Behind the Episode
Episode 13: A Lost Odyssey
Rose:
This is probably the darkest episode we’ve done so far. But it’s also part of the original outline, so I have a soft spot for it. I’d loved the idea of starting at the funeral and rewinding back to what started it all, like an actual TV show. And I love the comedy aspects of 00Carter, but I like tossing real stakes in the mix, too. Opal was a real supporting character, and I feel like we developed her relationship with Brian and friendships with the others so that the loss of her would really hit hard. There’s definitely a purpose to her death that we’ll develop down the line. And it’s also a reminder that Dr. Rough isn’t playing games.
That all said, I also really love that we do add in random moments and jokes to lighten the mood. I might be an angst lover, but hey, you can’t go too dark, or it’s overkill! This is the first episode that was solely Julie, Dee, and myself writing it. It’s the last of the ones we outlined before the hiatus, but beyond a part or two I wrote years ago, it never came together. And I always like to think a bit of fictional murder can really bring friends together!
One of the unique aspects of this episode is the fact that it starts with Opal’s funeral and then shows the events leading up to her death out of order. Why did we decide to do it that way instead of writing chronologically?
Julie: I think we wanted to shock readers by starting with Opal’s funeral and leave them with a lot of questions, which we would gradually answer over the course of the episode. We also wanted to mislead them (as well as HimTak) into believing Opal’s death was a government hit before revealing that it was really Dr. Rough who put out the hit on her. (As if that was actually shocking. Dr. Rough has his hands in everything!) Like Rose said in the intro, it reminds me of a TV show, like that episode of ER (“Hindsight”) that shows the events backwards. Knowing me, that episode may even have helped inspire the idea to tell this episode that way.
Dee: I didn’t plan the episode, so I just went with the outline, but it was interesting to write Opal’s death twice from two different perspectives. I also enjoyed that HimTak and FANS got equal screen time, but never interacted.
Julie: Yeah, I also liked the way the two storylines seemed to parallel each other at first before becoming intertwined. This is one of the few episodes where we don’t see any direct interactions between FANS and HimTak.
This episode has a mix of dramatic and comedic moments. Which scenes do you prefer to write and why?
Rose: Honestly? The dramatic. I love reading comedic scenes but I do feel like I’m better at the angst. Plus I just really love the character studies you can write during those moments. Really get into their thoughts and emotions, you know? Not to mention it can be really cathartic.
Julie: Normally, I would say dramatic, too, but in this story, I actually prefer the comedic scenes… maybe because they’re such a departure from what I usually write, which is almost all drama. I do like when 00Carter goes dramatic and gets serious, but the jokes, parodies, and other funny scenes are usually my favorite parts of an episode.
Dee: I’m with Julie. Most of my typical writing faire is dramatic, so I enjoy the lighthearted moments of 00Carter the most. Although, somehow I ended up writing both dramatic cliffhangers in these past two episodes, so clearly 00Carter isn’t a total departure from my typical writing. On our reread, it was definitely the comedic elements that stuck out the most as well, whether I wrote them or not. It’s just not 00Carter without some funny random parody.
There’s a fair amount of randomness in 00Carter, but the “Steve from Blue’s Clues” subplot in this episode may be the most random thing we’ve included yet. How did that come about?
Julie: This is a funny story that illustrates how quickly a crazy idea can come out of nowhere. I was getting ready to write the first Dr. Rough scene at the beginning of Part 3 and trying to figure out Dr. Rough’s location. He needed to be somewhere near D.C., but where does a supervillain stay when traveling? I asked Rose and Dee if he should have some kind of cool lair there or if he just rents an Airbnb or something to use as his temporary headquarters. Dee responded with, “OMG, lmfao! He just rents an AirBnB and his host Steve is like, “You need more coffee, Howie? I’m going to Whole Foods.” Howie’s eye twitches. “Dr. Rough.” Steve shrugs. “All of you academics have such a weird vibe.” I immediately pictured Steve from Blue’s Clues. This was like a week after the real Steve went viral with that sweet video he did in honor of the show’s 25th anniversary, so I guess he was on my mind. Weren’t you also thinking of that Steve, Dee?
Dee: You know, I was. While Dr. Rough having a random D.C. lair would have been cool, it just wasn’t nearly as funny as him mundanely renting an AirBnB. Blue’s Clues Steve would be the perfect AirBnB host! I think we were initially writing these parts around our big reread and edit, so this was right off the heels of the Dora parody, so it just made sense. That and the episode was getting really depressing, so it needed a little something like this to lighten the mood. Even though it ends in murder…
Rose: Steve’s whole subplot is what the episode needs and its so out of nowhere that it kills me. “I just saw a murder…” I’m literally singing this and laughing right now.
Dee: Plus, it gave us a new random thing to sing at each other that immediately makes the other two laugh, so it’s a win-win.
Julie: This depressing episode definitely needed Steve! Although I love the drama surrounding Opal’s death, it just didn’t feel like 00Carter until the Blue’s Clues jokes came into play. In our planning chat, we joked about turning Blue’s Clues into a murder mystery after Drums pops a cap in Steve’s ass. I was like, I wonder if anyone’s ever done that parody before, so I searched YouTube and found this video, which is where our “I just saw a murder…” joke came from. I also just had fun watching episodes of Blue’s Clues and trying to work in as many references as possible, like the handy dandy notebook, Thinking Chair, Mailbox, Tickety Tock, and “Paprika!” Drums’ craving for graham crackers and milk in a cup with a straw was a tribute to the pilot episode, in which (spoiler alert) that is the answer to the mystery of what Blue wants for her snack. I like the dichotomy of Drums as a cold-blooded killer who also does wholesome things like cook deviled eggs, eat plain graham crackers, and drink milk through a straw like a little kid. That contrast is very 00Carter.