Nero Jones is sent on a new mission – to Mars…

Created by Jamie Anderson and Nicholas Briggs, this is a new spy-fi podcast series that will form part of a proposed “Anderverse” of interconnected stories (for an explanation of how that will work, check out our forthcoming interview with Anderson on SFB). It features an all-star cast – Genevieve Gaunt from Briggs’ Human Frontier series, Sacha Dhawan, Nicola Walker and Paterson Joseph among them – and some excellent sound design from Benji Clifford and score from Joe Kraemer. Each episode is ten or so minutes long and is clearly designed to provide a complete experience in itself, while still leaving the listener champing at the bit for the next instalment in true Flash Gordon style.

It’s aimed at a more adult audience than the standard Anderson shows – much nearer the harsher edge of Captain Scarlet than Stingray, with an opening scene that sets the tone well. I don’t want to give away too much about the plot – we have to make our own minds up as to what’s going on at this early stage – but there’s plenty of intriguing material to whet the appetite. There’s another seven episodes to come (we’re roughly at the one-third point), so there’s plenty of time for the necessary twists and turns that characterise the genre.

Verdict: Definitely listen to all three to get a clear idea of what Anderson and Briggs are aiming for – but I suspect it’ll be enough to get you hooked on the potential. 8/10

Paul Simpson

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