At Big Finish day I picked up the first box set of Jago & Litefoot, partly because it was cheap and so I would have something for Christopher Benjamin, Trevor Baxter and Lisa Bowerman to sign. I wasn't sure when I would get around to listening to it but after enjoying the recent Justice of Jalxar so much I pushed it to the top of my list.
There are four single disc stories with a connected developing story arc through the season that links back to the characters' first Big Finish appearance in a companion chronicles story called The Mahogany Murderers. First up is The Bloodless Soldier by Justin Richards, directed by Lisa Bowerman, which has our two reluctant heroes investigating what appears to be a case of Lycanthropy. It's fairly classically done but is all very enjoyable and allows Henry Gordon Jago to discover some undiscovered depths of character.
Next is The Bellova Devil by Alan Barnes, again directed by Lisa Bowerman with Jago & Litefoot on the trail of the walking dead, or a man who appears to have died twice. I confess I am still struggling with Alan Barnes' stories for Big Finish and this was probable the least enjoyable of the four tales but it does provide hints as to the true villain of the first season.
The Spirit Trap by Jonathan Morris is directed by John Ainsworth. What seems to be a straight forward investigation of a bogus spiritualist medium leads our heroes in to a much more sinister world where, in classic Whovian fashion, the paranormal is explained with some science fiction bad guys.
And finally the bad guy returns to haunt Jago and Litefoot in The Similarity Engine by Andy Lane, with Lisa Bowerman returning to directing duties. Possibly because it is the last and brings the developing plot threads together this was my favourite of the four. It also helps to have the multi-voiced talents of Toby Longworth on board.
To attempt the alliterative talents of Mr Henry Gordon Jago this set is fairly full of fantastic, phantasmagoria! The shorter stories really work well and Baxter and Benjamin are just a delight to listen to. I'm still committed to the main range of Doctor Who releases but Jago & Litefoot could possibly tempt me away. Some of the best stuff I have listened to recently. 4.5 out of 5 silver shillings for this set. And there's another four box sets in the series so far. Corks!
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