Nothing New, Nothing Old

Yes, I'm finally going to get around to my last review of the season. Although I was expecting to write it tomorrow, I found out that I won't have the opportunity to sit down and write for a half hour tomorrow morning, so I figured my only time, if I'm going to keep my promise, is this morning. So, here's my review of Something Old, Something New!

Contrary to most people it seems, I actually liked this two-parter. Now, let me qualify that by saying that it did have problems. But I don't think those problems were too big to make it a terrible episode, like others were portraying it. I think I already mentioned here that Mitch's return was a total surprise to me. For once, I had no idea that a surprise was coming. I was expecting a so-so episode about Connie, Penny, and Wooton and "Dreams by Constance."

I hadn't had time to listen to the episode early in the morning like I usually do, so I was tuning in to the radio broadcast with my whole family on the way to soccer. And I was liking what I was hearing. It was an original  episode idea, and it was intertwined with a fairly engaging Jones and Parker mystery. It wasn't the best premise in the world, but I was interested enough that I'd look forward to the next week to see how the stories would connect. And Wooton wasn't even all that annoying! Then, as I'm getting out of the van when we get to soccer, I'm about ready to walk away, because the episode's almost over, and I'm already a little late. But as I retrieved my water bottle (which I always forget) from the van, I heard Connie taking calls on Kids' Radio with Wooton. I was intrigued, so I listened. When the second caller started talking, I literally said to my brother, "Heh, that almost sounded like Mitch for a second." Imagine my shock when five seconds later I learned that it was Mitch! I was ecstatic. So much so that I immediately went and told one of my friends with whom I play soccer, but who knows next-to-nothing about Odyssey, all about what had just happened. :P

So maybe now you can see at least a little bit of why, despite how anticlimactic the second part of this episode was, I still really enjoyed it because of my experience with the first part. But then the second part really wasn't all that bad. There were a lot of plot twists. But I didn't think that was necessarily a bad thing. The writers actually had my dad and me totally believing one of the plot twists. I was sure that Maureen was a counterfeit painter, that she was secretly going out with another man ("Cute Guy"), and that Mitch was posing as her fiancee, but was really on an undercover operation to expose her. And my hypotheses seemed to be bolstered by the fact that I thought Mitch's acting sounded quite fake.

But then, as you know, the story took an unexpected turn, and not only were Mitch and Maureen truly going to get married, but they were both agents, working together to expose Jacques Henri, and Maureen wasn't doing anything illegal. So, in that sense, it was pretty anticlimactic for me, since I had all those ideas about Maureen being a fake. And I think, as a 7/8-year Odyssey fan, I still subconsciously wanted Connie and Mitch to be together, despite the fact that I knew it wouldn't work and that their previous failed attempt at marrying should have solidified in my mind that it wouldn't happen.

I think most fans, whether they like to admit it or not, were satisfied with the way things turned out with Connie and Mitch. Not only did it make for a more interesting story when they didn't get married, but it also kept Connie on the show. I mean, do we really think that the writers would have given us stories from Budapest about Mitch's adventures and Connie's trials at home? I, for one, am glad the decision was made to let Connie stick around and to let Mitch go. Yes, I, like everyone else who was very involved in the Novacom Saga and Connie and Mitch's dating relationship, really wanted them to get married. But I think I, like most fans, didn't consider all the implications of what would happen if they did. And now that I have thought about it more deeply, I don't want it to happen. Hopefully sometime in the future, we'll get to hear that Connie got an e-mail or something from Mitch saying that he and Maureen got married, so that we won't have any room left for "hoping" that Connie and Mitch have any chance together.

So that was another reason I liked the episode as a whole. Part I got me really excited that Mitch was back in town. And then Part II gave me time to think logically through the situation, resolved the situation by ensuring me that Maureen and Mitch were together for good, and satisfied me by finally concluding the Connie and Mitch saga.

Now, all that said, I don't think this was the absolute best way to resolve everything. There could have been a better story. Maureen could have been a bit more likeable, Steve Burns could have done a better job acting, so as to make me sympathize more with Mitch and make him feel like less of a dry character, but overall, I think it was a decent, if not good, conclusion. Fans should be moderately pleased with it.

As for other things I have to say about the episode, it was a little overly silly in some parts. I think less time could have been spent with Wooton and his unneeded preparations for the "wedding." And in that sense, I thought Wooton was distracting in this episode, but he wasn't as bad as he has been recently. He was more silly than intrusive and annoying, so I was okay with him. Plus, there wasn't much between him and Penny in the episode, so that was a relief.

This episode made me realize how very detached Andre Stojka's Whit feels from Paul Herlinger and Hal Smith's Whit. When Whit told Mitch, "Nice to see you again," I felt like he had no right to be saying that. I didn't like it. Andre as Whit still seems like a new character who was introduced with Album 51, who really doesn't have much of a connection with the Odyssey before that album. For the most part, I like his interactions with the newer characters--even Monty and Jason, to an extent. But something about his interactions with Mitch in this episode made me really miss Paul Herlinger.

I know the computer virus thing was something else that bothered people. But I didn't really care about that dropped plot line. It seemed like it was only needed in order to send the Wooton-and-Connie e-mail out to the whole town, and it served its purpose. Some people apparently thought it should have come into play as part of the FBI investigation in the second part of the episode, but I really didn't feel like it was a part of the plot that needed a resolution. Maybe it was just me, though.

Well, I think that's about all I have to say. I was very pleased with Album 55--with pretty much every episode--and this was a good way to end it. Maybe not the best way, but a good way. I was satisfied; I think most fans were satisfied in some way or another, so everything is okay. And now I really look forward to Album 56! Who knows, maybe this one will be better than 55? It's certainly looking like it has that potential.

Thank you for reading my review! Sorry it took me such a long time to get it out. I hope you enjoyed it!

--Christian

Predictions

I was planning on writing and posting this earlier in the week--preferably not the night before Something Old, Something New, Part II comes out--but if you know anything about me, you know that some of my worst traits are laziness and procrastination. So, like a true procrastinator, I've waited until just about the last minute to get this out. Since I'm not writing a formal review of Something Old, Something New, Part I, I did want to talk about what I think might happen in the next part before it is officially released.

As you could probably tell from my previous post, I was really excited that Mitch came back in last week's episode. I even expressed to friends of mine who don't know much about Odyssey at all my excitement. Hopefully all of my excitement won't give me an expectation that is too high for tomorrow's episode to meet.

My first prediction, which I think makes the most sense of anything I'm conjecturing, is that Mitch is back in town because of the allegedly illegal activity going on involving "Cute Guy" and "Mystery Woman" Some have said that maybe Mitch and his fiancee are those two's true identities, which could be possible, since thus far only Matthew, Emily, and Penny have seen them. However, I think that's unlikely. It really seems like the mystery couple are doing something illegal with their paintings, so unless that impression is totally wrong, I don't think Mitch is involved in that.

A second thing I wanted to express was that although on the one hand, it would be nice and somewhat emotionally satisfying for Connie and Mitch to get back together, I don't want that to happen. For one thing, I don't think he's going to ditch his fiancee so quickly, even though we might hope that he would. And secondly, as I believe someone else has said, Mitch and Connie already determined that it was not God's will for them to get married. If, all of a sudden, God reveals to them that they are supposed to be together, it would not make a lot of sense to listeners who already have a hard time figuring out God's will and how all of the specifics of that should play out. If the relationship wasn't meant to be before, I don't think that should ever change, no matter how much we fans might want the two to be together.

My dad, on the other hand is a different story. He thinks that these two episodes are a setup for several episodes to come in Album 56 which will rebuild Mitch and Connie's relationship. I informed him that Paul McCusker (wasn't it?) had said that they wouldn't get back together until Eugene and Katrina had kids, and that since it's obvious now that they can't have kids, Connie and Mitch won't ever get married. Therefore, he now thinks that not only will Connie and Mitch renew their relationship, but Eugene and Katrina, in tomorrow's episode, will receive the news that, despite all odds, by a miracle of God, they're expecting a baby. And so, he thinks, with that obstacle removed, the next logical step will be for Mitch to somehow dump his fiancee and marry Connie. I don't think he's right at all, but I thought I'd amuse you by sharing that.

So my expectations are high for tomorrow's episode, despite my fears that it may not be that great of a resolution. I hope there is a very satisfactory ending if this plot will not be carried on into Album 56. I don't really see how much can be fit into one small 25-minute time slot, but I'll hold out hope just the same.

If you haven't listened to Part II yet, what are your expectations? Your fears? Your predictions? I'd love to hear them! Please comment!

Finally! Album 55 Episode Summaries!

I'm a little late on posting these, but better late than never, so here are all of the summaries to the episodes of Album 55:

The Labyrinth
Jason's pursuit of Mr. Grote leads him to London, where he finds a plot even more ominous than the Green Ring Conspiracy. Jason must seek the help of some old friends to unravel Mr. Grote's schemes before it's too late.

To Mend or Repair
To distract her from some devastating personal news, Eugene tries to keep Katrina busy all the time. Meanwhile, Barrett gives Priscilla a special honor -- reading the pledge of allegiance on the morning announcements.

Mistaken for Good
Jay's visit to a nursing home takes an unexpected turn when an old woman mistakes him for her grandson -- and offers him money as a birthday present.

Sgt. York
Eugene Meltsner and Red Hollard tell the story of Sergeant Alvin York, a troublemaker from rural Tennessee who became a World War I hero.

Child's Play
Eugene and Katrina take on a crazy weekend when they agree to babysitting two kids: one with limitless energy and another who must know the answer to every question.

Something Old, Something New
Penny brainstorms ways to promote Connie's wedding planning business and one of her schemes dramatically backfires. Meanwhile, Matthew and Emily investigate a woman who may be trying to scam Jacques Henri.

---

Sounds like a very interesting season. I purposely did not read any other people's comments on the episodes so mine could be as original as they can be.

I'm looking forward to The Labyrinth most of all this season, because it sounds like it will be the most action-packed and mysterious. I really like hearing from Jason, and it's exciting to know that he's going to be in his "special agent" mode for the first time since...The Top Floor (not including The GRC)? Plus, having heard who the returning characters are, I'm interested to hear how they fit in with the plot.

I'm very interested to find out what the "devastating personal news" in To Mend or Repair is that Eugene tries to hide from Katrina. Could it be that her mother or his father or Everett died? Or maybe something happened to the Ashanti tribe? And then the Barrett/Priscilla storyline sounds ridiculous. 1. Why is it such a huge honor to read the Pledge of Allegiance? and 2. How did Barrett get the authority to give her that "honor"? I can't say I'm much looking forward to that part of the episode.

Mistaken for Good doesn't seem like it has that much of a backbone to the story, especially since there only seems to be one plot, rather than the usual two that weave together. But it is a Jay episode, so it can't be too bad. ;)

Sgt. York is my second-most anticipated episode. I'm slightly familiar with Sgt. York's story, but don't know much about it, so I'm interested to learn more about it through these episodes. I have some friends who don't typically listen to Odyssey who I'm sure would be interested to hear these episodes, so I'm excited to get to share them, as I'm sure they'll be pretty good. The only problem I see the episodes having is that Red Hollard is a narrator. His narration in Forgiving More...or Less is one of the reasons I didn't like the episode much. His voice just isn't nearly as good as someone's like, say, Bernard's, when it comes to storytelling.

Unlike the Jay episode, I think Child's Play definitely has some potential, even though it only has one main plot. It sounds very interesting to me to have the Meltsners in a situation where they have to babysit young kids. Then again, maybe the writers threw this episode in the mix to show us that Eugene and Katrina + kids=disaster, so that we'll never ask for it again. :D

Something Old, Something New sounds at least a little bit intriguing. Penny's in it, so I'm not too excited, but it doesn't look like Wooton will be that involved, so that could make it better. I'm pretty sure I heard that Penny's mix-up has something to do with the town thinking that Connie is getting married, so I think that should be fairly humorous. The Jacques Henri story sounds pretty interesting too, and although I don't like him as much as some others do, it'll be nice to hear from him again. I'm just concerned about Emily and Matthew being back together again. Eek.

Well that's it for this blog post. Apparently I'll be keeping this blog going, since I've gotten a very positive response to both my poll and blog post about whether or not to close it down. It would seem that no one is tired of my infrequency in posting, so I'll keep the blog going. But I better not hear any whining about how long it takes me to post! :P Not that I've heard any of that in the past. :)

Thanks for reading, everyone! I'd love to hear what you think about the upcoming season, or what you have to say about my comments about the episodes. Your feedback is always very appreciated.

The Nickel Rescued

Please forgive me for not getting a review out sooner. I have to juggle school, preparing for the National Bible Bee, this blog, and a job, and daily responsibilities all at once right now, and sometimes this blog becomes the lowest on that list of priorities. Thanks for your patience.

I'll say right now that most of this review will be either restatements of, or counteractions to the paragraphs of the review that Marvin at The AIO Fan's Life wrote. I won't follow his order exactly, but most of my points will come from points that he makes. I don't have time to re-listen to the episode, but I've heard the majority of it twice, and Marvin pretty much covered it all, so I'll assume that he's fine with my doing this, and proceed this way. (Hopefully this will be the only times this season that I have to do this.) I'm really tired though, so if the review is a bit disorganized, and I ramble more than usual, I apologize.

My initial perception of the episode when I finished listening the first time, like Marvin's, was that it was very simple. I agree with Ben Warren (the Odyssey Scoop's reviewer) that this felt much like episodes after Darkness Before Dawn and The Novacom Saga that were merely transition episodes. Rather than having an original premise, it merely ties up loose ends that were left at the end of The Green Ring Conspiracy. The only problem with that is that not really any of the issues addressed in the episode were problems at the end of the GRC. Sure it was nice to know that Dr. Trask got what was coming to him, but we could have deduced that outcome for ourselves. He was captured and taken into custody, and there was loads of evidence stacked up against him, so who wouldn't have thought that he'd be found guilty on all charges? But I never would have guessed that Penny would be so depressed about it.

Honestly, I was not looking forward to another episode with Penny in it. In my opinion, apart from the part that she played in helping the folks from Whit's End get more information about Dr. Trask, she could have been taken out of the album, and I wouldn't have missed anything. I really disliked her character and the influence she had on Wooton, and she was just a flat character that didn't intrigue me in the least. Now in this episode, she became more round, because the episode revolved around her, but that didn't make me like her much more. I understand how she would have been really bummed to have to testify against a man who was a friend and a father to her, but I thought the extent of it was slightly unrealistic, and then her quick turnaround at the jail was even more so. I don't think this single episode gave the writers enough time to flesh out Penny's problem and then fully resolve it. Yes, there was a semi-satisfying explanation during the picnic scene, but even that was not much. I probably would have liked the episode more if it was maybe a two-parter that gave me more chance to be emotionally connected to what Penny was really feeling.

I was glad to hear from Detective Polehaus again. It seems like he might become the new Officer Burke or O'Ryan who shows up for any Odyssian crime. I liked that he seemed to be one of Whit's End's regular customers. I look forward to hearing more from him. His humor was pretty good, as usual, and his chemistry with the other characters remained great.

Wooton.... I had mixed feelings about him in this episode. On the downside of things, there were, as has been the writers' ongoing habit, many times where a serious subject was being addressed, and he threw in a punchline that was supposed to get me to laugh, but really just made me groan on the inside. I actually did think he and Connie made a good team though. It seems right for him to be sharing his feelings with her, rather than Penny, or even Whit. I dunno, but they just seem to go well together. I liked the little exchange about how he uses humor to cover up true feelings. Maybe that was Mr. McCusker's way of apologizing for all of the times in the GRC that Wooton killed the sobriety of the moment with a joke. If so, then it was an acceptable apology that made me think for a while. But I still wish he and other writers would hold back on the jokes just a bit. Wooton isn't merely loved for his jokes. In fact, I think since Jay has really taken up that position now, Wooton should primarily be loved for his openness and honesty, which we got to see in this episode. He was always great with kids and a good spiritual example to follow, but recently all he's been is the court jester who comes around to lighten the mood, but who ends up being a nuisance most of the time.

I liked how Connie was wanting to be a faithful friend to Penny throughout the episode. As others have mentioned, I think it's great that Connie finally has someone her age with whom she can socialize and connect emotionally. (I personally just wish that someone wasn't Penny.)

I thought the scene with Professor Bruce was a little weird. Why would he be so annoyed at people who put a counterfeiter behind bars? Sure he was a respected professor at the college, but all that time, he was ringleading a nationwide counterfeiting operation aimed at financially tearing down America from the inside! That's about as bad of a non-violent criminal you can get. But the scene with the college student was pretty funny, freeing my mind back up with some great humor. Some have asked why he was so quick to ask Connie out, and I wonder if those people have ever been around secular college kids. It was very realistic. I listen to a radio show where a guy goes and witnesses to kids on a college campus. And most of them are just like this guy was: morally ambiguous and postmodern--no respect for right and wrong, only caring about their personal views and opinions. (Note: I know that I have many readers who attend college so know that I'm not meaning this to be a generalization of all college kids, just the majority of America's young people.

The thing that I liked least about the episode was that it really didn't feel like it belonged in a collection about 1 Corinthians 13. I have to admit that I totally forgot that the episode was supposed to be describing an aspect of love, and I didn't realize that that was supposed to be the moral of the story until I read somebody else's review on the Town of Odyssey. To me, the episode felt like it was just a story meant for entertainment (though it did a poor job had that been the only purpose), like the rest of the GRC. I didn't notice that an aspect of love was being demonstrated at all. Now, of course, I see how that would have worked, with Connie and Wooton, relentlessly pursuing Penny to help her and understand her feelings, but I really didn't get it while I was listening. Maybe I was the only one who felt that way.

So I wasn't especially interested by this episode. It met my expectations as well as a Penny and Wooton episode could, so it wasn't all that great. Maybe my thoughts are just clouded because I'm tired, and I'm being overly negative, but I don't think this would be an episode I'd want to listen to over and over again. Unfortunately if and when I get the album, this show will most likely be on the same CD as Wooton Knows Best, so I'll sorta be forced to hear it multiple times. Oh well. Please let me know what you thought of the episode, and express any of your differing views about the points I made about various characters. I always love to read what you have to say. Hopefully I can get a review of The Amazing Loser out tomorrow. Thanks for reading!

Rating: 5.5/10

The Green Ring Conspiracy Is...NOT Out Today

I had thought for sure that the new season was starting today. I mentioned last week that I'd be reviewing Part I of The Green Ring Conspiracy this week, but I went to Whitsend.org this morning, and that wasn't today's episode! I then went to the Odyssey Scoop and looked at the schedule for March, and saw that even though every single other year a new album has been aired in March, it started on the first Saturday, this year's season doesn't start until next week. :(

So it looks like maybe I'll have to do that review on Mitch that I told Brittini I'd do. Mind you, I haven't prepared for this in my brain at all, so if it isn't very good, don't blame me, blame the Odyssey people who changed the schedule!

The first thing ever said about Mitch, chronologically, is in the special letter included in the Novacom Saga from the Chairman of Andromeda to Mr. Charles. The chairman mentions that Arthur Dent has suggested "a young man he knew from Boston [who] might be perfect for the job and, in fact, has asked to be relocated to Odyssey." The job the Chairman refers to is the task of monitoring Mr. Whittaker at all times in order to gain his trust, so that it will be easier to steal the Imagination Station from him.

But the Chairman didn't take into consideration the fact that Mitch might develop relationships with people at Whit's End. Not only does he take a real liking to Mr. Whittaker, and therefore doesn't want to go along with Andromeda's evil plot, but he also falls in love with Connie. When we first meet him in Green Eyes and Yellow Tulips, we can tell that he and Connie are attracted to each other. Connie stumbles over her words whenever he asks her a question, and Mitch tells her that the sweater she's wearing looks good on her. But then, further into the same scene, she finds out he works for Novacom, and she isn't sure about him anymore. Later in the episode, she turns down Mitch's request to help him with a Sunday School class, thinking he's going to ask her out on a date. But the misunderstanding is quickly cleared up, and soon Mitch is sending her flowers.

Throughout the first half of the Novacom Saga, their relationship grows, and they start going out frequently to places like the bowling alley and Trickle Lake. We learn that Mitch can't cook to save his life, he enjoys horseback riding, he used to live in Maine and had a girlfriend named Justine, he doesn't like honey-roasted peanuts or water landings, and he loves macaroni and cheese. But then things start to get complicated. Connie starts to notice how many secrets Mitch has, and when she tries to ask him about them, he pretty much clams up. Then she finds a picture of a very attractive woman in his briefcase. But later in the same episode, as Connie peppers him with hard questions on Candid Conversations with Connie, Mitch blurts out that he thinks he's falling in love with her. That silences her, and she ends the show.

But then, a couple of episodes later, Mitch is suddenly taken by the Federal Witness Protection Program, and Connie is told that he's dead. And worse, she finds out that he was AREM--the computer hacker that seemed to be causing so many problems. She has a very hard time dealing with her grief, and after the funeral, she goes to Massachusetts to visit his sister, Rachel. While there, she mentions that she finally feels like she's finally getting used to Mitch being gone. But then she catches Rachel on the computer, and she hears "the AREM sound." She is dumbfounded when Rachel tells her that she needs to keep this a secret because it is very dangerous, but Mitch is alive.

So now Connie has to get used to him being alive. Mitch is now on the case with the FBI, trying to figure out what Novacom and Andromeda are up to. He ultimately helps to determine the "Launch Date" when the mind control will go global, and he also devises a plan with Nick to catch Mr. Charles. Ultimately, Novacom and Andromeda are put out of business, and all the villains except the Chairman are put in prison.

Since Novacom is shut down, Mitch looks for work for some time, but because he was involved with the company, he has a bad reputation, and he isn't hired anywhere. He eventually starts his own business fixing computer problems, but that isn't enough for him. He tries co-hosting a radio show with Connie as "Dr. Wise," but that doesn't satisfy him either. Next he gets caught up in a big mystery involving identity theft from Whit, and eventually the escape of Mr. Charles from prison. He starts out being a suspect in the theft, so the FBI doesn't allow him to help with the case, but he starts his own investigation with Whit. He ends up getting kidnapped by Mr. Charles, but he gets out of it. All this helps him to realize that he has a love for mysteries and crime-fighting. This seals his decision to go to Washington and train to join the FBI.

After about an album, Connie travels with Joanne Allen to visit him. While she's there, Mitch is accepted into a branch of the FBI that is going to take him to Budapest. He wants Connie to go with him, so he proposes to her, and she accepts! Connie's mom, Whit, and even George Barclay come into town for the wedding. After the rehearsal, Connie witnesses Mitch being "kidnapped," and she is terrified. She follows the kidnappers, but only to find out that it was just a few of Mitch's FBI friends giving him a unique bachelors' party. She realizes that she really isn't cut out for this kind of life, in constant fear for the life of her husband, and so she tells Mitch that she can't marry him. He "un-proposes" to her ("Connie, will you not marry me?" "I won't"), and they part ways.

That's the last we hear from Mitch, and it's always made me very sad. I always thought that he and Connie were really good for each other, and I'm always hoping that he'll get to come back someday. But as Odyssey writer Kathy Buchanan, the one who created Mitch's character, said in a 2007 Official Podcast, in order for Mitch to come back, "Ronald McDonald must become a vegetarian, cats need to become extinct, and Nathan Hoobler has to paint his toenails." According to Marshal Younger, the latter of those three has occured, but other than that, unfortunately, it's not going to happen. :(

But Mitch was a very well-loved character, and Steve Burns always did an amazing job voicing him, as well as Rodney Rathbone. He is definitely missed, and I never want anyone else, even Jason, to marry Connie. :)

Thank you for reading! Be sure to come back next week, when I, Lordwilling, will review Part I of The Green Ring Conspiracy. Please comment!

The Results for the Second Semi-Annual Avery Awards Are In!

I'm going to post the results here for those of you who may not have time to listen to the podcast, but if you'd rather hear the podcast first, don't read on. : )

The award for Best Sound goes to:

The Mystery of the Clock Tower Parts I and II.

I voted for Wooton's Broken Pencil Show, but I guess it's okay that this one won. I've only actually heard each episode once, so I don't know if it really was superior or not. I'm looking forward to actually owning the album.
__________

The award for Best Scene goes to:

Clock Tower Meetings--the story of the clock tower meetings from The Mystery of the Clock Tower.

Now with this one, I can't say that I am very happy, because I, for one, thought that this part of the episode was pretty mature for the 8-12 year old target audience. But apparently it was popular, and, again, since I've only heard it once, maybe it was really good.
__________

The award for Best Actor goes to:

Will Ryan as Eugene in Fast As I Can.

I pretty much agree with this choice, although I actually picked Whit Hertford as Jay in The Malted Milkball Falcon. Mr. Ryan continues to do an amazing job as Eugene for someone who is actually way older than his character. And he especially did well in this episode at the times when Eugene was trying to keep his words at two syllables or less. He had me laughing out loud a lot.
__________

The award for Best Actress goes to:

Katie Leigh as Connie in The Mystery of the Clock Tower.

I did vote for this one, and I'm glad that she won, because in my opinion, all four of the other nominees weren't very good at their parts. So I'm glad that Katie Leigh was rewarded again, becuase she, just like Will Ryan, continues to do an excellent job at playing a character way younger than herself, and I hope God allows her to do it for a much longer time.
__________

The award for Best Script goes to:

The Mystery of the Clock Tower.

I actually did vote for this one because from what I remembered about the episode, it had a great plot, and it was a good mystery that kept you guessing. I think Paul McCusker definitely deserved this award, and I am very much looking forward to his work on the full-album mystery coming up in the next season.
__________

And the award for Best Overall Episode goes to:

The Mystery of the Clock Tower.

This didn't surprise me that much since this episode also got awards for Script and Sound, but again, I didn't think that it was the best of the season, just because of the slight matureness in the overall plot behind the plot. But I guess it was well-deserved, and since the fans were so pleased with this episode, hopefully they'll feel just as well about the upcoming season.

Thank you for taking the time to read. I'd very much like to hear your thoughts about what I said, and what your votes were. Please comment!

P.S. Luke from the Odyssey Times discovered a new website called AIOIFA (AIO Information for Anyone). It is a miniature version of what many websites like The Soda Fountain and AIO HQ offer. It looks really good, and seems to be promising. Go check it out!

Back Cover of Album 53!

Original Joe just posted the back cover of Album 53 on The Odyssey Way. I'm not sure where he got it, but here it is:





I think Connie fits really well on the back of it, and I'm glad we get an album with this particular picture on it.

And I think it was a good idea to list all the themes of the album on the back rather than to list every single episode (The Green Ring Conspiracy Part 1, The Green Ring Conspiracy Part 2, etc.).

In my opinion, the back cover looks really good, and I don't think they could've put a better picture on the back. Unless of course Gary Locke drew a picture of Monty or something. :)

Well, that's all for now. If you want to hear the first episode of Album 53, you can download it for free here. But if you want to demonstrate self-control like me, you won't. ; D

Ms. Kendall

Marvin already took "Connie" in his post yesterday, so I was forced to pattern my character review today after my first one. Maybe it'll end up being this way for all the rest of them. (e.g. Mr. Meltsner, Mr. Bassett)

I've been meaning to write about Connie for a week or so now, especially after listening to quite a few Connie-centered episodes at night recently, but I've had a post every other day for a few days, and I didn't want to do it too soon, but here it is.

I'm going to try to go as in depth as I did with the Mr. Whittaker review, but I didn't put nearly as much thought into this one as that one. So, here goes.

The first episode I ever heard Connie in was Connie Comes to Town, because it was the first story on the first CD in the first album I ever had. So, other than the single-story tapes we would sometimes get from Chick-Fil-A, that was actually the first Adventures in Odyssey episode I ever heard. I've always pictured Connie at more of a college-student type age rather than the high-school age she's depicted as in her first episode. I still can't imagine Connie any younger than 16/17 years old.

Besides Whit, I think she was the first long-term character to ever appear on the show (if you don't count Tom in Whit's Visitor). In this episode she is a rebellious teenager who just wants to make her own way in life, and doesn't really want anyone to get in her way. She appears on the show as a young-ish girl seeking a job so that she can make enough money for bus fares to Los Angeles so she can see her dad and her old friends. (How or why she thinks she's going to get there without her mom's knowledge I have no idea.) "Excuse me, could you tell me how to get to Front Street?" was her first line on the show. She was trying to get to an interview for a job at a fashion center. But then Whit offers her a job almost immediately after meeting her, and she takes it...as long as he's willing to pay as much as she was going to be paid at the fashion store. ; D

So Connie decides to stay, and throughout the first two albums, she learns a lot about Mr. Whittaker and his faith, and, especially in episodes like A Tangled Web, he acts as a spiritual mentor to her, but isn't really on her case about her being converted to Christianity. She is pretty hostile to the idea until she meets Pamela on her way to Los Angeles (a short trip, not permanent like before), a girl not too much older than her who witnesses to her. This happens in Connie, Part I, and in Connie, Part II, Connie makes the decision to repent, and surrenders her life to Jesus Christ.

Katie Leigh has done a phenominal job as Connie over the years, and Connie is often teased, on and off of Odyssey, for being the everlasting teenager. She (Connie, not Katie) doesn't graduate high school for 400 episodes, which is eleven real-life years! And when she does graduate, we see how much she really has changed, because she is willing to stand up against her principal when he told her that she couldn't use the name of Jesus at the end of her prayer.

Throughout the years, Connie stands up for her faith in numerous ways, including breaking up with a heathen boyfriend, trusting God through the times that Whit was gone in the Middle East, and seeking His will with her relationship with Mitch and his relationship to Novacom and the F.B.I. My favorite era with Connie has been the saga with Mitch and Novacom and the F.B.I. Probably my favorite album is Album 41 where she and Joann go on the trip to Washington D.C., and then she almost gets married (yes, I, like most people badly wanted her to get married). I agree with the writers' decision to have her decide to stay in Odyssey rather than to move to Budapest with Mitch though, because it would have changed the show. But I do think it would have been a solution to what else they would do with Connie, because she would be gone.

One problem that many fans have had with her throughout the years was that she almost always seemed to be bickering, mostly with Eugene. They did that for years and years, but, probably due to all of the complaining, their quarrels stopped right around the time that Eugene became a Christian. I have always really liked the quarreling because it makes me laugh, and I do the same kind of thing with my brother a lot, so I didn't mind when the arguing was brought back soon after Eugene's return and recovery from amnesia. But I've heard many people say that just as they thought that Connie had finally matured enough to stop all the bickering, it came back! And it seems like Connie has nothing else to do but argue with Eugene.

But after Mitch left, the writers have said that they didn't know what to do with Connie, so she was pretty much just in every other episode, tagging along, or being there to argue or give a woman's point of view. Thankfully, more recently, she started to write a book in response to Rusty Gordon's criticism of Odyssey. That gave her a solid thing to be doing amidst all the other storylines, so she didn't always have to be just tagging along. But I was really frustrated when The Chosen One aired, and Kelly destroyed Connie's book. I felt almost the same way Connie did for awhile, before I really thought about how much Odyssey might be changed if Connie got a book out to the public. During the next couple albums after that incident, we see a side of Connie I don't think we'd ever seen before--the unforgiving, grudge-holding person that came out only in little spurts whenever she was frustrated before. The situation is finally resolved in Chip Off the Shoulder when Connie tries to prove her forgiveness to Kelly by helping her find something that Kelly accused her of stealing.

After that episode, everything's well again, and the next thing we see Connie doing is helping with preparations for the judges who will come to discern whether or not Odyssey is the best small town in America. But after that escapade was over, in Albums 51 and 52 she's back to the guinea pig in The Inspiration Station, the arguer (and hair-cutter) in For the Birds, and the tag-alonger in The Mystery of the Clock Tower. I don't really have a problem with that, as, apart from the Novacom Saga, I've always liked Connie to be a side-story character rather than a main-story character. Maybe she'll play a big part in The Green Ring Conspiracy, but, although I know many Connie-fans would like her to do something big again, I would rather she didn't.

So that's my view on Connie. Despite all the criticisms, I really do like her character, and though she's not as well-loved (at least by me) as Whit, I would be sad if she ever left Odyssey, and the show would be a lot different without her.

Thank you for reading! Be looking out for a character review on "Mr. Meltsner" in the near future. Please comment!

P.S. I put some more special pictures up on the Special Pictures page. Enjoy! : )