2011 TOMS TARDIS AWARD WINNER
The story centres on an act employed by Jago that claims to make dreams come true. What the story does rather well is manage to create a credible enemy in such a short time. When the villain is trying to take over something or trying to kill someone then that’s one thing but its another when it’s something that comes from your mind and Morris does a good job in drawing you into the danger. There follows some very well acted scenes where Jago and Litefoot believe that things are going well however it was all an illusion as it was the Theatre De Fantasie that was making this appear. The only problem was that after a few times it did start to get a bit tired and I was wishing that they would stop it and get on with the story. Also I do think that the explanation of the villains could have been better, it just didn’t quite sit right with me. They would be my only issues with this story as the whole thing did have the same qualities as the previous stories in this series. The final scene would have been more impressive had I listened to this story in the right order, the return of Sanders sets up the final story and also creates a good vs. evil finale. I did like how there was a little suggestion that they were still in the theatre despite their thoughts that they were in the Red Tavern.
I know I keep banging on about it, but Trevor Baxter and Christopher Benjamin are simply fantastic. Having watched The Talons of Weng-Chiang recently on DVD, I am truly surprised at how similar the characters are from the 1977 versions to the 2011 versions. Jennie Stoller and Alex Mallinson put in strong performances as Madam Deutreronomy and Fosco respectively. In particular Stoller, whose character was quite enjoyable. Off course the regular supporting cast all put in their usually great performances with Duncan Wiseby being one of my favourites as Sacker. The character is superbly written for and Wiseby gives a down to earth feel to the role. Of course its great to have David Collings back as Sanders even though its brief and at the very end of the story.
Due to the quality of the other stories, I would have to say that despite my praise for the story its not quite as good as Litefoot and Sanders and is just pipped by The Necropolis Express. That said it’s still an extremely good story with some great performances and characters.
- Best Jago and Litefoot Story
The story centres on an act employed by Jago that claims to make dreams come true. What the story does rather well is manage to create a credible enemy in such a short time. When the villain is trying to take over something or trying to kill someone then that’s one thing but its another when it’s something that comes from your mind and Morris does a good job in drawing you into the danger. There follows some very well acted scenes where Jago and Litefoot believe that things are going well however it was all an illusion as it was the Theatre De Fantasie that was making this appear. The only problem was that after a few times it did start to get a bit tired and I was wishing that they would stop it and get on with the story. Also I do think that the explanation of the villains could have been better, it just didn’t quite sit right with me. They would be my only issues with this story as the whole thing did have the same qualities as the previous stories in this series. The final scene would have been more impressive had I listened to this story in the right order, the return of Sanders sets up the final story and also creates a good vs. evil finale. I did like how there was a little suggestion that they were still in the theatre despite their thoughts that they were in the Red Tavern.
I know I keep banging on about it, but Trevor Baxter and Christopher Benjamin are simply fantastic. Having watched The Talons of Weng-Chiang recently on DVD, I am truly surprised at how similar the characters are from the 1977 versions to the 2011 versions. Jennie Stoller and Alex Mallinson put in strong performances as Madam Deutreronomy and Fosco respectively. In particular Stoller, whose character was quite enjoyable. Off course the regular supporting cast all put in their usually great performances with Duncan Wiseby being one of my favourites as Sacker. The character is superbly written for and Wiseby gives a down to earth feel to the role. Of course its great to have David Collings back as Sanders even though its brief and at the very end of the story.
Due to the quality of the other stories, I would have to say that despite my praise for the story its not quite as good as Litefoot and Sanders and is just pipped by The Necropolis Express. That said it’s still an extremely good story with some great performances and characters.
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