RUBY 6

The “galactic gumshoe,” who began life decades ago on public radio, continues saving universes in commercial recordings. This time she and her sidekicks investigate a secret society, the Illusionati, on the desert planet Illuboo Roi. Fans of this cult favorite will find their favorite tropes here--a kind of mystic silliness, wall-to-wall background music, low humor, pristine production, excellent timing, and puerile male sexual fantasies. To this familiar brew, creator Tom Lopez, an accomplished audio dramatist, has added esoteric references to Ubu, the monster-hero of the French surrealist writer Alfred Jarry (1873-1907). The result is a boutique superhero comic book in sound. Over the years, Lopez’s writing has gained considerable narrative sophistication, if not maturity. Even so, to me he collides with the law of diminishing returns well before the play is over. On the other hand, his actors have never been better, and the mise-en-scène is flawless. Y.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 03/JAN 04]