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Listen to recent episodes of Harry Strange
Now in its third season - and its 216th episode - Harry Strange
takes the private eye hero beloved of film noir in the 40s and 50s and transposes him into a futuristic setting. Rather than
fighting hoods, gangland leaders and encountering vamps in California, the central character battles with white witches, demons,
vampires, werewolves, shape shifters, and ghosts.
The fact that this transposition works so well is down to two factors: the quality
of Sarrecchia's writing, and the sheer believability of the central character. Harry is the kind of person who, like all good
private eyes, discloses his feelings direct to listeners. Despite all reversals, he has an unshakeable faith in his ability
to ovecome all obstacles through a combination of guile and sheer strength. While we might not believe him at first, but he
wins over our doubts through sheer persistence. He is like an emotional rubber ball; he can be suppressed, but rapidly springs
into life once more to face a positive rogues' gallery of villains of both sexes.
This final episode, the concluding part of Season 3, saw Harry battling with a succession
of female adversaries. What most struck me about its structure was that there were two basic themes: the need for Harry to
survive against all odds, allied to the need for the villains to assert themselves. Sarrecchia deliberately challenges gender
stereotypes; the submissive woman doesn't exist in his dramatic vocabulary. In this futuristic world men and women alike battle
for supremacy. This makes for even more dramatic conflict: the action rattles along at a great lick, holding our attention
throughout.
I have only one small cavil: on the excellent website (harrystrange.com), that accompanies the series, the actors are listed, but there is no record of the characters they play. I'd love to credit
individual players in this production, but cannot do so. Hopefully this can be rectified in the near future. Nonetheless I
recommend Harry Strange as a thoroughly entertaining serial for all types of listener.
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