It’s no secret (or perhaps it may be) that the final albums of the CD-dominated eras of Adventures in Odyssey were by no means my favorite. These were episodes fraught with gaps and inconsistencies in character development, writing not quite up to Odyssey par, and of course, lots of salvation episodes, for better or worse. Even so, some of the decade’s higher points have appeared recently as well, through episodes such as the Perkins redemption arc and the conclusions to the Buck salvation story. Even the final moments of Jules’s salvation story retained some AIO highlights. I also must hesitantly commend Odyssey for recognizing that the Rydell episodes simply haven’t been hitting as well anymore and for cooling it off last season. It likely won’t appease our friends over at sites like AIO Audio News, but it at least thwarted SONN’s joke prediction about the albums from last year (a post that apparently didn’t make it over in our website transition). To refresh my memory, I went back and listened to all of the episodes from last year’s two season albums and most of the year’s Club episodes, and will compile my picks for each category below. I have also listed my reasoning for each pick, included an honorable mention, and added a few AWB editorial categories down below.
Best Actress – Shona Rodman in “On the Edge”
(Honorable Mention – Monica Padilla in “Crossing the Line”)
As I said above, I’ll be including honorable mentions in these picks, either my second choices from the official list of selections or selections I believe should’ve been considered. Some of these are officially ineligible due to their inclusion in a Club season. Now to the review. On the Edge was a solid episode. It wasn’t a five-star smash hit, but it was a satisfying conclusion to an otherwise unrelentingly persistent salvation saga. I was torn between Connie and Jules’ performances in these two episodes; I believe Shona made it out on top. I will say my focus here was more on the honorable mention. There were a number of outstanding performances not listed in the official category list, including, for example, the actress performances in the Perkins’ saga episodes. And I mean, you could almost hear Bridget flipping off Gunner and Jules in On the Edge. But while Bridget, Carla, and Vicki did contribute to an overall superior set of episodes, Jillian’s thoughtful guidance of both Jules and Connie stood out to me. It also occurs to me that we have not seen “Smart Jillian” all that often since 28 Hours. This may be a bit of a hot take, but hearing her switch between both roles is super enjoyable, and Monica pulls it off quite nicely. Moments in Crossing the Line where Jillian wasn’t necessarily acting (such as the confrontation with Jules at the police station), were also interesting now that we know the truth. I’m curious to see how this performance will continue to develop, especially as we move into arcs like the renewed Chairman saga we’ve been promised.
Best Actor – Robby Bruce in “Value of a Buck”
(Honorable Mention – David Shelby in “Value of a Buck”)
The Value of a Buck is one of my favorite episodes of 2025. It strangely marked me too. I remember exactly where I was when it came out. I combined the episodes with the Long End on a road trip drive home last November, which furthered my appreciation of Buck’s journey to this point. I’ve mentioned before that a marking characteristic of both Shona and Robby’s excellence in their roles has been their ability to portray the growth of the two characters. This is steadier in Buck and certainly more apparent in Jules. Buck’s growth shone in his delivery here once again. As far as an honorable mention, Skint’s character was chilling on my first listen. Shelby did an awesome job supporting this plot, and there’s not much more to elaborate on.
Best Scene – Skint’s last words and escape attempt in “Value of a Buck, Part 1”
(Honorable Mention – Ron and Carla’s Confrontation With Vicki from “Aunt Vicki”)
This winning scene and the ones surrounding it are just one part of what’s set the Buck Salvation arc apart from its recent counterparts. The fast-paced moral decisions Buck formed on top of elements like David Shelby’s previously mentioned acting are golden. Scenes like these truly enhance Odyssey’s appeal and are what keep it worth listening to. Malachi’s showcase of Odyssey residents was certainly thoughtful, but many of the scenes from the Club episode “Aunt Vicki” topped it, so many that it was difficult to pick just one. Between the scenes with Wyatt and his cousin, his conversation with his father, and the adult conversation with Aunt Vicki, the latter won out for me in overall punch.
Most Powerful Salvation Story – Buck Meltsner
(Honorable Mention – Ron Perkins)
It’s a true shame that none of the Perkins’ salvations were included in this nomination category, because, as I keep alluding, all three of them far outshone the stories that made it to the mainstream list, Ron’s most of all. The development leading up to “The Difference” is a living embodiment of that “this is peak” meme. I also appreciate that all of the family’s salvation stories took a fraction of the time to conclude as any of the other salvific arcs. Of course, speed isn’t necessarily the priority when writing episode sagas (case in point, Eugene), but effective storytelling absolutely should be, and all of the Perkins arcs were certainly effective. I shouldn’t dwell on that too long, because, ironically enough, the mainstream arc that’s been running the longest came out on top. Props for that.
Most Surprising Return – Malachi in “Face the Future”
I have to say, the episodes of the “Face” Series (what we’re going to call these episodes from now on) were a bust for me, but that didn’t make Malachi’s return in the first episode any less surprising. The lesson he brought Connie on his return was also food for thought, as we’ve discussed. That part of the episode was definitely enjoyable. Mr. Skint’s return was a surprise, and chilling as I mentioned, but the shock of Skint throwing himself into a Buck episode wore off with the Long End. No follow-up for this category.
Best Sound Design – “On the Edge”
I originally didn’t re-listen to On the Edge before selecting it for this award section. The scene depicting Jules’ recollection of the Bible verse plaque from the previous episode in the saga sealed the deal for me. Kathy’s podcast explanation of how the team put it together was also excellent. Relistening only confirmed my bias. There are a number of quality artistic sound choices that stood out in this episode as well. The car falling off the cliff, for one. The use of the wind as Connie and Whit were driving, the evocation of the sunrise, etc.
Best Musical Score – This Is My Story
Honorable Mention – Ambush
The musical scores of this season were all amazing classic Campbell pieces, perfectly capturing the emotion, drive, and action of their respective episodes. In situations where we don’t have any crazy-level David and Absalom or Rydell-style scores, I usually appreciate the stories behind the fresh takes on Odyssey music by newer composers. Tyler Michael Smith’s episodes over the past few years are a good example of this. Conner Savoca has been making waves as well, evidenced by his own podcast episode that debuted a few weeks ago. I always love John Campbell’s military arrangements, so Ambush was an easy runner up for me.
Best Script – “Value of a Buck”
(Honorable Mention – Aunt Vicki)
Ever since some of my most recent conversations with Michael Lafaver, I’ve been really focused on the value of consistency in storytelling and character development. I could (and very likely will) write a whole article evaluating the trajectory of Jules’ salvation arc. Here’s the thing. Something that always drew me to Adventures in Odyssey was its realistic element. The three mainstream characters that experienced salvation in these past two albums may not have been necessarily relatable when introduced, but they were, at least mostly, realistic. A young teenage boy who develops from an unstable childhood. A 2013-style girl with a west-coast millennial angst. And an intelligent college student whose tragedy has left her faith stranded. Of all these situations, though, Buck’s comes out the most realistic. Yes, there was some hyperreal action thrown in episodes like the Long End and As Buck Would Have It, but nothing that would suspend your disbelief of how Buck would respond in these situations. Perhaps a more suitable term is ‘natural’. Value of a Buck is no different. In fact, the subversion of both Jules’s and the audience’s expectations at the beginning of the episode works because we know Buck has grown steadily since his introduction. The lessons presented in this episode are right on par as well. I could go on, but you can read a full review of the episode here. The honorable mention is essential too. Aunt Vicki is one of the most interesting AIO episodes we’ve heard in a good while. It proves that AIO’s problem isn’t solely with new episode ideas; this definitely isn’t an episode concept we’ve seen very often, even at all, in the show’s long history.
Best Overall Episode – “Value of a Buck”
(Honorable Mention – Aunt Vicki)
I hate to belabor how excellent I think both the Value of a Buck and Aunt Vicki are, but they are truly episodes that have outshone in the recent Odyssey landscape. The former is a stand-out reminder that a long-running saga doesn’t have to be a flop. Indeed, it’s a marker that shows that if the writers understand and value the character they’re writing about, they’re 50% of the way to guaranteed success. This, by the way, is a skill AIO has mastered. Mirroring what I said in the Value of a Buck review, these two episodes also had a good share of real moral quandaries.
Most Underwhelming Episode – “Face the Future/Unknown/Truth”
From the expectations I put out both before and after the release of album 80, any regular reader of this site can probably determine I have found both the conclusion to the CD-led eras and the succeeding episodes…disappointing. To clarify, they haven’t seemed to live up to the hype attached to them. That, again, is another article. For now, I thought it necessary to include a section highlighting where AIO could have used the most improvement. We are, after all, trying to help make the AIO the best AIO it can be. A runner-up to this category could have been something like Just Another Day, but that would’ve been unfair; it was perfectly average, more like just another episode. Here’s the thing. I was hyped for Face the Future. I was even more hyped when Malachi showed up again, even if it seemed like a bit of a used-up trope. I was able to look past that; these two albums have been filled with reused Odyssey elements (e.g., Buck’s recollection scene) and have turned out perfectly fine. But then the episode just sort of devolved into one big non-sequitur. What’s worse is that it sort of ruined the arc for me overall. For as long as I’ve been active in this fandom, I’ve typically stood in defense of the Renee character arc. As I said previously, she reflects a very natural state of most non-Christians today, and so seeing how this would develop was key for me. In my opinion, there were a number of ways to have closed out the Renee arc, and this was the most…predictable. Perhaps mediocre is, again, another good term here. I thought it may just have been me, but threads in the AIO Spoilers group also seemed disappointed. Perhaps it was just fatigue from the multiple salvation episodes that year, but discontentment didn’t really seem to arise with any of them until this series of episodes came out. But I belabor the point. A hypothetical runner up would be “This Is My Story”, but I wouldn’t say that episode was necessarily as underwhelming. The Face episodes were placed as the big hurrah, and the Face episodes certainly were not.
Most Underrated Episodes – Ambush, Bottled Up, and The Difference
In a more positive light, the 2025 season had a good deal of episodes I feel were generally glossed over, namely, essentially the entirety of the Perkins episodes. Overall, the Perkins salvation arc, a series that went into high gear in late 2024, has been short, succinct, and compelling. The 2025 editions focused more on Ron than on the rest of his family, which is why I believe these episodes can accurately be referred to as “Ambush” parts 1, 2, and 3. The Perkins, and Ron Perkins in particular, have been excellent examples of the classic sort of lessons that Adventures in Odyssey teaches. It’s one of the reasons I’m hesitant to write off Focus On The Family and Adventures in Odyssey altogether. As a Coloradan living near multiple military bases, all of the Perkins episodes have across really tangibly, and these were no exception. All in all, an amazing, quiet success from an organization that clearly has not entirely forgotten how to write good stories.
Conclusion: Best Overall Album – Album 79: Eleventh Hour
Quality-wise, these past few albums are a good symbol of the state of Odyssey in the 2020s. I suppose they’re not just symbolic; they literally reflect the state of the show. For every fairly solid episode, there seems to be a passable or even worse one to match it. Let me clarify something before I give my thoughts. I’m not a show writer. And even with all the writers, directors, and producers I know and have met, I don’t sit in planning meetings, and I’m not in the office late at night when these episodes are written. I’ve done my best not to make our reviews a bash on any Phil Lollar or any other writer. But we’ve already recognized there’s been a shift, and if something’s going to turn around, we have to be honest about it. As for the review of Eleventh Hour, On the Edge was, of course, the premier episode. Crossing the Line was good, all things aside, but Jules’ atypical actions really messed up that suspension of disbelief I mentioned. Her consistent backsliding is also something we’ve satirized the heck out of on this site, clearly to an end. Later, I’ll look into whether this was the most effective way to end this series. The rest of the album, Just Another Day and Two Steps Forward, were just fine. Over the past few years, the Club front has outdone the regular series albums in that same season, and I think this year might be an example of that. Episodes like Picture Day Plot, Out of the Spotlight, and School of Hard Knocks felt more familiar. The Perkins trilogy and Aunt Vicki were, of course, high quality as well. If I were to rate the 2025 Odyssey season, it would get a solid 3.4 stars.
We all understood when 2025 began that the biggest priority of the team was to wrap up at least the majority of these arcs, and we should probably have expected some of them to feel more rushed than others. What’s frustrating, and something we’ll go over in a different upcoming article, is that this newer, explicitly defined era hasn’t been a vast shift from the former. I wonder if it was worth sacrificing quality in episodes like those in the Face series in the name of a forced rebrand. All things to discuss later this summer. For now, from your AWB Editor-in-Chief, keep up the fandom. We’ll see you soon.
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