Discovery and "The Orville" Comparisons

[Quinton O'Connor]

Star Trek: Discovery is good. The Orville is good. The Expanse is good.

We literally have three good space shows on TV right now. Like my man John Crichton always said, "wait for the wheel." It was coming eventually.

 

[BillJ]

I already love The Orville. I'm hoping Discovery improves to where I love it, too. For now, though, I'd watch a new Orville episode over a new DSC episode.

I'm happy to be able to watch both. But if I had to choose one right now? I would keep watching The Orville.

 

[Mudd]

Yep.

 

[Ronald Held]

It may be named Star Trek, but it is a modern show with maybe veneers of Trek. Similiar to the JJ movies.

 

[KirkusOveractus]

It may be named Star Trek, but it is a modern show with maybe veneers of Trek. Similiar to the JJ movies.

I feel more of Trek coming through in the last 3 movies than I did watching DSC. They certainly rang more true to the spirit of TOS than DSC did.

 

[BillJ]

I feel more of Trek coming through in the last 3 movies than I did watching DSC. They certainly rang more true to the spirit of TOS than DSC did.

I couldn't agree more. Discovery simply felt nothing like TOS. And I'm not meaning to bash the creators, I understand it is a tough line to walk, especially among a fractured fan base. But, the first two Discovery episodes commit the most damning error that entertainment can make: it was dull.

 

[Kevman7987]

I feel like there was a transporter accident and Orville & Discovery both formed on the pad. One is a comedy version of Star Trek, the other an angsty, grimdark, too serious Star Trek. That's right, in this case I feel Star Trek is the goateed one of the two. If only there were a way to Tuvix the two together again... *rubs chin thoughtfully*

 

[Mudd]

I feel more of Trek coming through in the last 3 movies than I did watching DSC. They certainly rang more true to the spirit of TOS than DSC did.

Absolutely.

 

[Bgt]

Star Trek: Discovery is good. The Orville is good. The Expanse is good.

We literally have three good space shows on TV right now. Like my man John Crichton always said, "wait for the wheel." It was coming eventually.

There is also "Killjoys" guys, which is quite a fun ride.

Do any of you ppl watch "Hawaii 5-0"?
I used to, mainly for the landscape but last season I gave up, the writing was way too ridiculous, there are limits even with "guilty pleasures".
With STD, it felt like watching "Hawaii 5-0 in space".
That terrible Court-Martial scene at end, shows perfectly "Discovery's" target audience: the one that needs dark shadows hiding people so they can understand there is a lot of drama going on.

I really dislike the Seth guy, but his "Orville" is Star Trek, "Discovery" is not.
At least not yet.
Crosses fingers.

 

[BillJ]

I really dislike the Seth guy, but his "Orville" is Star Trek, "Discovery" is not.

Discovery is Trek. It is just 90's Trek with an incredibly high budget.

 

[Ronald Held]

I couldn't agree more. Discovery simply felt nothing like TOS. And I'm not meaning to bash the creators, I understand it is a tough line to walk, especially among a fractured fan base. But, the first two Discovery episodes commit the most damning error that entertainment can make: it was dull.

I will not claim DSC feels anything like TOS, never sell now. Also Orville has more of a TNG sense to it.

 

[seigezunt]

I wish I could get past my feelings about the phenomenon of people who never gave Discovery a chance going on about how this dated-looking satire or whatever is "real Star Trek," much in the way they have about a certain fan film that shall remain nameless, but I can't.

I can't separate it, and I'm not watching The Orville.

 

[BillJ]

wish I could get past my feelings about the phenomenon of people who never gave Discovery a chance...

How much of a chance do we need to give it? I'm not waiting around for three seasons for it to get its act together.

 

[seigezunt]

How much of a chance do we need to give it? I'm not waiting around for three seasons for it to get its act together.

I'm talking more about the fans who clearly had their minds made up well in advance, or whom, in my opinion, have written off Discovery for trivial reasons. Or the Garth cult.

The people who have stopped reading Moby-Dick before Ahab shows up.

 

[BillJ]

I'm talking more about the fans who clearly had their minds made up well in advance...

I thought it was going to be solidly 'meh' based on the trailers and interviews. It was solidly 'meh' in my opinion. Maybe confirmation bias at work? Though I am hoping next week they give me something, anything interesting that I can lock on to.

 

[KirkusOveractus]

I wish I could get past my feelings about the phenomenon of people who never gave Discovery a chance going on about how this dated-looking satire or whatever is "real Star Trek," much in the way they have about a certain fan film that shall remain nameless, but I can't.

I can't separate it, and I'm not watching The Orville.

I'm actually in the camp of people who got excited as I heard information about DSC, saw set, uniform and prop photos, got bits about when it was taking place in the timeline, etc. Been a fan of Star Trek since watching reruns of TOS and first run of TAS. Watched every movie multiple times, watched every spin-off series made.

When watching DSC on Sunday night, I saw the first episode on CBS, then fired up CBS All Access to watch the second part. It felt flat and unexciting to me. Watched both parts back to back again on Monday. Like it, still feels flat and unexciting.

The unnamed fan film is something I disregard totally, because I don't consider fan films to be anything more than that. Only a few have decent acting, most I just can't stand.

Watched the "dated-looking satire" called The Orville on the premiere, and since have watched each episode several times, finding fun and more things to love about it with every viewing. It has fun, adventure, and tells a story quite well. Moreover, it doesn't take itself too seriously and still gets a point across.

I've watched Orville episodes more times than both parts of DSC, and I don't even feel like I need to watch the DSC episodes anymore.

Not saying what to watch or not, but right now DSC is not winning my heart or imagination.

 

[seigezunt]

To each his own. I found DSC jaw-droppingly fun.

Maybe if the Orville ever makes it to some streaming platform I may give it another shot. But what I saw was kind of what I was afraid a new official Trek show might have been, namely stuck in the 90s in terms of its look and storytelling in an effort to attract fans. And I found the lead so bland and unappealing. It felt safe in the ways that VOY was at its worst, The Office in space.

I watched DSC with someone just getting interested in Trek, and the WTF moments got us hooked. I do not feel hooked by the Orville, and the fan chatter about "this is what Star Trek should be" just pushes me enough away to not be interested right now, and using that time to rewatch DSC or listen to commentaries about it. *shrug*

 

[Mirror Mirror]

Same man. I wanted to like the Orville, but I can not. Bad pacing, unfunny jokes, cheap looking sets, bad CGI and the mishandling of ep threr just finished it for me.

I am glad folks enjoy it, but I just can't.

DSC on the other hand is the trek I have wanted for decades. So to each his own.

 

[Gonzo]

I have seen the first two Discovery episodes and have just finished watching the first episode of The Orville.

I have to say I quite liked the Orville in spite of the reviews from some quarters and will happily be watching the next episodes, admittedly a few of the lines were borderline cheese in nature but the show doesn't take itself seriously anyway so it didn't hurt my immersion.

I especially liked the honest interactions between the crew and the situation between the Captain and Commander, it works because its real life with all its bad timing, awkward silences and embarrassment, all we need now is to see either the Captain or Commander actually go to the toilet, yes that's right we need to see the Oval Office on the ship, they could even add a gag about it and make it funny with the toilets malfunctioning or something.

There weren't any laugh out loud moments but the general light tone of the show meant it didn't really matter overly much, plus new shows can take a while to get the balance right.

The absolute best thing about the Orville is that there was no monotonous Klingon speeches and unlike Discovery I was able to stay awake for the whole episode and I didn't even fast forward at any point either, I did rather a lot of that in the first two episodes of Discovery, it was hard work in places and having to read the subs at the bottom of the screen really broke immersion for me every time.

Having lots of detail is fine for a somewhat serious show like Discovery but its generally best to build up to it rather than risk putting new or returning viewers off especially when the stakes are so high, I think The Orville got the balance right but Discovery did not.

 

[Vger23]

I thought episode 3 of "The Orville" was actually quite good in general, (almost excellent) not just as a "Star Trek parody / rip off," but excellent on its own.

That said..."The Orville" feels like TNG with the C-Team as the crew instead of the "finest crew in Starfleet." It feels like I've time warped right back to 1987 every time I watch it. Aesthetically, story structure-wise, music, character design...it's a late 80's to mid 90's Star Trek show. Beat-for-beat. That's part of its charm. It's also part of its weakness.

Discovery feels like I've finally stepped into the 21st century with Star Trek. About damn time.