I Know Cool People, Part Two

(Part One For Those Keeping Count)

Imagine, if you will, those heady days of 1995 - I, in my young explorer stage, have just returned from Toronto on trip to see my favorite sketch comedy troupe, and I decided to make a return trip to Los Angeles - meet up with some pals from the Prodigy online service, another pal from Wyoming, and attend a Dark Shadows convention.

I've spoken of my love for Dark Shadows previously on the blog, and was fortunate enough to then meet D. Lynn Smith, who had worked with producer Dan Curtis in the past. Fortunately, though the magic of Big Finish, she has written not one, but two incredibly cool audio plays which play to the strengths of the show - more character sketches and monologues than all-out action.

Both stories are simple two-handers, and do something that I rarely see in any kind of spin-off media; not only create stories with long-standing characters that are stand-alone, but also - very deftly - remind you of the vast backstory. You don't have to have watched any Dark Shadows on DVD, but after these two audios - which have the requisite amount of creepiness - I think you'll add it to your Netflix queue.

If you want to order, you can head to the Big Finish entries for Echoes of Insanity and Final Judgment to order (and I don't receive a dime). You can also listen to the Big Finish podcast where several writers note the show's similarity to Doctor Who.

And yes, even though I know many cool people, these two blog posts prove that, yes indeedy, I have some really remarkable pals.