Warmaster

John French
Spoiler Review

“So, John French, how many epic quotes can you fit into a ten-minute audio drama?”

“Let’s find out.”

-John French and a colleague the day before ‘Warmaster’ was written

In all seriousness though, there’s a real danger that a ten-minute monologue by Horus would devolve into a series of cool but ultimately insubstantial quotes. I think Warmaster is did a great job avoiding this. It’s not aimless, but it’s not an essay either. It feels like a real stream of consciousness. I think my favourite quote from this audio drama was:

“Strange, is it not? That so many I wish beside me stand against me, while at my back are only the flawed and damaged.”

There’s so much good stuff in this monologue. Horus talking about how the title of Warmaster weighs heavy on him and he wasn’t really sure what it meant, his mourning the broken relationship between him and the Emperor, his lamenting that so many of his beloved brothers are now his enemies, his fears about what will happen if he loses, about what will happen if he wins.

The war is not going anything like he thought it would and he feels like he’s losing control.

And then there’s the reveal of who he’s talking to. I really liked it. Despite having his living and breathing brothers around him, he still takes more comfort from confiding in the skull of a dead one. I don’t think we get much prior indication of any closeness between Ferrus and Horus but it still represents Horus’ second thoughts after the realisation that so many of the brothers he wanted or expected to stand beside him are now against him. Really great.

I’m a big fan of this audio drama and at times I find myself thinking that if John French wrote an hour-long monologue by Horus, I’d still listen to it. I hope you enjoyed it too.

 

The Emperor Protects

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