The journey continues for Asala and Niko in this latest Rivers Solomon-written episode of The Vela, “The Death-Cold.” When we last left these characters, they were on their way to the planet of Hypatia — the home planet of Asala and their first lead to find the lost ship, The Vela, which is said to feature many refugees on board. Whereas the entirety of the last episode took place in close quarters with the cold General Cynwrig, this one sees our two leads on a brand-new, icy planet, where temperatures regularly dip well below -40 on a warm day.

But, of course, things aren’t that easy. While this is Asala’s home planet, it’s been decades since she’s been there, and she finds herself having a hard time tapping into her past to seamlessly blend in. The episode sees her and Niko traipsing across icy landscapes on a planet that has seemingly suffered endless bad luck, and yet it’s only with the help of a few natives that their mission can be successful.

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I’d love to go into more detail as to what happened, but part of the fun is finding out how they manage to push along when it seems like their leads have dried out. This was an enjoyable read for me, personally. While it wasn’t as quiet and introspective as the previous episode (which I really enjoyed), it still managed to be plenty entertaining, all while giving us a bit more to chew on regarding Asala, whose mysterious facade is slowly fading to reveal a more human character.

The characters are competent and their relationship is growing at a rewarding pace, but if there was one critique, it’d have to be in the world-building. We are giving very little to go on in terms of the planet of Hypatia. Description is kept to a bare minimum to help pacing, and while that’s admirable and understandable in this episodic format, it does make the experience more shallow than your average science fiction novel, where we’d be able to take a moment to take in the surroundings, culture, and customs of a new place. Instead, we are thrust forward to reach the inevitable cliffhanger, which leaves us wanting more for next week. Personally, I think it was their strongest ending yet, and it left a real pit in my stomach, leaving me hungry for the next episode.

Throughout my read this week, I switched off between reading on my phone and listening to the wonderful audiobook version (completely with ambiance and sound effects) read by Robin Miles. This really is the strength of the Serial Box platform, and given that this week was a busy one for me, the ability to switch easily between reading and listening helped me get through it pretty darn quickly, which is always a plus.

While this isn’t the strongest episode yet for the series, it is a worthy episode that continues to build on the foundation set by the first two. More than anything, it has me more anxious to read what happens next than the last episode did (and that was a stronger episode, I think), so they’re doing something right.

Grade: B

+ Growing characters
+ Intriguing plot developments
+ Strong Narrator
– Lack of world-building
– Minimal descriptions

To check out the series for yourself, go ahead and CLICK HERE!

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