The Tertiary Console Room: Review - Professor Bernice Summerfield

"I would hardly be a solitary eccentric if the house was full of servants…"

Mike Tucker's The Stone's Lament brings Professor Bernice Summerfield to the planet Rhinvil, where reclusive billionaire Bratheen Traloor has invited her to examine a recently discovered artefact. She is accompanied by Adrian Wall, the Killoran construction manager from the Braxiatel Collection, as the team he'd left building an extension to Traloor's already massive house has vanished. But when they get there they discover not all is as it seems…

Tucker freely admits in his author's notes how this story is influenced by the horror genre, and this is evidenced through the script's setting which is the isolated mansion in the middle of nowhere run by an eccentric host. This is a staple of these type of horror stories and Tucker makes sure there is an awareness of this through the dialogue which recognises that he's writing in an area done before. With a small cast of only three performers, the story is wisely written on the small scale which allows a very claustrophobic atmosphere to build up throughout the drama which helps to keep the story tense as the initial mystery that is presented to Benny and Adrian gives way to something more sinister. Unfortunately it doesn't really achieve any real horrific moments, but by playing on the psychological level rather than trying to frighten the listener with monsters and whatnot, it succeeds in being unsettling.

The script develops simply and logically at pace, providing enough information to keep the listener intrigued as the story grows and the mystery is revealed. Like the best horror stories, The Stone's Lament starts with small unexplained occurrences which hint at the true nature of what's happening before they become greater in scope and the threat is exposed and this is where Tucker's script really succeeds as it develops into something quite unforeseen. With the limited cast, it's difficult to keep surprise twists from becoming predictable but the script makes clever use of distractions to make the reactions of one character to hearing something very unexpected and allows the drama to reach it's peak just in time for it's denouement.

With the twist, Tucker begins to explore the ramifications of obsession and unrequited love through both the characters of Traloor with his feelings towards Bernice and the modified computer House, with which he has imbued with aspects of Bernice's personality, including fatefully her jealousy. Tucker hints at this throughout the story but it isn't until the final phase of the audio begins that this becomes obvious and he shows the danger of this through both the way that Traloor and the House reacts when they find out the truth. By making the character of the House into an evolved computer sentience, he probes the nature of the relationship between computers and humankind, posing questions of the morality of creating them as thinking machines but keeping them constrained by using them to serve. This idea of computers evolving sentience is an interesting concept, but it's a bit disappointing that Tucker feels he needs to add another explanation for the House's development with the revelation about the nature of the planet that it's based on as it feels like one idea too far.

Lisa Bowerman's performance as Bernice is good, she gets a balance between Benny's more sarcastic and determined side perfectly but also shows how uneasy Benny is around Adrian, with there being a definite undercurrent to their scenes that plays off the events that have transpired between the characters previously. Bowerman also gets another chance to double up as the voice of the computer, and while this is evident fairly soon after the beginning of the audio, it's actually done very well with Tucker using this as an important plot point. Harry Myers does well as Adrian Wall, his rough and aggressive voice being ideal for the character although it's slightly difficult to imagine him as a "seven foot tall cross between an ape and an upright wolf with fangs, snout and claws" (as the character was described in The Dead Men Diaries) due to the fact he still sounds a bit too human. James Lailey is convincing as the eccentric Traloor, with his voice possessing a refined quality that you'd expect from a reclusive billionaire but he doesn't really get enough edginess in which makes the direction his character goes in towards the end pushing credibility slightly as the seeds haven't quite been sown well enough in the performance.

While they're only alluded to, the events of Jacqueline Rayner's Bernice novel, The Squire's Crystal¸ are heavily influential on the characterisations of both Benny and Adrian. Given what happened there, this is only to be expected, but as these events occur in a different medium more explanation than is present here should have been forthcoming although there is always the danger of the exposition becoming heavy handed. Without it, the reasons for the underlying tension between Benny and Adrian remain unclear which may confuse those who haven't read the novel despite the occasional hints. This is one of the difficulties of having a linked continuing story between books and audio stories as in the former it's much less noticeable to bring the audience up to date with the past events, but in an audio where so much depends on what is being said, exposition stands out like a sore thumb. By trying to find some middle ground, Mike Tucker succeeds in avoiding that trap but it doesn't really resolve the issue either as there isn't enough information for the listener to come to the correct conclusion by themselves without having to make big assumptions.

Part of the reason why there is such a claustrophobic atmosphere surrounding the story is the music and post production work of Toby Richards and Emily Baker. The sound design itself gives the feeling of a closed, internal building which feels grand in scope too but where it really succeeds is through the sound of rain and thunder outside which feels threatening and gives the play a dangerous undercurrent. The music is fair moody as well, although it does occasionally become a bit too bombastic which detracts from the effect.

With The Stone's Lament, Mike Tucker has come up with a tightly plotted story that develops to it's natural conclusion well through a blending of the claustrophobic atmosphere and good pace which keeps it fast moving and entertaining at the same time. The horror influences are clear, yet Tucker avoids making the story too horrific despite fashioning it from the genre so it's unsettling without being truly disturbing. As it stands, The Stone's Lament is very enjoyable thanks to the combination of the good performances and the focused plot, but despite the nature of the surprise ending, this is a story that could have benefited from having a little more to it, such as additional subplots and perhaps an extra character or two. As it is, Tucker's story works well with the limited resources and he's created quite a memorable and entertaining release.