A Maze, Part 3

Here we go again!

This week, the episode again starts out with a "Previously on Adventures in Odyssey..." segment. This one, like last week's, took up over two minutes, but this time I'm more appreciative of it, because enough has gone on this week that my memory was clouded up, and I actually did need reminding of a few things. So I can't complain.

I still think Ann sounds way too young for Dale. It makes every scene she's in sound weird. Oh well. I liked how they had to pay in pounds for parking. That's yet another thing you forget about when listening to episodes in foreign countries. The writers did a really good job with that. But I missed why Dale and Ann were going to the British museum. Did they want to try out the Koflax, just to see if it could really kill anybody?? Anyway, now they're following the van of Jason and his torturers because they happened to be getting to the hotel at the exact time the van was leaving. :P

Now we're in the van with Jason and Reggie Fingers (or shall I call him Reg?) and Jason's informing him about the plan to suffocate everyone at the British museum. I can't tell if Reggie's serious about his ignorance of the true plan, or if he's just faking it to Jason. My guess would be that he doesn't know the depths of the evil of Mr. Grote's plan, so he doesn't have any idea. By the way, what is it with the different pronunciation of vase? I, and everyone else I know, always pronounce it VACE, but is it British people then who pronounce it VAHZ? I'm pretty sure Queen Herodias in the John the Baptist episode with Aubrey Shepard pronounced it VAHZ, so I don't know what to think. Wait...the vases are the powder? That's a twist I didn't expect. I'm perplexed along with Jason, and I'm interested to find out how that's going to work. Okay, so Mr. Thugg not only has a genius name, but he's a genius about pottery, so he explains it. But how is Jason going to stop the plot with them taking him to "the warehouse"? I guess that's probably where the Jacobs's come in.

I loved it that the cabby had seen the Fish n' Chips logo on the side of the van and Dale and Ann hadn't. But how could he minutes later be so stupid as to open the door to a stranger? Or, at least, how could Dale and Ann, who know the gravity of the situation, let him do it? Anyways, they've been sprayed with probably the same stuff the Mi5 agents were sprayed with in Part 1. Now who's it up to to save the people at the museum? I guess we do still have Mi5 left, but Agent Billings didn't seem to trust Jason....

I think Jason's continues exclamations to Mycroft are going to pay off. My guess is that he'll get them out and take them to the museum in order to save his daughter. Oh, and it looks like Sew's probably back in the picture. And...we go to a commercial break. >:|

Never mind. Mycroft doesn't have a heart. He just wants his daughter out, and doesn't care about the rest of them. Oh, but he does give the cellphone-less Jason some necessary information. Maybe now he'll bring him his cell phone so he can actually pass the information on to someone who can use it. But for now Jason and Sew are stuck in the warehouse. Maybe Wooton's generality from Album 53 will ring true: there's always another way out! Fast forward. Sew's gets a heart. Enter Dale, Ann, and the cab driver. Dale actually does something smart for the first time since the first episode, and Jason gets the necessary cell phone to call Mi5.

Okay, at the museum, Agent Billings has finally come to his senses and is doing everything Jason says. He knew Jason would come through. Wait, what? I thought he didn't like Jason. Whatever. The one big problem I see here is that he sent Agent Florin to retrieve the Koflax. And we can be fairly certain that she's untrustworthy--especially based on her remark when given the task. This doesn't look good.

I thought the conversation with Reggie and Jason was reminiscent of Whit's conversation with Eugene in The Top Floor, Part 3. Jason knows where he's going if anything happens to him. Reggie doesn't. Well, Jason knows where he's going, but he, of course, never says. But then why would Jason be so concerned about what they do to Dale? He knows that Dale knows where he's going too. But before that question can be resolved, a helicopter, 12 police cars, 6 unmarked cars, a S.W.A.T. van, and a tank pull up! That is so great!!!

Next, Jason has a heart-to-heart talk with Sew that leaves me thinking, maybe just speculating, that maybe an adoption is in order in the future? Maybe? But things quickly turn dark when Billings reports that a crate of Koflax vases is missing. My guess: Florin did it, pure and simple. And now she's off to escort Dale and Ann! I hope that doesn't turn ugly. But now Jason and Billings are going to find Grote...just in time for a commercial break! :P

Well, I guess I was wrong. Agent Florin doesn't have the Koflax. But I still think she will be in on some part of the plot. She seemed so suspicious at the beginning. I wouldn't want it to come to nothing. Apparently the tracking device worked, since Billings and Jason are ahead of Mr. Grote at Reggie Fingers' place to keep him from getting the Koflax. I still think his voice is so great. Even better than Archie Haggler's; and I liked his a lot. WHAT??!! Talk about a totally unexpected twist!! Agent Billings is the double-crosser?? Oh, wait. Okay, that makes more sense. Goodness, talk about having me totally confused. Billings just wants revenge on Grote for killing his previous partner. Not that revenge is any better than double-crossing, but it just makes a lot more sense. But I don't see why Jason is going along with him. I would think he'd be man enough to let himself be killed before doing such an injustice to Grote. Maybe he has another plan. Well that's good. He's doing the right thing. But he may be sacrificing his life. Somehow I doubt the writers will kill Jason off though. There'd be too much of a backlash from fans. I guess we'll see.

Wow. That was a really good conclusion scene. Perfect even. One hundred times better than the Green Ring Conspiracy ever gave us. That was one of the most deeply spiritual scenes the writers have given us since the relaunch. It totally made the episodes for me, as if the action and mystery hadn't done that already.

Now I just wonder how Jason's going to manage living in Odyssey again. Most of the public believes he's dead. But I think it'd be nice to have him back. It would feel nice to have a...real-sounding Whittaker back in Odyssey. Andre Stojka, to me, just sounds fake. I think having him interact with Jason would make him sound a little more genuine and real.

Based on how much I liked these episodes, I have high expectations for the rest of the season. I already think I'm going to end up going with others who have heard the whole album in saying that this is the best album since the relaunch. I put up a poll for you guys to make a choice on that subject. Tell me which album has been your favorite since spring of 2010.

That's all for this week. This sounds more cliche every time I say it, but I really do appreciate hearing from you guys in the comments. It's always very encouraging and motivating to hear from my readers. So make sure to tell me what you thought of the episode and of my review. Thanks for reading!

A Maze, Part 2

Here we go. Part 2. I got a lot of feedback from you guys, saying you liked the way I did the review last week, so I'm going to do it again.

I thought it was interesting that there was a "previously on Adventures in Odyssey" segment before the show. We haven't had one of those since probably...The Top Floor? Or maybe it's just that all of the album versions take them out, so I wouldn't know. Anyway, I thought it was kind of weird. It seemed to be mostly a time-filler, because it lasted a looong time: almost two whole minutes! ;)

Now to the first real scene. I was hoping for a chase scene, but the episode starts with Dale and Sew back with Jason and Ann, and they brought Jason's secret suitcase with them. Does anyone else think that Ann sounds really young? I think she sounds just like Alicia Jennings in The Myster of the Clock Tower. She doesn't fit very well with Dale. I liked her old voice much better. I wonder what happened to the actress? I loved how Dale had to explain the Alamo to Sew. That's another thing you don't think about very often--Americans are typically some of the only people who know and care about American history. Hmmm. Jason wants Ann to hide the secret stuff from him so that he won't know where it is, if asked. I wonder who he suspects he might run into....

Is anyone else wondering what I'm wondering? Are you going to eat those french fries? Are you going to eat that cake? Why is Sew so crazy about food and yet at the same time so easily able to fit in Jason's suitcase? :P Already I'm starting to not like Ann so much. Turn himself in? What kind of an idea is that? And then she almost sounded like Wooton when she said, "I'm still stuck on the part about Reggie Fingers being a real name." Ugh. But then she gets helpful when she knows what the Julius House is. Asian artifacts, Mr. Grote comes from Hong Kong. I'm thinking Jason's going to find Mr. Grote there....And apparently Jason's thinking the same thing. Off to the next scene!

Oh, wait, no, not off the the next scene. Off to a commercial. Even more time-filling! Okay, now back to the episode. Sew's gone? That can't be good. Maybe they'll meet up with her later. I don't think they'd just take her totally out of the show like that without a goodbye-and-thank-you scene.

Now we're at the auction. And they find some climate-controlled vases connected to *insert epic music* The Prominent Company. Really? The Prominent Company? That is a very generic name for such a high-profile organization. I guess that could be the point, but whatever.

Okay, the auction's about to start. Seriously? We're already in the hundreds of thousands?! What kind of money do these people have? Is this in pounds or dollars? So, Lord Brownlough is winning everything from The Prominent Company. And Jason goes off to talk with him? That's sort of unusual. I would have thought he'd stay more undercover than that.

I can't tell if Lord Brownlough knows anything or not. His comments before and after he knew anyone was listening weren't suspicious, and he seemed to have a good enough explanation for his actions. Maybe he's being totally controlled by someone else.

Next scene, our favorite Odysseyans are leaving the auction, but an alarm goes off. Somebody collapsed at the loading dock, maybe from something toxic. I would have hesitated to believe it, thinking it was a show staged by Mr. Grote to cover something up, but apparently Jason's going with it.

Now Jason turns to the "Alamo" backup plan. I don't know why he's having Dale enter the codes on the computer when he could do it himself. I guess we'll find out. Uh-oh. Jason's getting unsure of himself. That's never good. He agrees with Dale that everything may end in tragedy.

Okay, so now Sew's back, and she knows about the accident with the toxic chemicals. Apparently the whole thing was real, and it was one of Reggie Fingers' men who passed out. And now the crate is in the hands of the Hazardous Materials Squad. I wonder where that will go.

Then Sue, again, gets ready to show off her skills and she and Jason head to "the back way in" to Intensive Care.

Wow! That was a surprise. Agent Billings shoved Jason back into the hallway. It would seem that he still trusts Jason enough to get him out of trouble. But I wonder what he was doing there... *more epic music*

If I could say "what the heck" I would. Well, I guess I just did. That next scene was really weird. Apparently Billings is really, really mad at Jason for not contacting him. Really mad. But he has some really good information about Koflax and its connection to Mr. Grote. Oh no! That's the connection the event at the British museum! It wasn't the Hazardous Materials Squad that took the crate; it was more of Reggie Fingers' men! Grote's going to suffocate all those world leaders!

This story is getting better all the time. The plot elements are way more exciting than those of the Green Ring Conspiracy. Suffocating the President of the U.S.A. and the Prime Minister of England, along with several leaders from Asia is on such a much larger scale than the GRC that it's hard to believe Grote was in charge of both. Wait, now Sew is the traitor?! I wonder what Reggie had to do to her to get her to go along with him. Or has she been working for him the whole time?

YES! We finally meet Mr. Grote! I really like his voice. It's the perfect mix of deep and Asian to sound sinister and villainy. What? Jason just lunged at Grote? I agree with him, "Such violence is uncharacteristic of you, Jason....Please." What was that? Well, at least he still has some sense left in him: the codes Dale entered into the laptop were destructive to Grote's whole computer system. Oh wait. No, it's not just destructive. It sends all of his files to the authorities...and then it destroys the system. And I love it that all Mr. Grote says is, "This is unfortunate." He is the greatest villain ever! Wait. The "worm" doesn't activate until midnight? What's up with that? Why not just have it activate as soon as it was uploaded?

Now Reggie Fingers is off to find out more information from Jason, "by whatever means necessary." But now the episode is done, and we have to wait until next week to see what kind of torture will be inflicted upon him. Thankfully this isn't as much of a cliffhanger as we got last week. But we still don't know what will happen to those gathering at the British Museum that night. This is so great!

Thanks for reading my review! As always, your comments are greatly appreciated, so feel free to share your thoughts about the episode or my review.

A Maze, Part 1

I'm going to do things a little differently for this three-parter. I don't know if I'll do it the whole season, but I'll definitely do it for The Labyrinth. I'm going to review the episode as I listen to it, not necessarily line-by-line like I did with the GRC, just enough that all my responses come as I listen to each new part of the plot.

The first scene is very interesting. It doesn't sound much like Odyssey, apart from the music. I don't know if we've ever had a scene in Odyssey where the only speakers are British. It was a smart way to bring us up to date on the happenings with Jason--an experienced agent who's bringing a new, young agent up to date. It actually reminded me of Cars 2, with the two British agent cars in similar situations, if that makes any sense.

Next scene. I'm glad they brought the Stilletto voice back. It makes Jason sound tough and crime-lord-y, but still likeable, like he's on our side. I also really like Reggie Fingers's voice, similar to the voice of the jailer in the St. Valentine episode--very genuinely British. I was afraid that Jason would be too much like he was in the GRC, where he seemed too ignorant and Uncle Archie was suspicious. He actually did pretty well keeping his cover, but Reggie was still suspicious. I was suprised Jason didn't put up a fight when they took him away. But I guess it was better that way.

The next scene just depicts the capturing of the agents, I assume from their van. I don't think they should have been so quick to trust the guy at the door, but oh well. The music at the end of the scene was epic. :D Then comes a commercial about the live show in Dallas. Interestingly, it had "Twenty-two Trombones" from Stage Fright playing in the background.

Back to the show. I loved the exchange between Jason and Microft about Microft's last name. That was priceless. But I don't understand who the girl is. At first I thought she was the young agent from the first scene, but she sounds like she's way younger than that, since she called for her mom and dad. It was a nice touch that Jason lost the "Grinder" voice once he knocked out Thugg.

The next part of the scene was a downer. It stinks that they already know that Jason's an undercover agent, and the episode has barely even started. But I'm sure it'll work into the plot somehow. It surprised me that the girl was in on it too; she played the part pretty well. And...now I guess I can start calling her Sue...I mean...Sew, since it's short for Sewer Rat. ;) Looks like Jason has a partner now.

After the squeeze through the vent, Sew goes off to find out what happened to the agents. The exchange between her and the policeman was funny. It's always great to hear British people cracking jokes. :P I loved that Sew had a cell phone. You sometimes forget that people in other countries have the same commodities we do in America. *gasps in surprise* He called Whit! Is Whit going to come and help him out in London? I actually hope not. I can't imagine that Andre Stojka would do very well in that role...

Okay, so now Jason's meeting the Jacobs. I already knew that they were the returning characters (that sort of thing usually gets around pretty quick), but I didn't know how Jason would come across them. I wonder why they're in London. Oh, what a coincidence. Mr. Jacobs has a symposium at the exact same time as Jason's in London for the meeting with Reggie. Go figure. And since when is Mr. Jacobs the breaking-and-entering, adventurous type? I mean, we've kind of seen that side of him before, but he seems really excited to be doing this for Jason. And Sew's take at an American accent.... If she was trying to sound like Buck Oliver, she did great! :P

After the next scene, I'm wondering if the younger agent with Agent Billings is working for Mr. Grote. She's so quick to condemn Jason as having gotten "lost in the labyrinth" with the bad guys. I don't think she can be trusted.

Oh man. I'm still laughing about the beginning of the next scene. Sew's accent greatly improved, and she seems to have gotten smart fast. She and Mr. Jacobs work perfectly as father and daughter. It's hard to believe she's young enough to pass as a middle-schooler. She seems to have a past in shady dealings. I hope she's worthy of trust.

Based on the next scene, it looks like Mr. Jacobs is in for some trouble. Hopefully he's smart enough to get himself out of it.

Wow, not only is Sew young, but she's small enough to fit in a suitcase without making it look bad. And yet she knows enough about "life in London" to get away from the hotel security.

No!! The episode's done already! Well, I guess it was pretty long. They fit a lot into this first one. I can see why people were so excited about it. Unlike with the GRC, I'm actually very eager to hear next week's episode, and it will be very hard to wait.

Well, that's it for my review. Thanks for reading! Tell me in the comments whether you like this form of reviewing or not. And be sure to tell me your thoughts about the episode as well.

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.

Repack Covers and Album 55!

The new covers for both Album 23 and Album 29 have been released! (These ones are actually official [if AIO Wiki can be trusted ;)].) They are a small improvement from the fake ones released before, but I still think those were wonderful! Here they are:




And then here we have the official back cover art for Album 54:



All of these look fabulous! I am continually amazed at Gary Locke's ability to create such quality and yet fun art.

Now for the more exciting part of the post: Information about Album 55! AIO Wiki has put a summary of all that we know about Album 55 (and Album 56) on their "Future" page. The most notable piece of information that I'll include here concerns one of the three-part episodes that we've heard about before:

While The Labyrinth, the episode featuring Jason and Mr. Grote, will remain the same--a three-parter--Sgt. York will not. "This was originally a 3 part episode. However, after editing the voice tracks, the AIO team discovered that the episode is 18 minutes too long. Rather than cut out 18 minutes out of the story, they decided to make it into AIO's first 4-part episode. Because of this, an episode from album 55 will be pushed back to be released in a future album."

Wow!! I have some friends who don't really listen to Odyssey, mainly because of the modern turn it's taken over the last ten years (sometimes featuring snarky and worldly characters); however, I know that they really enjoy the story of Alvin York, so I'm very excited to know that this will be an extended episode about which I will potentially be able to give them a good report. And from what I've heard them tell me about Sgt. York, it should be a very interesting and riveting episode. I can't wait to see how the writers handled it; it has the potential of becoming as much of, if not more of, a favorite than the Jubilee Singers.

Well, I don't know about you, but, minus Album 54, I'm excited about where Odyssey is going in the future, particularly with Album 55. We'd better all stay tuned for what's coming in the days ahead!

New Revelations

Well, there's a new Official Podcast out, and this one actually reveals a lot! It's a Q & A session with Paul McCusker and Dave Arnold. There are several things revealed about Album 54 and beyond. If you don't have the time to listen, I've listed the answers to all the questions here.

• There will be a resolution to the Jason/Mr. Grote saga involving an Agent Billings.
• There is no connection between Mr. Grote, Dr. Blackgaard, and Mr. Charles.
• Buck will probably make a re-appearance in Odyssey.
• The directors played with a variety of different voices with Townsend Coleman to try to get a good Stilletto voice. They ended up choosing the one that they thought would best disguise Jason until he was revealed.
• Detective Polehaus will be heard in the next album in at least one episode.
• If Buck re-appears in Odyssey, Mr. Skint will certainly be somewhere nearby.
• Throughout the recording of the first six episodes of the GRC, the writers were planning to have Penny end up being a double agent, working for Dr. Trask, but because of the direction the actress's voice seemed to be taking her, Mr. McCusker had to go back and re-write the rest of the episodes to keep her on the good side.
• Mr. McCusker has been growing a beard since 1981, is currently sporting a goatee, and at times has been totally clean-shaven. At one point, his wife commented that he looked like a badger and she really wanted him to get rid of it, so he had to shave it.
• Mr. Arnold didn't really like his work as Jesus in the original Imagination Station, but he enjoyed any time they did a live show.
• All of the writers' creativity is God-inspired, but their ideas come from a variety of sources. It's a collective effort every time they write a story.

There was also a one-minute clip featuring snippets from several episodes in Album 54! I can't say that I'm much more excited about what's ahead, but it was still interesting to hear new things from our favorite characters. I don't really have time to explain everything that happened in the preview, so you'll just have to hear it on the podcast.

Finally, the Avery Awards for Album 53 are up! They're a little different than other ones have been before because all the episodes had the same name. It'd be a little difficult to pick best writing, sound design, and overall episode this season, so that's not what it's like this time. Instead, the best actor and actress remain, but then there are new catergories such as "Best New Character," "Funniest Quote," and "Best Cliff-Hanger." So make sure you go vote!

That's all for now. Thanks for reading! Please comment!

...And So It Nears the Finish Line...

This episode was a little disappointing. We didn't learn much of anything new at all, but it was more that the good characters were really frustrated over the fact that they weren't getting anywhere with the mystery. And while they are still trying to fit the pieces together, the bad guys are getting ready for the big operation.

I'm going to do the review much the same way I did last week, because if I didn't, I'm not sure there would be much for me to say. This episode didn't really have much to it, so I'm going to try to go through it scene by scene, without making it too incredibly long.

The episode starts out with Detective Polehaus frustrated with Buck because he refused to give any information about the counterfeiting ring. He claims not to know anything about counterfeit money, the green ring, what was on the AppleBerry, or whom it was that knocked out and captured Monty. But my question is, what else did he think all of the printing equipment that he was around so often was? And back when he was first commissioned by Mr. Skint to get the phone, Mr. Skint made it seem like Buck knew what was on the phone and how bad it would be if it got into the wrong hands. I believe him that he doesn't know about Monty, but Polehaus obviously isn't going to believe him since his DNA was found at the spot. He's convinced that Buck may look like a kid, but he's actually a criminal genius who's playing a big part in the conspiracy. Then he takes a shot at Buck's relationship with Mr. Skint, saying that it doesn't seem very nice of Skint to leave him like this. But we find out later that Buck knew all along that Skint hadn't abandoned him, and that he was set to meet up with him ASAP.

But because Polehaus thinks he's gotten an emotion out of Buck, since he suddenly goes quiet, he tries to retrieve some information about the compound and the truck that showed up. Buck doesn't give him anything though; he just says it was probably taking stuff to the carnival from their big storage area. Polehaus says Dosh showed him that area, and there wasn't anything there. Buck is at a loss for words and says he doesn't know anything about it. I'm not sure what to believe about what Buck knows. His actor does a good job of hiding whether or not he's telling the truth or not. But from what he says to Mr. Skint later on, it seems that he knows more than he was letting on. Something still tells me though that he doesn't know much about the counterfeiting ring.

Anyway, Katrina saves Buck from having to give Polehaus a real answer because she's playing Ms. Over-Sympathetic again, concerned that Polehaus is questioning him too long and hard. Apparently, as a minor citizen, Buck has rights to having a guardian or a lawyer or somebody with him if the questioning goes on for too long, so Katrina's concerned that this conversation might not hold up in court because Polehaus didn't obey the law. I guess it's a legitimate concern, but since when has Katrina been so interested in the law, and why is she still being so sympathetic toward an obvious criminal. I know this is supposed to go along with the story about how the people at Whit's End are being so compassionate and loving to Buck, but I think this takes it a little too far. We should be loving, but not so much so that a criminal might get out of a punishment. Surprisingly, however, the "very compassionate" Detective Polehaus decides to let Buck go. But compassionate nothing. He just wants to get the boy headed back to Mr. Skint so the policemen can follow him.

Then there's one more little exchange between Katrina and the detective right before he leaves. Polehaus warns her, "Look, this is not a kid you wanna get attached to." After he leaves, she says under her breath, "No, of course not." I'm not sure, by the tone of her voice, if she meant that sarcastically, or if she was actually considering taking his advice for once. I think she's really torn emotionally over him, because she genuinely cares about him, but she's disappointed that he's gotten himself into this mess. I don't remember if I've mentioned this before, but my theory is that when all this is over, Buck is going to be found not guilty of knowing much about the conspiracy, and then he's going to need a guardian because Skint is in jail. So I think that Eugene and Katrina are going to adopt him. That's just a thought--one that doesn't have much evidence behind it--but I think it would be interesting, to say the least. I've always thought Eugene and Katrina should have a kid, and I think it works out better for them to adopt one than for them to have a biological one.

Anyway, the scene finally changes, and we go to the basement of Whit's End where Whit is coming down to check on Eugene, who's working on the broken AppleBerry. He says that although the phones are supposedly known for their durability, he's not getting anywhere very fast, so they won't be getting any information out of it for now. Whit tells him that Detective Polehaus is counting on him to be the one to fix the phone, so if they're going to get anything from it, it's up to him. Whit goes to leave for the hospital, and you can tell by the change in music that Eugene's about to start the short, spiritual conversation of the episode. He stops Mr. Whittaker to tell him that he has a strong sense that they're losing this battle to the bad guys. Whit, of course, reassures him that he's sure there are key pieces to the puzzle that they just haven't found yet, and God knows where they are. This implies the idea that if it's in God's will for them to solve the mystery, He will give them help in just the way He's always planned to. This is a timeless message that all of us need to hear at some point in our lives. I know I've had my share of trying times--Marvin's going through one right now--and I'm sure that all of you readers have known days where you feel like the devil is winning the war for your soul. All we can do when we're in those situations is trust that God has us in His hands and he won't ever let us go. He knows what we're going through, and He, if you are truly His, is working everything together for your greater good, and for His glory. So this story actually had a pretty good spiritual application, if you elaborate on it like that.

Well, now we switch gears and head over to a story that we haven't heard much from recently. Connie is visiting Wooton at what sounds like late at night while all the other stuff is going on. I don't know if I've ever mentioned this either, but the chemistry between Connie and Wooton has always been amazing. Whenever Connie's bothered about something, Wooton (unless she goes to Whit) has always been able to help her get in a good mood. Penny's entrance into the picture has almost totally destroyed that connection, and now the Connie-Wooton scenes have become uncomfortable and...just...out of character for both of them, I guess. With all of the episodes that they've been in together, I think they'd make a great pair--much better than Penny and Wooton. Yeesh. Anyway, after a somewhat humorous, but unneeded and distracting exchange about Wooton's doorbell, the two of them sit down on Wooton's porch swing to talk.

Connie starts to try to tell Wooton what I assume was going to be her advice about not getting too close with Penny because of her strange beliefs, but the fingernailless, nervous wreck-Wooton assumes that she must be bringing the bad news that Penny doesn't like him the same way he likes her. With the subject slightly changed, Connie reassures him that everything's fine, and Penny and she are just going on a hike together. Then she tries to get back to her original reason for coming, but Wooton takes the ball and runs with it, inviting himself to their outing and making plans for an all-out surprise picnic. Connie tries to tell Wooton that she's concerned, probably because 1. she'll end up as a third wheel again, and 2. she still hasn't talked to him about being careful with Penny because of her strange "Christianity." But Wooton, in his always-jovial food-based mind, thinks she must be concerned about what food to bring. She tries one more time, but there's no getting a word in when the smitten Wooton has a chance to be with Penny. *sighs*

After a commercial break, we finally get back to Buck and Polehaus. Polehaus having set up a meeting between himself and Mr. Skint the next morning, Buck is free to go back to the compound, and he's going to be escorted by a police officer. After he leaves, Katrina expresses her doubt that they'll show up for the meeting the next morning. Polehaus agrees, adding that he doubts Buck will even go home in the police car. So he's set up agents all over the area who he's sure will follow Buck wherever he may run off to. Katrina asks him if he's sure about that--Buck's a shrewd young man, she says. But Polehaus is counting on his team of experts to be able to track a fourteen-year-old. Oh...what's that old, biblical Proverb? Pride comes before a fall? :D I knew this next part was coming.

Polehaus slams his fist down as the next scene cuts in. Of course, his men call and tell him that they've lost Buck. He yells at them to find him, hangs up, and mutters that he's "got the Three Stooges, the Marx Brothers, and the Keystone Cops all rolled up into one unit!" Katrina practically tells him that she told him so, and then Whit appears out of nowhere, probably having just come up from the basement and states the obvious: that Buck is probably headed back to Mr. Skint. But no one knows where Skint is, so that's no help. Polehaus storms out of Whit's End ranting about his bad fortune and screaming for Martin.

Eugene enters from the basement, and is surprised to see Katrina still there. The two have a husband-wife chat, where Katrina admits to Eugene that she has to prove that Buck is a willing accomplice to Skint before she believes it. She says she'll find him one way or another, and then she's really going to get to the bottom of all this.

Marvin mentioned somewhere that he thinks Mr. Skint has his own music that always starts the scenes that he's in. Having listened to the first six episodes of Album 53 again now that I have the CDs, I agree. We hear that little ditty as we go to the next scene where, sure enough, Buck meets up with Mr. Skint at Trickle Lake. Buck updates him about what happened in Whit's office. He's proud of himself (which means he inserts his annoying southern laugh into every other sentence) for not letting any new information out, and for getting away without being followed. Skint is very happy with him. And again, I find it hard to believe that Buck could know nothing about what Skint is up to, because, especially in this scene, they seem to have a very close relationship. Mr. Skint doesn't at all seem to be involving him in this by force, so I don't see how Buck could end up being innocent of anything.

Well, now, to Skint's surprise, Uncle Archie walks up, commenting on Skint's use of the word excellent to describe the current situation. I really like the chemistry between the two of them in this scene, and I think it's great to finally see Skint as not the one in ultimate control of everything. Anyway, Archie is concerned that Skint is endangering the success of the next morning's operation with his incompetence, but Skint assures him that everything is going according to plan. And I think he's right--so far anyway. The folks at Whit's End are at a dead end. They have absolutely nothing to go on currently. Archie isn't satisfied though, because, he says, the benefactor is not happy. But Mr. Skint is sure that by the end of tomorrow, they'll all be laughing about any doubts they had that the maneuver would go off without hitch. Buck adds, "Yeah, all the way to the bank!" (Again, I really think he knows more than anyone thinks.) Archie warns that the alternative is, of course, crying all the way to jail. He then tells Skint to clean himself up for the big day tomorrow, to ditch Archie's pickup truck that they've been using, and not to go back to the compound, but rather to sleep at the carnival. Finally, he leaves them with one final direction: Get rid of Whittaker and Polehaus--by whatever means necessary!

The next morning, Whit goes down to check on Eugene, who's gotten an early start in the basement again. Eugene reports that he's retrieved a few bits of information, but the one thing that caught his attention was a text message consisting of a string of numbers that looked familiar to him. He remembered that they were on the piece of paper they found in the backpack with the money. (Does anyone else remember that, because I don't!) Whit acknowledges that it's the best lead they have, so they should see if it leads somewhere.

But then Matthew and Emily come in, and Emily's whining about how she missed all the excitement yesterday. Matthew shoots back at her that it was her fault, because she didn't want to be embarrassed. Then Emily shoots back that he's the one who--Whit interrupts them, and gets back to what he was saying when they came in. He was thinking that since the counterfeiters have been working out of this area for so long. They need to figure out the identity of the man (I assume the "benefactor") who's been in town all along making the counterfeit money. He says that there should probably be a little something in newspaper archives at the library, and of course the kids immediately volunteer.

While Eugene goes to get his and Mr. Whittaker's new walkie-talkie/earphone invention that should help them stay in contact, Emily asks Whit if he really thinks Buck is in trouble because she's worried about him. She wants to believe that she can trust him. Whit says that he doesn't know either way, but that he understands how she must feel. She opens up about how horrible she feels about how he used her to accomplish his evil purposes. (Anybody thinking of Richard Maxwell?) I hadn't really thought about how she would be feeling after finding out what he did. Whit advises that they should pray for Buck, and for themselves--that God would give them the grace to forgive him.

Then the scene skips over to Mr. Skint who's trying to wake Buck up. Buck hesitates, and then nearly jumps out of his skin when he opens his eyes and sees Skint. He's shaved, and cut his hair, and...he's wearing a tie!! After calming down, Buck reveals his thoughts to Skint about what Archie said the night before. He doesn't like the idea of hurting Mr. Whittaker or any of the other "good people" at Whit's End. But Mr. Skint tells him that they need to be looking out for themselves, not caring about anyone else. Buck says that if it comes to hurting anyone, he won't do it. Skint returns, "Not even to protect me?" Then Buck does one of the smartest things he's done all season: He turns that back toward Mr. Skint and asks if he would have come to help him if he'd gotten caught by the police the night before when he ran. But Skint dodges the question and changes the subject--he reminds Buck that everything they've worked for gets paid off today.

The end of the second commercial break brings us to Detective Polehaus giving his team a synopsis of the day's coming events. He delivers a speech reminiscent of an army general addressing his soldiers before a battle, directing them to watch every bit of activity at the carnival, because it's usually on the big day that the bad guys get careless. He ends telling them that they must report anything and everything--no matter how unusual, and then the team heads out. Meanwhile, Whit comes in to tell Polehaus about something he found in his office.

The scene switches over to the office, where Whit tells the detective about the numbers that Eugene found in the AppleBerry which match the ones on the sheet that was found in the backpack. Then he advises Polehaus to check the traffic cameras around town to see where the pickup truck went. But Polehaus tells Whit that he's a step ahead for once, and Martin's on the job right now. As if like clockwork, Martin walks in the door and shares what he's found--the truck went into the city from the compound, going to first, the Burger World Drive-In, and then to Trickle Lake Concrete, before finally ending up at the carnival. But there's one more very interesting piece of information that could finally turn the whole case around--the Old Ross Compound is owned by The Consolidated Arts Company, which also owns Uncle Archie's Carnival. I knew Dr. Trask had to be involved! What else could it mean? Maybe Whit and the gang will finally get to the bottom of this. The scene ends with Whit telling Polehaus he'll have his "Crack Investigative Team" check out the Consolidated Arts Company.

Of course, that team is Matthew and Emily at the library, which is where we go next. It's a short little scene where they make contact with Eugene via their walkie-talkie-earphone thingies, and they tell him what they'll be looking for in the database. Eugene calls Emily a super-sleuth, and Emily is surprised. After they sign off, Emily asks Matthew about it, and he *gasp* confirms the compliment! And he did it in an almost flirty way, because as soon as she tried to pursue it, he changed the subject. Hmm... I'm not sure if I should be happy with this or not. At least Emily seems to have let go of Buck!

Then we finally get back to the Stiletto storyline. In this last scene, Jason comes to Archie in what I assume to be his office at the carnival. Archie had apparently sent him a message that he wanted to talk to him. So Jason came, and now Archie is breaking the news to him that his services are no longer needed--of course, this is because somehow Jason's cover has been blown. At this point, Archie's goons come in and, at his command, start tying Jason up with duct tape. Jason tries to fight, but stops when Archie points six "good reasons" at him. :) He tells Jason that Mr. Groat (or Grote, as Marvin spells it) wants to meet with him, and he's not happy. My guess is that this is when Jason is going to be disposed of. I still can't figure out who could have blown his cover though. But it doesn't help anything that Jason is so ignorant of anything. Maybe that's what showed him to be phony to begin with.

The last bit of interesting information in this episode is given by one of the goons taking Jason out the door. Archie asked if he took care of the business, and he basically says that he took the engraving plates to TLC--which I assume to be Trickle Lake Concrete. It will be very interesting to see what happens in the next episode. I can tell it's going to be exciting!

Okay, so I guess that wasn't a very short review at all. I actually think it was quite a bit longer than last week's. Oh well. Hopefully you read the majority of it. I'll try to get the review of Part 11 out earlier than I did with this episode. Thank you for reading! Please comment!

...And So It Approaches Its Termination...

This was another pretty good episode. It didn't seem as long as I would have liked it to be, but it did have quite a bit of new information, and things really are starting to come together. I'm going to take this review in the direction that Marvin usually does--going through each scene--because every part was important, and I want to make sure I don't forget to mention anything.

It's so good to have Jason back! He's one of my favorite characters, and Townsend Coleman does an amazing job with his voice. Just having Jason in an episode makes everything seem as if it was thrown into action/adventure/mystery mode. It's great to have someone on the inside whom Whit can talk to to get information about the counterfeiters.

If you haven't figured out that you shouldn't like Buck yet, this next scene should convince you. He is really bad at play-acting. "What's the password?" "I'm not going to tell you!" That's like the universally understood way to tell someone that you don't know the password. It's again like he's trying to make himself look as guilty as possible. And when Matthew and Eugene get too "nosy," he whines that he thought this town was all about "love and trust and friendship." He's really disappointed. :P But I love that the other guys finally start to see through it. Eugene came back at that with exactly what I wanted to say: "Love, trust, and friendship aren't the same as blind stupidity." :D But then the computer bleeps that it has found the password, and we finally get to see to whom it belongs! (Well, I guess we already know, but we can be excited for the characters who finally get to find out!)

Now we skip back to Jason and Whit for one of the most revealing scenes so far in the season. We learn that years ago, the real Stiletto was captured by the police, and the government decided to take advantage of the fact that no one knew who he was to turn it into an undercover operation. Jason discovered this while vacationing in Hong Kong, where he ran into a group of terrorists who wanted to destroy America through technological and financial attacks. He took the cover of the Stiletto, and used that cover to meet with the ringleader of that espionage group, Mr. Groat. Jason told him that he was bringing together a ring of counterfeiters across America and was going to distribute tons of fake money. He does that via Uncle Archie's Carnival, which travels all over the country, and on the last day in a city, it auctions off equipment, and then transports the money in the same trucks as the equipment.

Then we learn that Agent Tanner is trying to work on the inside, but she started late, doesn't know much, and just wants a piece of the fortune. However, Jason may think that she really is a rogue agent, but she might actually still be on the good side, but she's really good at faking it. Or she could be lying to Whit, and she really is just in for the money, and she's working against the good guys. But it turns out that both she and Monty were making Jason's job a lot harder, so he has put both of them out of the picture for now. Whit wonders how Jason keeps everything straight without getting "lost in this labyrinth of lies." But Jason argues that if he doesn't do it, who will? Whit says that they'll have to talk about that some other time. That made me smile. Whit is still Jason's dad, so he can tell him what to do. The chemistry between the two actors actually strikes me as pretty decent. I wouldn't have thought that Andre would have done that great of a job talking to Jason as his father, but he was actually pretty good. I look forward to seeing them together more in the episodes and seasons to come.

The next scene is one of the most disturbing of the season. First, Penny discusses meditation with Connie. She shows her how to look past things of an imperfect nature to the perfection beyond them (i.e. beyond the crack in the ceiling to the beautiful bird's nest outside). The subject of meditation is a touchy subject. While it's not necessarily wrong to meditate (a godly example is given to us in Psalm 19:17), it is usually associated with Eastern religions and mysticism such as Hinduism, Buddhism, or New Age. It is normally used to clear one's mind, to rid oneself of one's affections and/or desires in order to be filled with the spirit of whatever god you are thinking you want to be filled by, or to set your mind on whatever singular thing it needs to be set on. Yoga is the most common example of meditation that people use today. By definition, it is used to liberate oneself from the world and unite oneself with the supreme being. Meditation is a dangerous subject that is best not to be tampered with by Christians.

As if that wasn't bad enough however, Dr. Trask presents to his art class for exploration and meditation a work by Salvador Dali called La Muerte (which means "death" in Spanish). It is described as being an evocative series of paintings he did as part of his "Tarot" collection. Salvador Dali is described on Wikipedia as being best known for the "striking and bizarre images in his surrealist work." He had "an affinity for partaking in unusual and grandiose behavior." That doesn't seem like a guy whose paintings I'd explore and meditate upon in something like a Bible study. And then there's what Connie mentioned: Tarot--as in tarot cards. Tarot cards, again according to Wikipedia "are used throughout much of Europe to play card games. In English-speaking countries, where these games are largely unknown, tarot cards are now used primarily for divinatory purposes." But in the 18th and 19th century, the cards were adopted by the occult for use with mysticism and magic. Now, all this isn't to say that Dr. Trask is involved in Eastern religions or the occult, but he obviously easily tolerates them and the things they propagate, so he isn't someone I would put in the position of spiritual mentor. But he does say that God is in everything because He created everything. That is outright Pan-En-Theism. God is separate from His creation. And it doesn't help anything that Dr. Trask "appeals" to God only as "Oh Great Creator", and he says that God is "in us and through us and beyond us." If we are Christians, God is in us, He works through us, and He is far beyond us, but I doubt that's what Dr. Trask means.

Well, with that said, now we jump back to Whit, who's on the phone with Dr. Graham. He is somewhat frustrated that she won't let Monty out of the hospital, but she makes a good point that despite what movies seem to show us, a blow to the head that knocks someone out is very serious. She scolds him for making this mystery more important than the well-being of his grandson, and he secedes. I don't know about anyone else, but I really like the character of Lilly Graham. She has really good chemistry with other characters, especially Whit, and I just really like her voice. Hopefully she can become the new regular Odyssey doctor that Dr. Morton was.

Anyway, as soon as Whit's off the phone, Detective Polehaus barges in, and Whit gets to try to convince him of the disappearance of Agent Tanner like Jason told him to. I'll just go with an understatement and say that Whit doesn't do a good job. ("You haven't seen my sneer!") Whit tells him everything he knows (or knew before he met the Stiletto), and Polehaus tells him everything he and Eugene have found out about Buck. Then the detective tells Whit that he's off to another lead that he got saying that the main hideout of the counterfeiters is The Old Ross Compound near Trickle Lake. (Why have we never, ever heard of this place before?) Then Polehaus gets a call saying that a truck--"a big truck" has just pulled in to the compound. And he's off to catch the counterfeiters. But we know that since there are still three-and-a-half shows left, there's no way he's already going to be able to apprehend everybody.

Now we head back over to Whit's End where Katrina comes across Jay as he "watches the counter." He tells her that Buck is trying to get the phone from Eugene and Matthew in the basement, but that she shouldn't trust Buck any farther than Jay can throw him. But then Whit calls, and Katrina updates him. Whit therefore learns for the first time that Dirk Beggs's phone has been found, and then warns Katrina not to let Buck get anywhere with that phone.

Back down in the basement, Buck insists that they give him the AppleBerry. Eugene refuses because he won't tell them the password. Then Buck "admits" that he doesn't know it, but as soon as Matthew reports the computer's findings that it is "stiletto", he suddenly remembers that he named it that because of his knife collection. Sure, Buck, we believe you. (I would expect something more like a toothpick collection. When have we ever seen him with a knife?) I wonder how much Emily would like him if she knew he had a knife collection. :D Anyway, when Matthew has entered in the password, Buck tries to grab it from him. Just then, Katrina comes down to talk to him, but sees the fight. So she yells at the top of her lungs, stopping everyone in their tracks. I definitely would have stopped dead still because that didn't sound like Katrina to me at all. Connie sounded weird in Grandma's Christmas Visit with all her over-the-top yelling, but that was ridiculous! In any event, it stopped the commotion, and Katrina then tells Buck that she needs to make a citizen's arrest on him. Buck, who apparently has anger problems, throws the phone to the floor, making it shatter into several pieces. (Oh how badly I wish Emily was there to see that. She probably won't even believe Matthew when he tells her that Buck did that.) I totally wasn't expecting that, and it was a really good surprise. I guess we had already gotten enough information about Groat, Skint, Beggs, Tanner, and the Stiletto with Jason's help, so we didn't need it anymore and the writers decided to resolve it all that way.

Buck runs upstairs, and despite Jay's attempts to shoot him with an ice cream scoop, he makes a clean getaway...until he runs into Mr. Whittaker who doesn't let him go anywhere. Finally Buck gets what was coming to him, and Whit sends him to his office. I'm glad Emily wasn't at Whit's End at the time or she might have come to Buck's rescue and run away with him or something. Yeesh.

Back with the real counterfeiters, Mr. Skint and Mr. Dosh (who is, interestingly enough, played by Phil Lollar) have a short but sweet conversation about Martin, the policeman down the road watching. Mr. Dosh is concerned that he might compromise their operation. But Mr. Skint assures him that everything will be fine, and he'll send one of his guys to give him some "special coffee" because it's the neighborly thing to do. ;)

Then we get back to Connie and Penny. Penny tells Connie that she needs to ask her a question. Connie says she already knows what Penny's going to say, and then she goes off on a lengthy explanation for why she felt uncomfortable sitting through Dr. Trask's lecture that afternoon. And it was nearly exactly what I would have said! Yes, Connie actually did a good job for once! Well, not for once, but for the first time this season. Then Penny admits that all she wanted to know was if Connie wanted her french fries. Boy, she and Wooton really were made for each other--silliness in the midst of seriousness. I wouldn't be surprised if they are both diagnosed with ADHD someday. Then Penny assures Connie that they'll discuss these things tomorrow when they go on their hike. (I can't wait for that conversation!) And then the scene ends with Penny asking Connie if she's going to eat her pickles. *faceslap (to borrow Marvin's lingo)* Seriously!

Back at the compound, Polehaus takes a call from Whit informing him that Buck is in his office ready for questioning. He tells Whit to stay put until he can send someone over. After getting off the phone, he comes across Martin who has fallen prey to the effects of Mr. Skint's "special coffee." When Polehaus has shaken him awake, Martin tells what he knows about what's transpired so far. All he can really tell us is that a pickup truck drove in, and they gave him coffee. One of the guys from the compound came out and said that he knew how hard it is to stay awake on a stakeout, so he gave Martin some coffee, which Martin thought was a pretty nice thing to do. Honestly, Detective Polehaus, what kind of people do you have working for you?! Well, we can give him some credit; he took down the license plate number of the pickup, and after running it through headquarters, he found out that it belongs to Uncle Archie's Carnival. That does it for the detective, and he leaves to go have a talk with the people at the compound.

Meanwhile, at the edge of McAlister Park, Mr. Skint gets a call from Buck, who is wondering what he should do now that he's been caught and cornered in Whit's office. Skint tells him that "this is just like Detroit--just like it," that the people at Whit's End are trying to use Buck to lure him in. Therfore, he tells Buck goodbye and shuts the phone. We're left wondering what this means for Buck. Mr. Skint has abandoned him, so what can he do now? I can't see any other way he can go than to tell Whit the truth. What else can he say? But what will happen to him now that he no longer has a guardian? Hey, maybe Eugene and Katrina will eventually take him in! Now that's an interesting thought.

In the last scene, the Stiletto meets with Archie to "confirm the plan." I have to admit, Jason isn't going about this in a very convincing way. If he's the big boss that he's supposed to be, why does he need Archie to tell him the plan? Things have changed since Jason got the debrief from Mr. Groat. The benefactor (please tell me if you know who that's supposed to be) decided that the money will not be transported to the rigged winners of the auctioned equipment by truck, but Archie won't tell what the new plan is. The plan was changed because the benefactor caught wind of an undercover operation in Chicago--right in the Stiletto's area, and supposedly, Dirk Beggs was told the change of plans, and he was supposed to tell Jason. But he didn't. Nor did Jason know that Mr. Groat is actually in town. So Jason concludes that he's going to be in suspense until the next day, and he bids Uncle Archie goodnight. As soon as Jason leaves, Archie does exactly what I knew was going to happen--he calls somebody (probably the benefactor), and tells him that the Stiletto needs to be removed from the operation--no, better yet, removed altogether! Oh boy! So there's going to be an attempt at murder before the season is done? *rubs hands together in excitement and cackles*

Well that's my review. Sorry it got so long. I probably won't be doing that again. But I hope you read it. Please tell me anything you think about it, and let me know if you like my reviews better this way or the way I usually do them.

Thank you for taking the time to read the post! Come back next week as the events of Album 53 draw to a close!

...And So It All Keeps Coming Together...

I just got done listening to the episode, and I don't know about you, but I'm quite shocked! We just met the Stiletto, and already we know who he is. Of course, I already knew who he was, but I wasn't expecting him to be revealed so soon! And I especially don't understand how he can be involved with it while being a good guy. I know that the writers wouldn't have made him turn bad, so I assume that he's working with the Secret Service against the counterfeiting ring from the inside. The big question is how he is so well-known by Wally, Polehaus, and Tanner. How could he have become such a big-name gangster who is supposed to be dead in just the few years it's been since he left Odyssey? Now I really can't wait for next week's episode. This was the worst cliff-hanger of all!

Well, we finally found out why Penny's "Christianity" sounded so suspicious. Dr. Trask started out by saying that he would call their group "a group of like-minded people of faith who are seeking God together." Stop right there. "Seeking God?" If you are a true Christian, you have unlimited access to God and His blessings, so they shouldn't need to seek God. Romans 3:11--"there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God." He says, however, that they seek God as one would seek a painter or composer by learning as much as they can about that person's work. "We're dedicated to finding the beauty of God in nature, art--within ourselves. And in doing that, we get to know him better. And through Him, we find His beauty inside of us. We can see our true potential--who He wants us to be." Now there isn't too too much wrong with that. We can see the glory and attributes of God in a small sense by looking at creation. But creation is fallen. The beauty of the image of God is marred by the curse. We do not have any natural goodness inside of ourselves. Romans 3:12b/Psalm 14:3b--"there is no one who does good, not even one." Furthermore, Dr. Trask describes the Bible as having "the poetry, the prose, the stories, the insights into our humanity. It is pure revelation." Now all that is right, but did he say that it is God's Word? It does give us insight into our humanity, but probably not in the way he's thinking. He also says, "I believe that God has created within us something unique and beautiful. But over time, that uniqueness and beauty gets covered up with the soot and constraints of life. Our vibrancy and color fades. Our little group wants to restore who we really are. There's a beauty inside of you Connie--a potential you haven't begun to explore." Yeesh! And Connie doesn't see through any of this! Jeremiah 17:9a--"The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure." Psalm 51:5--"I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me." I don't see anything there about "uniqueness and beauty" or "vibrancy and color." I sure hope Connie talks to Whit about this. She nearly fell into this trap twenty years ago. I hope she's learned by now.

I was so glad that Emily and Buck and Penny and Wooton weren't together in this episode. There was a small amount of talk about the subject between Penny and Connie, and now we know that Penny feels the same about Wooton as he feels about her. Big surprise. But we did hear from Buck. And I'm still not sure whether or not he knows exactly what he's caught up in. I think he knows that Mr. Skint is involved in something illegal, but I haven't seen any evidence that he knows it's a counterfeiting ring. When Jay confronted him about it at Whit's End though, he almost sounded like he was trying to make himself sound like he knew nothing about what Jay was talking about, but maybe he actually did know. I'm not sure. I guess Robby Bruce does do a pretty good job with his acting--even if he gives Buck what sounds to me like a fake accent. In any event, I certainly hope Eugene and Matthew can keep him from stealing back the AppleBerry.

Detective Polehaus is finally learning a lesson about trust, but now that he is getting more trusting, I don't think the actor is doing as good a job of playing him. He isn't sounding convincing as a tough detective who just got proven wrong. He's too okay with the fact that his whole "worldview" as he calls it was crushed. But aside from that, there was another thing that I noticed. When Whit told him about seeing Agent Tanner at the place to which he had tracked Monty's location, Polehaus told him, "Don't do anything until I get there!" and Whit answered, "No promises." I don't know what other episode that reminds me of, but I remember another situation very similar to this happening in the past where a detective or policeman or somebody told Whit to stay put, but Whit didn't, and the detective ended up being in on the plot against Whit. If any of you can tell me what episode I'm thinking of, please tell me in the comments! Anyway, according to that episode's reasoning, I'm really starting to think that Detective Polehaus might not be who we've thought he was. And maybe Agent Tanner is telling the truth for the most part.

So that brings us to Agent Tanner. I still don't know what to think about her. At first, when Whit approached her as she was entering the Stiletto's hideout, and she gave that explanation about why she was there and what she had to do with Monty, I was ready to believe her. But then when Jason seemed to give sketchy details about her, I wasn't sure anymore. He said that she had been a double-crosser, but to whom? He didn't trust her with his true identity, but that makes sense. Obviously Polehaus and Tanner are on different teams, but which one is on our side?! My guess is that we'll find out for sure next week since Polehaus is on his way to the Stiletto's hideout, and he's bound to run into Agent Tanner.

Well I think that's about all I have this week. I'm not going to throw out a bunch of questions, because I don't have time, and I don't think there are any more than I've already asked. Other than of course: What is Jason doing as the ringleader of a counterfeiting ring?!?!

Please comment!

P.S. Check out the news at AIO Wiki! It has the final cover for the new Kidsboro release, along with a really special video from Brock that shows us the covers for five new album repacks! Very exciting! Although I'm not sure whether I should trust some of those pictures that Brock showed. They don't look up to the normal quality of Gary Locke's work.