The Odyssey (TV series)
Encyclopedia
The Odyssey is a Canadian
-produced half-hour adventure-fantasy television series for children, originally broadcast
1992-95 on CBC Television
. It starred Illya Woloshyn
as Jay Ziegler, Ashleigh Aston Moore
as Donna/Alpha (credited as Ashley Rogers), Tony Sampson
as Keith/Flash, Andrea Nemeth
as Medea/Sierra Jones, Mark Hildreth
as Finger, Ryan Reynolds
as Macro, Janet Hodgkinson as Val Ziegler (Jay's mother), and Devon Sawa
as Yudo.
, 11-year-old Jay tries to join a tree-fort
club, led by the tough Keith. As per the pre-arranged agreement, Jay has brought something of value to contribute to the club: a telescope that belonged to his father (who has been missing several years and is presumed dead). However, Keith double-crosses Jay and takes the telescope, denying him admission into the club. Jay tries to retrieve the telescope with the help of his physically disabled friend Donna, who uses a crutch and a leg brace in order to walk. Jay falls from the tree-fort, however, injuring his head, and lapses into a coma
.
In the coma, Jay finds himself in a fantasy world where no one reaches the age of 16. Not having heard of adults, the children here have shaped society in their own ways, forming mostly tribal
clan
s. The biggest and most powerful government, however, is The Tower, a brutal despotic police state
run by the oldest kids. Jay, not knowing how he has got here, embarks on a journey to return home—a place he can't remember. The journey becomes a quest to find his long-lost father, who fell overboard from a small boat into a lake whilst they were on a fishing trip together, and has not been seen since.
Meanwhile, Jay's mother and a coma therapist try to get Jay to regain consciousness, with the help of his friends.
A turning point is reached when Jay's father's appears to him as he is regaining consciousness, which Jay is forced to keep as a secret from his mother. As Jay struggles to reorient himself in the waking world and the many changes that have occurred, he finds that he is still dealing with issues through the world from his subconscious.
by Water Street Pictures. Over the three years of production 39 episode
s were made. The show was broadcast in the U.S. by the Sci-Fi Channel
, in the UK by Channel 4
in 1995 (repeated in 1998), in France by
M6 (first season only) and then by France 3
(whole series), and also in a number of other countries. Awards won by the series include Top Ten World Program at the Cologne Conference, a Canadian Gemini
for Best Youth Program, and the WorldFest Gold Award at the Houston International Film Festival.
The pilot episode was originally aired in Canada on March 9, 1992, as "The Jellybean Odyssey".
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
-produced half-hour adventure-fantasy television series for children, originally broadcast
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
1992-95 on CBC Television
CBC Television
CBC Television is a Canadian television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcaster.Although the CBC is supported by public funding, the television network supplements this funding with commercial advertising revenue, in contrast to CBC Radio which are...
. It starred Illya Woloshyn
Illya Woloshyn
Illya Woloshyn is a Canadian actor of Ukrainian descent. He started acting at a very young age, playing the role of Jacob in Jacob Two Two Meets the Hooded Fang at Young People's Theatre in Toronto, and later Gavroche in the original Toronto production of Les Misérables at the Royal Alexandra...
as Jay Ziegler, Ashleigh Aston Moore
Ashleigh Aston Moore
Ashleigh Aston Moore was a Canadian child actress, who played Chrissy in the 1995 film Now and Then.-Career:Born Ashley Rogers in Sunnyvale, California, Moore began acting at the age of four...
as Donna/Alpha (credited as Ashley Rogers), Tony Sampson
Tony Sampson
Tony Sampson is a former Canadian voice and television actor who was based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He played the role of Flash in the Canadian television drama The Odyssey from 1992 to 1994, but was probably best known as Eddy in Ed, Edd, n Eddy...
as Keith/Flash, Andrea Nemeth
Andrea Nemeth
Andrea Nemeth is a Canadian actress best known for the role of Medea on the national Canadian television series The Odyssey. She is now a lecturer at a Canadian university, but still maintains a public profile as an actress.-Acting credits:...
as Medea/Sierra Jones, Mark Hildreth
Mark Hildreth (actor)
Mark Hildreth is a Canadian actor and musician, based in the U.S. He has appeared in many movie and television roles. A graduate of The National Theater School of Canada, Mark Hildreth's theater credits include Hamlet , Bertram in All's well that Ends well , Richard of Gloucester in Richard III and...
as Finger, Ryan Reynolds
Ryan Reynolds
Ryan Rodney Reynolds is a Canadian film and television actor, best known for his roles in such films as National Lampoon's Van Wilder, Waiting..., The Amityville Horror, Just Friends, Definitely, Maybe, The Proposal, Buried, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and Green Lantern.One of his best known...
as Macro, Janet Hodgkinson as Val Ziegler (Jay's mother), and Devon Sawa
Devon Sawa
Devon Edward Sawa is a Canadian actor. Although he appears in independent films, he is best known for portraying the part of Alex Browning in the 1999 movie Final Destination...
as Yudo.
Plot synopsis
In the series pilotTelevision pilot
A "television pilot" is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell the show to a television network. At the time of its inception, the pilot is meant to be the "testing ground" to see if a series will be possibly desired and successful and therefore a test episode of an...
, 11-year-old Jay tries to join a tree-fort
Tree house
Tree houses, treehouses, or tree forts, are platforms or buildings constructed around, next to or among the trunk or branches of one or more mature trees while above ground level...
club, led by the tough Keith. As per the pre-arranged agreement, Jay has brought something of value to contribute to the club: a telescope that belonged to his father (who has been missing several years and is presumed dead). However, Keith double-crosses Jay and takes the telescope, denying him admission into the club. Jay tries to retrieve the telescope with the help of his physically disabled friend Donna, who uses a crutch and a leg brace in order to walk. Jay falls from the tree-fort, however, injuring his head, and lapses into a coma
Coma
In medicine, a coma is a state of unconsciousness, lasting more than 6 hours in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light or sound, lacks a normal sleep-wake cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. A person in a state of coma is described as...
.
In the coma, Jay finds himself in a fantasy world where no one reaches the age of 16. Not having heard of adults, the children here have shaped society in their own ways, forming mostly tribal
Tribe
A tribe, viewed historically or developmentally, consists of a social group existing before the development of, or outside of, states.Many anthropologists use the term tribal society to refer to societies organized largely on the basis of kinship, especially corporate descent groups .Some theorists...
clan
Clan
A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clan members may be organized around a founding member or apical ancestor. The kinship-based bonds may be symbolical, whereby the clan shares a "stipulated" common ancestor that is a...
s. The biggest and most powerful government, however, is The Tower, a brutal despotic police state
Police state
A police state is one in which the government exercises rigid and repressive controls over the social, economic and political life of the population...
run by the oldest kids. Jay, not knowing how he has got here, embarks on a journey to return home—a place he can't remember. The journey becomes a quest to find his long-lost father, who fell overboard from a small boat into a lake whilst they were on a fishing trip together, and has not been seen since.
Meanwhile, Jay's mother and a coma therapist try to get Jay to regain consciousness, with the help of his friends.
A turning point is reached when Jay's father's appears to him as he is regaining consciousness, which Jay is forced to keep as a secret from his mother. As Jay struggles to reorient himself in the waking world and the many changes that have occurred, he finds that he is still dealing with issues through the world from his subconscious.
Production and broadcasting
The series, created by Paul Vitols and Warren Easton, was produced in VancouverVancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
by Water Street Pictures. Over the three years of production 39 episode
Episode
An episode is a part of a dramatic work such as a serial television or radio program. An episode is a part of a sequence of a body of work, akin to a chapter of a book. The term sometimes applies to works based on other forms of mass media as well, as in Star Wars...
s were made. The show was broadcast in the U.S. by the Sci-Fi Channel
Sci Fi Channel (United States)
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
, in the UK by Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
in 1995 (repeated in 1998), in France by
M6 (first season only) and then by France 3
France 3
France 3 is the second largest French public television channel and part of the France Télévisions group, which also includes France 2, France 4, France 5, and France Ô....
(whole series), and also in a number of other countries. Awards won by the series include Top Ten World Program at the Cologne Conference, a Canadian Gemini
Gemini Award
The Gemini Awards are annual television broadcasting industry awards in Canada.First awarded in 1986, the Geminis celebrate the achievements of TV members of the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television. Essentially, it presents awards for the best television productions in Canada. Awards are...
for Best Youth Program, and the WorldFest Gold Award at the Houston International Film Festival.
The pilot episode was originally aired in Canada on March 9, 1992, as "The Jellybean Odyssey".
Home media release
A special edition DVD of the complete series was made in limited quantities and is sold through Omni Film Productions.Season 1 (1992-1993)
- The Fall
- No Fair
- Out of the Woods
- By the Book
- Checkpoint Eagle
- The Believers
- A Place Called Nowhere
- Wanted
- Galileo & the Gypsies
- In the Dark
- The Brad Exchange
- Welcome to the Tower
- The One Called Brad
Season 2 (1994)
- Lands End
- To the Lighthouse
- Some place like home
- Whispers Like Thunder
- The Hall of Darkness
- The Prophecy
- The Greatest Show on Earth
- But Where Is Here?
- The Big Picture
- Tick Tock
- Run for Your Life
- Who Do You Believe?
- You Decide
Season 3 (1994)
- No Way Out
- Dart to the Heart
- Learning Curve
- Night Life
- Cry Justice
- King for a Day
- The Cauldron
- Styx and Stones
- Tug of War
- Tangled Web
- No Holds Barred
- The Plague
- Time Bomb
External links
- Archive of the SciFi Channel's web site dedicated to the show during its run on the network.
- features The Odyssey's last episode "Time Bomb"