of the episode is on her mother, St Clair herself. After initially taking a more legal route to try and get crime boss Dutch Schultz off the streets, she ends up taking matters into her own hands – and paying a hefty price for it.
Casting Calls
Hopepunk anthology podcast MonkeyTales is casting for a nonbinary non-white actor for an upcoming episode. Paid, deadline July 25th.
Wooden Overcoats has announced that their fourth season is due to launch in January 2022, and the show is casting for four characters, with recording planned to take place in a London studio this September. Paid, deadline for applications 11th July (today) at midnight BST.
Crowdfunding
Dystopian sci-fi Windfall is currently crowdfunding for its second season.
Other News
Rusty Quill posted a series of updates on their social media accounts, including an invitation for pitches from new and underrepresented writers.
A Sky Full of Pods 