The Orville
I just watched the first 3 episodes... hey, it's pretty good. In fact, the latest episode "About a Girl" is actually quite good. The jokes are hit/miss, but so far the concepts and characters have been strong enough that I'm willing to weather out them finding their tone.
It's still firmly in "I like it" territory, not "this is great" territory, but that's something where "Star Trek" is concerned right?
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Episode 3 had me in tears, it was so poignant in parts.
The opening of episode 4 had me laughing loudly. Perfect Trek circumstantial humor, that moment. Like a laugh that Data might provoke.
This show is simply the bees knees and I want to live in that future.
I just like her character and this was a step back.
But, I’m shocked how much I really enjoy this show. It is very good sci-fi amidst ill-advised dick jokes.
That generation ship episode and the baby episode were great.
/end rant
Yes, a rant if there ever was one. Buy a bottle of wine and try it sometime. I'll PayPal you the $10. Just a gesture to a fellow Trekkie.
/end response to embarrassing rant
@DancesWithWookies Popular success isn't an indication of talent--we often see that the most popular things are also the ones that are the most bland and have the least to say. Obviously McFarlane has had a good career, or else he wouldn't have been asked to host the Oscars. What I object to, aside from everything about him, is the way that this show is riding the coat tails of the first new Trek show in over a decade, to the point where you can't say "Hey, have you seen Discovery yet? without someone saying "How about The Orville?"
And yeah, maybe my rant was a little harsh, but it's for sure how I feel. You're in good company, though; I said most of these things to my mom when she asked me if I was watching it.
Eh, maybe in 20 years.
The Avis jokes didn't land for me, but everything else was great. Someone mentioned that the Orville does pacing really well. I couldn't agree more. I think that's why I'm so excited about these week-to-week. Even when they're sloppy (E5) they're pretty inoffensive.
Avis joke = what Dan Harmon would call a Monopoly Man
I wonder if we'll get another hard-hitter like 3 & 4, or if the show is front loaded.
That being said, I thought the Mexican dance off was stupidly funny for some reason.
The Mexican dance off was a moment that actually made me crack up, because it was something that felt analogous to playing in real life with friends. You think you're doing thing A, which you always do and everyone enjoys, but no, your friend swapped it out for thing B, which you think is stupid, but he thinks is awesome and that you'll enjoy even more! What sold it was how he was watching the dance off with absolute pleasure, while McFarlane left and the other guy was seemingly neutral.
I was expecting the quality of these episodes to decline. But Majority Rule was my 2nd favorite episode. Ranked:
Very 1960s Star Trek in its social commentary. At first I thought, "The Orville is doing Black Mirror," but it's more like Black Mirror was doing Star Trek. Although yeah, Black Mirror fleshes these worlds out a little more. The Orville only has time to show the concept before it comments and moves on.
With this upvote/downvote concept, unlike Black Mirror, The Orville had an "action step." I like that. I think people need to be told to disengage... it's not something they think of on their own. I like how she hesitated on the screen, as though she would upvote the guy, try to create positivity. But nope. Reject the two-party system, bitch!
This is consistently a show I get excited to watch. It injects that sweet, sweet Star Trek essence right into my brain.
We got a season 2 ordered!!
So I'm emotional today but that doesn't mean my taste flies out the window. Something has to be working to make me cry, and I cried during several moments this episode. It was wonderful to see Kasidy Yates in action. We got a stranded on an alien planet episode plus a Data episode. This one might be my favorite yet. It's tied with If the Stars Should Appear.