A very derivative episode. Very predictable and not overly interesting. For the most part, the characters made it fun to watch, but it was a pretty mediocre episode.
The only worthwhile bit was Ed's comment at the end.
The difference in writing with Strange New Worlds is staggering.
Where one explains to me - among many others - the obvious that some pseudo Vulcan phrase means potato/potato this show offers me my own "intellectual" journey.
It still changes elements from original Trek (last week the Bio-Borg, this week you know what) offering more than just member-berries and expands the universe instead of changing and subverting what was already there.
I still applaud the stroke of genius from Seth MacFarlane by starting this off as a comedy series only to Trojan Horse it into a full fledged modern copy of Trek.
Do you remember when the TNG shore party was stuck in the Hotel California from The Eagles song? It was called "The Royale Casino" or something ... Well, 2/3 of this Orville episode is basically like that: strange indeed but entertaining and memorable. They are trapped in a mystery 21st century scenario (and a few other scenarios) and they need to find a way out. PS: they missed the opportunity to illustrate the strong gravity on Talla's home world. I still find this most intriguing.
The solution to the mystery is explained by an immortal TRON girl. It's somehow like the writers wanted a satisfying, self-explanatory end. But they weren't able to show us the meaning of this episode. And they didn't figure out a way in which the the crew finds a satisfactory conclusion and interpretation all by themselves. They needed Tron girl to literally tell us. It's also like the writers wanted to tell a very deep philosophical story about mortality. And since they were not able to concoct convincing images to illustrate their ideas, they needed Tron girl and (post mission) the crew in the mess hall discussing the meaning of what just happened. This is not good story telling. But as I said before: it's still memorable and fun to watch.
At first I thought this would be The Orville's take on "Hotel Royale" from TNG. Maybe that was an intentional deception. After the plane crash I had it figured out they were experiencing their own death in some kind of "this is how I fear I die" szenario. But I thought it was the Kaylons who wanted to know about dying since they were mentioned at the beginning. Another cool deception. Never in a million years would I've figured out what's really going on and the confusion when the real Tala appeared was genuine on my side. Well done.
It's great that they are picking up stories from previous seasons as it helps build the universe. It was also intresting to see each version of death szenario. That gives each character more background. I wonder though why Tala's and Kelly's were connected. Kelly afraid of drowing and Tala fears loosing a crewmember and/or friend ?
But Charlie is a b**** in real life AND in simulated realities.
[6.9/10] The punchline here is good. I like the idea of an advanced, immortal species, using our heroes as a means to experience what a taste of mortality would be like. The notion that without time as currency, existence becomes idle play, and the idea of death becomes exotic rather than chilling, is an interesting answer to the “Why?” of this episode.
At the same time, I appreciate the continuity nod of the godlike being responsible for the chicanery being from the species who advanced hundreds of years every week or so in a season 1 episode. It’s the kind of thing I thought the show would gesture toward but then totally forget. So their being the culprit makes for not only a good explanation for the “How?” of this episode, but gives us an organic follow-up to a prior story, which is a big plus.
There’s just one big problem -- a solid 80% of the episode until that point simply isn’t that interesting. The scenarios the godlike beings throw Mercer, Grayson, Malloy, Bortus, and (ostensibly) Keyali into are pretty dull, generic affairs. The gang being trapped in a high school isn’t especially weird or scary, and an attack from a giant troll is more odd than frightening. A plane with no pilot is a stock scenario. The Moclan death chamber looks more goofy than unnerving, and the corpse coming back to life is a standard horror trope. And a raft being attacked by a large sea creature isn’t much to write home about either.
The show wants to go for something of a Twilight Zone vibe with these sequences, where some of the sheer eeriness is supposed to carry the day, but it just doesn't . The direction isn’t interesting enough, and the scenarios aren’t exotic enough to really up the tension or deliver the ominous atmosphere the show’s aiming for. Maybe I’ve just watched too many of these episodes of Star Trek to be impressed by this sort of thing anymore, but I kept waiting for some escalation, some wrinkle, that would make these challenges more exciting or disturbing than the fairly generic spooks we got.
What’s more, the broad outlines of the reveal here were fairly obvious, even if the specifics weren’t. By the time we had both Gordon and Mercer experiencing the weird eye-flash thing at the moment of near-death, it seemed obvious that some alien race was trying to comprehend what that experience was like, something gestured to by the title of the episode.
I will say, I appreciated the fake out that our heroes had seemingly made it off the planet shortly before being attacked by the Kaylon. It’s a neat, plausible explanation for why this was happening -- the robotic Kaylon trying to figure out how to commit psychological warfare against their adversaries. You would totally buy it as an answer for the mystery of who was doing this and why, and setting up with Kiyali’s comments about detecting Kaylon radiation earlier is some clever story construction.
The only problem is that I was able to sniff out that the whole thing was a feint, both because it’d be in keeping with past Trek and Trek-adjacent twists-within-twists (thing TNG’s “Future Imperfect”), and because there seemed to be too much time left in the episode for that to be the real answer. But those aren’t the writers’ fault, so I’m loath to slate them for it.
Plus hey, they did surprise me with the reveal that Kiyali was a plant the whole time! It’s setup nicely with the fake Kiyali returning from vacation early, and the fact that she declares she had the same out of body experience the others did, but unlike the others, we never actually see it in her eyes. It adds up in hindsight, and I appreciate when shows like this play fair with a twist like this one.
That’s the thing. On paper this story works. There’s action, adventure, mystery, an earned twist, and a thought-provoking resolution that connects naturally to past escapades. The big problem is that for most of the episode, the whole action/adventure/mystery part just isn’t very good. The show continues to look kind of cheap in its production design and effects, which breaks immersion and dampens the ability of the episode to chill the spine. And the scenarios the demigods (read: writers) cook up to test the good guys just aren’t that interesting. The big picture ideas behind this one is cool, and the structure is sound, but on a scene-to-scene basis, there’s just not enough there to make it worth your while until the end.
Spoilers...sort of
Arguably the climax came short of them having drinks (cheers, btw, mine's a sip of Uncle Jesse's Simple Sour Mash), however I didn't get my "reward access" until Ed said, "i wanna see what happens." I can relate to that and it made me happy, but, as Yang elsewhere intimated ("After Yang"), I'm okay if there's nothing afterwards (and I don't believe there is).
Should'a asked Tron Barbie what intimacy's like for them, and if they wanted to take some further readings I raise my hand, hehe. Is that offensive? (I only ask like Dave Chappelle asked).
is it still a comedy? Steve Smith getting dunked in the bathroom by bullies? The main bully being someone you can't even beat in a fight? Kliden's "unfinished business" throttling Bortus? Pretty hilarious.
This is WHY i do watch The show. Please more amusement and less empty conflicts.
You are The Best sci-fy show on Air.
I liked it much more when it was a comedy. Now it is a copy of star trek.
This is exactly what I want an episode of a show like The Orville to be: a goofy roller-coaster that's easy to watch with a nice message at the end. Everything looks so expensive & cheap at the same time. Loved it. Ensign Burke has gotta go tho lol. I'm absolutely not blaming the actor for that--she is nailing playing the unlikable character they're writing for her. I just don't like characters like that who don't get challenged for their shit opinions enough. Also, I've been patiently waiting to see if MacFarlane would ever invite Elizabeth Gillies to appear on his space show, & I'm glad to see that he finally did just for me Maybe she could replace Ensign Burke in a future episode? :smirk: I can only dream lol.
In conclusion: Adrianne Palicki, please punch me in the face next, as a treat.
STFU Charly. You are completely incompetent and unfit to serve in any service. You should be dishonorably discharged. What a fucking bitch.
This show needs to unfuck that character or I am done with the series. I don't care if it was a simulation.
This one is the most fun of the season so far.
It’s the best of this season yet. Conclusion was interesting and a nice take on mortality. But the delivery was too slow. It spent too much time on the first happening, and after that it felt like they realised they were out of time and rushed the remaining. It’s a shame, I think it would have been better in either a shorter form, or a dedicated special with 20 min more runtime that take its time to flesh out all the experiences the way they wanted. It’s a bit in the middle and a miss for me.
The Orville is finally established enough to start referencing lore created by previous episodes. This episode is an unexpected followup to another very good story from the first season. And in typical Orville fashion, it takes a very old and weathered collection of story tropes and gives them a fresh spin with a unique resolution. A reveal that threw me completely off the scent right up until they out and said what was actually happening and why. I got conned just as hard as everyone else, and it was very satisfying. I'm very interested to see the impact the Valdonis have on the Orville Universe. They seem like a much less antagonistic Q-like race that still might cause trouble with their indifference to less-evolved species.
Bortus' blank stare at the kid talking about TikTok and Instagram was the funniest part of this episode. Kelly clocking a flight attendant being a close second.
I loved the irony of Ed being told he was being deceived... by a fake version of Issac as part of an even larger deception.
The shot of the Kaylon drone staring into the bridge was amazing. I briefly thought it was intentional, very Cylon-like behavior.
The only thing I didn't like about this episode is that it didn't push the overarching story forward, even Shadow Realms involved the growing alliance with the Krill. There are only 10 precious episodes in this season. I'm perfectly fine with episodic content as long as the world of The Orville grows as much as possible... just in case.
This was easily the best episode of the season so far, significantly better than the first two. My only real issue is that the episodes are just a bit too long, with too many long shots where nothing really happens. I don't need to see characters walking down hallways or long shots of spaceships. They just end up feeling like filler for the sake of padding the run time.
This was a slight episode - The most so since the first season. It was easy. Nothing offensive. While the concept and conceit is absolutely not original to the next reference, it came across as a cheap knockoff of Star Trek: The Next Generation's "Q". I hope this isn't an introduction to a later season arc or recurring scenario. Well, unless it's done well. This wasn't the best of both worlds.
Was pretty cool but the ending is pretty stupid.
Once they arrive in the high school, I thought this would be a fun throwback to the type of ST episodes where they'd save on the budget by just building an interesting story around standing sets from another series. But then the monsters started to appear, then they pulled out all the stops with a stunning sequence of a plane crashing during a snowstorm. The constant shifts in setting and tone are skillfully done, constantly kept me on my toes and gripped to see how this was going to pay off, especially nearing the end as a few surprise curtains are pulled back. The only issue is the ultimate payoff, while an interesting concept and an unexpected throwback to an earlier episode, just feels a bit pat and underwhelming. Still a solid episode though.
This episode is completely Star Trek. Seth is taking it right from TOS and TNG, and it's so fun to watch.
And when Ed says (Really, you'd wanna live forever?) "Yeah" (Why?) "Because I wanna see what happens", that's exactly why I'd wanna do the same thing, because there is so much I want to see.
I think one lesson of the episode from miss immortal Tron girl highlights the value of having continuous goals and reaching further to learn, discover, and create new things. Without them, you simply do things for the sake of doing them, but with the right forward-looking goals giving you direction, your intense passion ignites.
"I'm gonna have to ask you folks to please take your seats. We'll be landing soon."
Not thirty seconds later:
"Ladies and gentlemen, the captain has turned off the fasten seatbelt sign, and you are now free to move about the cabin."
That's not how this sequence of events goes.
ok episode, if not redundant in some areas. There was more opportunity to learn the fears of the different characters and it is disappointing that we didn't. I think this may have been better with less people. the central premise is thought provoking but others have done it so much better. philosophically it is as deep as an egg cup but not offset by comedy.
Deconstructing what it is to be human is the only way "to evolve" and get peace. come on man.
the twist was nice to experience if it didn't feel like a way to fill the last few mins. overall much better than the first two episodes for me but still sitting around meh
Fairly enjoyable episode, but I wish there was a bit more to the conclusion than "we're bored immortals and now I'm gonna tell you all about it". Though, to be fair, I did not see coming that it would be the civilization from the end of Season I.
"Don't be afraid Captain. I'm not going to hurt you."
I'm not afraid and I am going to hurt you...
Woa, that was scary! When they "found the source" I was terrified that it would actualy be solved just like that - given the past two episodes, it would have established a trend. Luckily I paused it and saw that there were over 15 minutes left... It sorta wraps in a productive way to set up even more future stories but so far the season doesn't really feel like it's taken off. Hopefully we're not all still standing on Narran 1.
absolutely lit af bro hands down best psychedelic trip stimulator
Shout by tropoliteVIP 5BlockedParent2022-06-16T10:44:44Z
Okay, this was a strange episode, there's no getting around that. It was okay, still strange, but still easily watchable.
But then I think I could watch Adrianne Palicki for hours without getting bored.