Welcome to the 2002 Review Section. This is your chance to review the latest episode and interact with fans about the newest developments.

Consensus: Thumbs Up (14/17 positive reviews)

Reaction to "BTV: Behind the Scenes" is positive so far, though with only a few "outstanding" reviews. Most enjoyed the episode, though some thought it was too predictable or "chaotic." Many reviewers agree that the body parts sketch at the end of the show was the highlight.

Review by Alaynah, age 11
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I just think that this was the BEST show EVER!

Review by Alyson, age 13
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What a good way to start off the new season!

Review by Bradford G, age 12
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This episode shows how we all need to work together. Bernard sounded like he almost wanted to end the show at a few scenes. I thought that since they were having audio trouble that somehow Eugene was going to walk in and save the day, but no. But we do look forward to the day when he will hopefully return. Anyway good job to the BTV crew. And good job AIO crew members.

Review by Emily Witt, age 12
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A great episode to kick off the new season! This episode is absolutely incrediable.

Review by Mary Jane Downs, age 48
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I have listened to most of the taped series for years. This is the first time I had heard that show. The humor is great especailly Brokejaw and the cowlick.

Review by JoyElectric
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Wow...a lot was going on at once on this show! I'm going to have to go back a few times to hear all of the "hidden" dialogue. However, it was just wonderful. Alex follows people from BTV around, which comes out perfect as Edwin yet again bemoans his acting skills going to waste. The "body" skit in the end was great (albeit with terrible puns) even if it reminded me of the one from "The Boy Who Didn't Go To Church." At the end, it was also nice to hear a reading of the actors, including a name or two I haven't heard on the show before. Again, good job, and keep it up!

A few notes (from the Town Hall):
-The cat is offically out of the bag on who plays Edwin.
-Bernard is about as serious as I've ever heard him.
-Connie's "2nd in command" role is even more prevalent.
-I love Wooton .
-Mandy and Alex seem to be the main "current" kids. Personally, I think that's perfect.
-Not exactly the most normal BTV show, but probably my favorite.

Review by MH, age 12
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I liked this show pretty well. This topic is old though, and I don't really like B-TV at all. Like I said it was pretty good... for a B-TV show.

Review by krista, age 13
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It was good. There have been better Adventures in Odyssey.

Review by Jasmine O, age 13
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I thought it was great!

Review by Paul B
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A new look at BTV and how it's put together. I'm glad they finaly gave Wooton somthing to do. I thought he might blow up or something. Alex gets to be the star of the show—kind of a reporter. The good news is BTV was saved at the end of the show. :-) Looking forward to more BTV shows.

Review by Bennett Charles (Town Hall)

Well, what can I say, I don't really know if I like the episode or not. It seemed too chaotic and noisy. I sometimes don't like those eps. I've got a few notes:

-Connie sounded way too technical.
-Why wasn't Whit there? He was part of the team, too.
-I was glad Mandy was back on again.
-I'm happy that they didn't add any new characters in this ep. It was good to keep the same ones in this one.
-Mr. Feldstein didn't sound the same. But it was good to pop in an old character again.
-Did anyone notice that this was the first ep with Shakespeare and Edwin doing something that didn't involve there theatre? (Well, maybe there are a few exceptions...) Also an ep which didn't involve there money problems.
-Alex's voice is changing a bit. And I thought he was supposed to be moving away somewhere.
-I was hoping for some dramatic music when Bernard was making his big speech. It would've made it a better ep.
-This is the second ep about BTV that also involves the show with a bit behind the show. And it's the FIRST BTV episode that combines both behind the show and the actual show together.

Review by Ferder (Town Hall)

It was okay, but a bit too predictable ("What's this tape over here?" "That's probably it. Put it on"), as well as the piano part. I've always wondered what BTV is like since we never get to see it only hear it. Judging from those "fuzzy" sounds (that didn't appear in this ep but are in most of the others) I think it must be somthing like Bill Nye the Science Guy. So the show is live? That seems a little odd. Maybe only this one was live since it was a phonathon.

I am getting the feeling now that Wooton is a main character (like Officer Harley used to be). I suppose with his comic voice that he's sorta a Eugene replacement (though of course nothing can replace Eugene). The body parts bit was...."interesting." If you think you got all the puns the first time, relisten to the ep.

Review by Rose (Town Hall)

It was great. Maybe even perfect. But Adventures in Odyssey just isn't what it used to be without Lucy, Eugene, etc, which makes it almost painful to evaluate.

Review by E87M2 (Town Hall)

It was awesome!

Review by James M (Town Hall)

Great ep. and we see that Earl Boen truly is Blackgaard. Awesome. I enjoyed it. I liked the funny parts, especially the belly button. Bernard's speech was good. Very good ep. Great job.

Review by Jacob Isom (Town Hall)

I thought this episode was really done well and it seemed pretty realistic.

Consensus: Thumbs Up (23/25 positive reviews)

Reaction to "Bassett Hounds" is very positive and enthusiastic. Many fans are calling it Torry Martin's best episode yet and the best Wooton show so far. Most enjoyed the comedy that came from the pairing of Wooton and Bernard and the increased depth of the Wooton character. A few wished Talia (Wooton's niece from "For the Fun of It") would have shown up, while others wished for a few more of the main characters. A favorite line from the show is Wooton's "Score!" toward the end.

Review by Tina, age 20
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I thought this episode was pretty cool! Although it was different to the typical odyssey happenings, it had a great storyline! Well done Torry Martin! It also gave insight into Wooton's family and background.

Review by Marcela, age 14
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It was very excellent. Thank you so much for dedicating your time to making your shows interesting, my whole family and I enjoy them very much and listen to them daily. Thank you!

Review by Billy, age 11
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It was really interesting and funny.

Review by Cami, age 12
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It was really good!

Review by Mark, age 20
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I really enjoyed "Basset Hounds". I felt that it really expanded on Wooton's character, one that honestly had to grow on me over time but has become one of my favorite characters. At first he seemed to be a kind of stereotypical but kindly clueless character, but it's episodes like these that have made Odyseey characters what fans have generally come to expect—three dimensional. It's nice to know that Wooton is innocent but not ignorant, and actually quite a bit more intelligent that his surface qualities have previously hinted at—indirectly making the point that people are not always what they appear to be. This episode's stab at that concept worked quite successfully, I think. The episode nicely balanced humor and played off Bernard's character quite well (good addition).

Review by Nathan, age 14
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I really liked it!

Review by Bradford G, age 12
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Wow. I knew Wooton's brother was rich. But I didn't know his family was loaded. And I can't believe Bernard brought nine pounds of jerkey to Alaska. But there are Bassett family mysterys waiting to be solved. And I can't wait to hear them. And "score" my name was in this episode..."Bradford.. And "score" for Wooton with his knew spinning chair. Great Job AIO crew!

Review by MH, age 12
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I thought it was very good and worth listening to.

Review by Brittany Horton, age 9
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This was the first time that I heard this program and I loved it. I'm so glad there's something good on the radio to listen to for children (since I don't watch TV).

Review by Paul B
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Wooton gets Bernard a big job and Bernard says he would be glad to help Wooton out somehow, so Wooton takes Bernard to a family meeting in Alaska. Wooton gets to see his grandfather for maybe the last time as he going to Africa to be a missionary. We also found out that Wooton is rich, but he's not telling anyone. If I understood right, Wooton owns the Power Boy Comic Company. Maybe he draws them and writes them... hmm... have to wait and see about that one. Bernard and his beef jerkey eating is back again. Great show!

Review by Tyler, age 12
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It was wonderful! It showed how God puts others in our lives, so we work together and work for him even better.

Review by JoyElectric
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It has Alaska, Wooton, and Bernard. Any show with Alaska is going to be good! We get to hear Wooton's family, and of Wooton's fortune. We even hear Wooton "get serious." It's a great episode, and one of the best post-Novacom shows!

Review by Grace, age 13
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Good!

Review by Maggie, age 11
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Just so wonderful, touching, and fun. I can't even explain how good it was.

Review by Anna, age 10
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A great adventure the whole family can enjoy !

Review by Tianlet, age 17
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I don't like Wooton and I don't think he should be a major character in future Odyssey episodes. His ideas are absurd. I figured out that Wooton drew PowerBoy ages ago!

Bernard is funny, as always, although he sounds like he is still getting used to his character again.

The Bassett family is completely dysfunctional. Where was Talia? Since we had so many annoying characters in this episode, we may as well throw her into the mix.

I can't believe Bernard lied to Wellington about his job! No matter who he was talking to, Bernard always said he was a window washer, oblivious of the impression he was making. To hear him deny the fact now was unbelievable.

This was not the best show I have ever heard. I hope we turn to other characters and other storylines soon.

Review by Judah Ben-Hur, age 15
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This was a very good show! I wasn't really expecting to enjoy it, since Wooton is by far, NOT my favorite character, but it was pretty good!

I can't understand Wooton not wanting to be around his family. I love our family gatherings! Who knows, my family is almost, but not quite as weird as Wooton's family.

Just as I thought I had gotten the episode all figured out, it changed! Very unpredictable.

I really like the music! Calm, quiet, and easy to listen to! Thanks so much, background music people!

Review by Victoria, age 12
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This was a great ep! We found out more about Wooton! YEAH! it has been REALLY nice that Benard is back! I like him. I love how he is always muttering under his breath. This has been one of the best this season so far! (The Pact has been the best.) Keep it up! Hope to hear from Eugene soon! (We all do. Sniff sniff. Eugene. Just the name makes me cry.)

Review by Bennett Charles (Town Hall)

Just like last week's show...I'm having mixed feelings about this one too. I can't decide what to think of it. It was original, to say the least. I liked Bernard in this one. It just seemed like he wandered around the house all day. I thought that they would make this ep about clowns and jumping around stuff. But I guess it was just Wooton the crazy one. Pretty good ep. I know that theres something I didn't like about the ep, but I just can't find it.

Review by Fletcher (Town Hall)

This was a good episode. I loved the revelation about Wooton and Power Boy, and I hope that subplot contunues in future episodes. I really missed Talia in this episode, I was sure she would be at the family reunion. I really dislike the character of Wellington. "For the Fun Of It" potrayed him as a nice person, a bit prejudiced against his brother, but overall a polite man who wants the best for his daughter. In this episode he was a complete snob, but that's okay, because I don't think the audience is supposed to like him anyway. This is probably Torry Martin's best episode, though "For The Fun Of It" might have been a little better. I give it 4 stars out of 5.

Review by Ferder (Town Hall)

It was better then I thought it would be. I expected another Wooton total comedy show. This one had a bit more depth, story, and interesting characters then most of the Wooton shows. So Wooton is just as rich as his relatives, but hides the fact so his friend will treat him the same. Cool.

Review by Mandy Straussberg (Town Hall)

II think it was a surprisingly good episode. My jaw dropped at the Power Boy revelation. I loved the "Scoooooore!" about the chair... There were a couple other lines I really liked... but I can't remember what they were...

Bernard really never does run out of beef jerky, does he? Wasn't it Flash Flood where he kept giving Eugene jerky?

Review by Andy G Harvey (Town Hall)

Very good ep! I think everynow and then there should be an ep with nothing to do with odyssey. It was funny too!

Review by Dave (Town Hall)

I actually liked it! Torry Martin's best work. Only one Wooton snort, and the story had a lot of depth and a little realism. Wooton wasn't too bad either. I really like this episode and wish Torry wrote more like it. Thanks for a great episode, Martin!

Review by alwaysHis324 (Town Hall)

I really enjoyed this episode. It was humorous, entertaining, and it had some depth. Bernard and Wooton together are a riot. I love the desk chair "SCORE!!!!!"

Consensus: Enthusiastic Thumbs Up (31/32 positive reviews)

"It's All About Me" is getting by far the most positive reviews of the season, and indeed many are pegging it as the best show of the new season. (Others are noting that they are enjoying all of the shows this season.) Doubtless the point generating the most comments is (SPOILER WARNING) the return of Jared DeWhite. Most greeted his return with open arms and expressions of joy, while a few wondered if someone his age would still be into conspiracy theories. Fans also enjoyed the Connie/Mitch interaction and the humor of the show. Overall, fans are applauding the show as a great example of a "normal" Odyssey episode.

Review by Victoria, age 12

This was GREAT! We heard from Jared again! I was SOO sad when he left. Now he's back and with a little brother. I hope he stays on FOREVER! Even if his voice did go low. The ep is now my favorite of this season. The only part I really didn't like was that Liz was in it. I like Mitch and now he is doing is broadcast on Kids' Radio. GREAT! This is definitely the best so far!

Review by Tyler, age 12
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It was great! It seems like Odyssey is finally officaly back in order (almost). Whit is at Whit's End, and Jared is up to his old tricks. It was wonderful.

Review by Laura, age 14
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Review by Jon, age 12
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Review by Nanci
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This show was ok. It was neat to hear Mitch again.

Review by Dave
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I love it that Jared's back! The episode was a little slow and predictable at times, other than that, it was pretty good.

Review by Paul B
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What a great show. Jared being back makes it even better. Jared's prank on Rodney was funny. They call him "Prankman" now. Connie makes Mitch do an advice that doesn't go the way they thought. We also find out that Jared has a brother named Trent. Oh, the joke about Mitch's socks was funny. Great show.

Review by Alyson, age 13
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Connie and Mitch are doing just fine! I guess Mitch is not good at fashion, but oh well!

Review by Peter, age 13
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"Worst episode ever!" I repeat "Worst episode ever!" NOT!!! Just joking, awesome episode! I can't wait til it hits stores.

Review by Anna, age 16
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"It's All About Me" was a great episode! I thought the lesson was one of the best yet in the new season. The biggest reason that I gave this episode a 4-star rating is because Jared DeWhite came back, an event that I have been hoping for for a long time! Great job Kathy and Marshal, can't wait to hear more episodes with Jared in them! :-D

Review by Paul, age 28
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Great to hear Connie and Mitch back as their usual selves. They're either arguing or be lovey-dovey. I much enjoyed hearing Jared back again. Good episode, not great, just good.

Review by Chris, age 16
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In my opinion, this show was definitely AIO's best episode of the season thus far. It included good humor, an old character in Jared, and brought back Mitch for an episode (we haven't heard from him in a couple months). This seemed somewhat similar to "A Little Credit, Please" with a enough twists and adjustments to create a different storyline. After the Novacom episodes, most of the episodes afterwards didn't seem as good. But "It's All About Me" was an outstanding "singular" episode (not part of a story arc). Great job AIO!

Review by James Moore III, age 25
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Great job! Great show...Jared is back. No "welcome back," hes just back. Awesome! I hope he's one of few to be around after voice changes (like Jimmy, cause both are popular, and we've missed him). I like how the episode promo only mentioned Trent to surprise us. Connie was a glory hog. It would be annoying to take that many commercial breaks. I wondered who would call Connie from other plot (I thought Jared). Irocinally and funny enough, when Jared was making tape—"If this is not Jared listening...destroy tape." I imagined Liz destroying tape and later she did listen to his tape. I hope Trent sticks around. I guess next week will have some similar people. What did Rodney do to Jared and Trent? I was wondering about that. Anyways, good ep. Good job.

Review by MH, age 12
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I think this was the best episode so far this season. It was nice to hear from Jared again, and to hear about Connie & Mitch's relationship.

Review by Julie F, age 15
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I really like this one. It was funny, it brought Jared back, and yet it taught a good lesson, although they did that in a previous ep ("Rewards in Full"). I think this was the best one I've heard in a long time. I really like it that they brought Jared back. Rodney was his same usual self, but I thought he was in high school?

Review by Cami, age 12
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I'm so glad you brought Jared back!

Review by Fletcher
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This is the best episode this season! Many of the kids of Odyssey were included such as...Jared! I thought we were never going to hear from him again after "Strange Boy in a Strange Land," and judging from the preview for next week's episode he'll be a continuing character! Connie and Mitch were good in this episode, although Mitch sounded a bit whiny at times. Strangely, on the AIOHQ this episode is credited as being written by Kathy Wierenga & Marshal Younger, yet in the broadcast this episode is credited to being written only by Kathy Wierenga. Kind of interesting when the theme of this show is credit. Trent was a pretty good new kid, and once again we are introduced to a kid in Odyssey's mentioned but untill now not heard brother. (This also happened in "Room Enough for Two.") This was a great episode!

Review by AIOfan, age 15

Yippee!! I'm so glad Jared is back!!! I've waited for this day for... years, it seems. He doesn't sound the same, but he talks the same way, and sounds better than he did in "Strange Boy In A Strange Land." The parts about Connie and Mitch got a little monotonous, and silly. Other than that, I say thumbs up! To Jared and Trent! The time doesn't quite work out though--in "The Pushover", which was made in 1997 (therefore in real time, 5 years ago), his younger brother was 'almost 2'. Which would make him only about 7 in real time... unless he has 2 younger brothers, that is.

Review by Jon, age 12
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It was funny.

Review by Bradford G, age 12
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Jared is back ,YEAH!

We also finally hear from Jared's little brother Trent in this epsiode. After Jared had been interviewed by Liz, he went to her locker, but she knew that's what he would probaly do, unless Dr. Wise helped her figure that out. Also I think Connie wanted Mitch to stay in Odyssey, because she had him host the advice show. Plus who would ask advice on how to cook fish? And it was funny how Mitch thought towards the end that he really did give good advice. :-) Great job AIO crew!!! :-)

Review by Rachel, age 13
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This episode was pretty dissapointing, in my opinion.
1. Jared is not funny anymore. As an 11-year-old, his chronic paranoia is acceptable, but now he sounds 15 and just plain silly.

2. The ep opens with more Mitch/Connie/FBI dialogue. I am fairly sick of this. In this case nothing was even resolved! I thought Mitch was going to start on-line computer consulting instead. Why couldn't they have been talking about that instead?

3. The whole story was a little cofusing, the the moral wasn't clear until Chris tried it up at the end. The two stories didn't seem to link. Also, it was fairly unrealistic. A skeleton in a locker being "the prank of the century?" Liz has pulled off much better in the past to be so excited.

4. We didn't get to hear Connie apologize to Mitch for her selfishness, instead, she gets a lecture, then later she walks in happy with Mitch. I always appreciated Odyssey's models of humility and forgiveness but we didn't get to see that here.

5. It was pretty obvious that Odyssey has gathered their "new kids" and tossed them into the show to look like the current crowd. I think this was kind of sudden and I would really miss Sarah, Mandy, Alex and the rest if they disappeared.

Perhaps I'm being harsh because the new shows are being intermingled with the early classics. In the early ones, the biblical messages were much stronger and the writers were more concerned with teaching a lesson than creating ongoing characters.

Lately, they've flipped. In my opinion, the best slice-of-life shows were found in the 300s-early 400s when we a nice mixture of character developement and biblical messages. This era is where we find 323:"A Little Credit, Please," where the same story is told much more poignantly.

Review by Anna K (Town Hall)

I was sooo happy to hear Jared come back! Thank you Kathy! THANK YOU!

Review by Ferder (Town Hall)

[Jared] acts too weird... It just doesn't suit for him to be about 13 or 14 and still using walky-talkys and talking about world domination. ... It also seemed strange for someone to be talking about "The ultimate geekism" to be running around playing "spy." I liked how his character was used in this episode, though, with its mischievous side.

Review by Kathy M (Town Hall)

I didn't know yesterday's show was going to be a new one, until I hung around to see which re-run it wasn't. The first thing that i liked was that Mitch was in it again. He hasn't really been in a lot of shows, lately. Then when Jared came in I was so excited because I was wondering if they would ever bring him back. I didn't have a clue he had a brother, though. I thought that it was one of the best shows I've heard in a very long time. Kathy Wierenga really wrote a good one this time.

Review by Madison (Town Hall)

I'm SO happy that Mitch is in this ep, I cant believe that Jared is back!

Review by Steev75 (Town Hall)

Okay, Jared is back. I'm glad, but... The paranoia he displayed as a kid just doesn't seem very amusing now that he's an adolescent. I think he's gone from sounding merely eccentric to—how do I phrase this—borderline schizophrenic. In the first act, that is. He sounds a little more "normal" in the remainder of the episode. Maybe he's bipolar or something. Anyway, writers, can we keep him "strange" while stopping short of "crazy"?

Review by Bennett Charles (Town Hall)

Dude, seriously that is crazy. I thought the brother was going to be Nick. But it wasn't! Aw man! Crazy!

Is it just me, or did a lot of characters appear in this episode? I was so glad when Jared came back. That's it. I'm now satisfied. I always wanted a character who is a kid turning into a teen and comes back. Hopefuly, he'll come back. I think he's about 13 now, because Liz is 13. And there's no proof that Liz is in the same class as Marvin and Trent. So, good, we have two generations of kids. Hopefully, Odyssey will continue with Liz's and Jared's life and follow them further into their teens. Satisfied, I am. Jared came back from the dark tunnel!
As for Trent, I thought he sounded like a mini-Alex. His voce was okay. I'm cool with he and Marvin becoming the two main characters. There voices aren't as awful as Colby. Hopefully, Odyssey will continue with this lifestyle.

[The episode itself] was good. It had a good message, and it wasn't very similar to "A Little Credit Please." So that was good. The characters fit in nicely with the episode. It was funny hearing Mitch acting like he was familiar with the FBI. Wooton wasn't in it. I was afraid he might be.

Overall, a great episode! Good job Writers!

Review by Carolita (Town Hall)

This story is great! They brought my favorite character back in!

Review by E87M2 (Town Hall)

Hurrah! For some reason, I feel just how I did when I found out that Mitch was alive. Jared (DeWhite) is back! I sooo missed him. Does this mean that the DeWhites are going to be a "new" Odyssey family? Trent was actually better than I thought he would be. He reminded me of Jimmy Barclay for some odd reason. I feel sorry for him to have an older brother like Jared.

YES! We finally got a bit of Kids' Radio again! I think Mitch was great as Dr. Wise... and Connie should just stick to Candid Conversations. Oh, and I can't forget Rodney! Overall, I really liked the episode and especially the characters!

Review by Mandy Straussberg (Town Hall)

Now, is Trent the two-year-old who couldn't color inside the lines, or does Jared have two little brothers?

I'm so happy that Jared is back. I had a friend who wanted to buy "Countermoves" just so she could hear Jared again (before you say anything, yes she could have just bought the lone tape, but she's not smart enough to think of that and I knew she wasn't really going to buy the case anyway). I love Jared!

I really liked this episode. Back to the old Odyssey. But it seemed really similar to "Rewards in Full." Was it just me?

Great episode! Keep up the Jared--er--good work!

Review by Andy G Harvey (Town Hall)

Good ep! JARED YAY! I thought they were just gonna add a new kid and I got mad till I heard Jared.

Review by Carolyn (Town Hall)

To be honest I haven't been impressed with a majority of the episodes this season. But after finishing listening to this one a few seconds ago, I can't wipe the grin off my face.

First off, I never really liked Jared DeWhite. But hearing him in the episode was like "finding out Mitch was alive." It was delightful to know they're allowing teen voices in the mix. Also, Jared is strange, but the right kind of strange as opposed to Wooten.

Brings me to the next point. One of the few episodes that we don't hear Wooton in! <Hallelujah chorus starts in> Wooton in one episode is torture. In multiple? Ahhhhh!

Next point. I was a little disappointed that this lesson has already been done, but it was pretty much different. Good moral content, interesting, comical, and just normal Odyssey. Three claps for Kathy.

I'd give it a 4 out of 5 stars.

Consensus: Thumbs Up (16/19 positive reviews)

Yet another Odyssey show this season is getting very high marks from reviewers. While not as overwhelmingly positive as last week, "Disappearing Hortons" is getting high marks from fans. Most liked the second use of Jared DeWhite in as many weeks and Jared's encounter with some people very much like him. Others enjoyed hearing some references to Novacom and Andromeda. The mystery and surprise ending are also getting praise.

Review by Rachel, age 13
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This ep was good, way better than "It's All About Me." I'm not sure why, but Jared was easier to swallow, like he'd never left. The two old guys were great! I liked their voices.

Jasmine's another story. I can't think why the writers felt they needed to turn her into a hippy. I think most kids nowadays wouldn't recognize this culture, it being about 30 years past it's prime. I would have accepted her better if she was normal, but oh well.

Liz was fantastic again, her new character is so refreshing. She added all the drama required to give this a "mystery" feel. Unfortunatly, I felt kind of cheated at the quick and easy resolve. I didn't like how, for the last couple minutes, we just had to follow Jared around and watch him solve the mystery. But hey, Novacom is OVER (sniff) and people can only get into normal kinds of trouble for a while.

Review by Paul B
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Liz and her family vanish. Mandy and Jared look for them with a couple of...well, you might call them old Jareds. This is a good Liz episode.

Review by Mark, age 20
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This episode was pretty solid. The relationship between Mandy and Jared is a bit reminiscent of Isaac and Lucy, and I think this one also is a good combination. It's nice that Jared isn't quite as eccentrically portrayed as he was in some previous episodes. I really enjoyed the two older guys getting involved, also—a nice bit of comic relief, almost "Grumpy Old Men" style. I also enjoyed the "Sag, you're it" joke at the episode. Very funny.

However, one thing that I couldn't shake was the feeling of similarity between this episode and "Rumor Has It" with Jack and Lucy. While toned-down in intensity as compared to that episode, this one still featured a similar conspiracy setup with a simple explanation (and mysterious vehicles with suspicious cargo).

Not by any means a bad episode, but it just didn't seem as original as I had hoped it to be.

Review by a listener
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I was frankly disappointed. The pacing was slow and the dialoge was far from inspired. On top of that, there were three new characters added in (in a show with only seven!) who added very little to the plot and who could have been replaced with known characters with more depth. I spent most of the episode hoping that Liz's family WASN'T in the witness protection program. I loved the Novacom saga but it's time for some normal episodes for a while. When it ended I just felt like it was a story that could have been told so much better with more depth if looked at a different way. Instead, too much time was spent playing with the new characters (who are, as I type, heading down the hallway of no return) and then wrapping it all up in 2.3 seconds or something like that. Good effort for a new writer but far from standard AIO quality.

Review by Bradford G, age 12
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Poor Liz. I'm glad that she has friends like Mandy, Jared, Solly, Irving, and Mr. Whittaker who will help and who care. My sister at one point thought that in this ep that Eugene would return. It's good to know that even in times of trouble, we know that God is looking out for us. Amen. Good job AIO crew!! :-)

Review by Rip Winkle, age 15
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The two guys, I'm not sure who they were, were really funny. Another thing, when is Jared going to learn to drive?

Review by Mark, age 13
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Personally, I'm dissappointed. The story is pretty exiting, and it's good to hear from Jared again, but the ending was too insignificant. Liz's family disappears and they try to uncover this whole big mystery about where they went, and suddenly the episode ends with such a simple, plain ending. Throughout the episode, they build up to this big mystery and then it ends really puny.

Another thing I do not like is that we do not get anywhere, because at the end of the episode they just move back in with Jasmine (whom I do not like) in their old house. That does not develop the storyline at all.

The diary parts were lame, and the moral was irrelevant. Basing upon how much of a big case that they made it, and how simple the true story was, I'd think that the moral should be "Do not assume or jump to conclusions". Where does "Accepting help from others" come from?

This episode is one of the worst of the year, in my opinion.

Review by Bethany K, age 13
Rating:

This is the best one!!!

Review by Nathan, age 14
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I liked it. It had a suprise ending, but I do hope you continue the Novacom saga soon.

Review by Julie F, age 15
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I liked Jared's part in it. And I really hoped that the disapperance had something to do with Andromada, but now I'm almost, ALMOST, glad it didn't. I liked Jasmine and the two old guys. It was pretty good

Review by MH, age 12
Rating:

Very good. It's nice to hear Jared is himself again. There should be more like this. The music was great too!

Review by Fletcher
Rating:

"The Case of the Disppearing Hortons" was another great episode, and a winner as Bob Hoose's second solo episode. Not only is Jared featured again, but it's like he never left. Mandy was good here, if a little annoying. As much as I like her I wish she could have at least one flaw. She was definitely right about not going into Liz's house without permission, but it just seems at times that she could have gone with the flow more. However, I still like her character for the most part. The "Liz with her diary" scenes were good and gave an appropriate bittersweet feeling to this episode. It was wonderfull when Novacom and Andromeda were mentioned, and a great twist at the end when it was found out that Liz's dad had lost his job. It's a bit of a shock at first, I mean, her brother's in the military, but I got used to it. I really like Liz's character now. She's no longer a brat...she's human. This was a well-done mystery, too. Not as good as say "The Mysterious Stranger" or "The Pact" but good. I was actually beginning to think that Liz was in the Witness Protection Program and that Jared was actually right (big surprise). Again this was another great episode, and I can't wait for next week and "The Defining Moment!"

Review by Victoria, age 12
Rating:

This was a GREAT episode! I loved how Jared was in it and Mandy! I liked how it made everyone on the dge of their seats! I also loved how it made everyone think Andromeda/Novacom was behind it. Maybe Andromeda/Novacom is back! And Liz had to lie about the job! (now I'm beginning to sound like Jared!) This is one of the best this season! (They keep on geting better and better! GOOD!!) Keep it up with the mysteries!

Review by JoyElectric (Town Hall)

This is one of the most interesting shows they've done in awhile.

--Jared's back, again!
--Liz's diary bits were really good. She is much, much better nowadays. Thumbs up to whoever helped give her a bit more depth.
--The "new" characters were rather comedic, but almost too odd. The "Jasmine" character was almost too much of a stereotype.
--Arbitrary reference of Novacomm alert!

But overall, it was a good show. Something of a mystery show that proves Jared isn't a total wacko in his theories. Still, his "I love you guys!" comment was perfect. This guy needs to write for the New York Times.

Review by Carolita (Town Hall)

I thought it was cool!
--Jared actually solved a mystery! Wow!
--Liz...hmm...I still don't really like her. Maybe it's her voice.
--The new character, Jasmine...well, let's just say I hope we don't hear from her again.

Review by Ferder (Town Hall)

Great ep. A nice mystery with the usual false trails and eccentric characters. The old guys were pretty funny. Jared and Mandy were good in this ep.

Review by Kathy M (Town Hall)

I thought it was good. Not as good as last week, but definitely good. I thought Jasmine was hilarious! The guys from the retirement home were really funny, too. I liked the way how all of Liz's friends helped her and her family out.

Review by Anna K (Town Hall)

Sounds like everyone liked the episode! I thought it was good too, especially since Jared was on it! It had a good lesson, too.

Review by Mandy Straussberg (Town Hall)

I liked the episode a lot. IM (not so humble) O, this season is better (way better) than last season. I found last season really boring, but, so far, this season is really good.

Another name from Scarecrow and Mrs. King! (Yes, I am obsessed.) Mendelson. There was a Lois Mendelson on SMK. In my very sleepy mind this morning, it occured to me that if you scramble Lois, you can get Soli (though I realize this is not the way to spell the name). Nick Grant was another name that was on SMK. I think there was another one, too... but I can't remember.

Consensus: Thumbs Up (9/14 positive reviews)

Reviews of "The Defining Moment" are landing in the scale from "fair" on one side to "disappointing" on the other. For some reason, the Washington baseball adventure is getting the least favorable reviews in quite some time. Though the reviews have been fewer in number so far, most felt the episode wasn't as good as the rest of the season. Specifically, Whit's announcing, Marvin's self-esteem problem, and seeming similarity to other episodes were criticized. Many fans also admitted that they had little interest in baseball.

Review by Lindsay, age 20
Rating:

This episode wasn't all that bad. I was glad to see the Washingtons again, I think I am going to enjoy getting to know that family. I think the message of the story was clear, and very important. We need to strive to be our best in whatever position we are put in because we cannot always see the big picture. We don't always know how our actions affect the world around us.

Review by Hannah, age 12
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I LOVED it a lot!!!!!!!

Review by Nanci
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This was an ok show. Neat that there are still simple stories like this one.

Review by Kit, age 21
Rating:

I really liked this episode though it will never be one of the first I pull off the shelf to listen to. It harkened to the every-day life episodes so prevalent when Odyssey started and that's a good thing. It didn't deal with major relationship issues, a family fortune, or world takeover. It was just about a son trying to find what he's good at and a father trying to balance his son's best interest with the team's. I loved listening to the interaction between Marvin and his father (how long has it been since we've had a real family on the show?) and especially enjoyed hearing Whit walk into the W.E.C. store.

Call me crazy, but I'd be overjoyed if the next season features more shows like this, ones that focus on family and normal relationships and the everyday struggles that we all face. There's a place for international espionage, stereotyped characters (*Talia*), and relationship dysfunctionalities like Eugene and Katrina's forever engagement. But the heart of the show is in nearly forgotten episodes like this where action and sound effects are replaced by simple conversations.

That's why I gave this episode such a high rating. It isn't the most exciting, humorous, or dramatic of the season, yet without episodes like this, Odyssey would be little more than a variety show with little ability to change the lives of listeners as my own was changed years ago.

Review by Paul B
Rating:

The new Washington family has a good show. Kind of reminded me of an older Odyssey show titled, "The Secret weapon." Both were baseball adventures.

Review by JoyElectric
Rating:

An all right episode, but one that was just different enough to make it memorable. I like Ed Washington; he's got that unpredictability that reminds me of Whit. It's good to see that they're doing another show with the Washingtons next week. I liked the "under the bed" scene as well, and even the short talks between Whit and Ed. Some of it was a little predictable (we all knew they'd win at the end, but not how) and Marvin's whining was a bit much, but overall it was another good look into the Washington's life.

Review by Bradford G, age 12
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This is an ok episode. It kinda sounds like a remake of "The Secret Weapon." Xavier sounds like he cares about his family, and is willing to help where he can.

Review by MH, age 12
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I liked this episode, and I liked hearing from the Washingtons again, but the lesson has been used already.

Review by Fletcher, age 12
Rating:

"The Defining Moment" is a fine episode, but not as good as the other episodes this season. It's nice to hear from the Washington family again, or at least part of the Washington family. Elaine and Tamika were nowhere to be found. Elaine has been developed enough that she doesn't need to appear in this episode, but Tamika needs all the character development she can get. Xavier is a very interesting character, a bit rebellious at times, not silly like Nick, and very modern-minded. I loved refrences to past Odyssey sport teams. When I heard the teaser for this episode, I was annoyed because the Odyssey Panthers just appeared out of the blue, but thankfully the Coyotes and the Woodpeckers are still mentioned. It was nice to hear from Ashley again, all though she seems to be very like Mandy. I wish the AIO team wouldn't have added another kid character—Max, who was an annoying character at best. Overall a pretty good episode, and I'm looking forward to next week and what seems to be a old-west mystery in "The Mystery of Tin Flat."

Review by Ferder (Town Hall)

This episode wasn't much better than I thought it would be. And that's not a good thing. I am not a fan of baseball in the slightest so the ep's frequently used theme wasn't very interesting for me. I don't get how the kids on the team could have had such bad sportsmanship. It seemed unrealistic.

If we are going to hear about the Washingtons, do the eps always have to be about Marvin? He isn't that interesting a character. I think this is to do with his low self-esteem. Odyssey's most popular kids (Jared DeWhite, Jimmy Barkley, etc.) were cool because they weren't always moping around. Marvin isn't like this in every episode, though. He doesn't yet seem to have any consistent character traits. But back to what I was saying, I think it would be nice to hear eps about some of the other Washingtons.

Review by James M (Town Hall)

The ep was not too bad in my opinion. I like baseball. It was cool to see Whit announcing games again and Ashley Jenkins was a likable character.

Review by Hawkeye (Town Hall)

Overall, I was kinda dissapointed with this ep. And this is a first for me. I like nearly every ep, some more than others, but this episode had very little action (sorry, Im not much for sports), no real strong message, and I ask again, what is up with Marvin saying "Oink!"?

Review by Rosie (Town Hall)

I'm thinking Whit anouncing was definitely a mistake. I don't like the character of Marvin. It certainly was not the best ep.

It DOES have a lesson.... help in the way you can, not how you want to. Don't worry about being a hero, just do your best.

It would have been nice to see a baseball game again, but Whit should NOT have been announcing. He's busy with two shops, remember? Was it for Kids' Radio? Then it would have been a good opportunity to show that there where actually still kids involved. I guess they aren't anymore. I think if it was done a little differently, the baseball game part of it would have been cool.

Review by Jared Walczak (Town Hall)

"The Defining Moment" was anything but a defining moment for Adventures in Odyssey. More like a regrettable one, perhaps. I've generally enjoyed the work of Marshal Younger, but I think this episode was a flop. Boring, uninteresting... and did I mention boring?

My lack of interest in baseball contributes to my dislike of this episode, but even baseball fans would probably admit that it wasn't the most exciting episode in the world. Sure, slice of life shows have to be about normal life, but few things are less interesting than baseball games. Still fewer are used so frequently on Adventures in Odyssey.

I mean, what is it with little league baseball? Every kid in Odyssey has played at some point or another. Also, as to the announcing—who on earth would actually listen to play-by-play on a little league game? Parents would most likely be at the game. Would anyone else even care?

Whit seemed poorly suited to the announcing role. He came nowhere near the Jimmy Barclay/Lawrence Hodges quality of announcing, even if he did manage to stay on the game and not on curly fries. Or maybe staying on the topic at hand ("He pitches. He swings. He hits. He runs. First base. Ball to second." Repeat as necessary...) was the problem. But Whit managed to sound both overly excited and bored at the same time. It sounded as if his exuberance was fake. Obviously, it was. I'm sure Paul Herlinger wasn't jumping for joy at the part... But acting should be good enough that it sounds like he was.

Marvin seems to be the new kid with no self-esteem and to me, that's a boring theme and one that's been explored many times. In fact, it's even been explored with a baseball theme in a better episode, "The Secret Weapon."

Marvin's a little old to hide under the bed. At least they didn't provide under-the-bed room service for him, though. If I hear another "oink" out of Marvin, I just might go crazy.

The kids in this episode were far too critical of Marvin, but Ed Washington went too far in the end to make Marvin feel better. Perhaps Ed should have let Marvin hit, perhaps not. Coach's decision. With a family member involved, a difficult one.

But I didn't like the idea of making Marvin a co-MVP. His play wasn't deserving of it. You don't win everything. You aren't always given second, third and four chances. You aren't always honored and recognized even when you don't deserve it. Instead of being forced to learn this, though, Ed just told Whit to make it a double scoop of ice cream.

Marvin's pains suddenly cleared up when he got the ice cream. He was clearly lying to his dad. Isn't that a problem? Why no punishment? Not even a reprimand, a rebuke... Just hand the kid an ice cream cone and call him a hero. All will be well.

But wait—I thought we learned back in "Heroes" not to make heroes out of those not deserving of it. And I was under the impression that pride was a bad thing.

I consider this a boring episode with a weak theme. I'm not impressed.

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