New Series--The Orville

[pinecone]

I dunno I think a "Dark shadows of Trek" thing could work...Barnabas Collins cursed with vampyrism, forever to pilot a Star Ship, but never to go on an away team!

[Cassandra]

Funny but not hilarious.

 

Good special effects except for when the Shuttle was flying through the engine debris which looked like test footage.

 

Good cast but low key acting.

 

I'll keep watching it and expect it to be better then Star Trek Discovery.

[Xavier Onassiss]

Haven't watched it, probably won't.

 

The reviews I've seen so far are mixed, at best.

[Pattern Ghost]

It seems like one of those shows that's going to take a few episodes to get its legs under it. If it does.

[Tjack]

I liked it. It's got a strange mix of Seth's usual comedy style and him trying for a more straightforward serious series. It's a tough balancing act and I hope he can pull it off.

On a similar note myself, how is it gonna keep from getting sued? Especially with Brannon Braga on the production side, this show should be getting their "stop & desist" motion papers from Paramount as we speak. It's a lot closer to Star Trek than Discovery is going to be.

[Pattern Ghost]

It's a parody, so falls under fair use.

[Ternaugh]

First episode wasn't bad (and was certainly better than most first episodes of Trek), I'll give it a few more to see if it's worth watching.

[zslane]

Does it take place in the Star Trek universe? Does it actually use any of Paramount's Star Trek trademarks? Does it plagiarize (by the strict legal standard) any Star Trek script?

 

I don't think Paramount would have a legal leg to stand on. If they did, they would have jumped all over Dreamworks for Galaxy Quest back in 1999.

[Spence]

Where and when is this on? Based on what I've seen of it versus Discovery, I think I'm more likely to favor this series.

 

Episode 2 will be Sunday 9/17 at 6:00pm PST.

 

The the show moves to its regular slot of Thursdays at 9:00pm PST

[Beast]

just saw it
it was ok not great
I'll give it a chance

[Blue]

I thought it would be funnier.  But then it's a pilot.  A pilot's job is to get across to you what the universe is and the possibilities.  A series usually takes a few episodes at least to hit its stride.

[Hermit]

Watched the pilot.

 

Not bad. For the first episode of a new series it really wasn't bad. When you remember back how painful the first few episodes of TNG were. This will probably do well once it gets going.

 

A least it isn't all dark and doomy...

 

 

Pretty much this.

 

I had a good time, some fun, and I like the characters.

 

This is plenty to build on *G*

 

The crew is somewhat endearing. I too would ask for soda on the job.

[Ternaugh]

I've seen a comment on a different site that says that the critics are getting The Orville wrong as a parody. It isn't one. Seth MacFarlane may be trying to develop an optimistic show like TNG, but can't refrain from inserting the occasional d*ck joke for the Family Guy fans.

 

It that's really what it is, I'm good with that. 

[Badger]

I dunno I think a "Dark shadows of Trek" thing could work...Barnabas Collins cursed with vampyrism, forever to pilot a Star Ship, but never to go on an away team!

 

Barnabus could go on an away team, just on the far side of the planet.   

 

Note: I actually had a dream one time where TOS discovered a planet of vampires.

[Spence]

I've seen a comment on a different site that says that the critics are getting The Orville wrong as a parody. It isn't one. Seth MacFarlane may be trying to develop an optimistic show like TNG, but can't refrain from inserting the occasional d*ck joke for the Family Guy fans.

 

I didn't really catch things from that angle.  But you are not wrong....

[Tjack]

It's most definitely not a parody. It is however created by someone heavily influenced by ST:TNG and produced by someone who worked on all the Trek shows since TNG.

Projects with much less in common have been hit with lawsuits in the past like Harlan Ellison's suit concerning his Outer Limits teleplay "Soldier" and the movie "The Terminator".

Add to that Paramount hasn't been shy about using legal muscle to shut down anybody they think may infringe on their intellectual property.

[Bazza]

Honestly, the only thing Seth MacFarlane has ever done that I can stand to watch for more than 30 seconds is Cosmos. And he was just the money for that.

 

There are many of you here whose opinions I trust. I'm relying heavily on you to help me determine whether The Orville is worth watching.

I'd say skip it.

 

http://io9.gizmodo.com/5-science-fiction-comedies-that-prove-how-bad-the-orvil-1803142121?IR=T

[Pattern Ghost]

It's most definitely not a parody.

 

It's parody enough to avoid legal issues IMO.

[slikmar]

Saw it. Chuckled a few times. I like the cast, so hope they come into their own. Strangely, I thought the person who felt like they were forcing their humor the most was Seth. Everyone else seemed to work pretty well. The pilot and navigator seem to have a decent chemistry. I will give it at least a few episodes, especially since it was a better Trek episode then most of the first season of TNG.

[Hermit]

Saw it. Chuckled a few times. I like the cast, so hope they come into their own. Strangely, I thought the person who felt like they were forcing their humor the most was Seth. Everyone else seemed to work pretty well. The pilot and navigator seem to have a decent chemistry. I will give it at least a few episodes, especially since it was a better Trek episode then most of the first season of TNG.

 

Yeah, I think it's safe to say this was better than Encounter at Farpoint, or at least had fewer bumps

[Cassandra]

Seth seems to be channeling Jack O'Neil in the show.

[bigdamnhero]

[cross-posted from the What Have You Watched Lately thread, because I somehow missed this thread]

 

I thought the pilot was...ok? I guess? I mean it wasn't bad or anything. Just not sure what it's supposed to be. It wasn't funny enough to qualify as a comedy, let alone a parody. (But then I've neevr found McFarlane funny, so YMMV.) It was basically a Trek TNG homage, except everyone isn't so uptight & humorless and they can make dick jokes. Which, okay fine, but...that's it? That's your entire show concept? To quote the Captain of a much better SF show: "What's the point of that, I wonder? I mean, I see how they did it. I just ain't getting why."

 

That said: yeah, pilots are often problematic, so I'll probably give it another episode or two.

 

They also tripped over one of my pet peeves: calling senior women officers "Sir." Cuz y'know, the only way I can accept a woman's authority over me is to pretend she's a dude, amirite? Seriously we've had female officers for like 75 years now in the real world, and Hollywood *still* can't figure out the word "Ma'am"?

[Pattern Ghost]

They also tripped over one of my pet peeves: calling senior women officers "Sir." Cuz y'know, the only way I can accept a woman's authority over me is to pretend she's a dude, amirite? Seriously we've had female officers for like 75 years now in the real world, and Hollywood *still* can't figure out the word "Ma'am"?

 

"Sir" is a proper form of address for female officers in the current real world military.  At least it was up until 1993 when I got out.

 

The thing is, you'd usually call a female officer "Ma'am," because, you know, she's female.

 

Unless you were trying to subtly be a dick to her in a way that you couldn't get into trouble for.

 

Mr. Penis Drawing Pilot doesn't like Ex-O wife, ergo that was an appropriate use (plot-wise) of "Sir" to address her. Assuming that they're carrying over real world military regs/tradition.

 

IMO, it wasn't the show, the showrunners, or the writers being sexist. It was the character. By the end of the episode, he'd gained some respect for her, so it'll be interesting to see if he switches over to "Ma'am" or some more casual form of address.

[bigdamnhero]

"Sir" is a proper form of address for female officers in the current real world military.  At least it was up until 1993 when I got out.

I got out in `95 (US Army) but I guess my experience in the military was wildly different than yours, at least on this front. The first and last time I called a female upperclass Sir was in 1984, and I got my ass dressed down for it. "Do I look like a Sir to you?!" is the typical response I usually heard from female officers who got Sir'd. (Pro tip: the right answer is never "yes."  ) 

 

IMO, it wasn't the show, the showrunners, or the writers being sexist. It was the character. By the end of the episode, he'd gained some respect for her, so it'll be interesting to see if he switches over to "Ma'am" or some more casual form of address.

Oh, I don't think it was deliberate sexism on anyone's part. It's depressingly common in modern military & SF stories, so I'm sure Seth was just repeating what he'd heard it on another show and assumed was correct. It just annoys me.

[Pattern Ghost]

I got out in `95 (US Army) but I guess my experience in the military was wildly different than yours, at least on this front.

 

Seems the same to me. The female officers probably assumed you were using the "Sir" insultingly. Which is how I ever heard it used. Not like she could actually do anything except yell at you about it, though.

 

That it's a proper form of address doesn't really factor into rage fueled ass chewings. Edit: <-- This may not be true.

 

Edit: I can't find a single reference to back me up on this one. I clearly remember this being taught in Basic Training and being in my soldier's handbook thing (S.M.A.R.T. Manual, can't remember what the acronym stood for). I'm just going to go with Mandela Effect here.