So Kathy Buchanan's back! And her return is a very ho-hum one, thanks to a predictable storyline and uninteresting characters.
My main problem with this episode is that none of the characters, except for Whit, are really likeable. When Kathy had characters like Mandy and Trent to work with, her episodes would often work well because those characters were good kid characters. But Olivia and Barrett are not great characters, and Olivia is especially annoying in this episode. She hasn't improved at all since last season if this show's anything to go on. And if Olivia wasn't annoying enough, along comes Amber, who also sounds like she's played by an adult and is so over-bearing that she's harder to listen to than Olivia. What a laugh that girl has! Priscilla was just there so that Olivia would have someone to talk to, and Barrett was about the only kid that interested me in this episode (and even he was only marginally appealing). Whit was definitely the best character in this episode, but it was too bad he was only in one scene and that he had to talk to Olivia.
Unfortunately, the storyline of this show didn't work for me either. Barrett's fascination with Facebook allowed for some funny lines, but it was obvious right from the beginning what lesson he'd learn. Olivia and Priscilla's celebration of Opposite Day, while intended to be humorous, was not so, and Wooton's observation of Spirit Week only elicited one or two smiles from me (but I'm not usually a fan of Wooton, anyway).
And, if I may devote a third paragraph to being negative about this show, the music sounded recycled. I'm pretty sure all the music cues were from previous shows, and many of them did not convey the right mood at the right place. Or maybe I was just supposed to be laughing when I wasn't... :-P
Yet for all of my grips about "Opposite Day," I did enjoy it. We need a simple kids-slice-of-life episode now and again, and this show did that okay. There were a few humorous moments, like the scene at drama club and Barrett's friend in Guam ("Beat you again, Filipo!"), and Whit's advice, while not necessarily profound, was practical. It's not really a show I can see myself feeling excited about going back to re-listen to, but it probably accomplishes what it sets out to do.
One more thing: AIO producers, please don't get a new voice for Barrett just because Andy Pessoa's voice is starting to change! If Olivia can be played by a 30-year-old, surely her older brother can continue despite having a deeper voice.
Rating: 6/10
3 comments:
Umm...Barrett isn't Olivia's brother. He's Emily's. And I wish (but I'm not hopeful) that they WILL get a new voice.
Oh, yeah, you're right. I got confused because both Emily and Olivia are played by adults and both characters are kind of annoying. But the comparison still stands: if Emily can be played by an adult, why can't Barrett (who's supposed to be her older brother, although to me it's never sounded like that) get a deeper voice?
Actually, I wouldn't mind if they just got rid of the characters of Barrett and the Jones parents(and why not Emily while they're at it? ;-) ). I'd probably prefer that than a new actor for Barrett. But I'm happy to be proven wrong if they find a great kid actor to replace Andy Pessoa. :-)
Dave
Actually I think that Barret could get better, he has a voice that sounds like a teenager and it'd interesting to see how he interacts with Matthew. Olivia also has potential too, as long as her voice changes out of that annoying, adult-trying-to-sound-like-a-kid voice. I do agree with you about Emily and her parents, I wouldn't be very sad if they left.
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