Podcast Review #86: Frank – Boiling Point Volume 1
originally published June 20, 2011
Title: Frank – Boiling Point, Part 1
Author: Neil Colquhoun
Genre: Horror/Fantasy
Released: 29 October 2010 – 3 December 2010
Located: Author’s Site
Formats Available: podcast only
Rating: R for violence and language
I love it when authors contact me and ask if I’ll listen to their stories. Truly. I love it. I never promise to review, but I do try to listen. Neil Colquhoun contacted me after hearing Mr. Sigler drop my promo in ep 16 of the Starter (a fact for which I am very grateful) and queried whether I’d be interested in listening to his podcast. I subscribed and gave it a listen. After listening, I knew I’d end up reviewing.
So, on to the review.
Synopsis: Frank, a mysterious bounty hunter gets more than he bargained for in his latest assignment. Becoming mixed up in the beginnings of a gang war, he has to contend with a team of hit-men, who are not like your usual guns-for-hire!
It’s a story about a bounty hunter, a dead-but-alive hitman partnered with an alive-but-should-be-dead criminal, an escort girl, a man who has a taste for something bad… and the Devil! (stolen from the Author’s site)
Production: Mr. Calquhoun does a quite decent job at the production of his story. It is a straight forward production without much in the way of bell and whistles. This fits the story quite well and I can appreciate a good bit of minimalism.
Grade: B+
Cast: Frank – Boiling Point Volume 1 is a self read by the author. It doesn’t have a huge cast and there is quite a bit of narration. Mr. Calquhoun does a fair job at this and those listening to the story will have no problem with the vocals of Frank as long as they don’t have a bias against a Scottish brogue.
Grade: B+
Story: Frank is the story of a bounty hunter of demons. Thee are several plot points that I’m not clear on, but I’m assuming they’ll be filled in as the story progresses. The characters are quite diverse and I have to admit, kept me interested all the way through. The story seems to be more character driven than action. If you’re a fan of Buffy, you might want to give this one a shot.
Grade: B
Verdict: As most everyone would know by this point, I only review completed works. However, while this story isn’t what I would call complete, the podcast is. Mr. Calquhoun called this story complete at 7 episodes. It is definitely a novella and simply the opening work in a larger story. If you prefer not to listen to stories that don’t have a firm ending (yet), you might want to wait a bit for this one.
Shameless plug: Don’t forget, if you send an audio comment to me at Odin1eye at viewfromvalhalla dot com, I’ll include it in the podcast version of this episode next weekend (or when I receive it). You can also leave voicemail, for this or any other story, at the Valhalla Hotline simply by calling 956-307-ODIN (6346)
Disclosure: As mentioned above, I received an email from Mr. Calchoun inquiring whether I had listened to his stories or whether I would be willing to. Before and since, I have had no contact with him.
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