Splintered Caravan by Chris Garrett

SPLINTERED CARAVAN is an audio drama set in the cyberpunk future. Influenced by classic heist stories, as well as films that epitomize the genre like Blade Runner and Shadowrun, we tell the stories of chosen families, unlikely partnerships, explosive missions, and everyone who gets wrapped up in them. Updating once a month, or more!

When I saw the name “Splintered Caravan” I thought this was going to be a podcast about ancient explorers traveling across the world. Oh boy, was I wrong. If a cyberpunk Ocean’s Eleven—where every thief has some sort of special ability or bionic enhancement—sounds interesting, this might be for you.

Ensemble casts sometimes fall short for me, since no single character gets much time to shine. Here, each character has a colorful personality, set of powers, and backstory. There’s a reluctant soldier with the ability to shoot lightning from his palms, a peppy robot who won’t rest until people acknowledge her official codename, and a body-part-swapping gender fluid spy.

And these are just some of the great characters in the show.

For an indie audio drama that doesn’t work with a huge budget, the sound design was very impressive. The voice actors were talented and sounded like everyone was in the same recording studio (which is unlikely, but indicative the professionalism and skill behind the show), the sound effects immersed me in the story, and the original score was catchy and fit the genre.

Splintered Caravan hits the ground running and only slows down when it’s revealing the rich backstories to each character. Audio drama newbies and veterans alike can all find something to love in this show.

If I had one complaint, it’s that the episodes can’t release fast enough. There’s often a month or more between each release, which is unfortunate for a show that’s so easy to binge. But if that’s what it takes to maintain such excellent quality, I’m completely on board.

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Splintered Caravan is a free cyberpunk heist audio drama available through iTunes or wherever you find podcasts. Find out more on its website, or try a sample of the first episode here: