L'odyssée fantastique

The first season was, as the subject line says: excellent. It was intriguing and rather unique as alternate world themes go. It made me want to watch season 2.

Season 2 was okay, but it started to become apparent that this was going somewhere that I didn't want to go, with a shift away from the first season concepts that made it so interesting to me. It was still worth watching though.

I watched season 3 to find out what the ending would be. I won't give it away, but it was very unsatisfying and disappointing in my opinion. This part of the series devolved into a teen drama that was more annoying than entertaining.

They should have tried to end this (with a different ending) in season 1 or season 2.

I loved this show from the first moment I watched it. I had a hard time getting the chance to see it at first because I only had basic cable back then and it wasn't until YTV picked up the show that I was able to see it in its entirety.

This show focuses on a 13 year boy named Jay Ziegler who falls out of a tree house while trying to retrieve his father's telescope from Keith and a group of his friends that pretended to befriend him. As a result of the fall, he is knocked unconscious and ends up in a coma. This is only the start of Jay's problems, as he finds himself in an elevator that transports him into the "down world" a place where only kids exist and no one exceeds the age of 15. This world is comprised of Jay's subconscious and exaggerates a lot of the struggles that Jay eventually deals when he comes out of the coma. As the series goes on he tries to find ways to get back to his own world and eventually realizes that the key to doing so is to find his father who traumatized Jay by faking his own death and abandoning him.

The story overall was very original and well written. It was a shame that they didn't continue it because I think it would been interesting to see if his fathers past would have added on to the troubles that Jay already had trying to grow and adjust to the real world again. There was still enough meat on the bone that there was always new material that could have been found. You also have to give credit to the actors of the show as well, such as Tony Sampson, Ashleigh Moore, Andrea Nemeth, and of course Illya Woloshyn who played Jay to perfection. Considering that most of the cast members were kids they were very convincing in the roles they played.

Overall the show's theme was really good as it shows kids the consequences and challenges of growing up and how finding the truth can make you feel like a child.

When I was just a youngster I would always try to watch this show when it came on. I can't remember how many episodes I watched or which ones I watched exactly but I do remember the feeling of mystery, another world, the dream world. I remember I quite liked the show but was always sad that I hadn't seen all episodes. Well now I can finally sit down and watch it once for all. I'm actually a bit wowed that a few famous actors are in this show too.. such as Ryan Reynolds and Devon Sawa (who I actually remember from my neighbourhood - he was my classmates brother growing up in BBY North). So yeah, kind of fun to see this again. I certainly remember it a bit different, and back then I was so young many of the kids in this were older than I was. Now watching it feels a little bit different but at the same time I'm swept away and feel like a kid again when I watch it. The music too was just right for this show... sort of ethereal and magical. So yeah, a quirky weird little show but I think it was a hidden gem of a show.

Imagination and dreams can be really strange because it is something we do all the time. Despite living in reality in mere seconds we tend to imagine ourselves doing something else or being someplace else, or even go so far as to imagine ourselves in a different world.

This is one of my favorite TV shows of all time and it's also another childhood relic of mine that I personally feel still holds up which is something I can't say for all. The show is pretty much like the TV show "The Prisoner" or movies like "Brazil", "Inception" and "Jacob's Ladder" which all were based on challenging our perspectives of reality. So yeah it's not the kind of kids show that you see everyday which I think makes it even more awesome, because it really shows how it's possible to make a quality kids show with rich substance.

I really love the fantasy world Downworld. Which is a fascinating world, it's mixed in cultural eras from some of the past, modern times, and the futuristic. And of course there is some magic involved, makes it feel like a place where anything is possible. It kinda makes sense because in a world of dreams there is no real sense of time, nor any particular set of rules, so it perfectly fits.

I really like how at times the show isn't all fun and games but can be really dark at times. Like for example in one episode Alpha's library gets burned down by the Monitors, which is a dark irony for the book burnings of the Nazi party. Or even seeing both Medea and Jay both in a house together in the desert of nowhere which is obvious Freudian overtone on losing innocence.

The pacing of the show is great, it really feels like an adventure and everyplace they go in Downworld is always someplace different you never know what to really expect. There are even some hidden meanings in places in the show that it would probably take more than one watch to uncover more.

Most importantly I really love how the show can really mess with you head, challenge your preceptions. At times things happens in the realm of reality which happen affect Downworld, or even the other way around; it really makes you wonder at times if Downworld isn't a dream of Jay's making but may'be an alternate reality that Jay somehow was able to psychically transport himself to? I don't know that's just one theory I have, my friends and I always debated about this which to me is part of the fun of the show some things are left to your own assumptions.

The characters are great, the villain is great Finger played well by Mark Hildreth whom is known for voice acting as Hero Yuy for the anime series "Gundam Wing" which is awesome since I'm a fan of the Gundam franchise. Finger is one of my favorite fictional villains, he's just a villain you love to hate because he is just a power mongering blowhole that is just willing to go to any lengths to get what he wants in the worst way possible.

Two of the protagonists are great(well OK one of them was a former antagonist.). Jay is a solid protagonist, he is sympathetic because he is constantly disoriented trying to make sense out of the world he is, while surviving and being forced to run and fight for his freedom to step up for both himself and the people of Downworld.

Medea she is my favorite character in the entire show. I remember as a kid having a crush on the actress Andrea Nemeth, I honestly thought she was cute and kinda hot but most importantly a capable actress whom unfortunately never had much else afterward which is sad. Anyway, the character Medea is great , she's funny, she's got some of the best lines, I really love how much fire and energy she has in her, bitchy but in a good way. What makes her more interesting is her transformation though out the show, how at first she is an antagonist but then slowly but surely she turns into protagonist. Sometimes the fundamental problem with this is the character would lose momentum or become uninteresting but this doesn't happen Medea just becomes more interesting and I feel this is a prime example of character transformation when done the right way.

I even like the chemistry between both Jay and Medea which I think is one of the best things about the show. Both of them are one of my favorite fictional couples, I personally believed the connection process between both of them. It's funny how the process goes both of them were rivals, Medea literally wanted Jay dead while Jay was trying to just get far away from her. However as the rivalry intensifies there are sparks that are just flying and ricocheting between the two, both we see don't really hate each other you can see in there eyes both do fancy each other and with that there feelings change gradually for the better. In one episode with the mirror maze, Jay could of easily got away from Medea but doesn't as if he wanted to be found or at some points how close both are to kissing each other. As a saying goes it takes friction to make a fire, and these two make a bonfire.

The shows has underlying messages on the importance and value of freedom and fighting against fascism; but most importantly it's a coming of age tale. Jay is a person that is growing up and as he goes further in the adventure he starts to grow more and realizes it's not his father he's looking for it's himself.

Jay dreams about his odyssey and we think about ours.

Rating: 4 stars

The first two seasons were quite creative and resourceful. Fun adventure, real life struggles. It really sparked my imagination. Each episode had unique characters and played well on the hierarchy of age. And friendship and growth was always a cornerstone. It was relatable content.

Season 3 got weird. Jay's character was disgustingly immature and we're to believe a teen idol 3-4 years older than Jay would be interested in him. Badly forced romance. Keith had such an attitude towards Jay I don't know why they were friends. The Downworld didn't make sense either. There was nothing really purposeful happening until the final episodes.