# 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:** 61
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2017, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1201 "2017-11-05T18:44:57Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Plus transporters are _very_ identified with Star Trek, unlike other technologies (FTL travel, shuttlecraft, etc). They are used in SG1 (Asgard technology.) ---
**Author:** ![crucible](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/5f8ce5/32.png) [@crucible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crucible)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2017, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1202 "2017-11-06T13:36:28Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Does “blended Scotch whiskey” indicate that different malts are blended? sure. even single malt is usually blended in the sense of mixing different barrels, different batches with one another to get a semblance of consistency for the final product. But, yes, blended whiskeys are sometimes needed to be able to use all the available production, some of which is not particularly tasty by itself. ---
**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 6, 2017, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1203 "2017-11-06T22:54:27Z")
> [@simster](#): > > Because she needed the meds from the shuttle. > > By that point - she had > > a) heard about the infected water and affect on the population > b) talked to Isaac and the kids and knew that the smaller one was infected. Oh, good point! ---
**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 7, 2017, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1204 "2017-11-07T03:20:02Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > …Will they begin losing the damn things like Voyager? > :dubious: Well the Orville isn’t stranded on the other side of the galaxy from the Union; the ship was just at a maintenance facility this episode. They can just order replacements. > [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Plus transporters are _very_ identified with Star Trek, unlike other technologies (FTL travel, shuttlecraft, etc). Though the Orville does have replicators which appear to work just like the ones on Star Trek; right down to the same visual effect. Still it’s a good think the Union doesn’t have teleportation technology; it creates _way_ too many plot holes. > [@Mijin](#): > > …The bad reason though, is it’s given that character some rough edges that weren’t part of the narrative; later on it’s as though it never happened. > I thought at the end when mercer asked for her report she’d express some regret, but no… Agreed. Killing him appears to have had no effect on Claire at all; which is either bad writing, or a sign of something very disturbing about Claire. > [@RickJay](#): > > …In fact, it is not precisely clear to me that the body Isaac inhabits is, in fact, Isaac; his personage was capable of existing inside the ship’s computer, away from his body, and he had made reference to the fact that the glowing eyes on his head aren’t actually working eyes, they’re just an cosmetic thing to make humanoids more comfortable around him. > > So it may be that the person called “Isaac” doesn’t even have a permanent physical form, but is actually a sapient computer program… I think this too. Isaac’s body was designed specifically for this assignment, and even the name “Isaac” is an assumed name that his shipmates can pronounce. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2017, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1205 "2017-11-07T03:28:06Z")
I assume Isaac for Asimov (in the real world if not in-universe.) ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2017, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1206 "2017-11-07T13:25:32Z")
> [@alphaboi867](#): > > Agreed. Killing him appears to have had no effect on Claire at all; which is either bad writing, or a sign of something very disturbing about Claire. In defense of the writing, 1. You see Claire for all of five minutes after she kills two people, 2. She is at that point concerned about getting to her children and saving one of their lives. If I was up against time to save my daughter’s life I could kill people and not much care until afterwards, and 3. Remember at the end of the episode it’s noted she has not filed a report, and she asks for more time to do so. Maybe it DOES bother her. On another note, I am 100% confident McFarlane named Isaac after Asimov. He named the ship after Orville Wright. He’s a tech nerd. We’ll probably see more of that. ETA: Other briefly named ships are apparently allso named after people involved in science and tech: USS Druyan (Colony ship saved in Ep 4) - Ann Druyan, Carl Sagan’s wife, a scientist and writer who was part of the original “Cosmos” USS Chanute (mentioned in Ep 1 as Kelly’s possible next assignment) - Octave Chanute, an early aviation pioneer USS Bleriot (ep 2) - French aviation pioneer ---
**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 7, 2017, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1207 "2017-11-07T13:35:18Z")
If this were a more serious show, I’d expect to learn that Claire’s past involves more than doctoring. She killed two guys with minimally aimed center-mass shots using a non-Union weapon in. That’s not readily explained away by mom rage. But I still don’t quite know where to place my expectations when it comes to The Orville. It’s hard to say whether it’s convenient writing or not. MacFarlane has built his career 22 minutes at a time - one of Family Guy’s running gags is that there’s no continuity whatsoever. So what can we do but wait and see? ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2017, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1208 "2017-11-07T13:57:18Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > If I was up against time to save my daughter’s life I could kill people and not much care until afterwards, Really? There is a difference between thinking you made the right decision, and not _caring_ afterwards. If I so much as shout at a stranger it bugs me later that I had to do that, and I need to reassure myself I did the right thing. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2017, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1209 "2017-11-07T17:21:23Z")
> [@Johnny\_Bravo](#): > > If this were a more serious show, I’d expect to learn that Claire’s past involves more than doctoring. She killed two guys with minimally aimed center-mass shots using a non-Union weapon in. That’s not readily explained away by mom rage. > > But I still don’t quite know where to place my expectations when it comes to The Orville. It’s hard to say whether it’s convenient writing or not. MacFarlane has built his career 22 minutes at a time - one of Family Guy’s running gags is that there’s no continuity whatsoever. So what can we do but wait and see? for a Seth MacFarlane vehicle I can say I’ve been pretty pleasantly surprised at how serious they’ve kept the show. For the most part the humor has been appropriate and believable (e.g. Isaac’s indifferent “if you wish, I will vaporize them” to Dr. Finn) and the interactions between the human characters is more like how people act today rather than the more dispassionate world of Roddenberry. ---
**Author:** ![SenorBeef](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senorbeef/32/2220_2.png) [@SenorBeef](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SenorBeef)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 9:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1210 "2017-11-08T09:36:55Z")
> [@Rhiannon8404](#): > > Was there some reason I missed why the doctor didn’t just leave the apartment when her captor was out retrieving the medication from the shuttle? She tried the front door and it wouldn’t budge - it appeared that he had locked it from the outside, or otherwise jammed it. > [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Was he an enemy or an overly enthusiastic Good Samaritan? > Given our differing opinions on this episode, I believe an interesting episode could have been made where she is court martialed for the two deaths. Our various views could be argued by the court. It’s clear that she believed he was a creeper who had been alone too long who planned to keep her as forced companionship - her attempt to imply seduction and understanding to get him to go to the shuttle clearly shows that - so I think that’s what we’re meant to take from it. He’s not wrong, in that he’s a source of safety for her and her kids are likely dead - but it seems like he’s going to try to use that to try to justify keeping her as his captive. I thought this episode was vastly different in tone than the rest of the series. No one had to act like a complete idiot to advance the plot, which has been a staple in episodes so far. Little to none of the humor derived from the stupidity of the characters (and for that reason, straight men who don’t understand cultural customs like Bortus and Isaac are good sources of punchlines due to misunderstanding rather than stupidity). And clearly two characters and relationships were really stressed for development. It did a lot for the character of Isaac I think (and the doctor was fine, but pretty much standard mama bear tropes albeit with brains) I liked it. ---
**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 8, 2017, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1211 "2017-11-08T10:52:34Z")
I didn’t realize she couldn’t leave. So that was no longer an issue after his return? ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1212 "2017-11-08T13:02:04Z")
> [@Mijin](#): > > Really? > There is a difference between thinking you made the right decision, and not _caring_ afterwards. > > If I so much as shout at a stranger it bugs me later that I had to do that, and I need to reassure myself I did the right thing. I think you misread my post. Specifically, you missed an “until.” ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1213 "2017-11-08T13:51:32Z")
I did, sorry. Although in that case I’m not sure how relevant your point is. We were talking about Claire’s apparent lack of concern afterwards. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1214 "2017-11-08T14:28:19Z")
I loved that Claire’s kids were always fighting, complaining, pains in the ass. Normal. Not like the “perfect with one fault that’s cured by the end of the episode” kids you’d occasionally see on Star Trek. “The game is never to be spoken of again.” had me laughing. Isaac definitely picked up some effective parenting methods. And yes, Claire tried to open the outside door but couldn’t, so she had no choice but to fight her captor. As I’ve always said about Star Trek, and was demonstrated at the end of this episode, it’s a lot easier to respect human life when you’ve got a distance weapon that can reliably and safely render your enemies unconscious. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1215 "2017-11-08T17:00:15Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > As I’ve always said about Star Trek, and was demonstrated at the end of this episode, it’s a lot easier to respect human life when you’ve got a distance weapon that can reliably and safely render your enemies unconscious. Yes, but that’s a good thing. The humans acted, well, humanely. You think a Klingon kavalry would have only stunned the locals? They’d have brought out the batleths and knives and had a nice outing. The krill would have just shot everyone. The Orville crew is going to go back and cure the survivors (if they let them…). That’s something the Feds would do, too. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1216 "2017-11-08T17:45:23Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Yes, but that’s a good thing. The humans acted, well, humanely. You think a Klingon kavalry would have only stunned the locals? They’d have brought out the batleths and knives and had a nice outing. The krill would have just shot everyone. The Orville crew is going to go back and cure the survivors (if they let them…). That’s something the Feds would do, too. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing. I’m saying it’s easier. When there are almost always options other than “kill or be killed”, deciding not to kill isn’t particularly admirable or even notable. And saying things like “They may not value life, but we do!” is kind of hypocritical coming from that position (especially when you’ve shot 2 guys with a firearm in the past 24 hours since you didn’t have your stun weapon). ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2017, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1217 "2017-11-08T19:11:48Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > I’m not saying it’s a bad thing. I’m saying it’s easier. When there are almost always options other than “kill or be killed”, deciding not to kill isn’t particularly admirable or even notable. And saying things like “They may not value life, but we do!” is kind of hypocritical coming from that position (especially when you’ve shot 2 guys with a firearm in the past 24 hours since you didn’t have your stun weapon). Point taken. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2017, 5:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1218 "2017-11-09T05:22:22Z")
I can’t enjoy a story about brats that doesn’t end with the brats being dead. Personal taste. ---
**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 9, 2017, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1219 "2017-11-09T13:34:20Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > I can’t enjoy a story about brats that doesn’t end with the brats being dead. Personal taste. That’s why I hate kids in science fiction. They almost always survive. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2017, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814/1220 "2017-11-09T14:40:07Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > I can’t enjoy a story about brats that doesn’t end with the brats being dead. Personal taste. Except for “It’s A Good Life”, but that’s a horror story. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814.md?page=60) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-orville-seth-mcfarlane/786814.md?page=62)