The Prisoner

Kaldor City #5.5

by Alan Stevens, Fiona Moore

"I see your problem. It's a matter of faith."

When Kaston Iago is discovered wandering around the grounds of Landerchild's family estate, it looks like a simple case of political espionage. But is everything quite what it seems-- and who is really in control of the situation?

Set in the Kaldor City universe, "The Prisoner" explores the themes and ideas set forth in earlier CDs to explore the true relationship of Iago to his fellow citizens.

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Alan Stevens is a British writer and producer who is based in the Southeast of England, where he runs his own audio production company, Magic Bullet Productions.

Stevens has produced a number of documentaries, serials and dramas for radio and independent audio release, including the Blake's 7/Doctor Who' spinoff series Kaldor City and the second Faction Paradox audio series, and has co-written two guidebooks for Telos Publishing, Liberation: the Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to Blake's 7 and Fall Out: the Unofficial and Unauthorised Guide to The Prisoner, with Fiona Moore. He writes articles for Celestial Toyroom, the magazine of the Doctor Who Appreciation Society, and has written in the past for Doctor Who Magazine and DWB.

Reviews

[Alien_Dwarf · Rating 3 out of 5]

+Metafiction

Can't say I'm a big fan of Iago as a character, his machismo is particularly off-putting even in the context of the "anti-hero" or the "necessary evil". But this a cute couple of interview-style short stories, that are just clever enough to give the character retroactively a bigger pass.

As a whole I enjoyed the Kaldor City audio series, but I can also see why Big Finish didn't want to touch these scripts, way too pulpy for that brand. At times it does feel that it's trying too much to be edgy for edginess sake, but it kind of works in this particular setting. Still, I'll take Liv Chenka's series any day and hands down. Similar themes explorer, way more nuisance and style in the latter.

[CJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Prisoner is an interesting piece. It comes across as a meta story about the nature of Iago's place in the larger Kaldor City narrative. It almost explicitly states that this is fiction, and Iago is the audience surrogate, helping to move the plot forward.

While I don't think the premise hits in the way they hoped it would, it is interesting, and is worth a listen. It isn't necessary as part of Kaldor City, but it is an interesting side piece.