The Orville vs Star Trek: Discovery

[Kirok]

Here we go!

So, I've watched the first two episodes of 'The Orville.'

For a comedy, it is so so.

But I'm finding myself comparing it to Star Trek: Discovery.

The Orville has a much cooler ship, more aliens, and better uniforms.  Also the special effects are pretty great.

What do the rest of you think?

[Naira]

I've only seen images and clips from Discovery, but I've been watching every episode of The Orville as it comes out. I can't give a complete comparison of the two but I will say that I have been really enjoy The Orville. It has a very "trek" feel to it and you can tell the writers are really big fans.

I originally went into it thinking that it would be some really cheesy knock-off of Trek, full of fart joke and I was gladly surprised that it is so much more. They have clearly put a lot of thought into it.

Yes, it does have a lot more jokes than trek and some of them are kind of crude, but I also think many show a more real-to-life version of trek with some of the scenes depicting awkward elevator rides, a first time bridge officer being terrified to make important decisions and having to hold off using the restroom because your superior officer wants to have an impromptu conversation with you about something not that important, but you can't leave until they dismiss you.

Kirok, I'd recommend watching episodes 3 and 4 because it only gets better. The 3rd deals with an ethical dilemma and the 4th has first contact with an alien race with a touch of prime directive issues going on. The 4th episode in particular very well could have been a trek episode.

I also agree that the Orville has a cool looking ship, I love the uniforms and the variety of the aliens (one of which is a gelatinous mass who keeps trying and failing to flirt with the ship's doctor.) And the ship battles look great.

Also, is it just me or do the Kree vessels look like they could be of Romulan design? 

[Ian Galloway]

I am stunned to say that I like The Orville. I agree with Naira, I was expecting typical Seth McFarlane fart jokes, but while there is some low brow humor, the plots of the episodes have been extremely good especially episode 3 About a Girl. I think the uniforms are very nice, but I think the ship looks more something Nike would make, but I don't hate it.

I have already commented on Discovery and will just parrot what Jada said in the other thread. It's a decent science fiction show, it's not just not Trek. 

[Fala Awen]

I've watched every episode of The Orville and love the show. Of course, since it's on Fox there's always the concern it won't last longer than one season. O.o

In any event, I really enjoy The Orville. It's sort of a more comedic, down-to-earth, realistic version of TNG. Some of it is cheesy or makes me want to roll my eyes, but there's comparatively less of those bits than the parts I enjoy. I don't mind the uniforms though the colors a bit bright for my personal taste. The ship isn't necessarily your standard ST ship, but then this isn't actually ST so I don't mind.

Naira's review is pretty close to what I would say about it.

As far as Star Trek: Discovery (STD)... Honestly, I can't even bring myself to watch it. I'm sure some people do/will love it and that's completely fine,  but I just...no. For one thing, they're going back to an earlier time again which is really frustrating (is there some aversion to moving into the future? I mean, I guess that means they can't "screw up" the future for us who are simming, but still). They've redesigned Klingons majorly - I can't understand how you can take STD Klingons, then explain how they turn into TOS or TNG Klingons (I know TOS ones were explained as a mutation).

I couldn't even bring myself to watch ENT. I remember flipping through the channels and finding a sci-fi show which I started to watching thinking it was kinda neat. Then I saw the theme. And saw it was supposed to be Star Trek...with that theme. Yikes. I couldn't bring myself to watch any more of it. If it hadn't been Trek, I might have been able to deal with it, but ENT and ST just didn't mesh in my mind. I saw bits and pieces (couldn't bring myself to finish a full episode), but overall I couldn't even watch it.

So when STD was being talked about and I read about it I knew I wouldn't be able to watch it. Sorry STD fans.

Anyway, for me...Orville good. STD not good.

[Solluk]

Hello,

I am enjoying the Orville.  I think it is at its best when it makes the fewest jokes.  In particular the last episode I saw reminded me a lot of TOS.

So far, Discovery is shaping up to be an intriguing sci-fi show that does not 'feel' like (or often look like) Star Trek.

While Orville (when they aren't using their tryhard jokes) feels like TNG and TOS.

It's a strange season of 'television' this cycle.  A non Trek show that feels pretty Trek and a Trek show that feels pretty unTrek.

[Kyle Briggs]

I've only watched the first episode of Discovery and sadly couldn't get into it enough to pay for the rest. I may give it try eventually but fr now, I am really enjoying The Orville. I've never really been a Seth fan (Can't stand Family Guy, American Dad, etc.....) but I do like this show. As was mentioned before, not as much comedy as I expected. They balance it really well IMO.

[Demlion Riverbank V]

Oh silly me, I saw Orville first thing came to my mind was POPCORN.....

I had to share that

[Constance Lafayette]

The trailers positioned it as a comedy and, as a comedy, it's pretty bad.
Episode 3 broke my goddamn heart.
Like some of the better TNG episodes.

[Malcolm Adeyemi]

This show is all over the place. One minute Norm MacDonald is making a toilet joke and the next they're discussing transgender rights in a way that rivals TNG. It's too jarring to get so involved in something so deep and then all of the sudden there's a fart joke or something. It can't be both, because it's not succeeding as either.

[Naira]

This show is all over the place. One minute Norm MacDonald is making a toilet joke and the next they're discussing transgender rights in a way that rivals TNG. It's too jarring to get so involved in something so deep and then all of the sudden there's a fart joke or something. It can't be both, because it's not succeeding as either.

That is true, I think eventually they will have to decide if they want to take it in a more serious direction or veer off into fart joke comedy. I'm really hoping they go the more serious route as it does have the potential to be very good and fill the void for all the fans who seem to be disappointed with Discovery.

[Solluk]

This last episode of the Orville was very good.  I have a bit of a review here.

The Orville - Episode 6: I think this is my new favorite episode of the show.  It's the first episode that has a story which is really not derived directly from an episode of Star Trek, but it still managed to encapsulate a Trek spirit.  (Yes, I can hear Orville fans say "Orville is its own thing!"  But any honest appraisal must see Orville as a love letter to Trek.)  I think I could recommend this episode to anyone who enjoyed Trek without reservation.  Also?  This would be a decent episode to bring in a new viewer.  I think you could enjoy it without knowledge of any other episodes.

SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER
SPOILER SPOILER

[spoiler]It's hard to tell a war story with a lot of action and killing in which the good guys triumph against evil... but also in which war and battles aren't glorified.  This episode managed it.

(Discovery Comparison Alert) It was almost startling to see an episode of a Seth McFarlane show that developed its villains better in this one hour than Discovery has managed since its debut.  This is especially surprising since Discovery has had long periods of the show on Klingon ships watching Klingon crew, but has conveyed very little of Klingon culture or motivation.   Here, without actually learning much about the holy book of the Krill, we begin get a real feeling for who they are.

Complexity.  The Captain is assigned to learn about the Krill via their religion.  Then he learns that a colony is slated for destruction.  So he changes his mission.  But he doesn't want to kill kids.  So he saves the kids.  But they will grow up to despise him and hate the Union.  I love that this wasn't a happy tied-up-in-a-bow ending.  This is what a no-win scenario really looks like.

Some gripes- The amount of information the Union has on the Krill is weirdly spotty.  Basically they know everything they need for the plot, but don't know anything the plot needs them to not know.

Oddity- language.  We see everyone speak English.  But the Krill don't speak English, surely.  Is it to be assumed that the holo-generator both translates the speech and makes the lips move according to the new words?  Or do Union people have an implant that allows them to speak foreign tongues in the fashion of natives?  If so... how can you perfectly replicate the language of another species while also not understanding anything about their religion?  Did they find a dictionary and grammar textbook without finding a Bible?

Humor - "That's a new leg!"  I laughed.  The humor doesn't usually tickle me on this show, but that was a nice payoff from a previous episode.

Two thumbs up on this one![/spoiler]

[Lek]

I completely agree with Mister Solluk's analysis.

[Octavia Phae]

I've only seen the pilot of the Orville.

But I think Discovery is absolutely brilliant it feels more like a movie
The ships, uniforms, and special effects are jaw dropping. I wish TNG had the budget Discovery does.

[Lek]

I've only seen the pilot of the Orville.

But I think Discovery is absolutely brilliant it feels more like a movie
The ships, uniforms, and special effects are jaw dropping. I wish TNG had the budget Discovery does.

And here we have the quintessential difference between younger fans and older fans 'shiny ships, uniforms, and special effects' versus plot. Ms Phae's opinions are certainly as valid as anyone's and I respect and celebrate her for having them in the finest traditions of IDIC. However, her opinion sums up the differences between the generations better than I could ever hope to express.

On The Orville, especially as it is a creation of Seth McFarland whose work I have never liked, we have plots of such poignancy that I frankly have a difficult time reconciling that they are from the same man that created The Family Guy. Compared to The Orville's thought provoking storylines, we have a lot of 'oooh shiny, blink blink' effects built around the preposterous notion of the "Spore Drive;" a technology we know has to be doomed to failure because Kirk and Picard do not have such technology.

I have watched every episode of both series and I am stunned to find myself looking forward to each new chance to see The Orville. Whereas with Discovery, I find myself setting the bar to 'maybe it won't suck as much as the last one' and they have failed to even reach that pathetic standard. Ultimately, I come back to Jada's comment time and time again, Discovery is a decent science fiction series, it's just not a Trek series. The Orville, on the other hand, captures the essence of Star Trek in a way that I think even Gene Roddenberry would respect.

[Solluk]

So... there was a D7 cruiser in the last episode of Discovery.

I'll have to get a screen shot.  They only showed it briefly.

Ummm...