Seth McFarlane has done some great things over his career. Family Guy and American Dad spring to mind first, but let’s not overlook The Orville. Is the Star Trek styled show becoming more Star Trek than the Federation itself?

Parody or not?

Based in the 25th century, the show revolves around the adventures of the USS Orville. The ship is an exploratory vessel that is part of the Planetary Union. Which itself is made up of a galactic alliance of planets, including Earth. Sounding familiar yet? When The Orville first hit our screens in 2017, it wasn’t quite sure what it was. Was The Orville a pure parody of Star Trek? Or maybe a sci-fi comedy with a hint of drama pinched from Gene Rodenberry himself? Season One certainly gears towards the former.

The crew

The core crew of the ship are made up of Captain Ed Mercer (played by McFarlane), a navigator, helmsman and second officer. The latter is Commander Bortus, an alien from the planet Moclus, where the primary gender is male. The ships doctor is played by Penny Johnson Jerald. She had a recurring role in Deep Space Nine as the love interest of Captain Sisko. As you can see, the Star Trek themes are running deep. Pardon the pun. But there’s more. The original Star Trek series had a Vulcan science officer, and Next Generation had android commander Data serving on the bridge. The Orville doesn’t disappoint with science officer Issac. He’s an artificial non-biological being from Kaylon-1. He, just like Data before him, wants to learn about human behaviour. Although, unlike Data, Issac believes his race is superior to humans.

Family Guy in space?

Season One does have you thinking The Orville is one great big Star Trek parody. There are the obvious character comparisons, along with ‘the federation’ and Orville’s mission. But it is genuinely funny. There are some laugh-out-loud moments that are reminiscent of Family Guy. The odd crude joke here and there, along with some modern-day quips. But there are also glimpses of it trying to be a serious bone fide science fiction show.

The relationship-building between Mercer and his crew slowly grows, along with the addition of his ex-wife to the crew. Adrianne Palicki does a great job of playing the now-defunct Mrs Mercer, and the two of them play off some brilliant lines together. That aside, it’s pretty much pure comedy through all the episodes. One of the highlights was when an entire episode was dedicated to Bortus returning to his home planet to wee. Ok, so his species only do it once a year, but a whole episode? Genius.

Boldly going

As we progress into season two we start to see the show settle into itself a bit more. The episodes are more focused on character development with the stories reflecting that. Don’t get me wrong, there are still the in-your-face jokes, but fewer of them.

We see more themes of exploration, new species and relationships. Sounding more like Trek? You’d be right. There has been much discussion about the new series of Star Trek not keeping with the feeling of series gone by. By that, I mean there is a departure from the optimistic and exploratory themes that made the originals so popular. Discovery in particular has received criticism on fan forums for being too dark and violent, and for being too focused on one character. Season Two of the Orville definitely moves in the territory that Discovery in particular has left. It also drops the parody by a warp factor and ups the power of stories.

The two-parter ‘Identity’ episode is a prime example. It’s based around Isaac, who after deactivating, is taken back to his homeworld. Once there, the crew discover humanoid remains and large-scale weapons. After hijackings and battles, all ends well. It’s an example of how McFarlane proves he’s more than capable of writing some serious science fiction. Some of sillier humour has been dropped, but there are still a few 21st-century references thrown in for good measure.

Bringing in new fans

The first series received negative feedback from critics for being too silly, but that consensus is slowly beginning to shift. This may partly have to do with the online criticisms the new Star Trek series has had. As I mentioned earlier, fans of what’s described as ‘proper trek’ are not happy. Social media is awash with people bemoaning the loss of what Star Trek is meant to be – hope, optimism and exploring the human condition.

The second season of the Orville definitely brings those elements to the fore in its storylines. So, we have the obvious Trek fans jumping ship for something more nostalgic. But what about ordinary sci-fans? The ratings and critic reviews would suggest that support is growing from that fan base too. You only have to read the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes. The jump in ratings from season one to two is clear as day. It goes to show that Seth McFarlane is steering his ship through the tonal wonkiness of season one, through to some top quality sci-fi. This lends itself to genuine excitement about what season three will bring. It’s in production at the moment so it’s looking like we could see it drop by the end of 2021.

The music

There is something about the music of science fiction that makes it even more special. This is certainly true of Star Trek. The theme music is iconic and has the ability to make the hairs on your neck stand up. The Orville also has a pretty good soundtrack. Those opening credits scream TNG. The graphics of the ship powering up combined with the big orchestra is a definite doff of the cap. That’s no bad thing, though. If only they had used this for the intro of Star Trek: Enterprise. Ahem. More on that another day.

To sum up, if you love Star Trek of years gone by, then you will love The Orville. Kudos to Mr McFarlane for keeping the dream alive.

That’s why The Orville is becoming more Star Trek than Star Trek itself. What do you think, do we have a point? Let us know in the comments below.

Check out what we know about Star Trek: Strange New Worlds HERE.

Read IMDb information on The Orville HERE.