Taren Capel (audio story)

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Taren Capel is the fourth audio play in the Kaldor City series. Written by Alan Stevens, it focuses on Iago's attempt to get to the bottom of a scheme apparently instigated by Taren Capel before his death.

Publisher's summary

"The man was a maniac. Now he's a dead maniac. How can a corpse be a threat?"

Strange times have come to Kaldor City. A long-vanished prophet speaks again; a plot is uncovered hinting at corruption among the Founding Families. Even the robots on which the city depends might hold secrets that no one dares imagine.

Carnell must pit himself against an unseen adversary in a game which may bring him face to face with the dead...

Kaldor City - Taren Capel uses characters and concepts from Chris Boucher's Doctor Who novel Corpse Marker to tell a sinister tale of awakening evil.

Plot

to be added

Cast

(in order of appearance)

References

Individuals

  • Carnell considers himself and Iago to be "con-men".
  • Landerchild is a senior member of a powerful founding family, and a prominent member of the Company board. He owns several properties.
  • Bextor was found dead at his place of residence.

Objects

Company Central

  • Over the last few weeks Iago has been going through the divisional archive.
  • Rull executes "Emergency Plan 4a" as the company central building is overrun by Tarenist rebels.

Storm Mine Four

  • Storm Mine Four was eight months into the tour of the desert. There were 9 crew members aboard at the time of the Storm Mine murders.
  • Only a select few know about the Storm Mine murders; the official story was they were attacked by ore raiders.

Taren Capel

  • Iago reviews Taren Capel's diary recordings. These concern:
    • Borg, who Capel describes as "small minded, obsessive and petty".
    • Uvanov's relationship with Zilda.
    • Poul's behaviour, how he suspects Poul of being an agent for the Company, and how Poul is showing early signs of robophobia.
    • Uvanov playing chess with V9, and how Chub was taunting Borg about a Voc therapist in Kaldor City.

Robots

  • Robophobia is endemic in all robot based societies, Kaldor City is no exception.
  • V31, associated with Carnell, is a fully programmed domestic Voc class robot with additional secretarial functions.

Chess

  • Chess boards are manufactured in Kaldor City.
  • Carnell plays chess with V31:
    • V31 has the white pieces, meaning he has the first move, which Carnell considers to be the advantage. As the game progresses Carnell deduces the pieces represent:
      • White King's Knight is Blayes.
      • Black King's Rook is Company Central.
      • Black King is Uvanov.
      • Black King's Knight is Rull.
      • Black King's Bishop is Carnell.
      • Black Queen's Knight is Iago.
      • Black Queen's Bishop is V31.
      • White King is Taren Capel.
    • V31 moves King's Knight to King's Knight 6. Carnell deduces this means the Tarenists are attacking "Company Central".

Notes

  • During Iago and Carnell's conversation about Taren Capel, Iago seems to be drawing a comparison between Carnell and Capel's behaviour. Likewise, Carnell seems to be drawing a comparison between Iago and Capel's behaviour.
  • The copyright notice printed on the CD release of this production states: "Unauthorised copying, hiring, renting, public performance and broadcasting is strictly prohibited or V31 will strangle you."
  • This story was part of a recording block that also consisted of Hidden Persuaders, and Checkmate.[1]
  • David Bailie reprises his role as Taren Capel from The Robots of Death. Bailie had given up acting and had only started up again just a few months before series producer Alan Stevens contacted him. [2]
  • In preparation for writing this story, Stevens had the moves to the chess game worked out in detail, including several moves that don't appear in the finished script.[3] The equivalents of the chess pieces not stated by Carnell are as follows:
    • White Queen's Rook is Landerchild's Residence
    • White Queen's Knight is Cotton
    • White Queen's Bishop is Landerchild
    • White King is Taren Capel
    • White King's Bishop is Paullus
    • White King's Rook is the Church of Taren Capel
    • Black Queen's Rook is Uvanov's Residence
    • Carnell correctly speculates that the White and Black Queens are one and the same, and are confirmed to be Fendahl/Justina, foreshadowing her fate in AUDIO: Checkmate.
    • Although the Black Queen's Bishop is stated in the play to be V31, it is in fact again Paullus, mirroring his role as the White King's Bishop.
  • Two specially recorded audio trailers were released to promote this story, both in the form of a short monologue, as read in character, one by Paul Darrow as Iago[4], and the other by David Bailie as Taren Capel.[5]
  • The CD cover art was designed by Andy Hopkinson.
  • The third edition of Mad Norwegian Press' reference work AHistory gives a year of 2890 for the events of this story.

Continuity

  • Uvanov is given a painting of a Fendahleen painted by Wallbank, foreshadowing the emergence of the Fendahl in AUDIO: Checkmate. Justina's portrait of the red pentagram in AUDIO: Occam's Razor is also by Wallbank.
  • Carnell mentions Kaldor City is being manipulated and used by something very powerful that has existed for millions of years which has become part of them all. This also foreshadows the emergence of the Fendahl in AUDIO: Checkmate.
  • The bad dreams Justina has been having of "nothing that makes sense" forshadow her place as the Fendahl core in AUDIO: Checkmate.
  • The play closes with a grand piece of misdirection, with Iago managing to convince Uvanov of the danger of the killer robots, and with the killer robots being activated: this created expectations the following plays would deal with a robot-destroyed city. Instead, in AUDIO: Checkmate, this threat is neutralised relatively simply using extracts from Taren Capel's diaries.
  • The story saw the apparent departure of Carnell from the series, although the character may have possibly returned in the following play: it is likely, however, the version of Carnell in AUDIO: Checkmate was a projection of Iago's mind and/or the Fendahl rather than the actual psychostrategist.
  • The events of TV: The Robots of Death occurred "ten years ago".
  • Waiting for the best possible moment to make himself known in a disaster is a technique Uvanov also described in PROSE: Corpse Marker.
  • Paullus states how he met Taren Capel on Storm Mine Four. (TV: The Robots of Death)
  • The characters of Zilda, Borg and Chub are mentioned. (TV: The Robots of Death)
  • Iago made the security suggestions for Uvanov's residence in AUDIO: Occam's Razor.
  • Iago and Justina's romantic relationship began in AUDIO: Occam's Razor.
  • The character of V31 previously appeared in AUDIO: Occam's Razor.
  • Uvanov's office was previously destroyed in AUDIO: Occam's Razor.
  • The Larson Project is revealed to have been Uvanov scheme to discredit Landerchild. (AUDIO: Hidden Persuaders)
  • The character of Bextor, who is announced to have died, previously appeared in AUDIO: Hidden Persuaders.
  • Carnell plays chess with a robot. As did Uvanov in TV: The Robots of Death, and as will Blayes in TV: Storm Mine. In the Blake's 7 episode Weapon, from which the character originates, Carnell boasts how he has beaten the best chess computer available 6 times in a row.
  • 'The Butcher of Zircaster' whom Iago is said to have killed refers to the Blake's 7 villain Travis. This name was given in the charity audio The Mark of Kane to the character, whom Avon shot dead in the television series. It suggests Kaston Iago is in fact Kerr Avon from Blake's 7 going for his own reasons under an assumed name. As do several other pieces of information given in AUDIO: Occam's Razor. Metafiction plays with the listener's expectation of this idea.

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ The True History of Magic Bullet: An interview with Alan Stevens, producer of Kaldor City and Faction Paradox. (Part 1 of 2)
  2. ↑ The True History of Magic Bullet: An interview with Alan Stevens, producer of Kaldor City and Faction Paradox. (Part 1 of 2)
  3. ↑ http://www.kaldorcity.com/features/articles/tcchessgame.html
  4. ↑ 'Taren Capel' Trailer 1: Iago
  5. ↑ 'Taren Capel' Trailer 2: Taren Capel
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