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"To those of us who have been dedicated fans of the lovely Sarah Sutton for the past twenty-five years, it is a well-known fact that, aside from her ongoing commitment to Doctor Who, Ms Sutton is on record as being, er… not exactly crazy about science-fiction in general. Therefore, when this extraordinarily talented actress suddenly appears out of nowhere in a new sci-fi project that isn’t Doctor Who, we would do well to sit  up and take notice. This must be something a bit special.
The Jarillion Mercy is an audio drama, a little over an hour in length, in which we meet Asaria, captain of the Jarillion, pursuing her lifelong interplanetary mission to bring aid and relief to the victims of war. Asaria is not only the lead character but the narrator, reminiscing alone in her private quarters. This isn’t a conventional audio play in the Big Finish mode, with a full cast, sound effects and all the trimmings. This is a monologue, which is something altogether more daring. There’s no one to fall back on. It’s all down to Ms Sutton and to author Rob Brown to make it work...
I wondered, on reading the basic premise, whether this would be The Further Adventures of Nyssa in all but name. Which I wouldn’t have minded at all. But I quickly realized that it is nothing of the kind. True, Asaria does share many of the qualities of the Doctor’s loveliest ever companion; the moral courage and the tender compassion for those around her, never quite masked by the objective professionalism of the trained scientist. But as we learn more about Asaria’s background, the complexities of her unique character begin to emerge, and we discover that she has her own very particular reasons for having dedicated her life to the service of humanity.
Rob Brown’s wonderfully deft writing allows Asaria to introduce us to the rest of her crew without any disruption to the pace of the narrative.
And a strange assortment they are. Cybernetics expert Webber appears to be Asaria’s favourite. Not only does she prize his technical skill, but her caring nature responds to his mental frailty. Likewise Jen, scarred by traumatic events in her past, arouses a concerned response in her captain. The non-humanoid crew members, Rassic (a large crustacean) and Phelparr (a somewhat reptilian creature) are rather less sympathetic. Each has his own agenda, and neither is exactly smitten with humankind. Vallendon and Saunders are ex-military types, and Saunders in particular is surly and mutinous, openly showing contempt for her leader even in front of outsiders. In a lovely touch, Asaria dubs herself “the de facto captain”, neatly underlining the point that there is no rigid command structure here. This isn’t the Enterprise. Just a motley bunch of misfits thrown together by fate, each with his or her own reasons for doing what they do. Asaria maintains control, just about, solely by virtue of the fact that she owns the ship.

Oh, and there’s Globe, the ship’s computer, which, like all good spacecraft’s computers, has a mind and personality of its own. It just happens
that Globe’s personality is a psychotic one. Obsessed with war, it has to be restrained from annihilating every other vessel that the Jarillion
encounters. Arguably somewhat of a drawback to a humanitarian mission.

This whole setup is, if you think about it, deceptively original. The dysfunctional, bickering spaceship crew has been played for laughs (Red
Dwarf, Hitchhhikers, Tripping the Rift…) but its potential for real dramatic tension has been largely underexplored. Still more rarely has it been
carried off to good effect. Here, it works beautifully. These are damaged, dangerous people, co-existing in a distinctly uneasy alliance. You
can’t help but feel for Asaria in her constant efforts to maintain discipline and control. And you can’t help but wonder who amongst her
companions will really come through for her when the chips are down.

Because those chips are coming down. A glance at the universe these characters inhabit leaves us in no doubt of that. It’s a desperate
place. If the Jarillion’s mission is to bring succour to the afflicted, then they’ll never be out of work, because there are an awful lot of the
afflicted around. The human species has conquered interstellar travel and colonized much of the galaxy by now, but they’re still the same old
humans. It’s all conflict, corruption, famine, slavery and so on. Some worlds enjoy all the benefits of advanced spacefaring civilization, whilst
others dwell in medieval squalor. Weapons of war have been created that are so vile their use is banned throughout the galaxy, but that doesn’
t prevent their being deployed. This is sci-fi for grown-ups; a dark vision of the future which rings uncomfortably true. Small wonder that
Asaria describes her ship, with all the simmering tensions on board, as her safe haven. Life may not be all sweetness aboard the Jarillion,
but it gets a whole lot worse outside.

The crew are headed for the scene of the latest conflict, but they arrive too late. A vast, and particularly horrific, act of genocide has already
occurred. And now there’s a new danger, aboard the Jarillion itself.

If the “something nasty lurking in the spaceship” scenario seems a little familiar for a moment, believe me, it’s only for a moment. You’re
thinking of a certain Hollywood movie, but you can forget about that. This is no mere scary schlock-fest, even though there is imagery here
that is truly the stuff of nightmare. The tension is maintained exquisitely, there are real shocks in store, and some genuinely disturbing moral
questions are raised. Asaria needs all her experience, skill and courage, and all her compassion too, if she is to come through this. More
worryingly, she will also need the support of every member of her crew, and whether she can count on that is anybody’s guess…

After a while, you feel like you’ve been watching a blockbuster sci-fi movie, only one with unusually provocative themes and well-drawn
characters. A George Lucas film with a screenplay by Martin Amis, perhaps? Then you realize you’ve actually just been lying on a sofa in the
dark and listening to a single sweet, clear, perfectly enunciated voice. Ever since The Moon Stallion (who knows, probably ever since she
was Baby Roo) Sarah Sutton has always been a supreme mistress of understated intensity. Her performance in Doctor Who put flesh on the
bones of what were often pretty meagre scripts in terms of character development, and made Nyssa, in a quiet, unassuming way, the most
intriguing companion in the series’ long history. I longed to know what it would be like if she were placed centre-stage and allowed to dig a
little deeper. I think I’ve just had my answer, and it was simply wonderful! Rob Brown’s script is a masterly piece of writing. His ability to
create entire believable worlds (or even galaxies) with a few deceptively light touches, and then to people them with equally credible, complex,
fully rounded characters, is reminiscent of John Wyndham himself, and praise doesn’t get much higher than that. Also Wyndhamesque is Mr
Brown’s capacity to imbue his imagined scenario with relevant social themes, to offer quite a profound commentary on the human condition
and tell a bloody good story at the same time.

Part of me dearly wishes this were on TV, especially as the cover photos indicate that Ms Sutton is every bit as beautiful as she ever was.
With acting and writing of this quality, it would leave the current crop of sci-fi series standing. But no matter how good the special effects,
could any television show measure up to the intimacy and intensity of the audio experience? Whoever said that the pictures are better on
radio (and presumably on CD too) got it absolutely right.

The Jarillion Mercy is a brilliant slice of drama. It is a masterclass demonstration of what can be achieved with nothing but a great script and a
great actor. It takes the listener to some dark places, but it leaves you wanting more. Much more.

I hope, fervently, that we will have the chance to join Asaria and her crew in new adventures in the very near future

by virtue of the fact that she owns the ship.
Oh, and there’s Globe, the ship’s computer, which, like all good spacecraft’s computers, has a mind and personality of its own. It just happens that Globe’s personality is a psychotic one. Obsessed with war, it has to be restrained from annihilating every other vessel that the Jarillion encounters. Arguably somewhat of a drawback to a humanitarian mission.
This whole setup is, if you think about it, deceptively original. The dysfunctional, bickering spaceship crew has been played for laughs (Red Dwarf, Hitchhhikers, Tripping the Rift…) but its potential for real dramatic tension has been largely underexplored. Still more rarely has it been carried off to good effect. Here, it works beautifully. These are damaged, dangerous people, co-existing in a distinctly uneasy alliance. You can’t help but feel for Asaria in her constant efforts to maintain discipline and control. And you can’t help but wonder who amongst her
companions will really come through for her when the chips are down.
Because those chips are coming down. A glance at the universe these characters inhabit leaves us in no doubt of that. It’s a desperate place. If the Jarillion’s mission is to bring succour to the afflicted, then they’ll never be out of work, because there are an awful lot of the afflicted around. The human species has conquered interstellar travel and colonized much of the galaxy by now, but they’re still the same old humans. It’s all conflict, corruption, famine, slavery and so on. Some worlds enjoy all the benefits of advanced spacefaring civilization, whilst  others dwell in medieval squalor. Weapons of war have been created that are so vile their use is banned throughout the galaxy, but that doesn’t  prevent their being deployed. This is sci-fi for grown-ups; a dark vision of the future which rings uncomfortably true. Small wonder that Asaria describes her ship, with all the simmering tensions on board, as her safe haven. Life may not be all sweetness aboard the Jarillion, but it gets a whole lot worse outside.
The crew are headed for the scene of the latest conflict, but they arrive too late. A vast, and particularly horrific, act of genocide has already occurred. And now there’s a new danger, aboard the Jarillion itself.
If the “something nasty lurking in the spaceship” scenario seems a little familiar for a moment, believe me, it’s only for a moment. You’re thinking of a certain Hollywood movie, but you can forget about that. This is no mere scary schlock-fest, even though there is imagery here that is truly the stuff of nightmare. The tension is maintained exquisitely, there are real shocks in store, and some genuinely disturbing moral questions are raised. Asaria needs all her experience, skill and courage, and all her compassion too, if she is to come through this. More worryingly, she will also need the support of every member of her crew, and whether she can count on that is anybody’s guess…

After a while, you feel like you’ve been watching a blockbuster sci-fi movie, only one with unusually provocative themes and well-drawn
characters. A George Lucas film with a screenplay by Martin Amis, perhaps? Then you realize you’ve actually just been lying on a sofa in the
dark and listening to a single sweet, clear, perfectly enunciated voice. Ever since The Moon Stallion (who knows, probably ever since she
was Baby Roo) Sarah Sutton has always been a supreme mistress of understated intensity. Her performance in Doctor Who put flesh on the
bones of what were often pretty meagre scripts in terms of character development, and made Nyssa, in a quiet, unassuming way, the most
intriguing companion in the series’ long history. I longed to know what it would be like if she were placed centre-stage and allowed to dig a
little deeper. I think I’ve just had my answer, and it was simply wonderful! Rob Brown’s script is a masterly piece of writing. His ability to
create entire believable worlds (or even galaxies) with a few deceptively light touches, and then to people them with equally credible, complex,
fully rounded characters, is reminiscent of John Wyndham himself, and praise doesn’t get much higher than that. Also Wyndhamesque is Mr
Brown’s capacity to imbue his imagined scenario with relevant social themes, to offer quite a profound commentary on the human condition
and tell a bloody good story at the same time.

Part of me dearly wishes this were on TV, especially as the cover photos indicate that Ms Sutton is every bit as beautiful as she ever was.
With acting and writing of this quality, it would leave the current crop of sci-fi series standing. But no matter how good the special effects,
could any television show measure up to the intimacy and intensity of the audio experience? Whoever said that the pictures are better on
radio (and presumably on CD too) got it absolutely right.

The Jarillion Mercy is a brilliant slice of drama. It is a masterclass demonstration of what can be achieved with nothing but a great script and a
great actor. It takes the listener to some dark places, but it leaves you wanting more. Much more.

I hope, fervently, that we will have the chance to join Asaria and her crew in new adventures in the very near future

whether she can count on that is anybody’s guess…
After a while, you feel like you’ve been watching a blockbuster sci-fi movie, only one with unusually provocative themes and well-drawn characters. A George Lucas film with a screenplay by Martin Amis, perhaps? Then you realize you’ve actually just been lying on a sofa in the dark and listening to a single sweet, clear, perfectly enunciated voice. Ever since The Moon Stallion (who knows, probably ever since she was Baby Roo) Sarah Sutton has always been a supreme mistress of understated intensity. Her performance in Doctor Who put flesh on the bones of what were often pretty meagre scripts in terms of character development, and made Nyssa, in a quiet, unassuming way, the most  intriguing companion in the series’ long history. I longed to know what it would be like if she were placed centre-stage and allowed to dig a little deeper. I think I’ve just had my answer, and it was simply wonderful! Rob Brown’s script is a masterly piece of writing. His ability to create entire believable worlds (or even galaxies) with a few deceptively light touches, and then to people them with equally credible, complex, fully rounded characters, is reminiscent of John Wyndham himself, and praise doesn’t get much higher than that. Also Wyndhamesque is Mr Brown’s capacity to imbue his imagined scenario with relevant social themes, to offer quite a profound commentary on the human condition and tell a bloody good story at the same time.
Part of me dearly wishes this were on TV, especially as the cover photos indicate that Ms Sutton is every bit as beautiful as she ever was.  With acting and writing of this quality, it would leave the current crop of sci-fi series standing. But no matter how good the special effects, could any television show measure up to the intimacy and intensity of the audio experience? Whoever said that the pictures are better on radio (and presumably on CD too) got it absolutely right.
The Jarillion Mercy is a brilliant slice of drama. It is a masterclass demonstration of what can be achieved with nothing but a great script and a great actor. It takes the listener to some dark places, but it leaves you wanting more. Much more.
I hope, fervently, that we will have the chance to join Asaria and her crew in new adventures in the very near future.                Paul Carney of London

I enjoyed the story. The pacing of the story, content of the story, the relationships of the characters, and the point of view of Asaria help make the story enjoyable.
The reading of the story by Sarah Sutton is excellent. She gives Asaria the emotions to make her endearing to the listener, and
sympathetic towards Asaria's plight.
Ray Sullivan from Dickson, Tennessee