The Orville: New Horizons S3E1: “Electric Sheep”
The Orville was a show that took me by surprise, though one that was very much needed. Although his type of comedy is often not my cup of tea, Seth MacFarlane has proven to be a much better writer when he takes the material seriously. The Orville was clearly based in a deep love of classic Star Trek in the tradition of Gene Roddenberry and Rick Berman, to the point where Brannon Braga (who was heavily involved in shows like Voyager) is involved with the show. It may have started as a parody, but the series evolved into a loving tribute to old-school Star Trek while being identifiably its own show. After some of the brilliant work done in Season 2, especially the Kaylon two-parter and “The Road Not Taken”, I was curious to see where MacFarlane would take the show after its move to Hulu.
“Electric Sheep” is a title that was very likely chosen with deliberate intent. On the surface, it’s notably an homage to legendary science fiction author Philip K. Dick and his original title for what became Blade Runner. That’s certainly appropriate for an episode centered on Isaac, the Kaylon synthetic who is the Spock/Data analogue of this show, and who has become my favorite character on the show. But when we look deeper into the content of the episode, Seth MacFarlane is delving into some deeper and darker content than we’ve seen from him before. This is an episode that deals with issues of racism, ostracization and even suicide, and to MacFarlane’s credit as a writer, it does so with a very somber but careful hand. One point I’ve always appreciated about MacFarlane’s handling of social issues on The Orville is that it never tells you how to think about it; it presents the situation and the arguments, and leaves the viewer to find the answer. When the complication of the story hits, it does so with the force of a punch to the gut; I was literally shocked and taken aback when the story reaches its main point. Because we’ve been attached to these characters for two seasons, when the issue of suicide is finally raised, it has real power because we care about what happens to the Orville crew. Although the ending is easy to guess, the story still carries real emotional weight because of that attachment and the way the story is executed. It’s all the more reinforced by the dedication to the late, great Norm MacDonald who voiced the alien engineer Yaphit; MacDonald sadly passed away prior to the airing of this season, and so the story takes on a greater weight because of the genuine loss of a fine performer.
While this episode is emotionally powerful and the story is generally quite strong, it does have a few small strikes against it. One of those is the character of Charly Burke (played by Anne Winters), who is unfortunately disserved somewhat by the script. I have no issue with the idea of her character, a young ensign who lost friends to the Kaylon War and blames Isaac because of his betrayal of the crew to the Kaylon. I see MacFarlane’s point of view in including her, because she provides conflict and gives an important viewpoint about Isaac that should be represented. At the same time, while her feelings towards Isaac are entirely understandable, Burke can come across as petty, vindictive, and even selfish where Isaac is concerned. This makes her a difficult character to like for most of the episode, though that is offset by two small points; the character is honest and direct about who she is, to the point of confronting Isaac openly about her problems, and her decision at the end of the episode is motivated by a selfless desire to help a young boy dealing with pain, grief, and guilt. Hopefully, we see more to Burke than just her hatred of Isaac later in the season, because she adds something valuable to the cast when her character flaws aren’t dragging her down.
Another point that bothers me somewhat is that Isaac is portrayed in somewhat more of a negative light than he deserves, or at least that he deserves a stronger defense than he receives from his crewmates. I suspect that Seth MacFarlane may have been struggling with the idea that Isaac truly had crossed the line with his betrayal of the Planetary Union to the Kaylon, even if he saved the ship and the Union at the end of the Kaylon War. Isaac should not be easily forgiven for this, but at the same time, he also has saved the ship on multiple occasions. Perhaps the best defense comes from Captain Ed Mercer, who makes the point that Union officers should be better than their enemies. Even that feels like it doesn’t go far enough, as it doesn’t address the issue of whether Isaac can earn redemption for his past sins, or even the classic Star Trek idea that “today’s enemies are tomorrow’s friends”. The question of Isaac’s moral culpability for the deaths caused by the Kaylon is a good one, and certainly Isaac deserves some level of responsibility for that, but the presentation feels a bit one-sided against him as it’s shown here. There are arguments that could have been made in Isaac’s favor and arguments that could have been made stronger. The end result comes across as a bit more one-sided than it could have been or needed to be, when the issue is more complex than it’s laid out in the story.
Other elements of the episode, however, are extremely good, and it’s clear that The Orville is trying to hit a higher level of quality than we’ve seen in past seasons. The special effects look like the show hit a higher budget, and that’s to its credit. The design of The Orville’s new bridge is sleeker, more modern, and more like what you’d expect from an advanced starship, and the set is beautiful to look at. Space battles are now much more visually powerful and complex, and the show is openly doing more with the technology at its disposal. While J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek took Star Wars as a model for how combat should look in space, it did so at the expense of the substance of Star Trek. With The Orville: New Horizons, we see the same kind of slick fast-paced combat that you’d expect of a Star Wars film, but it still looks and feels like a Trek-inspired show. It’s also good to see new technologies explored with the refit of The Orville, such as the remote-controlled combat drones and high-speed shuttles. Even though fighter combat in space is very much a space opera conceit, it’s always fun to see starfighters in space battles. The Orville does a good job of making Union ships look consistent while also experimenting with new designs and new visual effects. The Kaylon pursuit scene is a classic Trek-style “Hornblower in space” scenario, but it has the pacing and action style of a modern SF film. Additionally, it also makes use of MacFarlane’s other real strength as a SF writer; he has a deep interest in real-world science, as he’s shown with his involvement with Cosmos, and he knows how to use it to deepen the storytelling. That balance of styles makes The Orville’s action sequences feel unique and sets it apart even from modern Trek shows.
It’s been good to see the cast of The Orville again, and by this point, they’ve become a well-oiled machine as an ensemble. Seth MacFarlane wears many different hats on this show, including as the show’s star as Captain Ed Mercer. It’s good to see MacFarlane as Ed again, though he wisely keeps his own appearances to a reasonable minimum. I can respect that MacFarlane can put his ego aside for the good of the larger story, putting the attention on the rest of the cast where it belongs here. As an actor, MacFarlane has moved Ed beyond his Kirk roots, as he shows doubts about his decisions and the honesty to admit them, while not backing away from what he thinks is necessary. Adrianne Palicki doesn’t have much to work with as Kelly Grayson in this episode, but she remains a strong presence as the ship’s first officer. Mark Jackson is always a stellar performer as Isaac, getting across the arrogance and the soullessness of the Kaylon, while also giving him a real curiosity about humanity and a concern about his crewmates beneath the cold robotic shell. Scott Grimes gets some good moments as Malloy, moving beyond the crew’s comic relief and giving him some serious emotional scenes with Burke. Penny Johnson Jerald has become a favorite as Dr. Claire Finn, and this episode highlights her strengths, as Finn balances her complicated feelings for Isaac with her roles as a doctor and a mother. Anne Winters delivers a strong performance in her debut episode as Burke, and she brings a good, emotional performance even with the script issues with her character. A couple of characters get overlooked this episode, mainly Peter Macon as Bortus and Jessica Szohr as Keyali, but as they’re not important to the story, they do the best with the lines they’re given. I also can’t mention the crew without highlighting Norm MacDonald’s brief appearances as Yaphit; while he’s also not a huge player in this story, MacDonald always made Yaphit a memorable character every time he was on screen. All in all, it’s been good to see this cast again, and I hope we get to see more focus on Bortus, Keyali, and Kelly in future episodes.
Although not a perfect shakedown cruise, The Orville: New Horizons does an excellent job of setting the tone for Season 3. Though it’s not without its blemishes, these are generally not major problems, and nothing that gets in the way of enjoying the episode. Moreover, the series manages to improve in many aspects, and that offsets any of its outstanding concerns. It’s a show that’s not afraid of taking risks, and the risks it takes are emotional ones that usually pay off huge dividends. As it is, The Orville is still a better Star Trek show than the shows using the Star Trek name, with only Strange New Worlds even being competitive with it. I’m looking forward to seeing what else Seth MacFarlane and his crew continue to do with this series, because it’s easily one of the best SF shows currently out there right now.
Score: 4.5/5
Director: Seth MacFarlane
Writer: Seth MacFarlane
Cast: Seth MacFarlane, Adrianne Palicki, Penny Johnson Jerald, Mark Jackson, J. Lee, Peter Macon, Scott Grimes, Jessica Szohr, Anne Winters, Norm MacDonald
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- Steve Sellers had been a fan of superheroes ever since Superman: The Movie. But it took the JSA, the Legion of Super-Heroes, Dragonlance, Lord of the Rings, Twilight Zone, and Chris Claremont's legendary run on the X-Men to make him a writer and a longtime fan of comics, fantasy, and science fiction. Steve is the co-creator of WHITE DRUID & MICHAEL NERO and GUARDIANS OF ELAYIM for Omen Comics, and he is also the creator of BLITZ and SHOCKWAVE for Revelation Comics (an imprint of Omen Comics).
