[tv / HULU] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by hepcat »

Ah, I knew he'd have to add something like that. It's his go to move.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by LordMortis »

Holman wrote:Judging from that trailer:

If it's not a satire, it's a sitcom. Good sitcoms are rare.

If it's not a sitcom, it's a Star Trek knock-off that will be judged against Star Trek's high bar.
You nailed it. It's Star Trek knock off in the form of a sit com and good sit coms are rare.

I thought the humor was fairly constant but not very good nor anything remotely original.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Jeff V »

First episodes are often awkward as they feel a need to introduce way too many characters and establish initial relationships with each other. Given the dismal previews, I was actually expecting this to be much worse, so I guess I can't say I was disappointed. I'll watch it again next week.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

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:shock:

Who are you and how do you have access to JeffV's account!?!?
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

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Jeff V wrote:First episodes are often awkward as they feel a need to introduce way too many characters and establish initial relationships with each other. Given the dismal previews, I was actually expecting this to be much worse, so I guess I can't say I was disappointed. I'll watch it again next week.
They tried to do action and feature the 1970s wonder woman FX nature of their head of security. I don't see any way that that gets better. If they were going for camp or cheese, it would have worked but they seem to be trying to do sit com in a real sci fi world and it just doesn't work. And yet, I'll still watch as long as it keeps it current time slot. Earlier, and I'd probably rather watch foot ball. Later and I'd rather be sleeping.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Smoove_B »

I couldn't figure out the tone of the show. It really felt like it was trying to be a total homage to Star Trek, but then you have a scene like the dog licking it's groin in the background of the video screen or the exchange over the banana (which was funny) and I can't tell what I'm supposed to think. Maybe it's because of the comedic elements in what is seemingly a serious Sci-Fi network TV show. There's aliens. There's a music crescendo when they go to commercial break. There's orchestral music playing as the Orville glides through space. I watched the whole thing and will watch future episodes but I'm not really sure what to expect.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

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Watched with my kids (14, 12, 9) who all really liked it. I thought it was ok. Good enough that I'll watch it with them again next week. Guess it's all about expectations. Mine were definitely not high going in.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by LordMortis »

Kurth wrote: Mine were definitely not high going in.
Mine were (maybe not high but hopeful) until this thread prepped me.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Kraken »

Kurth wrote:Guess it's all about expectations. Mine were definitely not high going in.
Yup. It wasn't that bad, even though I agreed with most of the critical complaints. Wife had no expectations and liked it better than I did. Maybe it will eventually find its way if Fox gives it until eventually.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by geezer »

I was prepared to hate it, but I really sort of enjoyed it. Low on the grade school potty humor, high on Star Trek fan service. It's fun. I'm kind of sick of depressing dystopian bummers.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by hepcat »

I watched it on Hulu just now. It just strikes me as a needless attempt to recreate Star Trek...but as written by a 9 year old who just heard his first fart joke. It might work if they get some solid stories written by some serious talent, but right now they're just going with cliched sci if tropes and rehashed plots from better shows. That's just lazy writing.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Grifman »

The problem is that it is neither fish nor foul. It's not funny enough to be a comedy, and not serious enough to be a sci-fi drama/action/adventure. Either you're going for a full on Galaxy Quest vibe or a full on STNG vibe. Half and half doesn't cut it because the audience doesn't know what to expect.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Brian »

This was the first episode and first episodes are always kinda iffy anyway.

To me it seemed like the hands of the Fox executives were all over this one with the need to have an exciting first episode with space battles, etc. The whole episode felt rushed and like an excuse to get to the big space shoot 'em up.

Hopefully with that out of the way, the show can relax a bit more and break itself in to something a little more comfortable and give the characters a chance to develop.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Zaxxon »

Brian wrote:This was the first episode and first episodes are always kinda iffy anyway.

To me it seemed like the hands of the Fox executives were all over this one with the need to have an exciting first episode with space battles, etc. The whole episode felt rushed and like an excuse to get to the big space shoot 'em up.

Hopefully with that out of the way, the show can relax a bit more and break itself in to something a little more comfortable and give the characters a chance to develop.
Certainly a possibility, especially with Fox involved. They of the 'we'll just debut Firefly with The Train Job rather than Serenity because action! Explosions!'
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Daehawk »

I already cant stand her for what she did. No excuse bitch. I want him to hate her more than he does. Damnit.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Moat_Man »

Daehawk wrote:I already cant stand her for what she did. No excuse bitch. I want him to hate her more than he does. Damnit.
I haven't seen the pilot yet but dude, it sounds like you might have some unresolved issues there.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by pr0ner »

Moat_Man wrote:
Daehawk wrote:I already cant stand her for what she did. No excuse bitch. I want him to hate her more than he does. Damnit.
I haven't seen the pilot yet but dude, it sounds like you might have some unresolved issues there.
There's nothing in the pilot that should lead to that kind of reaction from Daehawk.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Smoove_B »

Maybe he just really hates blue aliens.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

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Smoove_B wrote:Maybe he just really hates blue aliens.
Or cleaning
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Rip »

LordMortis wrote:
Smoove_B wrote:Maybe he just really hates blue aliens.
Or cleaning
Or people who ejaculate from their faces.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

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mistell?
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Punisher »

Zaxxon wrote:
hepcat wrote:Does it have a talking baby or a talking dog?
Does a talking plant count?
don't forget talking jello...
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Punisher »

Wife and I saw it..
As I suspected, it's not going to be her cup of tea. She thought it was OK, but not enough that she wants to keep watching it.
I liked it for the most part, but agree that the show doesn't seem to know what it wants to be... It looks like they are trying to take it seriously, but then some of the jokes seem off and out of place in that light. You can have humor in a straight Sci-Fi show, just not the type that is here.
I am hoping they find the right path. I think I would be good with either a good straight show with appropriate humor or a good sitcom with SciFi theme.
So far I like the head of security and the 2nd officer the most..
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[tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Zarathud »

I wonder if the comedy is part of the show so that NBC can't sue them into oblivion (parody), and because that is Seth McFarlane's schtick.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Little Raven »

Ok, I went into this show with very low expectations due to the reviews.

I was very, VERY pleasantly surprised. I'm also amazed that this show ever got made, because contrary to what I had been led to believe, this is NOT a Star Trek parody. This is flat-out Star Trek with the serial numbers filed off. It's got a lighter tone than we've come to expect from Trek lately, but while they crack jokes, they're actually playing this completely straight. I approve. I think geezer has the right idea - it's ok if scifi isn't all serious all the time.

Now, there were plenty of off-kilter moments, but scifi shows always take a little while to settle into their niche. (remember the first season of TNG? Or Babylon 5?) So as long as things don't take a rapid turn downhill, I'll happily keep watching.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

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As I said I liked it but I agree it doesn't know what it is. The jokes are out of place and I think they should drop the comedy..or a lot of it. The helmsman just does not fit at all to me. I know who he is ..or I think I do...but he feels totally wrong.

I also think my fav is the head of security.

And why was he flying 'around' the bad guys?? He kept flying into their weapons arc. He should have flew into their ass so to speak and stayed there.

Every time they said "Union" I thought of a auto union or labor union and not a star union.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

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As others have mentioned, the problem isn't the humour; it's the tone and how it's poorly woven into the rest of the story. The jokes were few and far between and most of them fell flat, though a few were amusing and at least got a chuckle out of me. But almost all of them were spoiled in the previews, and while I found the bit about the opposing ship's captain being off-centre on the viewscreen funny, it completely undermined the dramatic tension of the climax. I think I laughed twice as often during an average episode of Firefly. (Which I finally watched this past year after having for the past decade stubbornly refused to get emotionally invested in a show that lasted a single short season.)

After having been pleasantly surprised in recent years by what can be accomplished dramatically in the half-hour dramedy format, I can't help thinking that's what they should have gone with here. That or pull a CSI and kill off the main character before the end of the first episode... that would have worked as well. On that note, why the hell is Seth Macfarlane the captain rather than the first officer? His ex-wife seems to be the mature, intelligent one. Oh, right... sitcom dad syndrome.

But I guess it's nice to see Star Trek on the air again after all these years... even if it's the equivalent of the trademark-infringing action figure knockoffs from Asia that spell the names wrong and give Batman Wolverine's claws (in the unintentional, non-Elseworlds sense). And hey, it's still fresher than Enterprise.
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hepcat wrote:Does it have a talking baby or a talking dog?
Does a talking plant count?
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Rip »

It was ok, but nothing special. Will still be 10X more watchable than the actual crappy Star Trek show that is coming.........
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

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Oh, you've seen Discovery already?
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by stimpy »

Watched some of it. Will probably hang in for awhile to see where it goes.
But I have to say, I was extremely distracted whenever the ex wife was on screen, and not in a good way........holy moley.......right between the eyes......
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Rip »

hepcat wrote:Oh, you've seen Discovery already?
No but I already know enough about the storyline to know I won't like it.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by hepcat »

Please don't tell me it's because they feature women in the traditionally male roles.

I'm reserving judgement until I watch it. I have my issues with some of the retcons, but I highly doubt Orville is going to prove to be the better show.
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Kasey Chang »

I just watched the premiere myself. The humor is low-brow. Some of them pretty crude, and aren't that funny. Some of them are actually pretty funny, but more of a "I can't believe they said that!" funny. But the story is Star Trek worthy, if a bit light. Still, for a pilot, it's pretty good.

One nitpick:
Spoiler:
Why don't they just HIDE inside the Krill ship and recharge shields or whatever? And make that other ship swerve trying to dislodge them? IMHO, it'd be funnier that way rather than doing "riding the donkey".
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Punisher »

Daehawk wrote: And why was he flying 'around' the bad guys?? He kept flying into their weapons arc. He should have flew into their ass so to speak and stayed there.
This bothered me too.. Their ship obviously was faster and had a much tighter turn radius... I really thought they WERE just gonna keep their ship pointed at the back of the Krill ship...or even slip right between the Krill ships engines/protrusions at the rear..
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Moat_Man »

Put me in the camp of low expectations but was pleasantly surprised. I watched it twice. The first time solo and the second with Moat_Woman. She enjoyed it enough to indicate she'd watch the next episode. Let's see where it goes...
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by rshetts2 »

Punisher wrote:
Daehawk wrote: And why was he flying 'around' the bad guys?? He kept flying into their weapons arc. He should have flew into their ass so to speak and stayed there.
This bothered me too.. Their ship obviously was faster and had a much tighter turn radius... I really thought they WERE just gonna keep their ship pointed at the back of the Krill ship...or even slip right between the Krill ships engines/protrusions at the rear..
I just assumed that they were flying inside the weapon's effective targeting range and left it at that. Shows like this do not lend themselves well to overanalyzation.
Well do you ever get the feeling that the story's too damn real and in the present tense?
Or that everybody's on the stage and it seems like you're the only person sitting in the audience?
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Punisher »

rshetts2 wrote:
Punisher wrote:
Daehawk wrote: And why was he flying 'around' the bad guys?? He kept flying into their weapons arc. He should have flew into their ass so to speak and stayed there.
This bothered me too.. Their ship obviously was faster and had a much tighter turn radius... I really thought they WERE just gonna keep their ship pointed at the back of the Krill ship...or even slip right between the Krill ships engines/protrusions at the rear..
I just assumed that they were flying inside the weapon's effective targeting range and left it at that. Shows like this do not lend themselves well to overanalyzation.
That could have made sense except, IIRC their shields kept dropping from hits...
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Rip »

Punisher wrote:
rshetts2 wrote:
Punisher wrote:
Daehawk wrote: And why was he flying 'around' the bad guys?? He kept flying into their weapons arc. He should have flew into their ass so to speak and stayed there.
This bothered me too.. Their ship obviously was faster and had a much tighter turn radius... I really thought they WERE just gonna keep their ship pointed at the back of the Krill ship...or even slip right between the Krill ships engines/protrusions at the rear..
I just assumed that they were flying inside the weapon's effective targeting range and left it at that. Shows like this do not lend themselves well to overanalyzation.
That could have made sense except, IIRC their shields kept dropping from hits...
You can't call them shields. They are deflectors.......
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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Kasey Chang »

(Treknologist mode on)

Deflectors are for asteroids and micro particles, i.e. "navigational deflectors")

Shields are for protection against energy weapons and such.

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Re: [tv] The Orville .......Seth MacFarlane

Post by Punisher »

Rip wrote:
Punisher wrote:
rshetts2 wrote:
Punisher wrote:
Daehawk wrote: And why was he flying 'around' the bad guys?? He kept flying into their weapons arc. He should have flew into their ass so to speak and stayed there.
This bothered me too.. Their ship obviously was faster and had a much tighter turn radius... I really thought they WERE just gonna keep their ship pointed at the back of the Krill ship...or even slip right between the Krill ships engines/protrusions at the rear..
I just assumed that they were flying inside the weapon's effective targeting range and left it at that. Shows like this do not lend themselves well to overanalyzation.
That could have made sense except, IIRC their shields kept dropping from hits...
You can't call them shields. They are deflectors.......
As Kasey mentioned there is a difference and the word shields can't be trademarked based on the number shows/movies that use the word, if that was what you were implying.
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