Chapter 68: Understanding Odalia
Art by Crash X Fusion: Sometimes what you want isn't what you need.
Odalia finds herself looking back on her life and seeing how things went wrong for her.
Tropes that appear in this Chapter:
- Abusive Parents: Griffin physically struck Odalia when she raised her tone and spoke against him.
- Adaptational Explanation: The chapter gives an identity to the bully who stole Lilith's lunch money from her when she was a student: Cat's father.
- Adaptation Expansion: The trip into the past shows how Odalia became friends with Alador and Darius, Eda causing the abomination uprising, Alador winning the Bonesborough Brawl, and Odalia & Alador's partnership turned marriage.
- Ambiguous Situation:
- Dusty appears in the past back when Odalia and Geist were teens. He mentioned in the previous chapter that he once got sent back in time, so that might factor into it.
- It isn't shown how Odalia and Geist's parents died and when Jiminy asks Odalia about it, she doesn't say.
- Odalia assumes that Luz didn't make it in the Bad Future she is shown, but Hades doesn't give her an answer.
- The Atoner: Odalia becomes one by the end of the chapter, sending out letters to her family expressing apologies and informing them that she wants to earn their forgiveness if they'll let her.
- Back for the Dead: Gretchen and Griffin are summoned from the spirit realm to warn Odalia that she will be visited by three spirits a lá Jacob Marley-style.
- Bad Future: Hades shows Odalia a possible future where Amity, Eda, and Lilith have all been petrified and she (and possibly Luz) got Killed Off for Real.
- Bittersweet Ending: Odalia nearly gets alcohol poisoning from drinking too much apple blood, but is saved with Zebra and Swan's help. After what she witnessed thanks to the spirits, Odalia sends out apology letters to Amity, the twins, and her husband asking if they'll let her make things right. However, Alador doesn't even open his letter as Terra burns it before he can and after he drinks more of her brainwashing tea, she places Arthur and Destiny in charge of keeping him in their control.
- The Bus Came Back:
- After the confirmation that he's the Boss, Tibbler Grimmhammer II reappears in the light of day after his flashback appearance in "Maternal Aspiration".
- Hades returns since "Unemployment Filing", as the spirit of the future.
- Unfortunately, as previously stated, Arthur and Destiny return since being committed in "A Surprising Visitor", Terra having freed them to control Alador with her help.
- Call-Back:
- Several events are shown from Odalia's past:
- Her ending her relationship with Lilith, as shown in Lilith's memories in "Understanding Lilith";
- Amity disowning the Blight name in "Breaking Ties";
- Edric and Emira calling out their mother before leaving Blight Manor in "A Surprising Vistor";
- Eda's warning about Hunter along with her "The Reason You Suck" Speech towards her in "Going Through Changes", along with telling her about Hunter being a spy.
- Odalia and Geist's inheriting their parents' fortune after their deaths is shown.
- Several events are shown from Odalia's past:
- The Cameo:
- Dusty is part of the crowd that buys a plumbus from Odalia and Geist... despite the scene being set over thirty years ago.
- Shelly Snope and Goggles are among the crowd at the Brawl after Alador beats Eyepatch for the win.
- A young Webstor Manylegs is seen reporting on the rise of the new Blight Industries.
- Nina is shown listening to heavy metal in her room.
- Pain and Panic are summoned by Hades to help pull Odalia into the Underworld.
- Willie the Giant shows up at to the end to tell the other spirits how his legal case against Scrooge went.
- Della Duck is shown checking up on her Uncle Scrooge after he was defeated in court by Willie.
- Character Development: Odalia slowly becomes cognizant of how her actions and ignorance have pushed her family away and led to their resentment of her thus coming around to making amends with all of them, lest she turn out all alone like Nicole.
- The Harwitches and the Regals have taken more of an interest in their daughter's interests and needs, which is in contrast of how they were earlier in Book Two when they blindly listened to Nicole while ignoring what their daughters were telling them.
- Continuity Nod:
- At one point, Odalia is seen comforting Alador after his falling out with Darius.
- Emira tells Viney about her hoping her parents get divorced.
- Hunter is shown hanging out with Boscha and her friends following the previous chapter.
- Tom staying with the Hierons is brought up, and Nicole is living in a motel since Athena kicked her out of their home so Tom can stay there without complaint.
- Crush Blush: Odalia has one after Lilith waves to her during a grudgby game.
- Curse Cut Short: Eda says "What the fu-?!" after seeing Odalia ask her sister out.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Odalia grew up in a broken home with financial troubles and parents that were willing to abuse her physically.
- A Day in the Limelight: For the first time ever, Odalia is the main focus character. Geist plays a major level of importance in her story, with Alador having a major supporting role.
- Early-Bird Cameo: Mel, a girl Edric meets while speed-dating, debuts here before having more prominence later in the arcnote .
- Everybody Knew Already: Amity knows Lilith still wants her to look up to her as a Parental Substitute, but by this point, Amity can't do that anymore after everything that's happened between them.
- Foreshadowing: Before the spirit of the future unmasks himself as Hades, he's described with smoke coming from the base of his cloak, and has two piercing yellow eyes with black pupils.
- The Ghost:
- Gus. Willow mentions to Skara that he opted to stay at her home because he's wary of being around Nina so soon.
- Pete is mentioned by Jiminy.
- Della mentions checking on the kids while Scrooge is ranting, i.e., the triplets and Webby.
- Given Name Reveal: Odalia and Geist's parents are named Griffin and Gretchen.
- Gold Digger: Arthur and Destiny accuse Odalia of being one, while Gretchen and Griffin wanted Odalia to be one. In reality, she was never this.
- Hate Sink: Gretchen and Griffin Grunhar force their children to participate in their get-rich-quick schemes, shout at Odalia for choosing to go out with the daughter of a Palisman carver rather than the heir to the Blight fortune, and even abuse Odalia physically when she stands up for herself.
- Heel Realization / Jerkass Realization: Odalia has one of each over the course of the chapter and the visits of the three spirits.
- History Repeats: Implied. After everything that she had been through with her own parents, Odalia fears Emira taking action against her by killing her.
- How Dad Met Mom: Odalia met Alador when Eda caused the abomination uprising and became friends with him and Darius the next day. Years later, they became business partners and started Blight Industries together.
- Humans Through Alien Eyes: Fu Dog drives Odalia around Bonesborough in a taxi cab, and she's terrified about how it operates.
- Internal Reveal: Thanks to Fu Dog, Odalia learns several things she was unaware of such as Emira's relationship with Viney, Amity looking after Kay and being on civil terms with Lilith again, Camila living at the Owl House, Nina living with the Brookes, Boscha being friends with Hunter and Tom living with her and Athena, Nicole having been kicked to the curb, and possibly Alador being manipulated by Terra.
- Lampshade Hanging: Fu is completely stunned when Hooty is somehow able to see him and Odalia when they shouldn't be seen by anybody at all.
- Locked Out of the Loop: Odalia is flabbergasted to learn how disconnected to her children she's been while traveling through the present with Fu Dog.
- Must Make Amends: Odalia makes it her goal from this point onward to make things right with her family and former daughter, starting with sending them letters expressing her regret and telling them she wishes to speak with them about their issues with her.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Odalia slowly comes to terms with just how distant she is with her family and that Amity & Emira have different but high levels of resentment towards her because she put too much pressure and stress on them.
- Mythology Gag:
- Amity's scene with Kay and her talk about being there for her is an altered take on the talk she has with her and Luz's daughter in the Moringmark comic, "Promise
". - Della's attire is the same set of clothes she wore in the DuckTales (2017) episode, "Quack Pack!".
- Amity's scene with Kay and her talk about being there for her is an altered take on the talk she has with her and Luz's daughter in the Moringmark comic, "Promise
- Older Than They Look: Dusty is implied to be this, since he shows up in one of Odalia's memories from over thirty years ago.
- Once More, with Clarity: As we look through Odalia's past, we see how she met the Clawthorne sisters, Alador, and Darius, how her relationships with Lilith and Alador began, and how she and Alador started their own Blight Industries.
- On the Rebound: To get Edric to forget about Hunter, Emira and Geist sign him up for speed-dating, which leads to his meeting Mel.
- Opinion-Changing Dream: Seeing how things might turn out for her if she didn't change her ways, Odalia vows to be a better witch and make amends with her family.
- Out of Focus: With the heavy amount of focus Odalia has for a change, the entire main cast takes a backseat; the Owl family and Viney have supporting roles, Willow, Skara, Boscha and Hunter all make a few brief appearances, Gus is only mentioned, and Jerbo, Barcus and most staggering of all Maya don't show up at all.
- Rags to Riches: Odalia was born to a family of "gutter dwellers" and had to work her way up in life, which led to her developing her businesswoman dynamism.
- Refusal of the Call: Tibbler offers Odalia a proposition to work together and gives her a business card, telling her to think it over after reminding her she'd lose everything like she did her family. After returning home from the hospital having learned her lesson from the spirits, she declares she's not interested and tears the card up.
- The Reveal:
- Odalia was raised in a cottage outside of Bonesborough, not being born into wealth.
- Dusty has somehow been around as a teenager since everyone's parents were kids.
- Samwitch attended Hexside with his sister, thus displaying him as one of their alumni from the Construction track.
- Zebra was the bully who took Lilith's lunch money, prompting Eda's abomination attack-turned-uprising.
- Sheldon Snope is trans. He was a girl at the time Alador won the Bonesborough Brawl.
- Felicity is confirmed to be part of the Oracle Coven.
- The Head Witch of the Oracle Coven before Delara was a man named Appolus, who got exposed by Delara as a sexual predator and murderer.
- Odalia's been drinking so much, she truly seems to have been out of it when Eda told her about Hunter's deception, thus forgetting about it.
- With encouragement from Emira and Geist, Edric takes up speed dating to find a new partner.
- Cat is expressing an interest in multi-tracking, but hasn't chosen a second track yet.
- Nicole is currently staying in a hotel called the Doghouse Inn, which Fu implies he was responsible for naming.
- Scout-Out: Odalia and Geist were both part of the Witch Scouts when they were kids.
- Shout-Out:
- Disney character debuts:
- Fu Dog from American Dragon: Jake Long appears as the Spirit of the Present, actually substituting for...
- Willie the Giant from Fun and Fancy Free, who is said to have been in court suing Scrooge McDuck.
- Speaking of Scrooge, Della Duck also debuts officially putting the DuckTales (2017) series into the continuity.
- Apple from Helluva Boss shows up as one of Edric's potential dates.
- Disney character debuts:
- Staging an Intervention: Geist sets one up with the Brooke, Regal, and Harwitch parents along with Athena to discuss Odalia's recent drinking. Odalia's response is to give them all the boot believing they're pretending to care about her.
- That Was Not a Dream: Upon waking up in a hospital room, Odalia wonders if her trip with each spirit was a dream, until she sees the burn marks on her hands that she got from grabbing onto Hades' arm.
- Trailers Always Spoil: The trailer for the arc from "Going Through Changes" showed Odalia as a witch scout and Alador winning the Bonesborough Brawl, both of which are seen during the trip to the past.
- Uncertain Doom: Luz doesn't appear in the Bad Future that Odalia is shown, causing Odalia to assume she didn't make it. Alador doesn't appear as well, making his status in the Bad Future uncertain.
- Unseen No More: After being referenced several times, Odalia's parents finally make their debut.
- Wham Episode: Odalia has a Heel/Jerkass Realization and seeks to make amends with her family, but Terra intercepts her letter to Alador and burns it, before brainwashing him again and putting Arthur and Destiny (who's she's freed from their retirement home) in charge of keeping him under thumb.
- Amelia and Cat have made grand strides in getting their parents to support their dreams, with Cat keeping the option to multi-track in the future open.
- Whole-Plot Reference: While this is Yet Another Christmas Carol, it's specifically this to Mickey's Christmas Carol, with Jiminy Cricket as the spirit of the past. It's also said that Willie usually plays the sprit of the present.
- Yet Another Christmas Carol
