Don’t worry, this isn’t going to be another Twilight Zone-style episode run-through, but neither do I have enough else to report for a whole Whittling Post Digest. So, yeah, I guess this is another blog series that won’t crop up again. Still, I thought I’d give my thoughts on this show early-doors while my interest remains. Due to my cyclothymia mental illness, my attention regarding anything is, against all my own person desires, rather fleeting. Sometimes I can’t even get through a single movie without being led astray by something shiny.
Anyway, while I’m more of a Star Trek: The Original Series to The Next Generation kinda guy, I have a commitment to Seth MacFarlane and his universe. You know, that one where, if you have a sense of humour, people don’t cut you out of their lives. I was also both curious and put off by, what is essentially, a fanboy’s wet dream. MacFarlane has already worked with all his TNG idols, so now he gets to role-play in his own TNG-style television show.
Well, I suppose I should be using the past-tense here, as I think the show was a victim of covid. This can be seen both as a shame and a blessing, as TV shows generally tend to cool-off in the fourth season. There’s something about the process of “going to syndication”, where the money really starts pouring in, that makes the quality slide. I shouldn’t be worrying about this in terms of MacFarlane though, as Family Guy and American Dad! have stayed relatively fresh for decades.
Well, I’ve now watched the first episode of The Orville and I’m completely charmed already. I was expecting some humour, but not as much as I got. This is not a bad thing. I doubt I’d be able to stick around if it was as po-faced as TNG. In fact, it fits in perfectly with the tone of MacFarlane’s animated shows, much to The Orville’s credit. The casual character interactions of the Alien universe mixed with the visually-pristine interiors of the Star Trek universe creates a delightful contrast. I only hope they haven’t blown all the best anti-procedural humour by the end of this first episode.
It’s fun seeing Scott Grimes on-screen for a change, rather than being the voice of Steve Smith. I think he was my first crush when I was a kid, after seeing him in Critters. The nasty mullet he’d grown by Critters 2 was a bit of a turn-off though. MacFarlane doesn’t quite work as a ship’s captain, what with not being in possession of the sociopathic coldness that such a person would usually have, but his fallible demeanour is very likeable, which I found far more important. I’m not sure what to say about Adrianne Palicki, but she sure does pout and flick her hair effectively. I do not believe she was cast for her acting ability.
Oh and Victor Garber gets his own paragraph in this review, because he’s Victor-fucking-Garber. End of paragraph.
The visual effects looked solid from where I was sitting, but, being visually impaired, I really should be the last person to comment deeply on the nuances of such elements. To be honest, the quality of SFX has never mattered to me. You could film a Star Wars movie with the director playing with toy spaceships and I’d be fine with it. If the writing, directing, and acting is where it should be, all that other stuff is just icing on the cake. I really believe this.
Well, despite the titular ship’s name reminding all British people of a giant green duck with a man’s hand stuck up its arse, this experience has been something of a relief, as I guess it could have gone either way. I’m definitely going to watch more, although the UK only has the first two seasons in boxset form. Goodness knows where I’m to find the third. I’ll probably have to sign-up to a damned streaming service for one month. I’ve got a list of streaming-only shows and films I need to check out anyway, so I’ll make a note of The Orville too.
If I get there, of course.
I’ll forever be grateful for MacFarlane having a hangover and getting to the airport late 23 years ago. His brand of middle-finger-to-society humour continually keeps me from giving up.on life entirely. As long as we have people like him creating content, the world will be a better place.
Do stay in touch, darlings.
Toodles!
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