The Orville

[Huey]

I know there are a few here who have mentioned watching, so I figured I'd start a post about it. It's getting trashed by the critics, but loved by the fans. Seth Macfarlane seems to be pretty one dimensional in his acting, but overall I like it. I thought their take on the all male species producing a baby girl, was a unique spin on the transgender issue.

I made the mistake of joining the Orville fan page on Facebook, and there's a few on there that want to argue about Star Trek Discovery and The Orville. I did find it humorous though that they nicknamed the new Star Trek as STD.

 

[Akula]

It's an amusing show. I don't yet know if it is going to have the legs to go multiple seasons, but worse shows have done so and it seems like the fans enjoy it.

I'm not going to say it's a great show, but I have laughed out loud more than once.

 

[Flint]

I am watching it, and enjoy it, but could live without it. That is quite a, "meh, could be worse," attitude. The societal issues they attempt to discuss are far too heavyhanded for me, and most of the jokes fall flat, but the world of Orville is pretty cool.

 

[Flint]

The translucent blob voiced by Norm MacDonald is the only truly funny character on the show, to me. It is a clownish throw-away bit that does nothing to help the story.

 

[Huey]

I'm liking the "Universe" they have created as well. Last weeks story about a bioship was pretty interesting. There was a scene in last weeks show where Scott Grimes character was talking with the other helmsman, and it reminded me of the banter from Band of Brothers, of which he also played on. The show definitely could use a little tweaking, although I'm not sure what that is.

 

[Flint]

It kinda feels like someone who really loved Star Trek the Next Generation wrote a bunch of fan-scripts which were made into a fan-fiction TV show with a huge budget and good actors. Like it is 90% great, but that missing 10% keeps from being spectacular.

 

[Randy]

I saw the first episode and liked it but haven't seen it since.

 

[Haywood]

The wife and I are enjoying it so far, but I agree it still needs to find its feet.

 

[Akula]

It kinda feels like someone who really loved Star Trek the Next Generation wrote a bunch of fan-scripts which were made into a fan-fiction TV show with a huge budget and good actors. Like it is 90% great, but that missing 10% keeps from being spectacular.

That's a good way to put it. I know Seth McFarlane is a big Trek fan, so this does have that feel of "somebody who loves Trek did this." Because it's him, it's more of a comedy than a pure sci-fi as well.

Thing is, they ought to be a bit careful about the heavy themes- yes, ST dealt with them, but they weren't every single episode. In the last three episodes we've had animals in captivity (Sea World), transgenderism, and fundamentalist religion. While they haven't beat the viewer over the head with the themes, there's a limit to the preachy I'm willing to overlook. They may well hit that point if they can't lighten up for a bit.

 

[Huey]

2 episodes into the new season, and it seems they want to focus more on societal issues than science fiction. Very disappointed so far with this season.

 

[Flint]

I am still watching this show, and the sophomoric preaching is still a tad distracting. But with each episode I realize Seth MacFarlane is a crummy actor. His costars run circles around him and he seems more like a robot in each new scene.

I am not giving up because, like Seth, I love this world... a pseudo-continuation of Star Trek TNG. Howver, my interest in it is fading a little with each episode.

 

[Akula]

We're still enjoying it. It's fun, and while Seth may not be a great actor, he's no worse than in many other TV shows.

 

[mzpro5]

I agree McFarlane is not the best actor he certainly is not the worst.

Lets remember that he is primarily a writer, an initiator of ideas and at that I think he does a pretty good job

 

[Huey]

I am still watching this show, and the sophomoric preaching is still a tad distracting. But with each episode I realize Seth MacFarlane is a crummy actor. His costars run circles around him and he seems more like a robot in each new scene.

I am not giving up because, like Seth, I love this world... a pseudo-continuation of Star Trek TNG. Howver, my interest in it is fading a little with each episode.

Last episode I watched, I was thinking the same thing as well. That on top of the preachy attitude has made the show not one of my favorites. At least with the original Star Trek, they treated the issues with kid gloves, still getting their point across without making people upset.

 

[Flint]

Lets remember that he is primarily a writer, an initiator of ideas and at that I think he does a pretty good job

I agree he is a talented creator and even pretty decent at his voice work. But that doesn't make his acting worthy of a primetime show which demands great performances. I prefer to enjoy this show where I don't have to consciously forgive the lead actor for being pretty terrible at acting while his co-stars are killing it. It vastly diminished the captain's role and every scene he has a significant presence in. He could have easily hired a great actor for the role and written a great part for him. Instead he let his ego drive the decision of casting the lead character.

But, that isn't to say I won't watch the show - at least for now. I am capable of getting past the preaching on teen-aged idealisms, and I can forgive the stereotypes in many of the characters, but his acting is starting to grate on me.

 

[mzpro5]

I was not aware but it seems that Seth is also a singer/recording artist. I saw him on a show and they were talking about his latest album "Once in a While" so I went to amazon music and gave some of it a listen.

Not bad if you like 50's ballads aka Frank Sinatra with Nelson Riddle. Heavily produced orchestrations . Not something I will be listening to again but