Hist-horror-cal education
Cthulhu In The Deep South review
Rating – 
This week we are going all eldritch and unnameable again. This podcast cropped up in a list on Reddit. Yes, I am apparently getting all my new podcasts from that rather divisive social media platform. It is a great resource for discovering new shows on an almost daily basis though. Originally, I was going to post this last Sunday. In The Dark jumped the queue though. I also wanted to hear where this story was going before I finished the review.
So without further ado, let us pour a mint julep, get a slice of that famous Southern hospitality and head to South Carolina. And discover the ancient darkness that lurks behind it.
So what’s it about?
Cthulhu In The Deep South, is pretty much what it says on the tin. It’s a period Lovecraftian horror set in antebellum South Carolina. A time full of racism, cruelty and slavery, while the white folks try and justify it all to each other.
Each season is set in a slightly different time period, and tells the story of the strange plantation islands of Ryland and Carcosa (yes, really).
Season one is set on an ice boat hauling blocks of glacial ice to the deep South. After a storm hits, one of the crew makes his way to the now seemingly derelict Ryland plantation to get help. And of course, that’s where the mystery, and the danger begins.
Season two takes place years before, when Ryland was an actual plantation, and a valuable asset in the defence of South Carolina against the Yankee invasion. It also introduces the story of the downfall of the island.
Season three? Well, I haven’t got that far yet, and as you will soon read, I might not ever get that far…
Is it any good?
The main bulk of the story wears its influences quite proudly on its sleeve. There are so many references shoehorned into the story that it seems overwhelming. There’s almost a giant neon arrow saying “look here folks, here’s the massive clue that all is not as it seems”. There are times when it feels like a Cthulhu video game, where the plot points are highlighted to keep you on the strict path to the final, revelatory, cutscene.
The narration is not the best. In my opinion (and after all, as a critic, this is my opinion) there were sections that could have benefitted from a few more takes. The skill of a truly great narrator is that they make you forget you are actually listening to a piece of written fiction. One of my favourite narrators, Tren Sparks, said that a narrator is an actor first, and an interesting voice second. In the case of season one, you are quite aware that he is literally reading off the page (or the screen, as is probably the case).
Season two sees a different narrator. If I’m being honest, one who should invest in a new microphone and vocal booth very soon indeed. The story gets even more overt in its heavy-handed clue dropping, to the point that all the nods and winks started giving me a stiff neck. One of the characters also seems to change name halfway through, from an eye rollingly poor name to an only slightly better name (or maybe I misheard).
Final thoughts
When I started this podcast, my first thought was that it reminded me of a story called The Ballad Of Black Tom. This is a re-imagining of Lovecraft’s story The Horror At Red Hook. In the post season one interview with author Kirk Battle, he mentioned that particular story as inspiration. Which I must admit made me feel rather clever.
The person who recommended this said that the writer “just gets it”. I expected some groundbreaking angle on Cthulhu mythos fiction that would leave me with my mind so blown, I would be picking bits out of the rug for a couple of days. What I actually got was a rather predictable story with a seeming grab bag of (if I’m being very pedantic and nerdy) alien entities shouldn’t really go together. Particularly in season two.
Listening to the Kirk Battle’s authors notes on season two, he is obviously very knowledgeable about the setting. He has included quite the reading list for all of his inspiration, and that is admirable. Unfortunately, he isn’t much of a horror writer. Don’t get me wrong, he is talented, but I would much rather hear a podcast by him of the actual historical events around the civil war.
Give it a go. You might like it. If however you have been spoilt (as I have) with shows like Modes Of Thought In Anterran Literature, The Lovecraft Investigations and The Witness of Kitab Al-Azif, then you will feel rather short changed.
You can get Cthulhu In The Deep South here:
For more great reviews, I recommend GreatPods