The bashing doesn't bother me to much when we're discussing Disco, but it does get really annoying when people randomly bring it into conversations that have nothing to do with it.
Opinions on The Orville
- Thread starter Horta
- Start date
Which means that neither will be truly examined for what they are.
And, I liked both of those. Same as how I like both Discovery and Orville.
Yes, they're this generation's DS9 and B5 in the sense that it's kind of hard to escape comparisons, especially seeing as so many former Trek alumni are involved in their production.
There's one thing about "The Orville" that I can't quite put my finger on. It sort of feels like a parody of star trek at first but unlike a real parody, it doesn't get old (parodies are funny for a while but once they've derided all the clichés of the series parodied it's pretty much over). There's much more than that in the Orville, it's a series in its own right.
Yeah, parody is technically not inaccurate here but it misses the point a bit. Usually a parody in popular culture is aimed at commenting either on the thing being parodied or using it to comment on something else. The Orville is an imitation of Trek in broad respects, but in pursuit of pretty much the same aims as its inspiration. They make a little fun of some of Trek's tropes, but there's not a lot of fourth-wall commentary there.
Stargate. Sure it started to stink at the end. Then again, most franchises do, it's why they end. On balance it was pretty good. A better successor to Star Trek than The Orville is ever likely to be.
I found the Stargate TV series tediously dull (I did like the original theatrical film). So, in that regard, I can see it as the spiritual successor to the Berman-era TV series.
SG-U is a disaster but it's also literally the opposite of DSC. It's way too introspective. It sounded intellectual while being a bit stupid, most of the time. The special effects were on the cheap. The stories were lagging and really boring at times.
Just as I said, the opposite of DSC.
Just as I said, the opposite of DSC.
Except for the difference in money spent on effects, it sounds exactly like Discovery.
Except for the difference in money spent on effects, it sounds exactly like Discovery.
Well, to each his own.
While I see plenty of superficial similarities between DSC and SGU, the former has revived it's franchise and the latter killed theirs.
SGU did improve quite a bit in season 2 and produced some really nice episodes at the end. The soundtrack was far superior to DSC's.
SGU did improve quite a bit in season 2 and produced some really nice episodes at the end. The soundtrack was far superior to DSC's.
Very much like STD in many of those respects.
Mostly, though, I'm thinking about the evident intent of the people in charge to do some kind of ambitious TV and sophisticated storytelling, having no ability and no clue how to do that, consequently fucking up what had previously been at least an entertaining franchise - exactly like STD.
That's probably because what began as something that was somewhat crude, has grown to be something beyond that. You can tell that the writers are really enjoying playing in their new playground, and it's reflected in the characters who have gained quite a bit of growth. The fun in the series IMHO is knowing the TNG tropes and seeing the writers push different buttons to achieve different results. So, then it breaks out and becomes its own thing. Bit by bit, we gain insight into how their world works, and it's fascinating.
The strange thing with SGU was that many in the main cast were bland an uninteresting, though the supporting cast had a mixture of good characters or at least good actors who were able to shine despite the poor writing. By the second half of season 2, the writers seemed to be catching onto which characters worked, and indeed, they began getting more of a spotlight.
Joel Goldsmith was underrated, IMO.
Andromeda was great in its first season. I remember telling my friends that despite the production quality it was a show that was building a serious mythology. I had a bit of a marathon that summer with some friends and then six months later the show went to s**t.
I prefer to think of Orville more as a love letter to Trek. It makes fun of the same tropes we all do, but it pays homage to the spirit of the series it is based on.
I liked SG-U myself but it reminds me of STD as well for trying to do something different that didn't fit in with the franchise it was a part of. Throw in a wise-ass colonel and innocuous crew and it probably could've ran for 5+ seasons.
