Burgess Springs Podcast

Created by Noah Lloyd, Elisabeth Strayer

Genre: Horror

Burgess Springs isn’t bad, but it falls short of being great. It’s a good starting point for the creators, and one I definitely feel like they will improve on as time goes on, and I will keep an ear out for season two.

The first season is short, short enough it’s pretty easy to listen to it in one sitting, with the combined listening coming in under many podcast episode lengths. The characters start of a little interesting, but truth be told the voice acting could be a touch better – some voices veered on being too similar to follow clearly, and there were a number of lines that felt forcibly delivered.

Again, not bad, and I didn’t particularly want to stop listening at any point, though once I’d finished I felt just kind of ambivalent towards it.

If you listen to a lot of podcasts – like, possibly too many, like me – you’ve heard similar podcasts before in regards to setups. If you’ve maybe only listened to a handful, you’ll likely get more out of Burgess Springs. The podcast opens with a late-night radio show, hosted by Jonathan, until journalist Corinth bursts in with a mystery – she’s had a voicemail from Jonathan’s missing sister, Sarah.

Turns out, Sarah has returned, though despite the long years between her disappearance and reappearance, she hasn’t aged a day.

I was excited about the premise, but in the first couple of episodes it reminded me a little bit too much of other podcasts – the radio host and journalist setup, the ‘found footage’ style of storytelling – which is fine, but it feels by this point you really need something solidly unique to put your own stamp on it. I thought later episodes would be more about Sarah coming to terms with being back in the town, but there’s almost too much focus on the ‘mystery’ aspect, with character elements sacrificed for plot. I admit, too, I found myself getting a little lost by the end with what was going on.

Sometimes the found footage aspect really works for scripted podcasts, and sometimes, unfortunately, it just falls a little flat. This one got a touch too muddled with everything that was going on. But it’s still a good start, and it’s an enjoyable 8 episodes at least. I’d say it’s worth giving a listen if you’re looking for a scripted podcast, and I’ll be keeping an eye out for more from these creators.

Burgess Springs, created by Noah Lloyd and Elisabeth Stayer, is available wherever you listen to podcasts.

Review by Elle Turpitt

Twitter & Instagram: @elleturpitt

www.elleturpitt.com