Escape from Virtual Island

An Audio Comedy

By: John Lutz

Narrated by: Paul Rudd, Jack McBrayer, Sue Galloway, Jane Krakowski, Jason Sudeikis, Seth Meyers, Kenan Thompson, Olivia Wilde, Rachel Dratch, Henry Winkler, full cast

Length: 4 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's Summary

Looking for an escape from reality? Then look no further!

Escape from Virtual Island is an epic comedy adventure starring Paul Rudd, written by John Lutz of Saturday Night Live, Late Night with Seth Meyers, and 30 Rock, and produced by Broadway Video.

Rounding out the ensemble cast in this genre-hopping, madcap comedy are Emmy nominee Jack McBrayer, Wine Country and AP Bio’s Paula Pell, Late Night with Seth Meyers’ Amber Ruffin, and 30 Rock’s Scott Adsit.

The Audible Original also features the voice talents of Jason Sudeikis, Jane Krakowski, Olivia Wilde, Kenan Thompson, Seth Meyers, Rachel Dratch, Henry Winkler, and a host of other comedy favorites.

About the story:

In the year 2038, there’s only one destination that can play host to the world’s wealthiest adventure seekers: the Pengalaman Island Resort and Virtual Reality Theme Park. Located on a private South Pacific island, guests here live out their wildest fantasies in custom-made virtual reality simulations while also enjoying the usual amenities of an exclusive five-star getaway.

All is relatively breezy until famed billionaire and avid guest, Mr. Wagner (Sudeikis), goes missing within a virtual simulation. His only hope? A daring rescue led by Derek Ambrose (Rudd), the maladjusted heir to his mother’s resort empire, and his ragtag search party consisting of Faith (Ruffin), a tech-nerd extraordinaire (and naturally, his ex); Ramona Kurtz (Pell), the foul-mouthed head of island security; and Beasley (McBrayer), the resort’s lead concierge and Ambrose family confidant.

What ensues is a high-octane, comedy throwback filled with memorable performances throughout, and a reminder that real life can be the ultimate experience if you’re just willing to open your heart and dive in headfirst.

Please note: This content is not for kids. It is for mature audiences only. This audio comedy features adult language, sexual content, and virtually every innuendo you can literally imagine. Discretion is advised.

©2020 The Broadway Video Group, LLC. (P)2020 The Broadway Video Group, LLC.

Story is a Bit Stupid

Obviously, 'Escape from Virtual Island' is voiced by some very talented people, so I won't waste any time talking about the various performances. Everyone was stellar and is probably why I listened to the whole thing.

I'm actually a fan of John Lutz. He wrote and acted in 30 Rock (my favorite show of all time), SNL, and various other shows. Surprisingly, this was probably the worst thing he's done that I've seen/listened to. The whole story was super boring and there was so much potential for this idea. I wanted to LOVE this, but I just can't... The pure predictability of the story line was something a child could figure out (although, this is definitely a Mature title).

I don't think I've ever given a book or Audible Original this bad of a grade, but I have to be honest; the story gets an F on my grading scale and the cast gets an A.

Just Not Good...

The cast is amazing, and I listened to the whole thing, hoping it would get better. It did not.

I may be the odd one out on this one, but I didn’t find it funny or well written. Too bad, great potential with such a great cast.

entertaining and very punny

one of the most entertaining stories I've heard in a long while. The whole cast was fantastic. I laughed and guffawed alot which felt good during this shelter in place.
Highly recommend if you enjoyed Airplane!, and Spaceballs type of humor or if you just love Paul Rudd.

Amazing Cast, Hilarious Story

This was such a fun and exciting Audible Original! Took so many twists and turns - like a action comedy movie for your ears. The cast was phenomenal and the production quality was A++!

Just too many corny puns and weirdness for me

I saw a pretty good review and a lot of big names involved in this production. It was, well for lack of a better term, dumb. I like Sci-Fi but this was inane. I was very disappointed. I did listen to the bitter end hoping it would get better, It didn't.

Waste of time and talent

The story did not make the best use of the talent available. I would skip it

A great use of a credit

I recommend this title. it was funny and creative. I usually don't enjoy full cast audiobooks but this one was wonderful.

Love It!!

Dear Audible:

More star-studded comedy audio series like this, please! This was so much fun. Jack McBrayer is always the best, and so is Paul Rudd. We need more comedy series like these if we're going to survive quarantine.

This is the kind of story we need right now.

Simple, fun, funny, and distracting. This is the kind of story we need right now,

Awesome!!

LOVED IT!! THIS SHOULD BE A SERIES! WHAT! This is a great adventure with a 10 star cast and sooooo funny!! THANK YOU!

Harder to get through than it should have been.

First things first. You're basically listening to Kenneth from 30 Rock rather than Beasley. You won't be able to get him out of your head. The rest of the cast do a good job, though

There are some very funny lines in this, but they come too rarely. The story gets repetitive and the style gets repetitive (saying one thing but meaning another that has to do with something approaching that's going to kill them). I enjoyed the first 3 chapters immensely. Then it became a challenge to get through 4-11.

Overall, I did enjoy it, but it would definitely have benefited from some editing. The "twist" was predictable, and the ending was straight out of a Touchstone Pictures film from the 80s or 90s.

Unbelievable - This was free!

Well I do not write reviews very often, but in this case feel the need to share my experience. This story was so good and had me chuckling along - I was that impressed I would re-listen to a chapter once finished to stave off the ending. And this was a free title, I have paid for stories that I have given up on!
Well worth a listen, great characters and storyline and so many funny lines, oh and the singing!
Enough - download and listen now! You will not be disappointed.

Great fun

very entertaining cast of actors with some laugh out loud moments... well worth a listen

loved it!

Really enjoyed the story and the performances. Will definitely be listening again soon! Get it!

I virtually couldn't put it down

This was a great scifi radio comedy. i loved it. Outstanding performanes from the cast.

Not my cup of tea!

Found this a bit silly and gave up after a couple chapters + after reading rest of chapter summaries.

Felt performances were overacted too

Not for me this one; thank goodness it was a freebie

Fun story!

It was a fun story. I have to admit that at the beginning I thought I wasn't going to like because of the "dumb humour", especially coming from Ramona, but after a while I found it actually funny. I loved how each character was performed by the actors and at some point I really didn't know how the story could end, so overall I enjoyed listening to this book very much.

Not funny, at all.

Every chapter was funnier than the previous one, including the end credits.

The end credits were not funny.

Great fun

This was fantastic fun. Unusual, quirky and a great listen. Performances were brilliant. Would highly recommend.

Great fun and super funny!

I really enjoyed this fun adventure. Traveling through the virtual world with these crazy people kept me entertained and laughing throughout.