Virtual Realities (Adventures in Odyssey)
List Price:
Our Price: $14.98
You Save: $10.01 (40%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $11.99 (click here)
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Producer: Focus on the FamilyEdition: Music CD
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Format: Audiobook, CD, Unabridged
Published: 2000-01-18
ISBN: 1561798479
Number of pages: 4
Reading Level: Ages 9-12
Publisher: Tommy Nelson
Book Reviews of Virtual Realities (Adventures in Odyssey)
Book Review: Oh Odyssey, how far you have sunken...
Summary: 2 Stars
If you're like me, you're buying this album mainly because there is a two-part Blackgaard story (Blackgaard's Revenge) on this album. So my review will mostly focus on this episode.
This, in my humble opinion, is the episode where AIO officially "jumped the shark", so to speak.
The episode begins with a parental warning that the episode may be too intense for younger listeners. They should have also included a warning that the episode may be too stupid, fantastic and just plain ridiculous for anyone with the slightest inkling of common sense and AIO continuity.
First off, the premise itself is the problem. The real Dr. Blackgaard is of course dead, but what comes around for this bout is a "Blackgaard" virus-program that somehow has all his memories and has a sophisticated learning matrix to learn everything else. When did Blackgaard plant this in the Imagination Station? We're told during the time he took over Whit's End, but are we really supposed to believe that he figured out how to figure out how to program that sophisticated of a program into the Imagination Station during that short time when he was busy campaigning for mayor and getting the mineral situation squared away? Also, if this program is supposed to be like him, why does it remember things that presumably took place AFTER he would have implanted it? And why would Blackgaard put such a program in the Imagination Station when he was planning on blowing up Whit's End?
But never mind. "Dr. Blackgaard" has appeared for one last go, but it's apparent that any greatness is quickly lost in the atrociously bad dialogue coming out of "Blackgaard's mouth." From his opening line of "I'm back, and I'm not happy..." to his taunt of "Run, chickens! Run!", the episode quickly loses steam.
Then, as the second part begins, something called THICK AND OVERUSED SYMBOLISM begins to hit the viewer over the head. Do you think Blackgaard represents Satan? Do you think Whit symbolizes Jesus? Do you think Aubrey represents man? Do you think Whit will sacrifice his life to save Aubrey and then come back to life? If you know all the answers to these questions before you hear the rest of the story, congratulations. You have both intelligence and common sense.
What makes this worse is that the resurrection scene is VERY anticlimactic. Without giving too much away, Whit's method of resolving the conflict is cheap compared to what Jack Allen did so well in "The Final Conflict" (the true ending to the Blackgaard saga, by the way).
Speaking of schemes, Dr. Blackgaard's scheme in this episode makes no sense. Without revealing too much, he has a scheme to attain eternal life that doesn't really give him eternal life in the strict Christian sense of the word. I would have liked to see this been expanded on more.
The rest of the album is full of stories that are okay, but mostly subpar to the peak that AIO reached in years past. Fans of the show will also note that a couple of these episodes are consist of two ten-minute episodes. The format is disastrous and was quickly abandoned. The only two stories that come close to being anything great are "Opening Day" (which introduces one of the best new characters: A non-believer named Aubrey Andromeda) and "Chain Reaction" (written by Marshall Younger, one of the more experienced AIO writers), but that's it. "Virtual Realities" is just another sign that the "new" AIO episodes just don't cut it.
Summary of Virtual Realities (Adventures in Odyssey)
Catch all the excitement of the Adventures In Odyssey? radio drama in these action packed volumes, each featuring twelve 30 minute episodes. Available on either cassette or compact disc, these radio shows provide hours of listening fun for children while teaching important values, principles, and truths.Classics Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Audiobooks on Cassette
- Audiobooks on CD
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- e-Books
- Engineering
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Medicine
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in Adventures in Odyssey Audio Series (NEWEST)
Adventures in Odyssey: Flights of Imagination (#16)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1993-10-28; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $13.87
Price in other shops:
On Earth As It Is In Heaven (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1994-05-05; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $14.50
Price in other shops:
A Time Of Discovery (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1994-12-28; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $14.15
Price in other shops:
Passport To Adventure (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1994-08-31; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $12.95
Price in other shops:
Journey Of Choices (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1994-11-08; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $14.38
Price in other shops:
Wish You Were Here (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1995-03-22; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $13.97
Price in other shops:
Changing Times (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1995-05-04; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $14.79
Price in other shops:
Twist & Turns (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1995-08-25; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $14.89
Price in other shops:
Risk And Rewards (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1996-03-07; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $12.43
Price in other shops:
Adventures in Odyssey: Darkness Before Dawn (#25) (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1996-06-04; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $15.22
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
Battle Lines (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 2002-10-01; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $13.74
Price in other shops:
Welcome Home (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1997-08-12; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $12.90
Price in other shops:
Out of Control (Adventures in Odyssey)by Focus on the Family
Tyndale Entertainment; Published: 2005-01-05; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $12.99
Price in other shops:
Adventures In Odyssey Cassettes #36: Danger SignalsTyndale Entertainment; Published: 2001-08-28; Audio Cassette; Book
Best price: $5.99
Price in other shops:
Adventures In Odyssey Cassettes #29: Signed, Sealed & CommittedTommy Nelson; Published: 1998-06-01; Audio Cassette; Book
Best price: $24.24
Price in other shops:
Days to Remember (Adventures in Odyssey)Tyndale Entertainment; Published: 2004-12-02; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $13.38
Price in other shops:
Through Thick and Thin (Adventures in Odyssey)Tyndale Entertainment; Published: 2004-12-02; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $14.35
Price in other shops:
The Big Picture (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 2001-02-22; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $12.98
Price in other shops:
In Your Wildest Dreams (Adventures in Odyssey)by Focus on the Family
Tommy Nelson; Published: 2000-09-01; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $9.99
Price in other shops:
Hidden Treasures (Adventures in Odyssey)Tommy Nelson; Published: 1999-05-15; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $14.79
Price in other shops: