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It's the age old question: Odyssey Time. AIO has never given an answer on it, but gauging from several references in the show, we may make several reasonable guesses at the rate time passes in Odyssey.

The Eugene Method: Eugene started college when he was 13. When he was 20, he moved to Odyssey (A License to Drive, he says he's been in college for seven years). Seven years later, he finds his father in Album 45 (His father was missing for 20 years and disappeared when Eugene was 7). Eugene is 20 in A License to Drive (album #14), and 27 in Prisoners of Fear (album #45).

Taking the number of albums between 14 and 45 (31 albums), and the amount of time that passed in those albums using this method, each Odyssey album occupies about 0.23 years, or 84 days, or just under three months. Therefore, using this method of AIO time counting, 13.34 years have passed since AIO began. Assuming the year in Album 1 is 1987, AIO is currently in the year 2000.

The Connie Method: Connie moved to Odyssey in Album 1 when she was 15. She was in high school at the time, and at 15, she was either an old freshman or a young sophmore. Either way, we can surmise she graduated when she was 18. Connie graduated in album 31, therefore she was about 18 in album 31.

Taking the number of albums between album 1 and 31 (30 albums), and the amount of time that passed in those albums using this method, each Odyssey album occupies about 0.06 years, or 23 days, or just under a month. Therefore, using this method of AIO time counting, 3.74 years have passed since AIO began. Assuming the year in Album 1 is 1987, AIO is currently in the year 1990.

This method is practically disproven by the current technology level of Album 58 and the Novacom saga. However, the aging rate of the characters gives some credence to this method. All in all, it is very unlikely to be true.

The Lucy Method: This method relies on a bit of guesswork. We can guess that Lucy was about ten when she entered the show in Rumor Has It (Album #3). From this reference point, Lucy states that she is fourteen (one year left in middle school) in Cousin Albert (Album #9) (confirmation needed as I don't remember the episode very well).

Taking the number of albums between 3 and 9 (6 albums), and the amount of time that passed during these albums using this method, each Odyssey album occupies about 1.5 years. Therefore, using this method of AIO time counting, 87 years have passed since AIO began. Assuming the year in Album 1 is 1987, AIO is currently in the year 2074.

This method is practically disproven by the current technology level of Album 58, and the aging of the main characters of the show.

The Eugene method seems to be the best and most accurate way to tell Odyssey time, but currently faces several problems, such as the advanced technology level for the year 2000, and the entire Novacom saga.

Thanks - Will L, Mr. Whit's End, Bob the Builder, the Doctor.

Cool if the Eugene method works for every one in Odyssey my favorite characters have long lives ahead!

Posted this on my blog.

Re: technology—Whit had virtual reality technology around in the 80s that is highly advanced even now. I don't think technology is really a problematic variable when determining Odyssey time.

Mr. Whit's End wrote:The Eugene Method: Eugene started college when he was 13. When he was 20, he moved to Odyssey (A License to Drive, he says he's been in college for seven years).

You're assuming that no time at all passed between episode 51 (Eugene's arrival at Whit's End) and episode 194 (A License to Drive). There could have been a year or two in between.

I'm assuming that less than a year of time passed.

Edit: Of course, that probably doesn't work with the formula . I think I need to listen to Eugene's introduction episode and see if he talks about time at all.

-- Thu Nov 20, 2014 9:52 pm --

re:TigerShadow Odyssey has always been pretty good about technology not used by Whit's End.

I just think Mr. Whittacker is a Time Lord.

Mr. Whit's End wrote:re:TigerShadow Odyssey has always been pretty good about technology not used by Whit's End.

Are you saying that Whit, who has worked on technological programs far ahead of their time with the federal government, would have had no impact on the rate at which technology has developed in Odyssey-verse? I can't help but disagree with that; someone as influential and connected as Whit has made advances in technology that would hardly be kept secret in a capitalistic society. Maybe the Imagination Station is under Whit's careful eye, but that doesn't mean everything else he's done is.

Technology as in technology used by normal people. Barrett, Olivia, Matthew, etc all demonstrate familiarity with smartphones and other modern technology.

What I'm saying is that with the work Whit and people like him have done in technological breakthroughs, the rate at which technology has advanced in Odyssey can be feasibly more rapid than in real life. I can accept very easily that in the Odyssey-verse, smartphones exist at roughly our level of advancement in the year 2000 without much problem.

Guys. No matter what, in order to create a timeline you're gonna have to stretch some things. It's ridiculous to argue about how likely it literally is; I mean, we accept that the imagination station is possible, so we have to accept some other apparently impossible things.

Building on what Tiger is saying, the government does have technology years ahead of the citizenry. The first functional cell phone was used in 1973. If someone has high and essential in the bureaucratic ranks as Whit was, he had all that technology. Even going with the Eugene theory, if Whit's access to technology when he moved to Odyssey in the seventies was leaked over time, having smart phones in 2000 would be no large stretch of the mind at all. A lot changes in twenty-seven years.

It'd be cool if we could get this to a point where we could make a timeline, showing what events happen at what time, and making it all make sense.

I don't know that it's possible to make the history of Connie make sense...especially with how old Jules seems to be.

I don't think each album needs to occupy a similar amount of time, as Mr. WE suggested. Album 53 takes place over 4 days, and Albums 25 and 58 take place in about a week [from my understanding]. However, less stringent albums, Album 51 for example, could take place over several months...that may help to keep from compromising the integrity of the timeline.

Another continuity that represents a surefire, positive amount of time is Mary Barclay's pregnancy...although we don't know how long she had been pregnant when she first announced it. I don't have the details on that one, though.

Jules can be estimated to be 14-15.
13 Years have passed with the Eugene Method.
We can assume that a few months passed between June's divorce and them moving, maybe nine months.
It's still tricky to work out, and doesn't entirely work, though. Connie's timeline is a pretty convoluted mess.

Sheesh how much time do you guys spend on this.

About five minutes when something related to it pops into my head. I think Mr WE spends more time than that, considering how much of it he figured out.
On the other hand, using AIOwiki, and already possessing a fair amount of knowledge regarding the characters, it would probably take about half an hour to figure out what was in his first post.

I spent maybe 20 min. on the first post, but I've been thinking about it for a long time.

Well, you would have to bump Connie into her early thirties due to Jules. Given that she (Jules) is 14-15, and that several months passed between the Kendalls' divorce and June and Connie's move to Odyssey, Connie would be at least (prepare yourself) 31 years old. She was 16 when her and her mother moved to Odyssey. And Bill did not immediately leave June for Jules' mother. Bill left June for Lindsey. He then left Lindsey for Carol. When Jules appeared, (surprise) there was another woman after Carol. This was Jules' mother, Jan. Thus, there is a window of several extra years even before Jules was born.

Correction, she was 15 as of Album 2 and the episode Stormy Weather.

The Old Judge wrote:Bill left June for Lindsey. He then left Lindsey for Carol. When Jules appeared, (surprise) there was another woman after Carol. This was Jules' mother, Jan. Thus, there is a window of several extra years even before Jules was born.

Wow, even I didn't know that much. What episode was that in? Father's Day? I don't remember ever hearing about Lindsey or Carol, must be one of those episodes I've never heard.