|
|
 Episode
Reviewed: Something
Old, Something New
(713, 714)
Writers: Kathy Buchanan,
Paul McCusker
Director: Nathan Hoobler
Sound Designer:
Rob Jorgensen
Music: John Campbell
Theme: Being use by God
Scripture: I Corinthians 2:9, Jeremiah 29:11
Original
Airdate: 5/12/12 - 5/19/12
Review Written by:
Ben Warren, Staff Writer
Rating (out of 5):
 
Episode
Summary
Penny brainstorms ways to promote
Connie's wedding planning business and one of
her schemes dramatically backfires. Meanwhile,
Matthew and Emily investigate a woman who may be
trying to scam Jacque Henri.
The Review
Probably the funniest thing about
Something Old,
Something New isn't the episode itself,
but reading fan comments. On the AIO's Facebook page, Elijah Hall
writes, "Why must Mitch get married to someone other than Connie?";
Mamie Carlstrom writes, "This is such a sad episode for Mitch fans
everywhere"; and Timothy Reynolds writes: "AIO, you'll probably have
a riot on your hands unless you change that relationship!" No other
episode has elicited such a powerful response from fans in years.
And those were just the comments that were made after the first part
aired...
Something Old, Something
New symbolizes what this past season has been
about: disappointment. Ever since Eugene and Katrina got married, fans
have been asking, "When are they going to have kids?" The writers gave
their answer in To Mend
or Repair: never! And, ever since Mitch appeared in
Green Eyes and Yellow
Tulips, fans have been asking, "When are
Connie and Mitch going to get married"? We now have the answer to that
one, too: never! Obviously, these are not the answers we wanted,
or even expected, and I can't help but feel just a tad bit disappointed.
Although I hadn't desperately awaited Mitch's return, I didn't believe
Mitch was completely out of the picture, despite the fact
Kathy Buchanan
gave fans an ultimatum: go out and kill every species of feline (or else
wait until their extinction). Having killed 192 cats myself, I truly
believed that there was still a chance Connie and Mitch could still end
up together.* Mitch shouldn't be introduced, get killed, come back to
life, get kidnapped, move away, propose, move further away, come back to
Odyssey and announce he's engaged to someone else, just to finally be
taken away altogether. Should he?
Interestingly, the first lesson Connie Kendall learned in Adventures in
Odyssey was "contentment". In
Connie Comes to Town,
little Bobby Novak wanted desperately to leave Odyssey and move to
California, but Connie convinced both Bobby and herself that Odyssey
was a very nice place to be. Almost 25 years later, Connie seems to
be paying the price for that decision; we quickly realize that she may
be stuck behind that counter forever, single and depressed.
Whit mentions in today's show, "I'm glad God has you here, Connie. Not
in Budapest, or California, or all the other places we have in the
world". The thing is, having Connie behind the counter week after week
is a little, well, boring. I'm less disappointed with the fact that
Mitch and Connie will never end up together as I'm with the fact Connie
has barely moved an inch in 25 years. Mitch's introduction was a good
opportunity for her to do something. In other words, I'd much rather see
Connie have a male counterpart than simply be part of the counter.
However, the episode redeems itself by having a poignant and relatable
theme―"regret". By the ending of the
episode, I could easily sympathize with Connie because I felt totally
surprised by Mitch's announcement. The reveal hurt the audience in the
same way, and as easily, as it hurt Connie. And there's no better way to
communicate a theme than to make the audience really feel it.
You see, because of our romance novels and television
shows, many have grown up to believe that people who love each
other, and seem like a good fit together, eventually end up
together, regardless of the many bumps along the way. Many falsely
believe first-time relationships start smoothly and end in lifelong
happiness. Connie's experience of loving someone deeply, and for a
long time, and wondering "what if?" afterwards, is totally relatable
to those who have loved and lost.
As for negative criticisms, I found the episode's story's set-up
awfully chaotic. There were just one too many coincidences and
unbelievable plot points. Even Penny, at one point, shouts out "I'm
having trouble keeping up with these plot twists!" Let's summarize:
Connie just happens to be taking wedding pictures with Wooton, and
those pictures just happen to get sent out to everyone because of a
well-timed computer virus, and they also just happen to reach Mitch
at the exact same time he's in Odyssey, and Mitch just happens to be
investigating the very same store Penny Wise works at, and,
meanwhile, Matthew and Emily just happened to be investigating Mitch
and his fiancée. I don't mind a bit of preposterousness, but
couldn't the set-up of the episode have been a little more
believable?
Additional annoyances include 1) the computer virus, which
disappears after serving its short purpose; 2)
Steve Burns, who, during his
first face-to-face meeting with Connie, sounded like he was being
recorded in a totally different room; and 3) Mr. I-want-to-party
John Avery Whittaker, who unhelpfully says, "A party might by fun
Connie, everyone is excited by the idea of celebrating". Really
Whit? Connie is legitimately stressing out and you're rallying
behind Wooton's party idea?
Something Old,
Something New has several fun moments. It
features an impressively large cast with a mish-mash of old and new
characters. You could tell the actors were all having a blast in the
recording room. By the end, however, the episode ends up being more
of a downer than a lighthearted comedy. We're left, ironically,
learning an important lesson about "regret" even though thousands of
fans are now staring longingly at their Mitch posters and wondering
"what if"...
*No cats were harmed in the writing of this
joke.
Rating
More Information
Back to Reviews
|
|
|
|
