Saying Good Bye to the Novacom Saga
By Jacob Isom
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August 10, 2002
Everybody says good bye sometime in their life. Sometimes it means
months of agony-filled waiting for a long-awaited return and sometimes it means no more
doggy puddles on the freshly mopped floor. Today I don't come to you with the good option:
dry linoleum floors. I do come to you with this article to express the more painful
situation. If someone is in the correct frame of mind when they are saying good bye, it is
most likely that they are saying good bye to a brother and/or sister to a college far, far
away, and a painful, emotional memory haunts their mind for the next four years. This
victim is experiencing a sense of loss, sadness, and an undeniable longing which
penetrates their very being. The scene keeps coming back to them. The "I'll be back
sooner than you think" cliche rings in the victim's ears. This victim, dumbfounded,
upset, can barely even speak. Those two dreaded words slip from a mouth, seeming as if in
slow motion. "Good bye." In this article I intend to show you what many
Adventures in Odyssey fans are going through now that the Novacom Saga has come to its
demise, along with the strengthening hope that the bad guys will come back.
One may question why someone would waste hours of precious daylight
writing articles, opinion pieces, etc. if it doesn't benefit the individual who writes it.
The truth is, I will occasionally begin a writing piece for school. Wait...scratch that.
Let's take this situation for example: My English teacher (for example: Mrs. Ingles)
assigns a two-page critical analysis on "War and Peace." I'll have you know that
my mind is so odd that I begin the essay with a pencil and a blank piece of paper, my mind
in a fixed position, my head unmoving. The wall on the other side of the classroom has a
nice appeal at a time like this. It's amazing how much fun you can have while staring at a
wall during a class assignment. Oh, the many ideas and inspirations that come with fixing
your stare at a concrete wall. My mind begins to race with thoughts. First I think of the
splinter in my thumb and then I begin contemplating on how I can successfully remove it
with the least pain possible.
Next I begin to think about what type of flan I want to eat
after dinner. Then my mind takes yet another turn. Now I am worrying whether or not I
washed all the zit cream off my face before I came to school. I carefully and hesitantly
start rubbing my face so as not to draw attention to myself. There, the position I had
been waiting to be in has arrived. My face continues to glare at the wall... left hand
resting on the left side of my face... pencil in hand. An idea comes to me. I begin
writing profusely, burning the morning oils, scribbling down some really neat chicken
scratches that form a melodious masterpiece of words, syllables, and run-on
sentences, just as you are reading now.
My eyes lift themselves and scan the room. The
teacher, worried about what I am writing, gives a nervous smile as my eyes drift back to
the wall. Another idea comes to me. Now I am writing at full force, perfect handwriting
all the way through, words all aligned on the lines of the paper. Pretty soon my mind has
returned back to consciousness and the girl next to me asks me, "What are you
doing?" and my drifting daydream fades away completely. For, the girl has noticed
that I am now glaring at the wall across the room, letting out all stress, my hand moving
profusely. I then realize that I had not been looking at the paper at all. The wall across
the room now looks more vivid as I advert my gaze to the blue-eyed girl to give a
reasonable explanation. I then have to inform her that staring at the wall on the other
side of the room provides inspiration and nuggets of ideas.
I now reach my first point: Staring at the wall isn't that bad.
Allow me to clarify.
The classroom wall of inspiration proves its point. Adventures in
Odyssey is a classroom wall. I stare at it for inspiration. I look at it for ideas. It's
in this type symbol that we see not only the wall, but the cracks as well. On the
left-hand side of the wall I see what appears to be bricks. White bricks. White bricks
that appear to be brand-new. I now fix my stare at the center of the wall. It seems to
have a sagged indentation that follows diagonally across the wall. To the right
the crack makes its way in a 45 degree line, missing a degree or two. The
jagged line eventually fades into what seems to be old bricks. Bricks
you'd only see in a dark, gloomy house on Halloween.
Now
why did I just define every nook and cranny of the classroom wall and why
am I inspired from it? My previous paragraph can easily be summed up in
three points, my way of re-enforcing... uh... something.
The
Classroom Wall of Inspiration:
1.
Left Side: I see what appears to be bricks. White bricks. White bricks
that appear to be brand-new.
2.
Center: It seems to
have a sagged indentation that follows diagonally across the wall.
3.
The jagged line eventually fades into what seems to be old
bricks.
4.
Let's add a fourth point. There.
The
four points that you just read (I lied when I said I'd mention three
points) are helpful in breaking down the paragraph, but don't really mean
anything. Or do they? In my mind, everything means something. Allow me to
break those four points above down into four more points that you'll be
able to understand:
The
Consistency of the Classroom Wall of Inspiration:
1.
It's made out of bricks.
2.
The fact that it has a crack down the center and trailing to the right
obviously states that not only is there an indentation of some sort, but
there must have been some untimely corrosion and/or rain damage within the
history of its tough, brick surface.
3.
Some of the bricks are new.
4.
Some of the bricks are old.
5.
And let's add a fifth point. There.
I
know, I know... that means nothing. But no! Remember I said that
everything means something! Aha! This paragraph means something! My life
means something! Oh yeah... I knew that. I'm getting off topic and my most
humble apologies escape from my lips.
As
I was saying, everything means something and the five points you just read
(I lied again) do mean something, which I will
explain later. For now (if you can remember), think back to the first four
points I gave you a moment or so ago. No, not the "Meaning," but
the wall. A moment ago I described for you what the
left, center, and right sides looked like... try to remember. It really
isn't that hard considering you have some years left ahead of you. Now
what does the wall mean?
The
Meaning of the Classroom Wall of Inspiration:
1.
The left side of our beloved wall (the very wall I spent staring at to
articulate my words on a piece of paper) appears to be new bricks. Either
someone burned the school down one year and the right side survived, or
someone has a really nice power sprayer. No matter. The situation before
us is a stack of brand-new bricks. Bricks consisting of whatever a brick
is made of. Hard stuff. The bricks are brand-new, meaning that most likely
if someone decided to run into the wall, the resistance of the wall would
push on you with an equal force, knocking you to the ground and giving you
an undeniable headache, nosebleed, or internal damage.
Yes,
nosebleeds are no fun and the realization that someone saw you hit the
concrete wall doesn't help either. That nosebleed represents... [drum roll
please]... um... something.
[drum roll
continues]... the many inconveniences placed on the fictional characters
of Odyssey during the Novacom Saga! Obviously nosebleeds are no fun,
unless you're some weird person who enjoys losing quarts and quarts of
precious blood that helps you live. Anyways, the beginning of the Novacom
Saga erupted in a painful nosebleed. Characters were introduced, plotlines
were slowly unfolding, and the Saga was brand-new.
2.
The center of our beloved wall (you remember the one... No! It isn't the
one with crayon markings on it, though someone would think it was crayon
from that big, jagged line going up) represents the many inconveniences
placed on the characters of Odyssey. Things such as Eugene leaving
Odyssey, Armitage's brain tumor, and Arthur Dent's... um... brain
tumor are all on the center of the wall. The crack slowly corrodes through
time and the plotlines get bigger. Powder Puff Girls, NovaBoxes, and
greasly chips all lead up to one thing: mind control.
That
is the part of the wall I find myself staring at the most, the part of the
wall that inspires, helps, and defends its prominent starer! Everything
about the Novacom Saga was very suspenseful and the plot drew people in.
It inspired, aggravated, and otherwise made people go insane to know what
was going on. Because of this, fans went crazy.
3.
The right side of the wall (obviously it's the last one left because we
already went through the other two) represents... uh... um... something.
Oh, that's right. I guess there was something good
about eating greasly chips for a few weeks! I am staying on track!
Anyways,
the right side of the wall represents life after the Novacom Saga. The
once-large crack trailing through the center of the classroom wall now
mellows itself out, leaving behind a large trail and ending at a wall
you'd only see in a dark house. The majority of the plotline is over and
the wall is now muffled, dazed, and sitting in a puddle of uncertainty.
No, not dog potty... uncertainty. The aftermath of the Novacom is showing
in the town of Odyssey.
Now
that we have already heard what's at the beginning, middle, and very end
of the Novacom Saga, who wants to hear about that stuff? Not me. I want to
know the future. I want to know things. I want, I want, I need, I need!
Let's briefly outline a few of the things needing repaired in the town of
Odyssey in the next few years:
Reasons
to Call the Repairman:
1.
Whit's End needs one.
2.
Whit needs one.
3.
Tom needs one.
4.
There's probably another point, but it's not coming to me.
Odyssey
needs a repairman. Almost anyone who is sane can say that John Avery
Whittaker has changed. No, I'm not talking about his receding hairline
that keeps moving, I am talking about Whit's morals. Why?
Moral-less
Whit:
What
ever became of Whit talking to the kids of Odyssey? Oh yeah, I almost
forgot... there are no kids in Odyssey! Thinking
back, Whit used to talk to the kids, people actually came to Whit's End to
talk to Whit, and Whit used to be more loving and friendly. Why the
change? I have come to realize that Adventures in Odyssey has changed.
Whit, 10 years ago, was a sweet, Bible preaching man who wanted nothing
more than a diet. The Whit we see now, 10 years later, no obvious morals,
chatting on a cell phone, and still wanting that diet. What is his
problem? Is that why he never sits around the soda counter of Whit's End
with what little kids Odyssey actually has? Has Whit been slacking off?
Not
only has Whit slacked off, but it seems that kids have a shorter attention
span. Whit of the days of old could actually sit down for longer than five
minutes to teach lessons. Whit of the days of the cell phone is different.
Now it seems as if Mr. Whittaker has to shove his 30-second morals down
the kids' throats, only to be regurgitated later.
The
repairman needs to come repair else besides Whit. Tom
Riley.
Old
Tommy:
Tom
Riley also has his problems. I enjoy his character but something about him
has changed as well. I remember that in the beginning he wasn't the one
dishing out the morals. Whit was. Could it be possible that Whit is
retiring from his morals and shoving them down Tom's throat?
Also
Tom needs to get things back to normal with his wife, Agnes. Yeah, all
that technical stuff.
That
is the extent of this article. The Novacom Saga inspired, aggravated, and
otherwise drove fans insane to hear more. Unfortunately, Odyssey was
really headed for a cliffhanger. Now. There are so many things hanging on
the platter. Platters are good to eat off of but I am hoping that the AIO
writers aren't biting off more than they can chew.
Yeah,
I know what you're thinking... There actually was a point to this
article! And what was that? Well... uh... um... something.
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