Welcome to Litsy!

In the final #Head2Head in the #ArmchairAudies #AudioDrama category, 'The Mountaintop', with its understated production but powerful results wins over the sophisticated script and musical orchestration of 'The War Doctor: Only the Monstrous'. Full reviews of The Tenth Doctor trilogy and The War Doctor trilogy (#1) later this week! 🎧

In this next-to-last #Head2Head in the #ArmchairAudies #AudioDrama category, it's Doctor King vs Doctor Who! And in this round, it's "The Mountaintop" for it's straightforward, powerful message and understated production aesthetic over the razzmatazz BBC audio drama and David Tennant's mumbling. Sometimes, less is more. #AudioDrama ?

🎧 In the second #ArmchairAudies #Head2Head contest in the #AudioDrama category, an upset! 'Alien: Out of the Shadows' is sexy; but 'The Mountaintop' has a better script, acting, and message. Substance over style wins this round! (Tagged under a book related to the subject matter of 'The Mountaintop')

In the first #Head2Head challenge in the #ArmchairAudies #AudioDrama category, 'Alien: Out of the Shadows, An Audible Original Drama' easily outclasses 'In the Embers' in terms of script, sound effects and overall production values. Kudos to Robin Miles though, who is amazing as a voice actor and singer in 'In the Embers'. 🎧

In the penultimate #Head2Head challenge in the #ArmchairAudies #OriginalWork category, 'The Dispatcher' wins by virtue of excellent production quality and a well-written story. I think the *world* of Robin Miles, and there was a lot of work that went into 'In the Embers'; but in the end it felt too much like community theater. I have issues w/the script and post-production; and am annoyed at having to listen to 2 hours of interviews :-/

#Head2Head: Tom Magliozzi passed away a couple of yrs ago, so it was fun to hear takes from the show he did with his brother, Ray. As always, they guarantee to put a smile on your face; but I have to admit that listening to them crack each other up segment after segment wore thin even within the short runtime of this #OriginalWork. It seems this was intended to entertain more than educate. So, by default, again, 'The Dispatcher!' #ArmchairAudies

#Head2Head: So far, 'The Dispatcher' (by John Scalzi; narrated by Zachary Quinto) is holding its own in *two* #ArmchairAudies categories: Science Fiction *and* Original Work! It's not over yet though! I still have three more titles to listen to in the Original Work category! 🎧

In the first (out of six) #head2head posts in the #ArmchairAudies #OriginalWork category, 'The Dispatcher' wins out over Larry Correia's novella, 'The Adventures of Tom Stranger, Interdimensional Insurance Agent'! "Tom Stranger" is furiously funny and fast-paced; and Adam Baldwin does not disappoint; but Correia is a Sad Puppy; and the manatee character sounds like a whale... And by now we all know how perfect I think 'The Dispatcher' is! ??

In the final #head2head contest between Scalzi's novella and Willis' novel, it's hands down 'The Dispatcher'! I'm not done listening to 'Crosstalk'; but I've listened to enough of it (half) to know it's not going to be my pick in the #ArmchairAudies Science-Fiction category. Concept, story & execution, and narration are pretty much perfect in 'The Dispatcher. Great concept in 'Crosstalk'; but poor story/execution, and narrator issues 🎧

February's Reading was spread out over 5 audiobooks, 6 print/e-books, 1 play, and 10 short stories (Hello, Serial Reader!) My pick of the month was the audio-first novella, 'The Dispatcher' (by John Scalzi; narrated by Zachary Quinto.) An original concept, excellent short story craftsmanship, and outstanding performance by the narrator, makes this my pick for #ArmchairAudies too, pending my final #head2head post vs 'Crosstalk' (by C. Willis) 🎧