The Orville Marathon

[clearspira]

My short opinions on the first ten episodes:

Episode 1: Sort of like Galaxy Quest, but instead of the bits that were actually funny, let's have dick jokes.

Episode 2: Meh.

Episode 3: God dammit, Braga.

Episode 4: Basically a ripoff of "For the Earth is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky," but ok

Episode 5: Am I the only one who was really unnerved by the amputation gag? The rest was fine, I guess, although the crew were acting like unprofessional idiots.

Episode 6: A really good plot idea here. So let's ruin it by having our characters act like complete idiots.

Episode 7: A pretty good Black Mirror-style plot here. So let's ruin it by having our characters act like complete idiots.

Episode 8: Best one so far. The interaction between Isaac and the kids is actually good, and Doctor Kasady is the one character I actually really like in this show—she's smart, competent, and doesn't mess around.

Episode 9: So let's have her get date raped. Oh yeah, let's have everyone else get date raped too. Hell, while we're at it, let's make quaaludes the solution to the problem of the week. What the F were they thinking? I need some brain bleach.

Episode 10: Ripoff of DS9's "Distant Voices" while somehow managing to make less sense.

Not the show for you I guess. I'd like to know what you're smoking with that episode 10 assessment. How the hell is it a 'ripoff' of Distant Voices?

Chuck is absolutely right in his appraisal of what makes a rip-off and what makes an homage. Even if the concept was stolen, did ep 10 add anything to the concept? For example; Quake, Doom and Duke Nukem are all copies of Wolfenstein to varying degrees and yet no one would say that they did not add their own spin onto the genre.

[Durandal_1707]

Yeah, it managed to add the concept that Alara was doing this on purpose? And mindwiped herself to do it?? And that the rest of the crew were on board with this??? What?

I mean, I get that they were trying to add something new by tacking a twist ending onto it, but that made no damn sense.

[Durandal_1707]

But as much as I don't like the show, seeing how much McFarlane is invested in this particular project is a fascinating look into his psyche. Like Trek, most episodes centre around a social issue of some kind. But it's interesting how many of them are things that primarily concern a rich, successful, secular straight white man with a large public profile. "What if my partner was unfaithful to me?" "What if I got swarmed by a Twitter mob over a minor thing--would my reputation ever recover?" "How tenuous is my position and status?" "What if those crazy religious zealots were in charge?"

Don't forget "What's the big deal about quaaludes anyway? All it means is that everyone has some really great sex!"*

*Note: This is almost a direct quote from the episode.

[Sir Will]

Yeah, it managed to add the concept that Alara was doing this on purpose? And mindwiped herself to do it?? And that the rest of the crew were on board with this??? What?

I mean, I get that they were trying to add something new by tacking a twist ending onto it, but that made no damn sense.

The rest of the crew was not in on it. It was an amalgamation of all their greatest fears. The crew were... the crew, not aspects of her personality. It was a simulation she came up with, not in her mind because of some alien attack. It really has very little in common with Distant Voices outside a few broad strokes.

[Durandal_1707]

The difference was that she was the one that attacked herself, instead of someone else doing it. And it's a twist that makes no sense. There's no way any sane military would let a crew member do something like this.

[kingofmadcows]

That episode had just as many similarities with the Kobyashi Maru Young Justice episode where they simulated a worst case scenario where earth gets invaded and everything keeps getting worse.

[Durandal_1707]

Okay, so we disagree about Episode 10. What do you think of my other assessments?

[clearspira]

Okay, so we disagree about Episode 10. What do you think of my other assessments?

People are comparing this show to Trek for obvious reasons, but it also has shades of Red Dwarf in that it is a comedic science fiction series. Acting like an unprofessional idiot or laughing at a severed leg that is easily regrown is classic RD. Its just not a problem for me.
And really, if we go back to Star Trek terms again, the Orville is the equivalent in size and general function to the Miranda class. It isn't staffed by the best or the brightest because the best and the brightest are somewhere else. It is even stated in ep 1 that Mercer only got the captain's job due to there not being enough captains and (unbeknownst to him) nepotism. Some idiocy is to be greatly expected both in-universe and in a meta context.

[Riedquat]

People are comparing this show to Trek for obvious reasons, but it also has shades of Red Dwarf in that it is a comedic science fiction series. Acting like an unprofessional idiot or laughing at a severed leg that is easily regrown is classic RD. Its just not a problem for me.

Red Dwarf can get away with it because the characters aren't supposed to be the most able professionals in the top roles, they're the bottom of the heap who end up having to fend for themselves.

[clearspira]

People are comparing this show to Trek for obvious reasons, but it also has shades of Red Dwarf in that it is a comedic science fiction series. Acting like an unprofessional idiot or laughing at a severed leg that is easily regrown is classic RD. Its just not a problem for me.

Red Dwarf can get away with it because the characters aren't supposed to be the most able professionals in the top roles, they're the bottom of the heap who end up having to fend for themselves.

Nor are the Orville crew. As I said: Miranda Class.