Hypothetically Speaking: Eugene's Disappearance?

Whit's wiping down the counter, Connie's mopping the floor, and the kids are sipping on their milkshakes. If you want to talk about Adventures in Odyssey the radio drama, this is the spot to do just that!
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Bren
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Hypothetically Speaking: Eugene's Disappearance?

Post by Bren »

With the recent passing of Will Ryan, the Odyssey team has some big decisions to make. Suppose they wrote him out without killing the character. How would you do that? In theory they could bring Leonard back temporarily since Phil Procter plays Don Polehouse.

Thoughts?
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Post by Bob »

Well, the simplest solution plot-wise would be for Eugene to perish, but that's probably the least likely and least desirable outcome as either a fan or as a member of the AIO team.

Recasting is not an option, of course.

So given those two things, the question is what you want to do with Katrina and Buck, who are both inextricably tied to Eugene. As long as you have them and want them both as regular recurring characters, you have to stall. In the short-term, there's enough Eugene and Will Ryan material that they could conceivably get by for a stretch of time by piecing together clips from old episodes, so long as Eugene doesn't show up any more often than absolutely necessary for the plot. For episodes where he's absent, when you have to explain his absence, there's all kinds of excuses you could come up with - he's working at the college, he's in some other part of the country for a scientific project or meeting, he's visiting Africa and they didn't want to disrupt Buck's life unnecessarily (if they could take him out of the country at all; for a foster situation I'm not sure if that would work) - to drag it out for as long as you have to.

In the long run, health trouble with Leonard is the most obvious answer. He's said to only have '3-10 years to live', and that was 3+ years ago, before Tom Riley died. The family connection seems the most clear way to phase out Eugene as a permanent character, and this is evidently the option the AIO team approved of, since it was the plot for "End of an Era". The only thing that has changed since then is Buck.

Based on AIO timeline work, as of 'Crash Course', we know that Buck is at least 16. I'd have to do further investigation to see where the characters 'should' be in the timeline, but once Buck turns 18, he can be expected to be legally independent, and then his character is not tied to the Meltsners in the way that it has been. You could have them move away or something at that point, or a little later, if you wanted to. We know that they've both gone to colleges that were some distance away from their parents/guardians, so they wouldn't necessarily have to be in town if Buck was enrolled somewhere (like Campbell County Community). This wait until Buck's coming of age might keep the situation in limbo for three or four real-world years, though, and I suspect most fans would like to hear some sort of resolution to Eugene's status before then (judging by how Legacy turned out). If they introduced the plot of Leonard's health problem 'now' (as soon as practicable), then you could find ways to keep Eugene busy or out of the country for a few months or years until Buck's status is resolved, and it would be understood, both plot-wise, and in the sense of breaking it to listeners, that it is his 'exit' arc.
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Post by Catspaw »

Bob, you have some interesting thoughts here. I think I'm on board with the "stall until you come up with a really awesome solution" plan you suggest. Your ideas (Eugene's on a trip etc.) are plausible and since there are so many great characters on AIO, it could be a couple of albums at least with a few references or a reused line from elsewhere while the writing team sorts out of the best plan. It's going to be tough regardless. I don't want to see Eugene meet a tragic end, but I just can't see a replacement being likely, so a temporary absence leading to a permanent one with a good explanation seems like a decent plan. Of course, I expect the AIO team to come up with something awesomer than me!
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Post by KODY 105 »

Eugene died in a car crash. End of story. It happens in real life. (And no, I'm not bitter about you-know-what. It really does happen.)
Have a good grieving episode for Katrina. And then in 3 more seasons she meets the new Mr. Katrina Shanks and moves away from Odyssey. And then in a few years Buck comes back from college, works at the local auto mechanic shop, and contributes to the tinkering necessary at Whit's End. Right around that time, Whit moves away (Andre Stojke, unfortunately bad things happen to the men who play Whit. Please be careful!) before he has a chance to die.

Bob, in your timeline, how old is the WWII-vet Whit?
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Post by Bob »

KODY 105 wrote: Thu Dec 16, 2021 2:17 pm Eugene died in a car crash. End of story. It happens in real life. (And no, I'm not bitter about you-know-what. It really does happen.)
That is a possible option that would certainly provide a decisive answer to the problem. I'm not sure that it's the kind of thing they'd actually do, though.
KODY 105 wrote: Thu Dec 16, 2021 2:17 pm Bob, in your timeline, how old is the WWII-vet Whit?
The proof can be long and involved, but a quick and easy projection can be done based on Connie and Jules' timelines.

The AIO beginning date can be projected from early episodes. In Connie Comes to Town, Connie was a waitress "last summer" in California. The minimum age to work as a waitress in California was 14. Connie is 15 in Stormy Weather, and of that episode she still hasn't been in town long, so it is reasonable to guess she is 15 as of her introduction.

In "The Price of Freedom", just a few episodes before "Stormy Weather", we learn that Captain McGinty was killed in Vietnam, apparently during the American evacuation, which would most likely be '75. Kirk was born after his father's death, and is 12 as of this episode. This would date the chronological year in AIO time at '88, which was also the year these episodes were being released. This seems to indicate Connie would have likely been born in 1973.

Jules was born as a result of Bill and Jan's very short marriage, which can be dated (although I don't have "Life Expectancy" handy to do it from). I think the order is that he married Jan after April but before May. We see April in "Father's Day", where Connie is at least 16. So, Connie could be as much as 17 years older than Jules, although 16 may be possible, and 15 might not be impossible.

In "California Dreams", Jules is said to be 16. Assuming this is true, this would seem to place Connie at being somewhere from 31 to 33 years old. 1973 + 33 = 2006, so that gives us an approximate 'maximum year' the show timeline could be at.

Guadalcanal was from 1942-1943, and Mr. Whittaker was either in his 'late teens' or 'early 20s' at the time. Without doing an extensive study of his age, in the present day in AIO time, and allowing for mistakes and ambiguities in these rudimentary calculations, he would be elderly, from a range like 80-86 years old. Considering his current activities, he could certainly be said to be well-preserved, but not yet to the point 'above the lot of mortals'.
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Post by Wod Fam Choc Sod »

I'm all for him and Katrina going to Africa to join his dad as missionaries. That wouldn't be quite as heartbreaking as killing Eugene off. If they did, I would promptly stop listening to Odyssey... forever. I certainly wish they could recast him, though. There have been three Whits, you know. Buck could always move in with someone else. Here's what is probably an unpopular opinion: Jason and Connie could get married and adopt Buck.
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Connie: (whispering) Oh, she looks beautiful, doesn't she?
Jason: (also whispering) Beautiful.
Connie: (tearfully) Everyone looks beautiful!
Jason: Yes, Connie, they're all beautiful.
Connie: Your dad. Oh... he looks great in that tuxedo. He's... oh... he's...
Jason: Beautiful.
Connie: (still fighting tears) Yeah. And Katrina in that dress...
Jason: She got her stitches out just in time.
Connie: (quavering) I think I'm gonna cry.
Jason: Here's my hankie.
Connie: *sniffs* Thank you.
Jason: I knew all along, by the way.
Connie: Well, good for you. Can I cry now, or are you gonna keep talking?
Jason: Have a good cry.
Connie: (sobbing) Thank you. *dramatic sobs* *blows nose*
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Post by Catspaw »

Wod Fam Choc Sod wrote: Mon Jan 17, 2022 9:10 am Here's what is probably an unpopular opinion: Jason and Connie could get married and adopt Buck.
I always had a soft spot for the idea of Jason and Connie together, so I like that idea, in the "it will never happen in the show but I still think it would be nice" kind of way. :D I agree that I prefer a resolution that doesn't involve a tragic demise.
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Post by bookworm »

Bob wrote: Wed Dec 15, 2021 2:17 pmRecasting is not an option, of course.
Why not?
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Post by Bob »

bookworm wrote: Thu Jan 20, 2022 12:53 pm
Bob wrote: Wed Dec 15, 2021 2:17 pmRecasting is not an option, of course.
Why not?
I suppose I took this for granted, so when you asked I didn't have a ready answer. I've read up on the discussion other people have had about it, though, to help inform my intuition, as well as mulled it over some more myself.

In a sense, I suppose you could say that Eugene is too important to recast, and not important enough to recast.

Most people seem to agree that it is unlikely anyone is likely to 'do the character justice' in a recast. This is often true for recasted characters, which is why the AIO team doesn't do them often. Major or otherwise significant characters who have left and not been recasted include Tom Riley, Jack Allen, Bernard Walton, June Kendall, and Bill Kendall. Bart Rathbone was recast for all of one episode before they apparently gave up on the idea. They tried a recast for David Parker, a character who was only active since album 51, and the recast looks to have only lasted for four episodes. We can conclude their "success rate" with recasting major adult characters is not especially high.

You might say, "Whit was recasted and that seemed to work out fine". Well, there are several things I'd say in response to that. Firstly, Paul's voice was considered to be a very close match to Hal's, probably as close as anyone could hope to get. There's no known similar voice match for Will Ryan as Eugene; they apparently explored recasting Eugene a while back, when Will Ryan was unavailable, and failed.

Secondly, I think people were willing to overlook minor differences in the Whit recasting because Whit was traditionally considered to be the 'main character'. Eugene isn't. Similarly, while other characters have been recast because they were necessary for a more major character or family unit to function (like numerous individual Parkers, Mary Barclay, Rachel Straussberg, and actually, Katrina Meltsner), there's no reason it is 'necessary' to recast Eugene.

Thirdly, although Hal is and will always be the definitive Whit to me, he actually played Whit for less than a decade. Will Ryan has played Eugene for 30+ years. if it's difficult to get a new actor for Tom Riley, Bernard Walton, et al., we would expect it to be no less so for him. The longer you have someone in a role, the more difficult it seems to be, emotionally, to successfully substitute for them.

Fourthly, I've argued in the past that Whit's recasting was not necessary, and in some respects, may have even made the show worse and prevented other characters from developing! If even Whit is not a strictly essential character, it's hard to imagine that Eugene could be either, and if he's not strictly essential, then why pull out all the stops to keep the character active? The show has existed without Eugene, both before, and during the Novacom/post-Novacom era. Moreover, the writers have planned for a Eugene-less show in the past, as of "End of an Era". I suspect it is easier to imagine and develop the show without Eugene than it is to imagine someone else playing his role.

Now, I spoke too hastily and decisively when I said earlier that 'recasting is not an option'. On further review, I've come to suspect that if you can recast Whit after Hal Smith, there's no artistic reason why you shouldn't be able to recast anyone. The question shouldn't be just about recasting vs. not recasting, but whether the voice works for the role. It is possible that there is some marvelous actor somewhere who can swoop in and play the role brilliantly. If such a person exists, then certainly we can have a conversation about whether their taking over the part would be a good idea. But if there is no such person - and the AIO team, presumably including the actors and actresses themselves, who know most people in the VO industry, weren't aware of any as of 2007 - I am convinced there is no reason to try to force it to work.
Last edited by Bob on Sat Jan 22, 2022 7:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by bookworm »

Good explanation, thanks!

I wasn't sure if you had made that remark from the reasoning of Eugene being one of the most distinctive voices (both literally in tone, and metaphorically as a character) to be impossible to have someone else start playing the part and be accepted by listeners. My response to that would be the same can be said about Whit, to an even greater degree, and they recast him. Whether you think they should have or not is one thing, but if they did it there it's certainly an option here.

I like your point of looking at it from the other direction though of whether there would be enough purpose in recasting purely from a narrative standpoint. I haven't been caught up on the show in many years so I have no idea how central Eugene is to AiO happenings these days. If the character isn't critically front and center anymore then yes recasting just to have him around if and when they want him for something isn't probably the best move, he could just be written out like the other characters you mentioned.

So I think recasting is an option, strictly speaking, but how necessary it would be and whether it would be worth doing is something they would consider several factors for.
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Post by Catspaw »

Bob wrote: Sat Jan 22, 2022 12:37 pm
bookworm wrote: Thu Jan 20, 2022 12:53 pm
Bob wrote: Wed Dec 15, 2021 2:17 pmRecasting is not an option, of course.
Why not?
Thirdly, although Hal is and will always be the definitive Whit to me, he actually played Whit for less than a decade. Will Ryan has played Eugene for 30+ years. if it's difficult to get a new actor for Tom Riley, Bernard Walton, et al., we would expect it to be no less so for him. The longer you have someone in a role, the more difficult it seems to be, emotionally, to successfully substitute for them.
Bob, I appreciate your thorough analysis of the situation. Your third reason really resonated with me. I think there are the practical considerations you mentioned and I think the longevity of Will Ryan's work on AIO, specifically as Eugene and also a variety of other minor characters, it a big reason as to why I would have such a hard time hearing a recast version.

This is one of those tough decisions that I'm glad not to be the decision-maker. I can live with whatever the AIO ends up deeming best.
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