Tag: Audio Drama

Audio Drama

Romcoms, Nashville, and Donuts. An Interview with Faith McQuinn

Gavin

This November I have but one mission: convince podcast audiences to adopt Margaritas & Donuts as a yearly Thanksgiving tradition. If millions of people can cajole Die Hard into being considered a Christmas movie, this excellent romcom miniseries with a heartfelt finale set during a family Thanksgiving dinner deserves to be a Thanksgiving re-listen.  

In pursuit of this goal I sat down with show creator Faith McQuinn to pick her brain about her first venture into romantic comedy, making a show set in Nashville that isn’t about Nashville, subverting romcom biases towards young characters, and boozy donuts. 

Continue reading “Romcoms, Nashville, and Donuts. An Interview with Faith McQuinn” →
Audio Drama, First Impressions, Horror, Isolation

Feeling alone at ‘Station Blue’ | First Impressions

Gavin

station blue thumb.jpg

It’s time to get cold, real cold. Today I’m talking about the new isolationist horror audio drama Station Blue. This will probably be the most first-impressiony-est of my first impressions as there are only two full episodes (and three prologue shorts) released as of this writing.

Station Blue is set in a location I’m quite shocked more podcasts haven’t taken advantage of yet: Antarctica. Not only that, but Antarctica during the harsh winter when no planes can get in or out in the event of an emergency. The idea of being completely stranded in a barren wasteland of snow and harsh winds is rife for horror potential, especially when one throws a creepy/mysterious research station into the mix.  Continue reading “Feeling alone at ‘Station Blue’ | First Impressions” →

Audio Drama, First Impressions, Sci-fi

First Impressions: The Phenomenon

Gavin

Occasionally I come across certain podcasts worthy of discussion and critique, but the show in question doesn’t have enough published content produced to justify a fully-scored review. Early Impressions is a spoiler-free solution to fill this gap. 

I’m a sucker for well-edited scary things. Or at the very least, edited scary things. I remember as a teen lying in bed listening to the famed “first Star Wars horror” book Death Troopers on CD and getting the heebiest of jeebies from subtle usage of sound effects and music cues. All it took was a few well-timed clicking sounds and goopy flesh noises to get me binge-watching a sitcom or two for hours on end after to purge the spooky thoughts.

The Phenomenon hit this spot perfectly by trading on an imprinted fear of the Emergency Broadcast System. While it might not have the same impact in other parts of the world, I grew up on one end of an area known as “tornado alley.” Hearing that tone while a worried-looking weatherman tried to keep the county up-to-date was a summer fixture. That sustained tone is enough to make my blood run cold. Continue reading “First Impressions: The Phenomenon” →