Late 90s/Early '00s Episodes

[Bob]

All right, this entire post is going to look interesting, considering how almost every post I've made prior to this point criticizes what I call "silly" episodes, while staunchly defending all of those largely-forgotten serious slice of life eps.

However, a week or two ago, I went on to the Whit's End page to discover the new "Radio" feature, which most of you already are familiar with. I think they were playing "The Great Wishy Woz". I listened to that one, and a good number of the episodes after it, stopping somewhere around the early Novacom episodes.

Then, about three or four days ago, I tuned in and they were going through all of the late '90s episodes -- I started listening after "Blackgaard's Revenge", going through "The Buck Starts Here", and then infamous eternal classics like "The Eternal Birthday" and "The YAK Problem", and so on.

And y'all know what? It was a *huge* nostalgia kick. I don't know why, but it brings tears to my eyes, thinking about those episodes, the times I listened to them when they were brand new, and all of the great characters they had back then. They kept almost the entire core of kid characters from '99, to, I'd guess all the way up to the end of the Novacom series, and I've really fallen in love with the group they had back then. Jared DeWhite, Mandy and David Straussberg, Sarah Prachett, eventually Aubrey Shepherd, Alex Jefferson, and all of the rest -- they all had their own distinct personalities, and really came together as complete characters.

I still think that from a logical point of view, the episodes and their plots are technically worse written than some of the others, but the entire era just brings back memories of when I listened to them long ago. I feel that the mood was really light-hearted back then, more so than at any other time in Odyssey history, including the present.

I know "Virtual Realities" and the other albums of that era don't get very good ratings. If I was to think about it objectively, I couldn't rate them very well myself... but at this point in time, I don't care. Most of those episodes are just fun, and with very few exceptions, I think they are a great part of Odyssey history. Maybe they weren't perfect, maybe some things could've been done better, but looking back twelve or so years ago, I think they were all right.

Feel free to reminisce on what you liked about those episodes with me. Try not to be negative -- everyone's talked about what they didn't like about that era a million times, and I think it's time to look on the bright side.

P.S.: No, I'm not kidding.

[King Butter Turtle]

I find it interesting that among a list of episodes from that era that are known for not being liked very well, you include The Buck Starts Here and The YAK Problem. I generally think of those as being some of the least objected to from that time. (along with episodes like I Slap Floor and maybe Passages) I agree, though, that those episodes, as a whole, get a lot of unnecessary flak. Yes, some are... inferior (especially the splits) but, they're not all bad. There are actually some fun ones in there.

[Peachey Keen]

Personally, I love a lot of the late 90s shows (the split eps, not so much)! The humor and characters at that point in Odyssey was the best.

[Lee]

Personally, I love a lot of the late 90s shows (the split eps, not so much)! The humor and characters at that point in Odyssey was the best.

Exactly! Honestly, when I'm looking for an ep to listen to, I usually head right for these types of episodes. The Great Wishy Woz is a personal favorite of mine.

Thanks for bringing this up, Bob. I totally agree.

[Smaug the Dragon]

I think you really hit it with 'distinct characters'. I feel each of those kid characters were so vivid and different, and have stayed memorable and lovable to this day because of it. My sister and I were just discussing how we loved the episodes from this era. It wasn't really thr content we loved, we just loved hearing from our favourite kid characters. It's a real trip down memory lane.

[Knight Fisher]

My only complaint about this time period is The Eternal Birthday.