“Welcome to Night Vale”
Creators:
Joseph Fink , ?Jeffrey Cranor
Narrator: ?Cecil Baldwin
Grade: B+
The advent of the audio podcast medium has resulted in a perfectly timed revival of the radio drama genre. The greatest product of this revival is without a doubt “Welcome to Night Vale.”
The series is constructed as a radio news show in the fictional desert town of Night Vale with host Cecil Gershwin Palmer (voiced by Cecil Baldwin). The show’s premise is that the town exists alone within a terrifying convergence of supernatural and conspiratorial forces somewhere in an American desert.
With a surreal and absurdist sense of humor, the “Night Vale” writers consistently take a firm grasp of that premise and squeeze out every drop of entertainment it has to offer. Never has this been more accurate than in the most recent episode of the series, its two year anniversary special, “Old Oak Doors.”
This week’s episode features a coup, as Night Vale’s citizens are forced to battle StrexCorp , the malevolent conglomerate that has purchased their town and imprisoned everyone at a never-ending company picnic. The best part is this is a pretty mundane story line for the show, and it still sounds like the unhinged ramblings of an H.P. Lovecraft fever dream.
Baldwin successfully delivers these surreal plots with an unflinchingly deadpan demeanor, managing to describe civilian insurrections and invasions by otherworldly monsters with the same calm cadence of someone announcing a community potluck.
Unlike most episodes of the series, which feature only narration by Cecil, “Old Oak Doors” had a plethora of guest performers to voice fan favorite characters, including Mara Wilson of “Matilda” fame as The Faceless Old Woman Who Secretly Lives In Your Home.
The tone was much more urgent than usual, as several ongoing story arcs converged resulting in climactic conflict between the forces of evil and those of not-necessarily-good-but-decidedly-less-evil.
The writing was spot on. For a series that has so many disjointed plots and toss away gags, this episode accomplished quite a feat by bringing numerous seemingly unconnected stories together.
“Old Oak Doors” is an example of the best “Welcome to Night Vale” has to offer, with its surreal plot, brilliant voice acting, and hilarious writing. If you’re looking for a series to deliver strange stories about ominous glow-clouds, malevolent dog parks or evil, monstrous librarians, look no further than Night Vale.
However, be wary. As Night Vale’s residents know too well, once you find yourself in the town, it might not be possible to leave.
