The Orville - Season 2

[Alkali Ike]

I thought I already started a teaser thread about this a while back but I can't find it.

Anyway, The Orville returns tonight 12/30/18.

 

[buldog5151bass]

Should be interesting. I've been watching reruns of 24, so I'm ready for the doctor.

 

[Chad Michael]

- the show is clever... I like that
- devoid of canned laughter, thankfully!!
- for us who used to watch Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica, etc. this is a reasonably good evolution
- Seth, please leave the toilet humor for the animated stuff, and we're good to go!!

 

[Alkali Ike]

- Seth, please leave the toilet humor for the animated stuff, and we're good to go!!

BAM! They went STRAIGHT to toilet humor right out of the gate. Literally!

 

[buldog5151bass]

I watch the show, and every time, I think - meh. It could be a really good show if he just tried a little harder, and stopped taking the easy way out on everything.

 

[Alkali Ike]

I kind of like that they're not trying to hit a home run every single time. Routine meh stuff happens in space too.

 

[buldog5151bass]

I kind of like that they're not trying to hit a home run every single time. Routine meh stuff happens in space too.

But EVERY show, every joke, every plot line is meh. It's like he has an idea, but just sits down with a cheap beer and frozen pizza to write the script. Challenge me, challenge yourself, just once.

 

[Downunderwonder]

Some of us like cheap beer and pizza.

 

[hbarcat]

But EVERY show, every joke, every plot line is meh. It's like he has an idea, but just sits down with a cheap beer and frozen pizza to write the script. Challenge me, challenge yourself, just once.

I respectfully disagree. To me, the point of every episode is to find what's truly important about everyday life. This is in stark contrast to the Star Trek universe, where the plot always revolves around some grand concept of universal importance.

Tonight's episode of Orville is a great example. Bortus has to pee.

This seems like toilet humor but it really isn't. It's about human ritual. The simple act of having to take a leak is blatantly ignored in virtually every TV show and every movie but this one episode uses the call of nature as an opportunity to expand upon human relationships. We get to see multiple characters struggle to find dates to attend Bortus' annual urination ceremony and they are nearly forced to take the event as seriously as if they we're attending a wedding or a funeral.

Additionally, we'd never see the kind of nuanced behavior in any incarnation of Star Trek that we observed where the captain is jealous of his ex wife's (and first officers) new boyfriend, but then thinks better of the situation and helps him strengthen their romance because he wants her to be happy.

 

[buldog5151bass]

I respectfully disagree. To me, the point of every episode is to find what's truly important about everyday life. This is in stark contrast to the Star Trek universe, where the plot always revolves around some grand concept of universal importance.
Tonight's episode of Orville is a great example. Bortus has to pee.
This seems like toilet humor but it really isn't. It's about human ritual. The simple act of having to take a leak is blatantly ignored in virtually every TV show and every movie but this one episode uses the call of nature as an opportunity to expand upon human relationships. We get to see multiple characters struggle to find dates to attend Bortus' annual urination ceremony and they are nearly forced to take the event as seriously as if they we're attending a wedding or a funeral.
Additionally, we'd never see the kind of nuanced behavior in any incarnation of Star Trek that we observed where the captain is jealous of his ex wife's (and first officers) new boyfriend, but then thinks better of the situation and helps him strengthen their romance because he wants her to be happy.

We can agree to disagree. Lots of Star Trek (and almost every other TV show or movie that involved beings that were different) involve how there are different rituals and how to respect others, but Seth went right to the toilet humor (never mind how urinating only once a year makes no sense from a biological pov).

Both the Captain's ex and doctor's son's issue were resolved on such a superficial level (the boyfriend follows the instructions to play some Journey and shut up, the teacher and parents just accept the 5 second investigation) - two potentially interesting issues were resolved with finality in less time than it took for Bortus to relieve himself.

Nevermind they took what could have been interesting with the science officer and ignored it.

It's not bad, but it could be a LOT better. Family Guy, a superficial adult cartoon, is more nuanced, and everyone agrees it basically is a Simpsons ripoff.

 

[hbarcat]

Both the Captain's ex and doctor's son's issue were resolved on such a superficial level . . . .

My point is that The Orville more accurately portrays how real people behave. You may call it "superficial" but it's closer to reality than any incarnation of Star Trek. So maybe you consider that a weakness. I dont. In fact, looking back at the entire 1st season, I saw some truly good science fiction stories, with good writing and acting, we'll conceived characters, and some humor as a bonus.

 

[hbarcat]

BAM! They went STRAIGHT to toilet humor right out of the gate. Literally!

That's Seth tweaking his critics. He makes the central plot point about going pee and his detractors all scream "toilet jokes".

But notice that plot point was only used as a device to set up everything else that took place. As I said before, the episode was about human rituals and relationships. The Bortus urination ceremony was nothing more than a trivial opportunity to explore ways the various characters interact.

South Park also has a reputation for being "toilet humor" despite its obvious ability to create some profound satire of the highest lierary level. Occasionally, Parker and Stone will throw in a gratuitous fart joke or poop reference to rule up their critics.

 

[bluesblaster]

The Character of Bortus has mentioned on several occasions in past episodes that his species only urinates once a year, they simply got around to addressing it now.

 

[Killed_by_Death]

That episode was SO DS9!

 

[steve_ss]

Two eps ago, Bortus had to pee. Last night Bortus had a porn addiction. Is the show going to be the Bortus problem of the week? Kind of disturbing/interesting to see his erotic fantasies.

On the other hand, wow how serious was the ending when they could only (spoiler alert) save a few of the population? Interesting twist.

 

[Alkali Ike]

Two Bortus-centered episodes in a row seems a little weird.

 

[DWBass]

Two Bortus-centered episodes in a row seems a little weird.

Agreed. Also, while I have no issues with same sex relationships, why do I need to see it on TV? Felt like it was forced down my throat. I didn't like it. Admittedly, I am very homophobic and have stopped watching certain TV shows when it became present. I just don't dig it.

 

[Alkali Ike]

I don’t care about it one way or the other. But making it the centerpiece of an episode to that degree for no reason except “because we can” is a little much. Seth likes to push boundaries just for the sake of pushing boundaries.

 

[ONYX]

My point is that The Orville more accurately portrays how real people behave. You may call it "superficial" but it's closer to reality than any incarnation of Star Trek.

Exactly.

There are very few---if any---situations where groups of people working together for long periods of time don't engage in that type of behavior as a "coping mechanism".

 

[hbarcat]

Two Bortus-centered episodes in a row seems a little weird.

Actually, this was a production accident. The order of episodes for the beginning of the 2nd season was altered at the last minute and these first 2 episodes weren't supposed to run sequentially.

Also, it seems some of you are making way more out of Bortus' "Pee" episode than there really is. Think of it as Seth's omage to TNG's "Data's Day". That episode was only superficially about data, but was really a framework for exploring other characters. Notice that only a tiny portion of screen time had anything to do with Bortus and his pee ritual. And most of that was about 1 minute near the end when the actual ceremony was held. There were no jokes. It was presented as straight and solemn as cinematically possible.

Frankly, I believe Seth is poking fun at his critics who put down his work as little more than toilet humor. He creates an episode that spends 3 minutes exploring the idea that an alien race might use excretion as a basis for sacred ritual and then he sits back and watches people's heads explode over it.