Harvey Edwards takes on Torchwood‘s latest monthly release, which features Norton, Lizbeth… and Adam?
The latest Torchwood monthly release sees the return of popular villain Adam Smith, portrayed once again by Bryan Dick. This time, however, he’s facing off against Torchwood Soho, in the 1950s, which means this story also sees the return of familiar audio character Norton Folgate, played by Samuel Barnett, and Dervla Kirwan‘s Lizbeth Hayhoe, who makes her second appearance after debuting in last year’s Torchwood Soho: Parasite (review here).
Set firmly in the environment of Parasite, but occurring beforehand in-universe, the story begins with an introduction to the characters of Norton and Lizbeth, demonstrating their relationship within Torchwood’s Room 13, and right from the start it’s clear that the actors are really enjoying themselves. The story then introduces us to Adam in a rather unique fashion. I will admit, one of my worries going into this story was that it would just be a re-tread of TV story Adam, but writer James Goss has found a far more interesting way to use Adam’s abilities, which creates a sense of unease that grows throughout the story as we learn of the real threat.
This slightly discomforting tone is helped by Blair Mowat‘s excellent score, re-using a couple of the tracks from the aforementioned Parasite to remind us of the 50s setting, and Peter Doggart‘s sound design, which does really well to communicate the changes in scenery and time despite a fairly intentionally repetitive script. Once the plot gets going properly, there are some brilliant moments as Norton and Lizbeth get tantalisingly close to solving the problem, only to have the rug pulled from beneath their feet at the last minute, creating some really exciting and tense scenes.
Overall, Madam, I’m is another stellar entry into Big Finish’s Torchwood range, managing to blend comedy and drama whilst creating a consistent sense of atmosphere throughout. The Soho team is quickly becoming one of my favourites from Torchwood, and I can’t wait to hear more from them.
Torchwood: Madam, I’m is available on CD or as a download from http://www.bigfinish.com
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