Review: Minister of Chance, Episode 5 – In a Bark on the River Hex / Author: Dan Freeman / Publisher: Minister of Chance / Starring: Jenny Agutter, Sylvester McCoy, Julian Wadham / Release Date: Out Now
Only a few months after episode four (Tiger), Dan Freeman and team are about to release the fifth and final Minister of Chance instalment, In a Bark on the River Hex. Taking up the story shortly after the reveal at the end of Tiger, this episode is all action as Professor Cantha (Jenny Agutter), various rebels and The Witch Prime (Sylvester McCoy) all line-up to battle with Paul Darrow’s Rathen ,whose performance is turned up to 11. Talking of great performances this episode also introduces us to the Summer King played by Philip Glenister, who has far too brief a role facing off to Julian Wadham’s Minister. Lauren Crace is again a joy as Kitty and there is plenty to enjoy from everyone.
The story gets particularly epic when the Minister and Kitty find themselves being guided on the titular River Hex by Jed Brophy’s character Pilot and you realise that you are on the edge of a major reveal as to who and what the Minister might be.
By the time the ending arrives and the final showdown, the plot threads are weaving tightly to a conclusion that raises as many possibilities as it answers questions; this is a master class in mythos building.
Without giving away any spoilers, we do learn more of the Minister’s backstory and the mystery of Kitty’s origin is explored, though we still have questions. Sadly this is the end for now, though other projects beckon, such as a movie (see the recent Starburst interview with Dan Freeman). As usual one can only marvel that this is available to download for free and has been fully crowd-sourced. What a remarkable world we live in. Everyone is encouraged to visit ministerofchance.com and download the first episodes ahead of the released of In a Bark. Starburst has no hesitation in giving this (and the series as a whole):
