Episode Reviewed: The
Benefit of the Doubt (507)
Writer: Marshal
Younger
Production
Engineer: Bob
Luttrell
Original
Airdate: 2/08/03
Rating
(Out of 5 cones): 
|
The
Benefit of the Doubt
[Episode
Info]
Episode
Summary: Mitch is trying
to find a job in Odyssey, but finds that his work at Novacom scares
away potential employers.
Theme:
Discrimination
(Jeremiah 1:17)
|
"...I
take my job as a bully very seriously. A lot of people don't realize how
much paperwork's involved. So are you here as a customer or a punching bag?" [Rodney
Rathbone]
The
Review
When
the Novacom Saga ended in July 2002, I had a feeling that it’d be hard to
adjust to “normal” episodes in Adventures in Odyssey after
hearing constant, fast-paced adventures for nearly two years. I had also
thought that since the Saga was over, they’d only be producing
slice-of-life shows, and nothing would pertain to the Novacom Saga. I was
pleasantly wrong when The
Benefit of the Doubt
aired on the radio. Not only is it about Novacom in a new and different
way… it’s also connecting the characters into the aftermath of
everything that happened.
Colby
Cabrera isn’t a character I soon want to say goodbye to. To me, he has
that innocence a lot of the current characters don’t have. What I mean
when I say that is Colby seems to be a quiet, polite kid. He has his edgy
times, and I believe I was able to hear a glimpse into Adventures in
Odyssey’s past. Most of the old characters didn’t have that
seemingly constant joking manner. If you look at Alex Jefferson, for
example, you see that in almost every one of his lines, he throws a joke or
an implied pun. Colby doesn’t have that. Colby’s character doesn’t
appear to be there for the entertainment; he’s there because he lives in
Odyssey.
I
really liked the aspect of what happens to a company if its leadership goes
down the drain. The way in which the writer depicted the trials of all
Novacom’s employees looking for jobs after the mess was realistic and
needed to put some closure on the Novacom Saga. Also the direction The
Benefit of the Doubt
took with Colby’s father’s Novacom troubles was a good way to steer. I
enjoyed hearing another one of Connie’s incessant nitpickings. She used to
do that a lot on the show when Eugene was around, but I finally got to hear
her again, this time accusing all Novacom employees of being crooks. When it
was time for Connie to apologize to Colby at his house… now that makes for
some good Connie!
I
was extremely pleased with the music, probably one of the reasons I like the
episode so much. Pat Woodland, the composer for the music of The
Benefit of the Doubt,
needs to get invited to compose for AIO more often. The calmer music style
helped me to take in the episode without being overwhelmed by too much
music. A little music is all we ever needed. The music in this episode
actually reminded me of the music in Wish You Were Here,
and that’s definitely something to mention. I always liked the music
during Bernard and Eugene’s journey to California, and it was good to hear
similar music again. If only AIO would listen to little ol’e me and start
toning it down on the music!
Now
we come to the end of the episode. Right when Colby’s father called his
son downstairs to scorch him out for tapping into his meeting, I could feel
the fear that Colby was feeling… and the conversation resulting was done
very well. Lately on Adventures in Odyssey, I feel that the tender
scenes have been a bit pushed, only to finish off the episode. This time I
felt that the scene fit. The actors actually cared about their parts and the
tenderness was not forged. I like that. Some examples of forged scenes
include Mandy Straussberg and her mother at the end of Worst
Day Ever, and Bernard and Whit at the end of Nova
Rising. I tried to think of more for over ten minutes, but none came to
mind. Maybe that’s a good thing?
The
Rating
In
conclusion, I’m extremely pleased with the angle this episode took and
I’m looking forward to hearing more episodes with this music style. I give
The
Benefit of the Doubt
3 and ½ cones out of 5.
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