# The Orville-Seth McFarlane **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 17, 2017, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814 "2017-05-17T03:28:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 59
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2017, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1161 "2017-11-02T20:21:18Z")
The Orville has been [renewed](https://io9.gizmodo.com/the-orville-has-already-been-renewed-for-a-second-seaso-1820085997) for a second season. The bad news, according the article, is that this means we’ll only be getting 13 episodes for season 1. ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2017, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1162 "2017-11-02T21:13:29Z")
> [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > The Orville has been [renewed](https://io9.gizmodo.com/the-orville-has-already-been-renewed-for-a-second-seaso-1820085997) for a second season. The bad news, according the article, is that this means we’ll only be getting 13 episodes for season 1. Might be alright. I find 13 ep seasons are better written, if that’s the formula going forward. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2017, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1163 "2017-11-02T23:52:45Z")
Agreed; this is fantastic news. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2017, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1164 "2017-11-02T23:59:07Z")
> [@ISiddiqui](#): > > Might be alright. I find 13 ep seasons are better written, if that’s the formula going forward. I agree, and am very happy to hear it! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1165 "2017-11-03T01:08:07Z")
I’m enjoying the show enough that I would rather not wait for more episodes, but a second season is still great news. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1166 "2017-11-03T02:22:18Z")
Tonight’s was excellent. Nice character building show. Though playing Barry Manilow was the low point in the series thus far. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1167 "2017-11-03T05:54:33Z")
Isaac as surrogate parent was awesome, as was the buildup of some of the more minor characters. I feel like I know the crew of the Orville far better than the crew of Star Trek Discovery at about the same point in the series. Some of the bridge characters on discovery are still essentially wallpaper. That’s probably why the Orville is more like Star Trek than Star Trek itself. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1168 "2017-11-03T10:17:08Z")
It’s a solid three out of four star outing for me. I actually teared up a bit at the end. Which was funny, because at the beginning of the episode, I cracked up over “Would you like me to vaporize them for you?” The killing of the guy in the “bunker” was a little dark. I mean, what he did was wrong–but not so wrong as to deserve to die. But what choice did she have? I guess I thought she was going to slip from around that door and put the knife to his throat, and then tie him up or something. Doing it the way they did was surprising and bold, if a bit disturbing. It does continue the trend of being derivative, or at least coincidentally seeming so, as there is a strong parallel with the John Goodman role in “10 Cloverfield Lane”. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1169 "2017-11-03T10:25:19Z")
I wasn’t a fan of the part where the doctor killed the survivalist guy. I know the viewer is supposed to admre her mama-bear ferocity, and he was technically keeping her against her will. But the Orville is going to go out of its way to help the cannibal mutants (AFTER only stunning them in a life-and-death struggle). Yet she whacked that guy AND made sure to finish him off, as opposed to literally cutting and running. As a doctor, it seems like she could have devised some nonlethal way to temporarily disable him. The survivalist was technically right that neither she nor her children would have lived out there without the literal deus ex machina he didn’t know about. It just seemed like a jarring note, outside the established tone of the series so far. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1170 "2017-11-03T12:26:46Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > … > > It does continue the trend of being derivative, or at least coincidentally seeming so, as there is a strong parallel with the John Goodman role in “10 Cloverfield Lane”. Now its just a matter of “[The Simpsons already did it](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simpsons_Already_Did_It)”. It is hard to come up with something completely new and I never thought about that movie and I liked the movie. In the end, take a story idea and do it well. ---
**Author:** ![Horatius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horatius/32/3572_2.png) [@Horatius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatius)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1171 "2017-11-03T18:33:50Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > I wasn’t a fan of the part where the doctor killed the survivalist guy. I know the viewer is supposed to admre her mama-bear ferocity, and he was technically keeping her against her will. But the Orville is going to go out of its way to help the cannibal mutants (AFTER only stunning them in a life-and-death struggle). Yet she whacked that guy AND made sure to finish him off, as opposed to literally cutting and running. As a doctor, it seems like she could have devised some nonlethal way to temporarily disable him. > > The survivalist was technically right that neither she nor her children would have lived out there without the literal deus ex machina he didn’t know about. > > It just seemed like a jarring note, outside the established tone of the series so far. I don’t think it’s so far off the tone of the Krill episode. She was held prisoner by a larger, better-armed person who, let’s face it, did very little to dispel the crazy guy vibe he was putting out. Sure, in an ideal situation, she might have been able to come up with a better plan, but she didn’t have time, or the resources. So, when she had to, she was willing to injure or kill, just like Mercer was willing to killing the Adult Krill. But later, when she was back with Isaac, and in possession of a superior weapon, which was just as useful for stunning as it was for killing, she held herself to a higher standard, just like Mercer did when he realized he could save the kids. Sometimes in life, you don’t have any good choices. But sometimes you do, and there’s no point beating yourself up over taking a bad choice in those situations where there were no good choices. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1172 "2017-11-03T20:06:03Z")
So, I started watching last night’s episode just before the littlest Torqueling had to go to bed (strategic decision). Note: she’ll be 6 in January. But she saw kids and their mom at the start, which piqued her interest, so she started watching with me, and she was really liking it. We just got to the point where they crashed before she had to go to bed. Is there anything on this episode that would be grossly inappropriate for a 5 year old? I’ve read plot summaries and reviews, and people seem to think it was one of the best yet, and it sounds like the “family” themes were strong and well played. However, it sounds like there may be some gnarly violence (the littlest Torqueling scares easy). And some of the characters were referred to as “cannibals”, is there any cannibalism on display? I don’t want to helicopter-parent, but I don’t want to be reckless either. ---
**Author:** ![ssgenius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5ac83/32.png) [@ssgenius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ssgenius)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1173 "2017-11-03T20:14:54Z")
No cannibalism but it was implied. There is also a glory hole joke but that will probably pass over her head ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1174 "2017-11-03T20:34:24Z")
> [@ssgenius](#): > > No cannibalism but it was implied. There is also a glory hole joke but that will probably pass over her head I’m surprised by what they get away with for “adult humor” on a supposedly family-oriented show modelled on ST:TNG. but have at 'er! The comedy is actually refreshing. My teen laughed heartily when she heard the glory hole reference. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1175 "2017-11-03T21:14:12Z")
> [@Biffster](#): > > I’m surprised by what they get away with for “adult humor” on a supposedly family-oriented show modelled on ST:TNG. but have at 'er! The comedy is actually refreshing. My teen laughed heartily when she heard the glory hole reference. [That episode was rated TV-14 DLV.](https://www.fox.com/the-orville/) > [@](#): > > This program contains some material that many parents would find unsuitable for children under 14 years of age. Parents are strongly urged to exercise greater care in monitoring this program and are cautioned against letting children under the age of 14 watch unattended. This program may contain one or more of the following: intensely suggestive dialogue (D), strong coarse language (L), intense sexual situations (S), or intense violence (V). What’s OK for a teenager may not be for the littlest Torqueling. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1176 "2017-11-03T21:25:30Z")
I have a five year old also. > [@ssgenius](#): > > No cannibalism but it was implied. There is also a glory hole joke but that will probably pass over her head The “give us the children” part from cannibals with scary mutant faces might lead to nightmares. But I think you’re overlooking what I would consider the most problematic violence: the big knife right to the gut, followed by his wrenching it out while doubled over in pain, then coming after the mom who shoots him. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1177 "2017-11-03T22:07:00Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > I wasn’t a fan of the part where the doctor killed the survivalist guy. I know the viewer is supposed to admre her mama-bear ferocity, and he was technically keeping her against her will. But the Orville is going to go out of its way to help the cannibal mutants (AFTER only stunning them in a life-and-death struggle). Yet she whacked that guy AND made sure to finish him off, as opposed to literally cutting and running. I agree. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1178 "2017-11-03T22:35:08Z")
I don’t know if it’s quite accurate to say “she whacked that guy AND made sure to finish him off, as opposed to literally cutting and running.” She hid behind the door and stabbed him. Then they scuffled (during which it was revealed she grabbed his gun) and she was thrown to the ground. He pulled the knife out of his belly and lunged at her (she was still lying on the floor), at which point she shot him. Now, maybe she should have immediately brandished the gun and warned him to back off before he got the knife out. But once he lunged at her, there was no time. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [November 3, 2017, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1179 "2017-11-03T22:56:11Z")
I’m with **SlackerInc**. She didn’t decide to whack the guy. She decided to survive. He made the classic mistake of bringing a knife to a gun fight, even if said knife was previously in his gut. ---
**Author:** ![Biffster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biffster/32/339_2.png) [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2017, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1180 "2017-11-04T00:33:45Z")
> [@D\_Odds](#): > > I’m with **SlackerInc**. She didn’t decide to whack the guy. She decided to survive. He made the classic mistake of bringing a knife to a gun fight, even if said knife was previously in his gut. That’s the Chicago way! And that’s how you get Capone. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814.md?page=58) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814.md?page=60)