We live in an age where the superhero genre is dominating television, film and comic books. It’s not a surprise – Marvel and DC Comics are making untold millions of dollars in the film box office alone, their television shows are gaining critical acclaim and their comic books continue to be beloved by many across the world. Superheroes are definitely in with two of the most anticipated films of 2016 – Captain America: Civil War and Batman v Superman – being superhero films, but that doesn’t mean that this genre is perfect. There are plenty of tired clichés that run through some of these movies that can make some audience members exasperated.
For those, there’s relief in the form of the free-to-download audio series Ray Gunn and Starburst, a sci-fi comedy series based on the titular protagonists and their unintentionally heroic journey. With the aid of an AI S.U.I.T, they have to stop the evil head of the Darkley’s Empire and defeat his plans to take over the galaxy.
It sounds a bit like a basic anti-hero plot but it’s far more than that. This series subverts expectations at almost every turn. There’s a narrator that spends most of their time critiquing rather than narrating, a hero that is acutely aware of his shortcomings and a total absence of clichéd romances. This is not only done in a comedic fashion but it means the audience can focus their emotional investment in whether the characters will survive rather than some pointless ‘Will They, Won’t They?’ conundrum. The overall narrative not only flows well in a structured manner but is cleverly executed without coming off as pretentious or unbearable.
The Ray Gunn and Starburst series is created, produced and recorded by a group of eight people and funded through a Kickstarter campaign last year. The crew make up most of the cast and yet the sound sounds as professional as a production from a major studio. The two protagonists are very well acted by Dominic Westerland and Georgia Humphrey and are fantastic leads of a great cast. This series is worth the listen. By the end, there’ll be more calls for a second series.
RAY GUNN AND STARBURST / DIRECTOR & AUTHOR: HOLLY ROSE / STARRING: DOMINIC WESTERLAND, GEORGIA HUMPHREY, HOLLY ROSE, IAN SHARMAN, RICHARD THOMPSON / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
