Knox on Love

[ASmouseInTheHouse]

The first episode of the episodes meant to replace B-TV. What did everyone think?

[Peachey Keen]

Since I heard that it was a spiritual successor to B-TV, I was expecting wall-to-wall humor and wacky situations. My expectations were not met at all. And I am so happy!

All three stories were sweet and emotionally significant. If this is what future "Knox on" episodes will be like, I'm all for it. I think AIO can have too many over-the-top and comedy-driven episodes and not enough grounded ones. This was an absolute surprise and one of Phil's best episodes in a long time.

I think it's the best non-Eugene episode to feature Will Ryan for the last time. Such a great performance paired with a wonderful story.

[Polehaus53]

This episode was interesting. I was surprised when it was said on the Official Podcast that the “Knox On…” episodes will be the new replacement for B-TV, but I didn’t think much of it. I’m personally a fan of the humorous, light-hearted sketches that B-TV does, so needless to say, I was a bit disappointed that this episode does not have any of that.

So, we have three stories in this episode: The tale of Mrs. Shrew, the story of the doll, and the story of the mayor and bishop hiding Jews during World War II.
I liked the first story! Mr. Sage was indeed a genius for giving Mrs. Shrew the plan to pretend to love her husband before leaving him. I found all the husband’s grunting funny. The moral at the end of how showing love not only changes you but also the people around was great. That whole story was very well-done, and I really enjoyed it!

The second story was nice. A girl losing her doll (I assume it was stolen) and then Frank having the doll write letters to Leasle (if that's how you spell it) every day was very kind and creative. Very sweet of him. And excellent timing that he orchestrated the return of Brunee right before his death. Part of me wants to over-analyze the fact that what he was doing sounds kind of deceptive, but let’s not go there. However, I didn’t understand the point of this second sketch. What exactly is the lesson behind it, and what does it have to do with the theme of love? Is it the fact that out of love that Frank helps Leasle and therefore writes the letters from the doll? As an adult, Leasle finds the hidden note from Frank:

“Everything you love is very likely that to be lost. But in the end, love will always return to you in a different way; and better than it was before.”

So, although we may lose things we love, it will return to you better than before. In the same way that Leasle loved the doll and lost it, the doll comes back to her eventually? Is the lesson that better things will come after you’ve lost the things you love? Perhaps it is the idea that love stays hopeful: at the very end, Wilson says “1 Corinthians 13 puts it, ‘Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.’ Whether it’s an ungrateful spouse or a lost doll or an abusive authority, true love always costs something.” So, Leasle was kept hopeful in her love that Brunee the doll was alive and well? I’m not sure. I feel like this should be easy to understand, but somehow, it’s not clicking. But maybe that’s just me.

The third story was pretty good. I enjoy studying history, so I was pleased to hear a true World War II story that I didn’t know about told here. The mayor and bishop’s plan to threaten to go along with the Jews, bewilder the officials and give time to hide Jews away was very clever. Their courage and willingness to lay down their lives for others paid off. As Wilson said at the end, true love always costs something. I thought the lesson in this sketch was good.

Overall, although I thought this episode was good, I didn’t enjoy it as much as I wanted. But that’s probably just me. Don’t get me wrong, I liked what we got in this episode, but I’m going to miss the classic comic variety show that B-TV once was.

Before making any hasty judgement on this episode, I'm interested in seeing what other Wilson Podcast episodes in this format will be like. It has recently been confirmed that there is another upcoming "Knox On..." episode called "Knox on Sacrifice" which will again feature Will Ryan as another character, so I look forward to seeing what that episode holds.