A review by mpclemens
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: The Secondary Phase by Douglas Adams

2.0

A disappointing follow-up to the Primary Phase, the Secondary Phase of HHGTTG focuses most of its energy on Zaphod and a loosely-followed quest seemingly concocted out of thin air, to throw a new context on the events of the first book. Sadly for the listener, Zaphod is best handed out in small doses, and in contrast to the other characters. Left on his own to carry the narrative, he's just not that interesting. Ford is reduced to straight man, and only Arthur eventually shows some spine and development near the end of the story. The spirit of the original story isn't to be found here. It's not a slog, by any means, and the production and voicing is excellent, but the plot itself suffers as the characters are thrust from situation to situation without any true sense of "why." Only in the final episode does Adams attempt to rein in all the ideas he'd put down, but by then, it's lost in the noise.