The new albums

Grab your AIO albums, and find a table! What makes your favorite episode the best? Have an episode you really dislike? This is the place to review and discuss AIO episodes and albums.
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GabrielleFandomGirl
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The new albums

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I personally love the new albums. Most episodes now fit with a saga or more of a storyline. Everything used to be less centered around sagas, and though they did have your occasional saga, and things were in "real time" they were just episodes happening, not centered on sagas.
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KeyBladeWarrior
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I have liked how several of the albums since the relaunch have started mini sagas, such as the green ring conspiracy, Connie after her mom's death, and Penny and Wooton. But even though I love the continuing storyline of the sagas, I kinda wish they would do some more every day Odyssey episodes.
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aragtaghooligan
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I think Sagas become less exciting when there is nothing everyday in between to contrast them...
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TigerShadow
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I agree, but I think there's a difference between sagas and story arcs. Back when Albums 46-49 were airing, we had, if I recall correctly, Grady's family (specifically relating to his absent father), Eugene's search for Leonard and the ensuing chaos, Mandy's parents' separation, and Kelly's character growth, all of which had at least one episode devoted to them over the course of those four albums (with the exception of Kelly, and she and Grady both had their stories continued and resolved in Album 50). I wouldn't call any of those "sagas"; they weren't nearly as drawn-out and involved. They were simply individualized story arcs that ran congruently with one another.

It's the same situation here - we've got Olivia's need for the perfect family, Buck settling into town, and Penny and Wooton's relationship, and those have only been active since they were interwoven within the TTB mini-saga, which was only one album ago, and personally, I rather enjoy listening to these arcs find their conclusion. However, since it's my understanding that Album 59 was basically meant to cover the aftermath from TTB (and spoilers from the episodes seem to confirm that), I think that means that the bulk of the story arcs are going to be resolved here.
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aragtaghooligan
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Good points, I do like story arcs more than just stand alone episodes when I think of things like Mandy's parents' dilemma they came up again and again. I think it provides better character development, but I don't want these to replace the occasional sagas like Blackgaard, Novacom, Dolton Kurn, and The Green Ring. I don't think The Ties That Bind counted as a saga for me and I just worry that is what sagas will become.
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Pound Foolish
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The new albums are fantastic, to be sure. Restricting the cast to a handful of regular kids (whose families we actually know, imagine that) and a handful of adults is quite wise. Even though Odyssey has grown as a town, it makes the show feel smaller and more cozy. You belong here, you know everyone.
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TigerShadow
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I'll admit, after last album, I was kind of shaky at best with respect to the new generation of AIO (personally, I found that it was...not my cup of tea), but Album 59 had the exact opposite effect. It really won me over to the Parkers, to Penny (I loved the scene with her and Wooton in the church in the meadow - what a brilliant take on the different ways in which people can worship God!), to Buck (smol Slytherin son), and everything in between. It had strong themes, it tied up a lot of loose ends, and we saw some lovely character development (Olivia you precious bossy control freak I love you so much). I'd really recommend buying this one, if you have twelve bucks to spare on the digital copy. It's definitely worth it.
Pound Foolish wrote:Even though Odyssey has grown as a town, it makes the show feel smaller and more cozy. You belong here, you know everyone.
Ehh, personal preference, but I liked the more sprawling feel of the larger casts of the previous two eras. I like the idea of a highly-populated town where you still feel like you have a place; it reminds me of my high school and university. I'm more of an extrovert, so I like to have a lot of people around me; I get bored if I'm by myself for too long. But again, that's just me; I definitely understand liking a cozier atmosphere. :)
it's not about 'deserve'. it's about what you believe. and i believe in love
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