Blackgaard saga

The Blackgaard saga, named after the villain Dr. Regis Blackgaard, is the defining story arc in the Christian-themed radio drama/comedy "Adventures in Odyssey". Spanning multiple episodes originally broadcast over an eleven-year period (1988–1999), the Blackgaard saga ties in numerous smaller plot arcs and involves nearly all major "AIO" characters.

Overview

The saga involves Dr. Blackgaard's evil plots involving the town of Odyssey. It can be split into two sub-sagas; the first dealing with Blackgaard's attempt to steal John Avery Whittaker's computer program "Applesauce", and the other about Blackgaard trying to create the deadly Ruku virus.

The Blackgaard saga begins before the existence of Whit's End, an ice cream emporium and the focal point of "AIO", when Blackgaard's "Webster Development Firm" is outbid by John Avery Whittaker's "Universal Press Foundation" in the sale of the building and property that would later become Whit's End.

The saga resurfaces in the "Daring Deeds, Sinister Schemes" arc, spanning eight episodes. Twenty albums later, after many interlude episodes, the "Darkness Before Dawn" arc involved the climax of the saga. Things were then wrapped up in later episodes, ending with the finale "Blackgaard's Revenge".

Episodes

Pre-Saga Episodes

The early episode "Recollections", told in the narrative of Tom Riley, provided the backstory of the creation of Whit's End and ultimately set the foundation of the saga.

* #19: Recollections

Official Episodes

Most of the following twenty-four episodes were included in either "Daring Deeds and Sinister Schemes" or "Darkness Before Dawn", two albums released by Focus on the Family. These two sets included either episodes which provided only the vital information that would drive the saga forward (sidestepping less informational episodes like "Connie Goes to Camp" and instead opting for ones such as "A Name, Not a Number") or those that directly advanced the plot (such as "Checkmate").

* #73: "A Bite of Applesauce"
* #76: "Eugene's Dilemma"
* #77: "The Nemesis I"
* #78: "The Nemesis II"
* #83: "The Battle I"
* #84: "The Battle II"
* #155: "Waylaid in the Windy City I"
* #156: "Waylaid in the Windy City II"
* #286: "Tom for Mayor I"
* #287: "Tom for Mayor II"
* #290: "A Name, Not a Number I"
* #291: "A Name, Not a Number II"
* #293: "A Code of Honor"
* #324: "Small Fires, Little Pools"
* #325: "Angels Unaware"
* #326: "Gathering Thunder"
* #327: "Moving Targets"
* #328: "Hard Losses"
* #329: "The Return"
* #330: "The Time Has Come"
* #331: "Checkmate"
* #332: "Another Chance"
* #333: "The Last Resort"
* #334: "The Final Conflict"

Non-Official Episodes

These episodes, while part of the Blackgaard saga, did not contribute immensely to the plot or reveal any majorly important details, and were not included in the two-set release. The Edgebiter chemical spill, conversion of Richard Maxwell, spat between Lucy and Connie, introduction of Edwin Blackgaard, construction of the Electric Palace, relationship between Butch and Sam, and Reverend Andrew's knowledge of the mineral beneath Whit's End, were all among the more minor points in the saga and were recapped in other episodes included in the sets, explaining the exclusion of these episodes.

* #74: "Connie Goes to Camp I"
* #75: "Connie Goes to Camp II"
* #128: "One Bad Apple"
* #159: "The Homecoming"
* #160: "Rathbone of Contention"
* #203: "Double Trouble"
* #301: "The Good, the Bad, and Butch"
* #316: "The Underground Railroad III"

Follow-Up Episodes

These episodes wrapped up the loose ends left after the conclusion of the saga's climax, mostly focusing on Edwin Blackgaard's ownership of the Electric Palace. The finale "Blackgaard's Revenge" followed the storyline of the virus that Blackgaard planted in the Imagination Station before his demise.

* #342: "Welcome Home, Mr. Blackgaard!"
* #359: "The Merchant of Odyssey"
* #424: "Blackgaard's Revenge I"
* #425: "Blackgaard's Revenge II"

Closely Related Episodes

These episodes closely relate to the Blackgaard saga, but are not considered to be part of it. These episodes follow the introduction of Richard Maxwell, the reconstruction of Tom Riley's barn, Phillip Glossman's move from city councilman to state secretary, Blackgaard's failed attempt to relocate Tom Riley to another location, and a zany fictional story about Blackgaard, told by Bernard.

* #72: "An Encounter with Mrs. Hooper"
* #79: "Our Best Vacation Ever"
* #109: "Not One of Us"
* #202: "Timmy's Cabin"
* #440: "I Slap Floor"

ummary

"Daring Deeds, Sinister Schemes" Arc

In this arc, Blackgaard attempts to steal the powerful government computer program "Applesauce" from the computer in Whit's End. It begins with Eugene and Connie accessing the program against Whit's instruction, causing Whit's End to shut down due to complications from them using the program illegally and Whit being forced to terminate their employment at Whit's End. Connie goes away to work at a summer camp, where she realizes why Whit had to fire her when she is in a position where she must expel Lucy from camp after she sneaks out after hours. Meanwhile, Eugene takes a job at the college, where he finds himself stuck in the middle of an extortion scheme. The manipulative Richard Maxwell forces child genius Nicholas Adamsworth to change the grades of several students. When Eugene is willing to accept responsibility for the situation even though it isn't his fault, Whit sees that he has learned his lesson and gives him his job back.

Blackgaard then arrives in town in hopes of setting up a new business, called "Blackgaard's Castle". He appeals for a business license to the city council, and councilman Phillip Glossman solidly stands for him, but Tom Riley opposes construction of the business. A meeting is announced to be held in a week, and Blackgaard plots a way to ensure that Tom Riley, as well as influence Whit, will be absent. Richard Maxwell, his new employee, manipulates Lucy into lying to Connie and Whit, telling each of them that the other wants to meet with them during the meeting. Both of them arrive and make up. Whit, seeing that Connie has learned why she was fired, he invites her to return to Whit's End, and she accepts. Immediately after she does, though, Whit and Connie notice an unusual amount of smoke rising from the distance. They arrive at the site to find that Richard Maxwell has dealt with Tom in a more direct manner: he has burned down his barn! Whit rescues the unconscious Tom from his collapsing barn just in time. Meanwhile, Glossman convinces the other city council members to grant Dr. Blackgaard his business license unopposed.

In the climax, "The Battle", Blackgaard and Richard Maxwell have the means to hack into Whit's End and steal Applesauce, however, they do not know the password for it. Richard cannot get any information out of Lucy, who discovers their motives and decides to warn Whit. Blackgaard, meanwhile, decides that he will need to buy time by forcing Whit's End to close. He and Richard use the computer at Whit's End to drain the power out of the Imagination Station, a popular invention at the shop. Whit investigates the strange power failures at Whit's End and climbs inside of the Imagination Station when Lucy arrives and enters the machine with him. She is about to warn him about Blackgaard's plan when Blackgaard sends a surge of power through the Imagination Station, causing it to explode and landing Lucy in the hospital. Upon discovering this, Richard, who has grown to care for Lucy, becomes angry with Blackgaard and tries to stop him by setting his shop on fire. However, Blackgaard traps Maxwell in the burning building and flees. Whit arrives and rescues Richard, who confesses everything to the police. Blackgaard gets away.

Interlude Episodes

Several major events transpire before the culmination of the saga. "Waylaid in the Windy City" featured a plot masterminded by Blackgaard to steal a laptop from the Department of Defense, which may or may not have had to do with Applesauce or his later scheme to develop the Ruku virus. During this time period, Richard Maxwell has a change of heart after his two year prison sentence and is forgiven by everyone in Odyssey except for Tom, who still nurtures a grudge.

The saga does not resurface until years later, after Whit has left Odyssey for two years to help a missions effort in the Middle East. Jason, his son, moves into Odyssey to take over Whit's End for him, but not before his last assignment as an agent for the National Security Agency, in which Blackgaard is entangled in a terrorist group's attempts to secure world domination through a virus known as Ruku. The episode ends with the world believing that Blackgaard was an undercover agent who gave his life stopping the plot, while, in actuality, he faked his own death and murdered his partners to ultimately walk away with only one more goal to accomplish: developing the chemical compound TA-418, which renders the normally weak virus unstoppable.

"Darkness Before Dawn" Arc

This saga begins with a conspiracy to overthrow Tom Riley as mayor, which involves a sudden rash of organized vandalism and rumors of a scandal in his election. As things progress, Jason organizes a group of kids to form a gang dedicated to counter-acting the crime, to no avail; a recall election is still ordered. Blackgaard then arrives on the scene, eager to run, with the defamation of Tom's character paving the way for Glossman to shut down Whit's End due to a supposed health hazard; Blackgaard actually wants the mineral buried under the shop, which is the final component necessary for TA-418.

Eventually, the truth does come out when Jellyfish, one of Blackgaard's subordinates, is caught, and he implicates everyone involved in the conspiracy to lessen his prison sentence. The last few episodes deal with the each criminal's arrest one by one, while Blackgaard remains in the tunnel, with a bomb rigged to go off. The police are hesitant to enter without knowledge of what the situation is, while Jack Allen confronts Blackgaard in the tunnel, urging him to redeem his soul. Blackgaard counter-comments that his soul is far beyond the realm of redemption and that he has nothing to lose by setting off the bomb; he has been deliberately exposed to a strain of the Ruku virus by an unknown party and only has a few days to live. Jack refuses to leave without Blackgaard, so Blackgaard detonates the explosive; Jack miraculously survives, while Blackgaard dies in the blast.

ee also

* Adventures in Odyssey
* List of Adventures in Odyssey episodes
* Dr. Regis Blackgaard