Author: Jonathan Klotz | Published
Seth MacFarlane is probably still best known for his animated shows, family guy and American Dadbut in 2017 he launched his greatest creation yet, The Orvillea science fiction series that began and was marketed as a parody of Star Trek. Fox’s marketing for the show relied heavily on jokes from the first episode, which included the introduction of the Moklan, a species that only urinates once a year, but as long-time viewers of the show already know, it sounds like is a joke that ultimately leads to a great character moment. That’s the greatest trick of the MacFarlane series so far: it’s not a parody; It’s a loving tribute that gets darker, more serious as the series goes on, and is probably better than modern Star Trek.
A better version of TNG’s worst episode
in the first scene The Orville In the pilot episode, we see MacFarlane, as Captain Ed Mercer, walk into his home and find his wife in bed with a blue alien and his blue discharge. Captain James Tiberius Kirk was known for indulging in lust, if they were humans, Orions, and even some people in between, which is why, from Ed at his lowest, alcoholic, unruly Order, in danger of losing their jobs, began, and MacFarlane’s show made it obvious that it wasn’t taking things as seriously as Star Wars. The second episode makes this even clearer, as muscular Mokran Bortus asks who Kermit the Frog is before announcing that Kermit the Frog is hatching eggs, while diminutive security guard Alara Saved the world with the help of a reality TV show.
The Orville The first season included an episode that mocked social media (“Majority Rule”), which was one of the worst StarCraft: The Next Generation “The Naked Now” from Cupid’s Dagger, and ending the season with “Mad Idolatry,” a reminder of why Star Wars’ Prime Directive exists. StarCraft: Into the Dark The idea of the game is that a primitive species saw the Enterprise take off and began to worship it, but “crazy idolatry” developed along the way, on a planet that gradually moved in and out of the universe, forming a kind of first mate Grayson (Adrie Ann Padalecki)-based religion, Ed’s ex-wife). It’s both a ridiculous premise and something that every Star Trek fan has started thinking about at some point, and considering how many alien civilizations Starfleet has encountered, it’s interesting to see it play out, and obviously by this season’s At that point, McFarlane was a huge StarCraft fan.
In fact, Seth MacFarlane is such a big Star Wars fan that he didn’t want to make a comedy version of the classic series, but wanted to make another Star Wars series and use the comedy angle The Orville Season 1 as a Trojan horse to get what he really wants. It worked. Season two ditches the more absurd plots of season one in favor of character-driven drama, which once again includes elevated versions of TNG episodes, with “Happy Refrain” for cybernetic Isaac and Dr. Finn The “theoretical” thing was done for Data and Jenne. The difference is that “Theoretically” was a one-off, but “Happy Refrain” not only pays off a year of character development, but also marks a permanent turning point for the character.
From comedy to emotional punch
On Rotten Tomatoes, The Orville Season has a perfect 100% rating from critics, and for good reason, as while it’s still entertaining throughout its three seasons, MacFarlane’s performance in the low-stakes character-driven drama Jishang does it better than any writer working today. Season 3’s “Twice in a Lifetime” is considered one of the show’s best episodes, combining time travel with callbacks from Season 2 to create emotions that most sci-fi shows today can only dream of achieving. Shocking ending. If you start watching the show and find it hard to get through the first few episodes, stick with it because if you know where the cast starts, it will be more satisfying when you see where they end. /
This is what ultimately makes The Orville It’s a work of mad genius, born out of a love for StarCraft but not beholden to the legacy of the series. although Star Wars: Discovery When Seth MacFarlane was struggling to find an audience, he was there to honor him new generationwhich quietly showcases some of the sharpest, most profound, and surprisingly emotional writing of any sci-fi series of the past decade.
The Orville Currently streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.
