Audiobook - Dark Shadows: The Death Mask
Steve Taylor-Bryant dives headlong into the supernatural with the Big Finish audio adventures, Dark Shadows...
"It's a gothic soap opera detective tale" said a friend of mine when I informed him I would be reviewing the Dark Shadows audio dramas from Big Finish. And let’s be honest he is not wrong. If anyone remembers the 1970's Dark Shadows, or has seen the Tim Burton remake, then my friends comment would be the whole review. However, having such stories on audio brings a different feel and context to the source material.
Tony Peterson is the attorney to millionaire Harrison Pierce and, whilst attending the party of his client at the huge mansion Pierce owns, Harrison is murdered and a priceless death mask stolen. Tony must now investigate a growing list of suspects and reluctantly allows Cassandra Collins/Angelique to help him whittle down the suspects and find the killer.
If this particular Dark Shadows story was done on screen it would come across as a bit bland plot wise. We have seen this all before. But as an audio drama it works really well. The atmosphere, the visualisation of the mansion, the suspects and the theft are all brought to life by the two talented actors. Jerry Lacy as Tony Peterson and Lara Parker as Cassandra/Angelique seem to work very well together, the chemistry allows for great story flow and the episode has a real pulp feel to it, reminiscent of days gone by listening to radio dramas. As with their Doctor Who work, Big Finish produces audio of the highest quality and, along with the cast, this produces a fantastic hour of ear joy.
Dark Shadows: The Death Mask is written by Mark Thomas Passmore and is on general release.
Image - Dark Shadows
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