The Immortal Game is a cracker. This is probably my favourite Dorian Gray release so far. I’ve listened to the whole first season which was okay but didn’t set my world on fire. The Immortal Game comes from Season 2 and, although I’ve not heard any others, it feels like people have upped their game a little.

Alexander Vlahos sounds much more comfortable in the role and the direction he is taking him. The script is excellent and has a decent plot (something I felt was missing a little from some of the stories in the first season). It also ties in some other 19th century literature which is a clever idea whilst at the same time being an obvious fit for the series. It’s the sort of thing a series does when it finds its feet and is more willing to play a little with the format they have set for themselves.

Dorian is recuperating in Brighton. An air of foreboding hangs over the town, soon to be a refuge for wounded soldiers but for now, Dorian is passing the time after suffering from a bout of food poisoning. Here he sees a man playing chess alone. The man leaves and while later another man appears to play the next move. Curiosity piqued, Dorian follows the second man and discovers a bizarre tale of two brothers, the nature of evil, chess and war.

The clever way that the oncoming storm of WW1 reflects in the script is just one of the good things about this story. Hugh Ross is superb as both brothers bringing a calm, academic air to the younger and a manic, Scottish, proselytising unkemptness to the older.

The scenes between Vlahos and Ross crackle with energy, even the one set in a quiet gentleman’s club, and Vlahos also seems to have upped his game a little in his narration which, in series 1 could sometimes be a little flat (although to be honest, I’ve only realised that as a consequence of noticing the increased vibrancy (for want of a better word) in this story).

The best aspect of this story, for me, though, is a bit of a spoiler. All I will say is that, as I say, after bringing Sherlock Holmes into the world of Dorian Gray, the script brings another figure from Victorian literature into the fray. It does it very competently and its a character worthy of a rematch (although it doesn’t seem that Ross has returned in later seasons). It also twists the character round a little giving it a fresh edge. The story ends on a note remembering a scene from earlier in the play which can only be described as chilling.

Historically, the oncoming WW1 is referenced heavily. Ross’s character is involved in research to create super soldiers. The unrest in Europe is referenced and the military nature of chess mirrors the battles to come.

This is a great story, only half an hour long, and well worth seeking out by anyone who hasn’t explored the world of Dorian Gray. I don’t know if its the greatest jumping on point but maybe after listening to opening story of series one, I would recommend jumping to this one. Chronologically, it is much closer to that first release than the rest of series one anyway. Very satisfying.