LET'S BLOODY DO THIS!!!!!!
THE CONFESSIONS OF DORIAN GRAY REVIEW
THE COMPLETE SECOND SERIES
By Jack Ryan
BEWARE: THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK
Do I need to begin saying why this is already such a good series? Well, technically I don't. Go see my review of Series 1. That should be enough. But I don't know if anyone knew at the time how much of a success this series would be. But, as was proven in April 2013, there was a big following for the series as a new one was commissioned and announced. And a few months later the five regular episodes were given to us to digest and feast upon, then a Hallowe'en special, then a New Year special, and amongst all that.... something else I'll be reviewing soon.... ;D
There are few beings alive who can claim to be from the 1800s and if there are, age has not been kind to them. Save for one; Dorian Gray, the gilded Faustian youth with a cursed painting in place of a soul. He has seen a lot in his last over 150 years of life, from cursed swamps, to screaming fangirls, with witty poets, and mysterious chess-playing doctors. But he remembers everything too, the sins, the deaths, the tinged and tragic childhood. But Dorian keeps running, running from duties and responsibilities and acceptance of who he is and what he has done. But tonight, that ends, Tonight, he stops the running. Tonight, Dorian Gray's life is in his hands, and he has a choice to make...
Building on from what the previous series established, we are reintroduced to the great ALEXANDER BLOODY VLAHOS as the titular hedonist, whose life now seems to be going in reverse. Or maybe that's just the running order. Gary Russell's The Picture Of Loretta Delphaine starts us off in Florida, 2012, where Dorian discovers strange happenings in the Everglades, along with an old friend of an old flame. Then Simon Barnard's The Lord Of Misrule sends us to the swinging sixties as Dorian Gray and the Hedonists do battle in the charts with The Gravediggers for the coveted No.1 spot. But what is the secret of their success and of their front-man, Otto? In Murder On 81st Street by David Llewellyn, Dorian and the infamous Dorothy Parker find themselves caught up in a New York murder. The victim won't be missed, but will the culprit?
Nev Fountain's The Immortal Game sees Gray making his way into the life of Dr Montague and his distant brother, but what drives the siblings apart, and what are their other secrets? The regular series finishes off with Running Away Wtih You by producer/director/creator/genius Scott Handcock, in which Dorian Gray faces his past and decides on his future. Roy Gill's Hallowe'en Special The Prime Of Deacon Brodie, sees Dorian catch up with old service friends and a mystery that leads to an identity crisis. And finishing us up is The Mayfair Monster, co-written by Joylon Westhorpe and Alex Vlahos himself, where Dorian has found the 256th love of his life. But then she disappears, then he disappears, and a creature roams his Mayfair House. But only security guard Tom Sadler knows the truth. In terms of the quality of writing, Series Two excels on just about every opportunity, with some of the most creative and tastefully adult stories seen for a good while.
But as good as a script is, you need a good cast to bring it to life. Along the returning embodiment of greatness that is ALEXANDER BLOODY VLAHOS, we have a cast of star studded names across all episodes.We has Ursa herself, Sarah Douglas as the glorious Dorothy Parker, and the Sixth Doctor, Colin Baker as Tom the security guard, along with Counter-Measure's Hugh Ross as the Montagues, Miles Richardson with his littered cameos, Lalla Ward as Dorian's childhood housekeeper, David Menkin, Bernard Holley as the Mayfair Monster and a whole host of other names that bring every single word and action alive into the listeners ears. Hell, the banter between Alex and Sarah as Dorothy and 'Dodo' is just something so perfect, you couldn't make it up.
And assisting is the genius sound design of Neil Gardner, whose efforts can terrify you with a single creak of a floorboard. And not forgetting the musical maestro talents of composer James Dunlop, whose melodies perfectly capture the tone and mood of the eternal man. Add in some brilliantly perfect 60's songs by Ioan Morris and Rhys Downing, and you have a force to be reckoned with...
Everything that worked in Series One has been brought back and turned up to eleven for this fantastic return. Scott Handcock has proven with these 13 episodes how he can take a good idea and run with it into a brilliant series. He can make you laugh, make you lust, make you shit your pants with fear, and as proved with his two penned stories, can make you heart break into a million pieces. And yet we all still want more... Well don't worry... Big Finish Classics are more than happy to oblige.
VERDICT: 5/5 So good, I want to break my rating thingy and make it go higher!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment