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Carrier
True crime is perhaps one of the most popular drama genres for podcasts. Carrier, though, is not a true crime podcast. It’s fiction and it’s a great listen.
The Story
Truck drivers live in a different world. One that takes them to places the average person would never even consider venturing to. As an Indian listener, I was also fascinated that the story is about a female truck driver. There must be a handful female truck drivers in India — if any.
The show stars Cynthia Erivo as Rayleen Watts who is driving her father’s rig because he is unwell. She has two young children being tended to by her boyfriend while she’s out on a routine drop. Things change when she gets desperate to return home and as a result, accepts a load that’s not from the fleet managing her truck.
Along the way, there’s some close run-ins with bad guys who try to push her to deliver the contents of the truck.
As a lay person who has zero insight into a truck driver’s life, it’s fascinating to peep in and know how they live and work. Days spent on the road forges strong bonds among fellow drivers while at the same time, adding to they physical and emotional distance between loved ones. Raylene’s regular calls back to speak with her boyfriend and children are beautifully written to highlight this aspect.
Through the journey we go on with Raylene, it’s also very interesting to see how truckers spend their evenings and the code that exists between them. This part of their life is perfectly captured and portrayed in great detail.
About the actual mystery, it’s wafer thin and more in the zone of ET meets Die Hard! Let that not be the focus of your listening experience!
The Show
Cynthia Erivo as Raylene is great and so is the ensemble cast. Her conversations with fellow truckers are insightful and offer a slice of the life on the road.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_isu2uOD9o
The real star of the show, however, is the audio quality, and the presentation. To be honest, this is a story that could have been told in 3 episodes. The slice of life aspect is great, but at times, stretched. The weakest link is the mystery since it remains unsolved.
But listen to this on your headphones and you’ll be immersed like never before. This is the kind of experience you want to relish, so please, don’t listen to this in the car or with bad earphones!
Conclusion
Wherever you listen to this, it’s worth the time investment. Why should you listen? For the performances, the quality and the experience. The story will leave you underwhelmed.
