Christina and I discovered The Orville a few years ago. While this TV show, created and written by Seth MacFarlane, could be seen as a funny parody of Star Trek, for us, it goes a bit further than that.
From IMDB: “Set 400 years in the future, the crew of the U.S.S. Orville continue their mission of exploration, navigating both the mysteries of the universe, and the complexities of their own interpersonal relationships.”
The interesting part is “navigating […] the complexities of their own interpersonal relationships”. The show explores tolerance between different species, gender relationships, love, authority, trust, etc. in a lighthearted way.
The main cast of Seth MacFarlane (as Capt. Ed Mercer), Adrianne Palicki (as Cmdr. Kelly Grayson), Penny Johnson Jerald (as Dr. Claire Finn), Scott Grimes (as Lt. Gordon Malloy), J. Lee (as Lt. Cmdr. John LaMarr) and Peter Macon (as Lt. Cmdr. Bortus) was a joy. I especially loved the dynamics between Seth MacFarlane and Adrianne Palicki.
Another important cast member during the early seasons was Halston Sage (as Lt. Alara Kitan), replaced by Jessica Szohr (as Lt. Talla Keyali) in later episodes. I also liked Chad L. Coleman (as Klyden) and Anne Winters (as Ensign Charly Burke).
Christina and I always felt that the show, while funny, was also very intelligent. And it also looked gorgeous.
The TV Show ran over three seasons from 2017 to 2022. Technically, it has not been cancelled yet so it is possible that we’ll have the pleasure to watch a fourth season one day.
