Fireblood
Since: Jan, 2001
12/24/2017 00:00:00
I don\'t know, it\'s different from the Original and Next Generation series given the dramedy. I like it, despite the gratuitous and crude anti-religious messages. Also, the Xelayans don\'t have much in common with the Vulcans besides the traits you noted, certainly not their distinctive emotionless logic.
Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away.-Philip K. DickLeave a Comment:
Star Trek... if it had a bigger budget and Roddenberry played the main character.
Seth MacFarlane is a clever man; repeat formulas, lift from other people's work in a way that lets you escape copyright and patent laws, Profit! (He has other talents, but this method seems to be the most lucrative for him).
The show is a platform for Seth, even if he doesn't admit it. It's like Charlie Sheen playing Charlie Harper in Two and a Half Men (at least Seth gave his character a different name) and Kirk being something of an Author Avatar for Roddenberry (by Roddenberry's own admission). In short, if Seth likes it, it's going to be endorsed or treated well (recreational drug use). If Seth doesn't like it, he's going to lampoon it to high heaven or wage The War on Straw against it (religion).
Apart from the heavy-handed anti-religion messages (it's almost as common in Sci-fi as Tribbles are in Star Trek, and more annoying), I may have liked The Orville if it wasn't so unoriginal. The Xelayans are the Vulcans (human-looking alien race with elfin-ears and superhuman strength), the Retepsians are the Orions (humanoid aliens with a non-human skin color who emit pheromones that make others attracted to them and are very big on sex) and the Planetary Union is the United Federation of Planets (an alliance of space flight-capable species whose main HQ is on Earth) to name a few.
I understand it's tapping into the optimism that has not been part of science fiction for a long time, but if that's what one wants, just watch the old works like Star Trek: TNG (Star Trek may strawman like this show from time to time, but at least it's original and can be more even-handed). In short, The Orville has some gems, but a lot of dirt and better can be found elsewhere. Don't bother with it, I won't.