A five-part thriller taking place in a rural setting and sharing a similar ominous tone to “From Within: A Tale of the Macabre.” While one uses epistolary prose as its primary mode of storytelling, “Land’s End: A Shepherd’s Tale” is more cinematic in its execution; an unexpected and interesting audio aesthetic for a story with a shepherd as a main character. Another difference between the two pastorally set stories is the time in which each story takes place.

Rural Modernity

“From Within” is set during the great depression. Unfortunately that detail can easily be overlooked in its epistolary audio format. They appear only at the beginnings of scenes. It’s a blink and you’ll miss it moment that doesn’t detract from the story, but does require a more careful ear. By contrast, “Land’s End” is set in modern day and uses sound effects rather than narration to set the scene. Each method of conveying information works and they aren’t mutually exclusive in a single story. However, I prefer the more immersive option of letting the sound design do the heavy lifting and save narration for times when it’s more beneficial to use it instead.

In that same vein of similar stories, “Land’s End” also reminded me of the 1985 thriller starring Harrison Ford called “Witness.” A movie about an amish woman and her child going up against a corrupt police department when the son witnesses a murder. Their only ally is a policeman named Detective Captain John Book. In 2023, Amazon released an Audible Original adapting the story to audio. Mac Rogers of “Steal the Stars” and “Quiet Part Loud” wrote the script for the adaptation. The clash modern and rural lifestyles is the obvious comparison to make between “Land’s End” and “Witness.” Aside from a similar setting these two stories don’t share much else. The plot and tone of “Land’s End” could not be more different.

The Queer Meta Narrative

This is one of those instances where the behind the scenes are more interesting than series itself. The audio drama was funded in part by Arts Council Agency of England and The Inevitable Foundation. The show has received praise from Lauren Shippen of “The Bright Sessions” and Johnny Simm of “The Magnus Archive.” The mission statement as it were feels more like a checklist than having any bearing on the story.

The goal of this production was to provide “a reflection on pastoralism, heritage, and the often-unseen queer lives in rural communities. Its activism-driven narrative touches on the politics of land ownership and the legacy of shepherding opens space for conversations rarely heard in mainstream media. The story succeeds in each one of these ideas successfully in some way. Perhaps not in the intended manner, but an approach that does make for good storytelling components. Combining them together, however, gives the listener a sense of whiplash. It tries to do too much in just five episodes. Each issue being tackled could be its own story.

It sets up three different stories—forgets about one of them, doesn’t address the other, and waits too long to handle the third. It loses the land’s rights protests thread early on, transitioning into the mystery of why some of the sheep are starting to grow canines. By episode three we get a homosexual relationship between the shepherd and scientist (named Isaac in one episode and scientist in another in the transcripts).

Final Thoughts

This one of those audio dramas where it’s two different stories stitched together with yarn from a bootleg arts and craft’s store (yes I’m aware of the pun). Despite the disconnect between a story about queer relationships in rural parts of the world, “Land’s End” does the horror and suspense well — just not enough to overlook the issues I have with it.

Ending on a positive note, the grants Tin Can Audio won to create this work went to a good place and spent on the right things given the subject matter. Even though the final product leaves more to be desired, you can’t say the funds were wasted.

Rating: 7.5/10 Stars