High points
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Clever title
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Happy AIO covered the topic of fasting
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Wooton—He cut out something realistic, e.g. junk food, and he prayed more. I liked the phone book touch. Most of us could benefit from this. (Wow, I am surprised that I am once again listing Wooton as one of the strengths.)
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Connie—I laughed when the guys didn’t realize she was unprimped, and I loved her realization that drawing attention to herself defeated the purpose. Though this isn’t an issue with which I normally struggle, it’s relevant for a lot of girls (and guys) out there.
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Matthew—Although his storyline wasn’t developed much, fasting time from computers or electronics is a relevant example that applies to most of us if not all. Hey, we’re all on a forum here…
Low points
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Eugene—Not a fan of his fast of words more than 2 syllables: (1) Using big words isn’t showing off for Eugene. That’s just the way he is. (2) It’s all about context. Using scientific vocabulary at a scientific meeting isn’t being prideful; it’s simply speaking at a level that the audience can understand. (3) # of syllables is not indicative of level of vocabulary sophistication. For example, the word transportation is 4 syllables, but most people know what it means. On the other hand, the fast did make for some humor, created a tender moment when Eugene realized Whit helped him during the intro to the scientific conference, and opened up a good conversation about the scientific community and lay language.
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Whit—Don’t think Whit’s fast was bad per se. Overall, it’s great that he spent more time in spiritual disciplines (aka spiritual privileges—worshiping, reading, praying, fasting, memorizing, etc.—we do them because we CAN, because we see the VALUE, because God ENABLED us to, because we WANT to). However, it’s all too common today to ignore the news, which isn’t a positive. (I hope to not ignore current events.)
To sum up, while Fast As I Can was at best an okay episode for me, I’m happy that the art of fasting was brought to our attention. In the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), Jesus said, “When you fast,” not “if.” Fasting is expected and is relevant for all.
Review by The Kings Daughter (Town of Odyssey)
Rating:
Fasting:
I think it was good to have an episode covering fasting,
because many kids don't understand what it is. It was also
good how the episode stressed how you need to pray about
fasting and maybe even consult close family members, because
we don't want kids just fasting for the sake of fasting if
you get my meaning.
Whit:
I think Whit played an important role in the episode, and I
think he played it well. He was just...Whit! Giving advice,
teaching Matthew and the others in a gentle loving way, etc.
Eugene:
I dislike a Eugene without long words! Good thing it was
only for one episode huh? Overall I would say he did a
pretty good job, he stuttered a lot like only Will Ryan can.
Connie:
She was awesome! She was just like herself in that episode.
That's all I can say.
Wooton:
I think that Wooton play a very good roll in today's
episode. His demonstrating to listeners that when you face
temptation, what a great thing to pray! He showed how
although it was hard, with God's help he resisted the
temptation of junk food.
Matthew:
In this episode, I think Matthew really seemed like on of
the good old characters of the older Odyssey. He didn't
understand something, he asked, it started a little
adventure of searching and finding the answer with the help
of Whit, Connie, and Eugene. (and Wooton. )
Overall episode review:
It taught an important lesson, it seemed simple enough for
young kids to understand, it was well explained, it reminded
me of the good old AIO days.
I'm rating it 5 of 5, it's the best episode of this album
yet!
Review by Samitude (Town of Odyssey)
I loved this episode!
It felt like an Odyssey episode
should. There was a useful lesson
for all ages and Mr. Whitaker was
being himself by giving good advice.
I loved the way he went before
Eugene when Eugene had to make his
speech. Actually, it reminds me of
God. He (God) doesn't take away the
difficulties (Mr. Whitaker didn't
find some way for Eugene to get out
of making his speech). He helps us
through them by going along side and
before us by making a way. Okay. I'm
getting off of the fasting topic of
the episode! Back to the subject.
Anyway, the topic was great and they
gave good explanations for the
reasons for fasting, as well as,
things to do during the fast. I also
enjoyed the humorous lines that were
given to several of the characters
too.
What other kinds of things could we
give up besides these examples?
Hmm....texting/cellular phones
anyone? The Christian school my
sister teaches at has started
collecting everyone's cellular
phones at the beginning of the
school day, putting them in the
office, and returned at the end. If
I had to give something up it would
probably be internet, reading
novels, or food.
Review by DanP740 (Town of Odyssey)
Rating:
I liked this episode... even
Whit wasn't too bad. If it weren't for Whit's voice, I
would've thought this episode was from back right after
Novacom. The Imagination Station scene was really funny,
because you never think about how since it's using your
imagination you should be able to change stuff in the
story...
I actually got up late and only heard the last scene, and
when I heard Whit say he didn't miss the news, I was
suddenly thinking "he'd better not be talking about the TV
news. He doesn't watch TV..." but then I listened to it
later and was corrected.
Review by LizzieG (Town of Odyssey)
I wasn't planning on writing
any episode reviews right away, but I had so many thoughts
about this episode -- and wrote them down because my
spreadsheet was handy -- that it made sense to share them
here too.
~*~
I just finished a week-long break from Facebook, the ToO,
and other "entertainment Internet sites," so Matthew's fast
definitely hit home for me. This comes on the heels of my
having to have a locksmith break into my car a few days
before listening to "Wooton's Broken Pencil Show" (though my
locksmith did not use a brick ).
Goof Alert!: Did anybody catch the three-syllable word
Eugene used? He substituted "ideas" for "principles," when
both words actually have three syllables.
Missed Opportunities:
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Toward the beginning of the episode, I was really hoping that Katrina would come up in the course of a conversation with Eugene, because, you know, "Katrina" is three syllables long! That would've been really fun to incorporate.
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I also think it would've been nice to reference "Do, for a Change," when Eugene fasted shortly after becoming a Christian.
The
Imagination Station Scene: I didn't
find the Thomas Jefferson
Imagination Station scene to be that
funny. Doesn't it kinda ruin the
Imagination Station when you can
"bring in" any number of
anachronistic things, and the
"characters" start talking about the
Imagination Station?
My main problem with this episode:
Whit and Chris (at the end) painted
a good picture of the purpose of
fasting ("deny[ing] the body
something it enjoys in order to
concentrate on something spiritual,
like our relationship with God,"
"giving up something that's
important to you during a period of
prayer and Bible study," a great way
to grow closer to God and focus on
Him alone, etc.), but, in my
opinion, that picture wasn't
portrayed very well throughout the
episode. It kinda stopped at the
"giving up something" part. But what
about the "growing closer to God
through a period of prayer and Bible
study"?
Only Whit and Wooton clearly
connected their fasting experiences
with God (and Wooton, at first only
as an afterthought, if you listen to
the album version). I was
disappointed that, when Matthew was
trying to get away from computers
and came to Whit for advice on what
to do, Whit said nothing about
spending time with God. How can it
be fasting if God doesn't enter into
the equation (let alone isn't a
major part of the fast)? Connie
talked about trying to curb vanity,
and Eugene, his pride in his
intellect, which are both worthy
goals, but it seemed more about
"fixing something about yourself on
your own" rather than a way to draw
closer to God through the experience
of giving something up for a period
of time. I guess the words "comedic
antics" in the episode summary
should have been a giveaway that it
was more about humor than actually
about fasting.
"Solitary Refinement" was a good
episode about a spiritual
discipline. This one ... not so
much.
SUMMARY: There were some funny
parts, yes, and I did enjoy the
listening experience, but I was just
so disappointed that the spiritual
theme was sugarcoated so much. I
don't know, maybe I'm not being fair
to this episode. Maybe I'm just more
sensitive than I used to be to the
presence of strong Christian
messages. Maybe slice-of-life
episodes have always been this light
and it was never a big deal to me
before. But ... I don't think so.
This episode brought to mind "Do,
for a Change," because it's the only
other episode (that I know of) that
mentions fasting. "Do, for a
Change," however, is one of my
favorite slice-of-life episodes. In
that episode, the spiritual content
is strong, the humor is fitting and
not overblown, and the characters'
dilemmas felt very real.
It was nice to have an episode
totally devoted to fasting, but it
felt disconnected from what fasting
really is. Apart from Chris' and
Whit's statements, it seemed little
more than an exercise in
self-discipline that may or may not
include God. It just felt like sort
of a game that trivialized fasting,
which made it hard for me to enjoy
the episode.
I'd also like to second what Taq
said, particularly about Eugene's
fast, and add that "fasting from
two-syllable words" seems more like
a distraction from one's
relationship with God than something
that would be helpful (for example,
being so fixated on saying the right
words while praying).
