Finally saw it. It was cute sitcom-style fluff.
Bortis' plot is definitely underwhelming as a take-off of "Amok Time". A few good chuckles but was surprisingly a weak storyline.
Claire's storyline was the far more engaging and rewarding. And interesting. And kept the story going. When's the last time we had kids on a ship? Or one kid being a bad influence? The kid (James) swearing and disrespecting adults will probably end up growing up to be like my ex. Just wait until the booze and drugs are discovered by James if he returns to the show, it's easy picking for a plot.
It wasn't the strongest season opener ever, but this episode did show an avenue of "families on the ship!" that TNG could have done several times, yet didn't do even once because season 1 TNG was throwing what it could find around and then not often developing or making use of it, though 26 episodes of watching kids misbehave would get pretty boring too.
Orville didn't set up "families on ship" the way TNG hammered us over the heads with and yet Orville already took an avenue that TNG hadn't thought of, now there's a way to innovate...
Am still glad the show hasn't resorted to using transporters, there's no real need for them and too quickly they can rob a scene of suspense. Plenty of episodes have shown the dramatic strength and tension involved where there's no magic beam, succeeding in sidestepping the obvious of "Yes, the cavalry will come" for the most part. Write the plot strong enough and the tension will be there. I accept it as a plot device for Trek, but Orville is still refreshing in the regard they're actively scripting ways to avoid the gimmick while not looking cliche.
The cloak is semi-magical, less implausible, and used sparingly enough and not as a cheat.
The S2 season premiere of The Orville has got me thinking about the biggest difference between it and STD: The Orville is a character driven show, while Star Trek: Discovery is a plot driven show, at least it was in the first season. I guess this is a big reason why I like The Orville better.
Which is strange, I prefer plot-driven stories and having different characters interact to it. Which is what Orville does, without hubris, haughtiness, sophistry, or being hit on the head with it in proverbial one-sided sledgehammer style (which TNG definitely did in its fifth season...)
Having interesting characters and situations absolutely helps. More so if the characters and plots feel genuine. One needn't be a good guy to be intrigued, or else Doctor Who's Master from 1971 would never have gotten popular either but that's not the issue... and it's hilarious, youtube channels (not naming names) whining about STD, citing there's nobody that's good and they have to be for people to care... the ones that love to say "go (verb) a (noun)" (sorry. no hints, if you watch their vids you'll figure it out soon enough anyway) or inanely swear half the time are even more interesting as they're falling in love with the wrong shows. They must be fans of their favorite role model, Tilly, for all that inane pottymouth.
