Episode Description:
"Pastor Knox tries to help a conflicted young woman, Alicia, who decides to visit her father in prison. She had been disappointed by her father for years." - AIO
Episode Review:
For years, Christian storytelling has tried too hard to create an emotional impact by injecting – what I call – “cheap moments of tragedy”. Halfway through the Christian film “Courageous”, for instance, the protagonist’s daughter is randomly hit by a car, a moment that – to some viewers – exists simply for shock value. On Adventures in Odyssey, this narrative faux-pas can be found in the episode “Never for Nothing”, where a child suddenly falls out of a tree in its third act. They’re moments considered too dark and shocking given the stories’ tones, that feel too random and out of place and that, ultimately, make you roll your eyes instead of feeling genuine emotion.
It’s refreshing, then, to listen to an emotionally-charged episode like “Beyond Repair” that never feels over-the-top or melodramatic. Rather than trying to “surprise” or “shock” the audience into crying, the episode uses much smaller moments. An absentee father. A lonely daughter. A broken home. A refusal to forgive. A Christmas that did not go as planned. Any potentially dramatic scene take place “off screen” and is only vaguely alluded to. How did the father end up in jail? Did that one car crash result in deaths? Had he been drinking? We aren’t provided with these – potentially dramatic – answers because, really, they don’t matter. That isn’t the focus here.
This well-written episode uses remarkable restraint, focusing solely on how the father’s actions affected those around him – rather than the father’s actions themselves. Aside from Connie’s unfortunate quip about prisoners in “Met His Match”, Adventures in Odyssey has always shown respect to those in confinement, especially to those characters who have sought repentance and reconciliation. Although the father’s wounds are largely self-inflicted, the episode makes us feel compassion for him, just like we did for Eric’s father in “Like Father like Son” – interestingly, another Angel Tree episode. And much like that episode, the one who refuses to offer forgiveness becomes the story’s real “antagonist”.
While some may want an ending with more resolution, I admire the fact that the episode has no ending. We do not know whether Alicia can ever forgive her father, and this resonates because, in real life, things don’t always get wrapped up neatly in a bow. People often don’t forgive. While cancer - as a plot device - has been used surprisingly often Adventures in Odyssey in recent days (“The Toy” and “Charlotte”), its presence here is a somber reminder that choosing to forgive another cannot be always on our terms. As flawed humans, we sometimes yield that power selfishly.
“Beyond Repair” also gives us a better idea of what kind of episodes Wilson Knox will be featured in. My fear when Wilson Knox was introduced was that he would be stealing meatier roles from Whit. However, one could argue that Whit could have easily replaced Wilson here with very few changes, since it has been established that Whit is sometimes involved in prison ministry. While Wilson Knox continuously endears himself, appearing, it seems, only in heartfelt stories, the episode doesn’t quite give a clear picture of how he will distinguish himself from Whit in personality.
Film critic Roger Ebert once defined cinema as “a machine that generates empathy”. That definition certainly applies to audio drama, as well. “Beyond Repair” humanizes – and creates empathy for – everyone impacted by the tragedy of imprisonment. It is also a poignant reminder to show compassion, pray, and dedicate resources to help both those convicted and their families. It’s a message that needs to be communicated again and again.
"Pastor Knox tries to help a conflicted young woman, Alicia, who decides to visit her father in prison. She had been disappointed by her father for years." - AIO
Episode Review:
For years, Christian storytelling has tried too hard to create an emotional impact by injecting – what I call – “cheap moments of tragedy”. Halfway through the Christian film “Courageous”, for instance, the protagonist’s daughter is randomly hit by a car, a moment that – to some viewers – exists simply for shock value. On Adventures in Odyssey, this narrative faux-pas can be found in the episode “Never for Nothing”, where a child suddenly falls out of a tree in its third act. They’re moments considered too dark and shocking given the stories’ tones, that feel too random and out of place and that, ultimately, make you roll your eyes instead of feeling genuine emotion.
It’s refreshing, then, to listen to an emotionally-charged episode like “Beyond Repair” that never feels over-the-top or melodramatic. Rather than trying to “surprise” or “shock” the audience into crying, the episode uses much smaller moments. An absentee father. A lonely daughter. A broken home. A refusal to forgive. A Christmas that did not go as planned. Any potentially dramatic scene take place “off screen” and is only vaguely alluded to. How did the father end up in jail? Did that one car crash result in deaths? Had he been drinking? We aren’t provided with these – potentially dramatic – answers because, really, they don’t matter. That isn’t the focus here.
This well-written episode uses remarkable restraint, focusing solely on how the father’s actions affected those around him – rather than the father’s actions themselves. Aside from Connie’s unfortunate quip about prisoners in “Met His Match”, Adventures in Odyssey has always shown respect to those in confinement, especially to those characters who have sought repentance and reconciliation. Although the father’s wounds are largely self-inflicted, the episode makes us feel compassion for him, just like we did for Eric’s father in “Like Father like Son” – interestingly, another Angel Tree episode. And much like that episode, the one who refuses to offer forgiveness becomes the story’s real “antagonist”.
While some may want an ending with more resolution, I admire the fact that the episode has no ending. We do not know whether Alicia can ever forgive her father, and this resonates because, in real life, things don’t always get wrapped up neatly in a bow. People often don’t forgive. While cancer - as a plot device - has been used surprisingly often Adventures in Odyssey in recent days (“The Toy” and “Charlotte”), its presence here is a somber reminder that choosing to forgive another cannot be always on our terms. As flawed humans, we sometimes yield that power selfishly.
“Beyond Repair” also gives us a better idea of what kind of episodes Wilson Knox will be featured in. My fear when Wilson Knox was introduced was that he would be stealing meatier roles from Whit. However, one could argue that Whit could have easily replaced Wilson here with very few changes, since it has been established that Whit is sometimes involved in prison ministry. While Wilson Knox continuously endears himself, appearing, it seems, only in heartfelt stories, the episode doesn’t quite give a clear picture of how he will distinguish himself from Whit in personality.
Film critic Roger Ebert once defined cinema as “a machine that generates empathy”. That definition certainly applies to audio drama, as well. “Beyond Repair” humanizes – and creates empathy for – everyone impacted by the tragedy of imprisonment. It is also a poignant reminder to show compassion, pray, and dedicate resources to help both those convicted and their families. It’s a message that needs to be communicated again and again.
Writer: Bob Hoose
Director: Nathan Hoobler
Producer: Dave Arnold
Sound Engineer: Christopher Diehl
Music: John Campbell
Theme: Angel Tree/ Forgiveness
Original Air-date: 10/01/18
Review Published: 11/12/18