AIO Without Morals?

The Front Counter is the main place for general Adventures in Odyssey discussions. Grab a Loc-Kno-Stra-Mal, and talk it up!
User avatar
ArnoldtheRubberDucky
Butter Pecan
Posts: 2912
Joined: June 2012
Location: Unknown
Contact:

AIO Without Morals?

Post

I was just thinking about it, and it's interesting to note that there are actually a few AIO episodes without a moral, or if they have a moral, it's not a very clear one. These include "I Slap Floor", "Train Ride", and "Wooton's Broken Pencil Show". I'm sure there are a couple Novacom and Darkness Before Dawn episodes you could add as well. The theme for a good many of those is "spiritual battle", which is rather vague. So... what do you think? Would AIO possibly be more effective if it occasionally backed off on the moral side of things for certain episodes? Perhaps they could reel in some non-Christian fans drawn in by the fun of the stories who then stick around for the more blatantly Christian messages that could bring them to Christ. My personal belief is that AIO should present no moral only in very rare cases, because after all, morals are what the show is. But at the same time, I believe AIO could also be a bit more subtle with their Christian imagery, a lá C.S. Lewis in The Chronicles of Narnia. But I can definitely see it both ways, so what are your thoughts?
Sir Arnold, Knight of the Order of Augustine, Debate Vampire
Mr. Yorp wrote:You don't need a degree to shovel manure.
User avatar
Blitz
Moose Tracks
Posts: 3787
Joined: February 2013

Post

Hmm.... when ever they do a show without morals, parents complain. But I see your point and agree.
Debate Vampire

Everyone (Blitz doesn't count) fears ninjas, except for one: I, Ninjahunter

Can you change me from the monster you made me? Monster: Starset
User avatar
Gooey98
Raspberry Ripple
Posts: 551
Joined: August 2014
Location: Washington State
Contact:

Post

Lol, I never thought of Narnia as being subtle in its Christian imagery. It seems pretty obvious to me, but idk.
Incidentally, the word Narnia now means "NarniaQA Guy" to me :p
Image
My David Crowder*Band website: http://dcbplus.weebly.com
My YouTube: http://youtube.com/WillLocatelli
My gaming YouTube: http://youtube.com/KingGrahamGaming
User avatar
TigerShadow
Mocha Jamocha
Posts: 2654
Joined: June 2014

Post

I was about to say the same thing. What part of Narnia was subtle?

I think "no morals" episodes really only work during sagas, like Novacom or GRC. I don't think that in that case every episode needs to be about proving a point so much as the saga as a whole should bring Christian principles together. I know that the writers struggled with that during the Novacom process, because they talked about the letters parents were sending in about how the episodes were entertaining but didn't really have as much of a message, but honestly, I think that's okay. I'd rather have a few episodes that are just there to further a story whose end demonstrates strong Biblical principles than have morals shoehorned into otherwise good episodes.
it's not about 'deserve'. it's about what you believe. and i believe in love
User avatar
Nelson S.
Mint Chocolate Chip
Posts: 2239
Joined: August 2012
Location: Gone to college.
Contact:

Post

Gooey98 wrote:Incidentally, the word Narnia now means "NarniaQA Guy" to me :p
Me too, Will... Me too.... It's ingrained... O.o

I guess the episodes not having morals doesn't bother me that bad. My love for AIO has subsided a bit, (I think of it more as an art form (sound design), rather than spiritual lessons) so it doesn't bother me so much if episodes don't have morals. I Slap Floor is one of my favorite episodes in AIO anyway. xD
Image
User avatar
HomeschoolCowgirl
Peach Cobbler
Posts: 1340
Joined: December 2013
Location: Odyssey USA!

Post

"And the moral of the story (it's the point we hope we've made): If you go a little loopy, better keep your nurse well paid!" :P
I can remember only a few without real morals. Usually they are still entertaining, though pointless shows are not something I particularly like a lot of in a row.
Image
"Musical training is a more potent instrument than any other, for rhythm and harmony find their way into the inner places of the soul... making the soul of one who is rightly educated, graceful" -- Socrates
User avatar
ArnoldtheRubberDucky
Butter Pecan
Posts: 2912
Joined: June 2012
Location: Unknown
Contact:

Post

Okay, not subtle in its Christian "imagery" but just subtle in that CS Lewis never spells out exactly what he's trying to say, and quite a few of the books don't even seem to be a Biblical allegory at all.
Sir Arnold, Knight of the Order of Augustine, Debate Vampire
Mr. Yorp wrote:You don't need a degree to shovel manure.
User avatar
TigerShadow
Mocha Jamocha
Posts: 2654
Joined: June 2014

Post

I'd think that the Deplorable Word was Lewis spelling out exactly what he was trying to say. Just because he doesn't say explicitly what he means doesn't mean that the symbolism is subtle.

Additionally, at least three out of only seven books involve blatantly Christian allegories, and there are Christian symbols throughout the books. Lewis's imagery and symbolism wasn't subtle in the slightest.
it's not about 'deserve'. it's about what you believe. and i believe in love
User avatar
ArnoldtheRubberDucky
Butter Pecan
Posts: 2912
Joined: June 2012
Location: Unknown
Contact:

Post

I know, that's why I just said his "imagery" wasn't subtle. It's clear that subtle was just a horrible word to describe what I was trying to say. I suppose all I mean is AIO could use things like allegory, and not explicitly talking about God in every episode, just alluding to him instead. Like the book of Esther.
Sir Arnold, Knight of the Order of Augustine, Debate Vampire
Mr. Yorp wrote:You don't need a degree to shovel manure.
User avatar
The Old Judge
Mint Chocolate Chip
Posts: 2037
Joined: May 2012
Contact:

Post

Um, what was Lewis referring to in the Deplorable Word? I always believed it was something cool he thought of.
Do you think you know music? Guess the hints at the end of each of my posts in A Musical Journey. (The name's a link. You can click it.)
User avatar
TigerShadow
Mocha Jamocha
Posts: 2654
Joined: June 2014

Post

The most common interpretation, and I believe the most accurate, is nuclear weaponry. Keep in mind that The Magician's Nephew was written in 1955, at the start of the Cold War and the arms race, and the fact that the Deplorable Word, when spoken, wreaked mass destruction on the entire land of Charn. Add to that the fact that Aslan tells Digory and Polly that "It is not certain that some wicked one of your race will not find out a secret as evil as the Deplorable Word and use it to destroy all living things. And soon, very soon, before you are an old man and an old woman, great nations of your world will be ruled by tyrants who care no more for joy and justice and mercy than the Empress Jadis". Digory and Polly were children during the mid-to-late 1800s, and became an old man and woman during World War II, when world leaders were committing mass genocides and one country exterminated a significant portion of two metropolitan populaces with one bomb each. While Lewis doesn't explicitly mention nuclear weapons, he is clearly alluding to the power of humanity to destroy itself, and considering when these books were written, I'd be more surprised if he wasn't talking about nukes.
it's not about 'deserve'. it's about what you believe. and i believe in love
User avatar
ArnoldtheRubberDucky
Butter Pecan
Posts: 2912
Joined: June 2012
Location: Unknown
Contact:

Post

I actually never thought of that. I always thought it was something he invented too. To be perfectly honest, I've only read the first two Narnia books. (Don't kill me, Narnia fans.)
Sir Arnold, Knight of the Order of Augustine, Debate Vampire
Mr. Yorp wrote:You don't need a degree to shovel manure.
User avatar
TigerShadow
Mocha Jamocha
Posts: 2654
Joined: June 2014

Post

First two published or first two placed in chronological order? ;)
it's not about 'deserve'. it's about what you believe. and i believe in love
User avatar
ArnoldtheRubberDucky
Butter Pecan
Posts: 2912
Joined: June 2012
Location: Unknown
Contact:

Post

Chronological order. That's how I was in the know on the Deplorable Word. :jason:
Sir Arnold, Knight of the Order of Augustine, Debate Vampire
Mr. Yorp wrote:You don't need a degree to shovel manure.
User avatar
Blitz
Moose Tracks
Posts: 3787
Joined: February 2013

Post

*Kills Arnold*
You seriously should listen to them.
Debate Vampire

Everyone (Blitz doesn't count) fears ninjas, except for one: I, Ninjahunter

Can you change me from the monster you made me? Monster: Starset
User avatar
ArnoldtheRubberDucky
Butter Pecan
Posts: 2912
Joined: June 2012
Location: Unknown
Contact:

Post

Listen to them? I believe, sir, you mean read them. :| *Mortally wounds Blitz, who is under suspicion of listening to audiobooks instead of reading the real thing*. Still, listening to them is probably better than just ignoring them entirely, like I've been doing.
Sir Arnold, Knight of the Order of Augustine, Debate Vampire
Mr. Yorp wrote:You don't need a degree to shovel manure.
User avatar
Doll
Rainbow Sherbet
Posts: 5002
Joined: May 2012
Location: Spoilers!
Contact:

Post

ArnoldtheRubberDucky wrote:Listen to them? I believe, sir, you mean read them. :| *Mortally wounds Blitz, who is under suspicion of listening to audiobooks instead of reading the real thing*. Still, listening to them is probably better than just ignoring them entirely, like I've been doing.
Focus has done amazing audio drama versions of it, for the record. It's what I listened to after I had only read a couple of them, and it made me want to read them all again.
Image
~Queen Belle of Altanovia, Knight of Montreal & Order of Aristotle, Benevolent Dictator, Catspaw of the SS, & Dan's couch troll~
~"I’ve always found you to be a good person to disagree with." - Eleventh Doctor~
User avatar
ArnoldtheRubberDucky
Butter Pecan
Posts: 2912
Joined: June 2012
Location: Unknown
Contact:

Post

Yes, I heard about those. I'm sure they're great and everything, but if I'm going to finish the series at all, I'd rather read the books first.
Sir Arnold, Knight of the Order of Augustine, Debate Vampire
Mr. Yorp wrote:You don't need a degree to shovel manure.
User avatar
HomeschoolCowgirl
Peach Cobbler
Posts: 1340
Joined: December 2013
Location: Odyssey USA!

Post

ArnoldtheRubberDucky wrote:Listen to them? I believe, sir, you mean read them. :| *Mortally wounds Blitz, who is under suspicion of listening to audiobooks instead of reading the real thing*. Still, listening to them is probably better than just ignoring them entirely, like I've been doing.
Though I have actually read all the (Narnia) books, I must say audiobooks are very helpful for times when actually reading is not possible. Very good for washing dishes :)
However I don't have the word-for-word audio books, but the dramatized Narnia series from FOTF Radio Theatre (which is awesome!).
Image
"Musical training is a more potent instrument than any other, for rhythm and harmony find their way into the inner places of the soul... making the soul of one who is rightly educated, graceful" -- Socrates
User avatar
Blitz
Moose Tracks
Posts: 3787
Joined: February 2013

Post

ArnoldtheRubberDucky wrote:Listen to them? I believe, sir, you mean read them. :| *Mortally wounds Blitz, who is under suspicion of listening to audiobooks instead of reading the real thing*. Still, listening to them is probably better than just ignoring them entirely, like I've been doing.
I have read most of them. I actually can't find them all.
*Regenerates himself.*
Debate Vampire

Everyone (Blitz doesn't count) fears ninjas, except for one: I, Ninjahunter

Can you change me from the monster you made me? Monster: Starset
Post Reply