The Orville

[spshu]

The Orville is a Trek spoof comedy TV series on the Fox network as Tricky first posted to indicate Star Trek Discovery has competition.

Of course, this looks pretty good. Is it better?

Seth MacFarlane's 'The Orville' Trailer Goes Full 'Galaxy Quest'

This week, Fox released the first official trailer for The Orville, a show that clearly wears its Star Trek influences on its sleeves — quite literally, in the case of the show's fashion. But beyond sending up the iconic Gene Roddenberry franchise, one can't help but think about director Dean Parisot's 1999 classic comedy Galaxy Quest while watching the new Orville trailer, given some eerie similarities on both a visual and content level.

Wonder were Paramount is with Galaxy Quest as it was 2015 when it was announced as being considered for a potential TV series as I indicated.

[spshu]

Jonathan Frakes is expected to direct an episode of Orville.

TVLine:

...as well as an episode of Fox’s upcoming Trek spoof The Orville.

A number of other Sci-fi and Trek related directors are line up too per Wikipedia:

• Jon Favreau
• Robert Duncan McNeill
• Brannon Braga

[K.G. Carlson]

Am I the only one feeling depressed that this show looks to be more faithful to Trekdom than Star Trek Discovery?

[The Tatterdemalion King]

Seth Macfarlane needs to go lock himself in an oubliette until he's ready to apologize for everything he's done.

[WaveMan]

First episode aired, wasn't as funny as I hoped and was a bit pedestrian, but I will give it some more time to see if it improves, though from the ratings I doubt it will go too far.

[Pericles]

So far, I've been stunned at the quality of the show and the writing. I was expecting a focus on humor and this show has surprised me with thoughtful plots that match Trek at its finest. What are other opinions?

[WaveMan]

agreed the quality of production is first class, but I feel the humor is forced and I feel that the show hasn't found its groove yet. From the ratings I don't think it will get traction and be renewed, but I hope that it gets at least a fair run (unlike Fire Fly for example). I am not sure if they want us to take The Orville seriously and treat it like a 'lighthearted Trek' series or what. It is definitely not in the same league as Dark Matter (cancelled), Kill Joys or anywhere near as The Expanse.

[Pericles]

I find it odd that it would be the comedy aspect of the series that is having the most difficulty given the creator. However, you are spot on that The Orville is no match for The Expanse.

[spshu]

So far, I've been stunned at the quality of the show and the writing. I was expecting a focus on humor and this show has surprised me with thoughtful plots that match Trek at its finest. What are other opinions?

agreed the quality of production is first class, but I feel the humor is forced and I feel that the show hasn't found its groove yet. From the ratings I don't think it will get traction and be renewed, but I hope that it gets at least a fair run (unlike Fire Fly for example). I am not sure if they want us to take The Orville seriously and treat it like a 'lighthearted Trek' series or what. It is definitely not in the same league as Dark Matter (cancelled), Kill Joys or anywhere near as The Expanse.

Its rating on its regular night and time was .1 over its lead in show (in a key demographic), so I think people are seeking it out. But on the other hand, NBC beat Fox despite airing reruns.

Seth indicated that The Orville is suppose to fulfill the lighthearted Trek with some humor thrown in. So it is suppose to serious. I will be watching regularly.

[WaveMan]

Thanks spshu, I have seen 3 episodes and have enjoyed it enough to continue, at least I know what it is supposed to be now and will take it seriously. Some of the trailers misrepresented it then, as they implied that it was a spoof (which it is, but I never take spoof's seriously) and not to be a 'serious' series.

Critical response
The review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 21% approval rating, with an average rating of 4.61/10 based on 33 reviews. The website's consensus reads, "An odd jumble of campiness and sincerity, homage and satire, The Orville never quite achieves liftoff."[41] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 36 out of 100, based on 20 reviews, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[42]
Liz Miller writing for IndieWire compared the series to Star Trek, calling it a rip off and "Creatively, Morally, and Ethically Bankrupt". She criticized the lack of creativity, the blatant imitation, and was surprised that the show is "uninterested in being a comedy".[40]
Erik Kain of Forbes, gave a positive review of the show with the observation that "All the optimism and sincerity and lightheartedness of Star Trek is here, and in many ways it's kind of wonderful. I'm honestly surprised something like this exists." He says the critics were wrong and suggests their opinions are based on disliking MacFarlane and his type of humor

[Pericles]

The most recent episode "About a Girl" was pretty powerful drama and matched some of the best moral dilemmas that Trek has ever had.

[WaveMan]

The most recent episode "About a Girl" was pretty powerful drama and matched some of the best moral dilemmas that Trek has ever had.

agreed, on point and relevant to today's issues and what many modern societies are struggling with at the moment (particularly here in Australia where LGBT marriage equality is at plebiscite currently)

[guardiankrillin]

I am both happy and sad to say that Orville is amazing so far. It is more Trek than ST Discovery is so far. They have done well to bring up social issues the way Star Trek has always done in the past.

Dare I say it, can we get Seth to take over the helm of writing for Star Trek since I think he reveres the content more. I think he would put Trek back on the right track while bringing in other writers who also revere the content.

[WaveMan]

I too am pleasantly surprised by The Orville, now that I know what it is supposed to be, and they are injecting a little more humor in but keeping the plots story driven and tackling current moral and societal issues. I just hope it gets enough traction to keep it going. I am sick of single season one shot wonders.

[Tricky]

About a girl was really good: I liked that the issue wasn't resolved, despite the crew doing all the things that normally win the day in a Trek series (big speech, object lesson, courtroom drama). Because transgender issues are difficult, and you can't resolve them simply.

I loved If the Stars Should Appear; a great sci-fi hook that's been used for ages. And the visual of the inside of the colony ship was amazing. My only complaint was that they wrapped it up too quick; whole shows have been built around the lost colony ship trope.