There is a fantastic weekly episodic science fiction show on television that more people really ought to be watching. That show is Seth Macfarlane’s The Orville. This show is science fiction at its finest, mixing thoughtful and contemplative story lines with it’s own brand of humour. The Orville started kicked off strong with it’s first season last year, but has really found its footing and unique voice this year during it’s second season. What makes this show so special? Well let me tell you.
In August of 2017 I remember seeing the first trailer for Seth Macfarlane’s new science fiction show, The Orville. Being a huge fan of Star Trek and Seth Macfarlane himself, I was immediately intrigued by what this new show might have to offer. Like most others, I assumed the Orville was going to be a parody or a satire of Star Trek, sort of Seth’s riff on the movie Galaxy Quest. Now that is by no means a slight on Galaxy Quest, because I really enjoy everything that movie has to offer and it’s loving satire of Star Trek and it’s fan culture. But Seth had something more special and unique up his sleeves. The Orville isn’t a parody or a satire of Star Trek or other science fiction shows, instead opting to tell it’s science fiction stories straight on, in much the same way Star Trek itself, or the Twilight Zone did. Great science fiction provides us with a mirror to look at social and moral issues that exist within our present day society and allow us to view those issues from different perspectives. This is exactly the way that The Orville approaches these various story lines, and it does so without holding up any one side of the argument as the right side, but instead invites the audience to really consider the different aspects and nuances to any issue and to try to consider it objectively.
While the Orville is not a satire or a parody, it certainly brings a strong comedic element to its own unique brand of science fiction. Instead of getting easy laughs by lampooning traditional science fiction tropes, the comedic elements in the Orville is much more organic. The laughs come from the characters making about certain situations, or maybe lightly ribbing each other. The sense of humour of these characters makes them more relatable and brings them to life in a way seldom seen in science fiction shows, as they joke around hand have a little bit of fun much the way real people do in real workplaces. The most important aspect of the humour in the Orville is that it does not undermine the dramatic tension created by the allegorical science fiction story lines.
The crew of the Orville are the heartbeat of the show, fully formed, living and breathing characters that the audience grows to care about through the course of their adventures. In a science fiction parody or satire, the crew would be incompetent, maybe less relatable and not very good at their jobs. Every member of the Orville crew is a competent officer who excels at their job. Every member of the cast brings their character to life, letting their personalities shine through in the roles. The crew really feels like a family, where all the crew members genuinely care for and respect one another, which really adds to both the dramatic tension and the humourous moments of the show. From week to week the show can focus on a story line involving the whole crew or separate a few characters from the crew and have them face a dangerous situation or foe. The show has even done lower stakes episodes that have more of a ‘day in the life’ sort of feel. All the while the Orville meaningfully explores and develops the interpersonal relationships of all these characters.
So what makes the Orville such a compelling and exciting show? Its ability to deftly tell allegorical science fiction stories that are relevant to modern society while injecting it with its own organic sense of humour really sets the Orville apart from any other science fiction show. The crew really feels like a family of living breathing characters who are good at their respective jobs and can bring some levity to the workplace. The Orville really gives us a positive outlook on the future of humanity in the form of an episodic television show that really feels like the spiritual successor to Star Trek: The Next Generation, and my favourite show on television… or anywhere else for that matter.