“Helios” is the kind of story that never gets old. A tale as old as time, one might say. Its long-distance relationship trope combined with romance is the bread and butter of something like “Romeo and Juliet.” A play that has inspired a plethora of adaptations. “Helios” doesn’t offer much new in the stories that adapt “Romeo and Juliet.” Even in the audio drama space, there have been stories very similar to “Helios.” Shows like “Steal the Stars” add a heist element to the traditional forbidden romance trope. The podcast “Once Upon a Wasteland” uses the world of Fallout 76 and focuses on queer romance rather than the overdone and normalized straight kind.
This is review came with a donation. Also spoilers below for two major plot points. They’re blacked out, but can be seen if you hover over the text.
Immersive Sound and Rough Starts
The first two chapters of this audiobook* are hard to get into on first attempt if you’re not a fan of narrators and narration in your audio fiction. Even though the narrator is a legend with a recognizable voice across media, what he narrates is quite mundane. Plus, the sound effects do a lot of the heavy lifting when no narration is needed. It honestly felt like the creators covering up a problem with the story by having a famous actor be the narrator. The writing is not bad by any means. It just feels like it’s overcompensating for something subpar.
*affiliate link
The sound in the opening alone is a true cinematic experience. There are no words spoken, instead relying on the listener’s imagination to populate the scene. When the literal and metaphorical bomb drops, you are in awe at the audio quality of the explosion. It’s truly an IMAX experience for your ears. The story then skips into the future as we meet one of our two main characters: Jessica Flood. The introduction to Jess is reminiscent of Rey’s introduction in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.” Both characters are scavengers, but their motivations for survival are polar opposites. While Rey survives to meet her parents again, Jess does it to find her missing daughter, Emily.
The emotional core of Helios doesn’t start until the end of episode two when we get the first bit of dialogue between characters. From there, the story explodes with backstory, characterization, dynamics, twists and suspense. Unfortunately it lasts about as long as that explosion sound effect. With only seven chapters, it can feel disappointing to reach the end when you’ve been so engrossed in the story. If only all stories had that “problem.” Supposedly there’s more to the story based solely on the credits. Nothing has been announced as of this review’s publication. It’s a great first act to a larger story that may end prematurely. At least the journey there, despite its less than stellar beginning, kept your ears perked and your attention focused solely on the audio drama.
Voice Actors in Helios
In addition to a recognizable voice as the narrator. Even if you don’t know his name (Nick Tate), it’s a voice you’ve heard at least once in your life. Tate is also the voice of Jessica’s father. Her voice actor, Cindy Dolenc, plays Jess as more than just a single mother wanting to find her child again. A trope we’ve seen or heard, whether it be the television series “Lost,” some other story about a parent losing their child, or a child losing their parent.
A couple of moments confused me. One involves Tony. The other has to do with Emily. Both are spoilers. However, let’s just say when Jess discovers Emily dead or close to it, it’s disorienting to have them be healed in the next episode. Either that wasn’t who I thought or there’s a character whose introduction wasn’t foreshadowed. I suppose the scene could’ve also taken place before the story’s opening scene, but the point remains that it threw me out.
Jess and Tony’s voice actors have good chemistry. The writing also helps. I wasn’t a big fan of how they executed the twist. foreshadowing that Tony’s ship is actually a space station earlier, Aside from the placement of the scene or adding more foreshadowing, I can’t think of any other way to make the scene before Tony and Jess speak again work. I was immersed in that it got me thinking. However when the thoughts and questions take over and the story becomes background noise, then there’s a potential problem for some people.
Rating: High Internally Consistent (4.1/5 Stars) (8.5/10 Stars)