Well, this episode was just lovely. It was basically
Orville's variation on TNG's "In Theory," which was one of their best episodes.
Orville has its own twisted way of doing things, however, so this was much more than an imitation and went in some very different directions-- including the surprising ending where Claire and Isaac decide to continue their relationship past one episode.
There were lots of great conversations about Claire's motivations for wanting to get involved with Isaac, covering her awareness that he is not going to develop emotions and that she is projecting her feelings upon him. She is fine with him having a completely different motivation for being in the relationship, because even partners in a human relationship have completely different motivations. But possibly the most telling statement, and the one that may foreshadow the ultimate end of the relationship, came when Isaac woke up Claire in the middle of the night and she said she was "probably just lonely." Isaac's side of the equation was seemingly not completely without sentiment, however-- he had no other reason to bring her the banana than concern over her well being, he had already extensively modified his own programming in response to their interactions, and he was able to gain enough insight to give her a rainstorm (which was such a beautiful scene).
But, of course, the most amazing moment was when he used the simulator to turn himself into a human being-- who coincidentally looks just like the actor who plays him on TV. This is why Isaac was wise to listen only to John's advice and not Gordon's-- or maybe Bortus's mustache had something to do with that. In any case, that was a stunning sequence, from Isaac's transformation to Claire's summoning her own bedroom to the simulator room. Very touching and romantic. And presumably we'll get to see the inner actor on a regular basis going forward. It all does raise some interesting questions about their holographic technology, though, if it is able to change a being's appearance to the extent of giving a faceless robot squishy human lips and presumably other, hopefully not so squishy, human parts.
The funniest moment had to be Yaphet stealing Isaac's idea and giving himself a human body, also with the coincidental appearance of the actor who plays him-- which, in this case, may not have been the wisest idea.
It will be interesting to see how this develops over the course of the rest of the season and if it will all come to some kind of resolution, or if it is simply the new normal-- a perpetual relationship that we will periodically revisit like Bortus and Klyden. Since we know that Isaac can modify his own programming, I wonder if he can literally give himself emotions-- the equivalent of Data's chip-- and how that would manifest itself, and how it would affect a relationship when one party can modify their feelings through trial and error, but the other can't.
And, of course, the episode was chock full of other notable elements, as usual. Bortus's mustache, John and Gordon racing to the bridge like schoolkids to squeal, the bowling alley, Dann's ignored offer to loan Isaac a shirt, and the kid's recital. The part I really loved was the guest symphony orchestra, which was reminiscent of the traveling Shakespeare troupe in TOS and the frequent classical music concerts in TNG.
On a side note, I noticed how they cleverly sidestepped the question of where Isaac stands on the question of his homeworld joining the Planetary Union. I have this strange feeling that his planet is not contemplating joining the Union but rather whether or not to let it continue to exist-- and that their ultimate judgment will not be favorable.
