A murder on Earth leads Nathan and Kenzie to a South American spaceport. On the Moon, Devis finds himself clashing with Sophie (Rosa Coduri), a MoonBase staff member. And in what seems to be a flashforward, Nathan gives evidence about what seems to be Devis’ last case…

Things are changing on the Moon and there’s a sense of this being a series that’s stretching muscles it’s been working for a while. Star Cops is one of the tightest focused series Big Finish have and as writer Andrew Smith mentions in the interviews, this episode is built on a moment introduced way back in the first audio drama. By giving the ISPF jurisdiction over spaceports, the series is able to cover a lot more ground, literally, and this story shifts from the Moon to the Earth and back again easily.

The structure of this arc also seems new. That opening is left unresolved even as the story itself is closed out and Smith and director Helen Goldwyn trust their audience enough to explore what that could mean. Fans of the ISPF’s premier moustache practitioner are going to be rightfully worried about the implications but this episode really does just give us the first part of the puzzle as well as a complete one all its own. Trevor Cooper’s always been a major pillar of this ridiculously strong cast and Cooper clearly revels in giving Devis something more to do, even if Devis himself probably just wants a sit down and a biscuit. You’ll probably figure out what’s going on before the star cops do, but that doesn’t matter in a story like this. What does is execution, and this story lands every beat perfectly. Rosa Coduri is especially great, and her clashes with Cooper’s Devis are a glorious singularity of spiky cockney banter.

The main case here is a stretch too. The murder victim at the core of the episode is talkative in some very surprising ways, and the episode revels in taking one of the longest running pillars of the show and doing something very new with it. This is a story about digital life, physical death and what happens on the edge of innovation and ethics. In that way it’s a classic Star Cops mystery, very much in the same vein as original TV show episode In Warm Blood. The difference here is in how the technology is explored, and the way it collides with very personal agenda. Alex Jordan, who plays both victim Professor Olivier Navarro and industrialist Alex Navarro has demanding double duty here but he makes both characters complex and distinct. Lynsey Murrell and Philip Olivier get less to do, but they still register.

This is a very strong cast, all of whom know their jobs and do them very well. Goldwyn’s direction is typically impressive too, and along with Smith’s script balances the classic formula of the show with the new minds, fresh ideas and sense of much, much more to come.

Verdict: Intensely confident storytelling that takes the series into new territory built on the foundation of the old, this is another great entry in a very strong run. 9/10

Alasdair Stuart

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