619: A New Era I

[LizzieG]

Yay for the return of new episode discussions!

[Applesauce]

First!

I didn't have high expectations for this episode, but I actually thought it was great! It was much better than I was expecting, anyway. I like the direction this ep is heading, and I think I'm beginning to like the Leonard Meltsner story arc once again. A few parts I didn't like, and I still say the whole "disintegrating the bathtub" thing is a little far-fetched, but ah, well. That's Eugene for you.

[Samitude]

I really enjoyed the story and look forward to the next two parts. A couple of questions.

1) Do you think Joanne knows something about Thelma? She kind of questioned the name when Thelma was being discussed. It might have only been her not knowing who Thelma was. The only Thelma I can think of is to quote Bernard Walton, "Thelma Kline. That's who I was with when Kennedy got shot; ruined the whole evening." I don't think that has any connection though. Wouldn't Leonard be in a younger generation then Whit, Tom and Bernard?

2) It doesn't sound like Eugene's parents were on the best of terms. Do you think they fought before they Thelma died and never were able to make up?

3) The new Katrina doesn't bother me in the least, but her script does. Does anyone else think Katrina's lines sound like something Connie would say? Katrina never uses slang, shortened words or common phrases. She normally uses words of at least three syllables does she not?

[H Tide]

I really enjoyed this episode. It kept my interest all the way through, and I loved the flashback with Leonard...I thought it added more depth to his character. It definitely sounded like Thelma and Leonard didn’t have the best of marriages. I’m curious as to what Leonard hasn’t told Eugene about his past.

I enjoyed the nod to “Suspicious Minds,” with Eugene rigging up the fridge with electricity to help his parents lose weight. And as in “Run-of-the-Mill Miracle,” it was great hearing Dr. Morton again!

From the way Joanne paused when she said "Thelma," it made me wonder whether she knew her or knew something about her.

[Skid]

Is it just me or are all these episodes getting a little too intense? It may be a little too early in the story to be making judgments, but with the arguments between Leonard and Thelma and him suddenly having a kidney failure at the same time, I begin to feel like I'm watching a cheap soap opera.

[Space reserved for editing when I am not feeling like a grouch.]

[Danielle Abigail Maxwell]

I learned many things in this episode. But first, Dr. Morton again? It's like she's the only doctor in Odyssey out there!!!!!!! Can't there be more dcotor's? I could think of some new doctors for Odyssey...

I'm still not sure about this going on about Eugene and Leonard. What more cold possibly go on with that family? ANd I don't like Katrina anymore. The voice, ah! I thought it sounded like... I can't remember know. I was half listening when I was listening. But I still got the whole. And the Eugene and the bathtube thing was funny! It got me thinking on some things.
And Thelma? Wait, Eugene's mom, right? I think... ANd why is this only coming up now? Why not before?

BYe, Love, Marisol. That's me.

[Jeremy]

I gave it 2 stars, but only because I enjoyed some of the dialogue, especially the scene with Katrina and Leonard; well, until he passed out all the sudden--kinda ruined the whole scene. Otherwise, I would give it only 1 star. It was a horrible episode, from a plot standpoint.

They just introduced Everett, and now they don't even have him on the show?? (And they even had his actor, Shane Baumel, there--he played Eugene! And, that's another thing--if Eugene sounded just like Everett when he was little, then wouldn't Leonard have recognized the voice when he met Everett?) It sounded like Eugene and Leonard were just coming home from New York--but Everett came to Odyssey earlier, all by himself? And stayed with...a stranger named Katrina? And then they don't even mention Everett for the rest of the episode! He hasn't even gotten to know his dad, and now his dad is dying in a hospital? It just doesn't make sense. Not to mention that they still haven't told Everett that Eugene is his brother!

And Katrina also bothers me. It sounds like the actress is no longer even really trying to sound like Katrina. And again, as others have mentioned, why have they "dumbed down" Katrina? They now have her making fun of Eugene's "intellectual geekiness," when Katrina used to be the same way herself. Why have they totally changed her character??? Imagine if they had done something like that to Eugene when he came back! And yet I haven't seen much of an outrage from the fans about the "dumbing down" of Katrina.

Jeremy

P.S. I also thought that Joanne's reaction sounded like she knew Thelma. But perhaps it was just Janet Waldo over-acting? And it also sounded like Leonard might be hinting that Thelma was a Christian.

[zuzus_petals]

I do not like the new storys. I like the older episodehttp://www.thetoo.com/images/smiles/eusa_eh.gif

[Taq]

The three flashbacks were great. The bathtub scene was the best. It further developed Leonard as a sinister guy, along with his comment about himself being “anything but thoughtful.” The Everett actor did well as young Eugene. Plus this developed something we’d heard about earlier much like The Triangle.

Loved this line by Whit: “A Meltsner being obstinate on matters of faith?”

Dr. Morton! It’s nice to hear an old voice, and she acted well.

Oh, I told an M.D. about Leonard’s background: ~60 year old male (on the fly estimation, not sure how old he’s supposed to be) who lived in a third world country most of his life. Back in the States, fainted, type 2 diabetic, needs a kidney… Anyway the doc said it was plausible.

Normally I’d wait to rate, but I’m giving this 5 stars now. Everything about A New Era seemed so natural, put together. Prisoners of Fear (Has it really been 2 years?), Eugene’s childhood projects (dissolving the tub, adding an alarm to the fridge), Leonard the Enigma who’s internally and externally conflicted, the development of Thelma, a deep spiritual issue with Aman. We got a lot of progress, and I learned a lot about the characters. What a spectacular season opener!

Only disappointment: Lack of Everett. Everett had better appear at least 3 times this season!

Final comment about Katrina: The actress did take some getting used to, but not once did her acting get in the way of my listening enjoyment. Yes, I wish her dialogue would be brainier, but let’s not forget that she did act cleverly to record Dalton saying his name in The Top Floor.

[Elrohir]

It may be a little too early in the story to be making judgments, but with the arguments between Leonard and Thelma and him suddenly having a kidney failure at the same time, I begin to feel like I'm watching a cheap soap opera.

I kinda felt like that too, but then I remembered that that kind of stuff actually happens in real life.

And yeah, I was hoping to hear from Everett this episode.

[Kait]

I liked the episode, but I didn't love it.

I'm probably not being quite fair here, because the new Katrina bugged me. I normally don't mind new character voices so much, but for some reason, this one just bugged me!

And she didn't seem her usual Katrina-ish self. She normally talks more like Eugene does, large words...no slang...etc.


I rated it 3 stars!

[WatchaCall]

Didn't care for it. Too soap-opera-ish. I'm certainly not connecting with the character of Leonard Meltzner. I don't find him very likeable or believeable. Maybe I'm missing something.

[Rachel Maxwell]

Hopefully this will not make me sound juvenile...but I loved it! I didn't find Everett coming home alone so weird-I thought Whit came home early and Everett went with him-remember, Leonard himself is a stranger right now.

I wonder if Thelma saying Eugene meant 'well-born' meant something...and I'm wondering if maybe DALTON is really Eugene's dad. Ok, far out, I know. But I loved this episode. References to previous episodes (Yaay!), flashbacks, and why is Eugene and Everett sounding alike weird? I sound like, almost exactly like my mom and nobody thinks it's weird, so it's not that funky for Eugene and Everett to sound alike.

But Everett better show up 3x.

About Katrina-yeah, she sounds a little dumbed-down. But I think that has more to do with her character than the actress. Sure, she's given Katrina a new dimension, but that's all. Katrina is changing, like people in real life. We can't expect even fictional characters to stay the same. Katrina is loosening up-losing her stiffness.

[amyinodyssey]

I'm so happy that Odyssey is finally back! I'm really looking forward to this season. A while back I posted that I thought Eugene and Katrina were having a baby named Eugene but I think I might have heard wrong. Leonard and Thelma are having a baby named Eugene.

Normally when it comes to 2 or 3 part episodes I wait a few weeks to listen so that I can listen to them all at once without too much suspense. But I was so eager for this episode I just had to listen to it.

I really like hearing the behind the scenes stories about people because it seems like I don't hear that much detail about characters before they came to Odyssey. Like what are the chances that Leonard would have a flash back to his memories of Thelma naming their baby or Eugene pulverizing the bathtub? They could have put in anything to fill up that memory.

[Taq]

Oh, I'm afraid young Eugene confused some chemistry terms. It doesn't make sense to describe a concentration as volatile. Volatility (that the substance can quickly go to the vapor form) and concentration (amount of substance dissolved) both describe the substance/chemical. In any case, I can give the young genius some grace since he was under Leonard's wrath at the time...

[the_newfie_haystack]

*Clears throat*


I LIVE!!!

Seriously, I've been away almost all summer. Pure insanity. Now, for my observations!

1. Anyway, when I first heard the argument/flashback between Leonard and Thelma, this is the first thing that popped into my mind.
"Um, ok, it sounds like Thelma just informed her husband that her baby has Down's Syndrom or something like that, and Leonard told her to get an abortion."
Seriously, that's the first thing that popped into my head! Oh well.

2. The return of the Edu-Link!

3. "They believe there is either no God, or that they're gods themselves." My alert sensers just went off in my brain. I can hardly believe that the Ashantis are turning New Age. That's just plain wrong.

4. Poor Aman. Being spiritually attacked like that when you're a new christian is horrible, and I know several people who can testify to that.

5. "A Meltsner being obstinate on matters of faith?" Like father, like son indeed. Rock on, Whit.

6. Rofl! "Diet by electrocution."

7. Yay Thelma and Leonard! Yay making their marriage work!

8. Oh snap! September 4th is my cousin's b-day!

9. Um, Leonard's passing out was rather abrupt.

10. Doctor Morton AGAIN? Man, she sure gets around.

11. XD The bathroom scene. Way to freak out, Leonard.

12. Joanne SO knows Thelma. I mean, seriously.

Anyway, those are my observations. Now, on to Part Two! *Marches forward.*

[Taq]

In response to a couple Dr. Morton comments, I like her:
1. Continuity
2. Odyssey is a tiny town that has a limited number of physicians
3. The actress does good work

3. "They believe there is either no God, or that they're gods themselves." My alert sensers just went off in my brain. I can hardly believe that the Ashantis are turning New Age. Shock That's just plain wrong.

I thought the New Age component and the Ashantis were a weird mix at first. The devil and other people could have planted lies in their heads, though, so I don't have a problem with this after all.

[Katrina]

A new Era almost made me cry and it was so sad so it made me very sad. But then I was hyper after so that was good. But I liked the fact that Eugene new Joane all thoose years ago that was cool. But I think they should have had Everett in that Odyssey because the only one we heard Everett in was The Top Floor.