Spoilers THE ORVILLE S1, E12: "MAD IDOLATRY" - SEASON FINALE

So, in other words, it serves no narrative purpose. They seemed like it would be more of an issue earlier on. It also could have nicely parralled Mercer ignoring Kelly on favor of his job. Instead, it's something that just forgotten, now.

 

Well, it was "Blink of an Eye" meets "Meridian" (which, to be fair, was basically "Brigadoon in Space"), with a dash of "Who Watches the Watchers" and "A Piece of the Action."

Still fun overall. But I do wonder how a chance encounter with a very small group of people starts a religion from scratch with no cultural context. Did it coincidentally fit into some prophecy from their existing religion? Otherwise it seems like a stretch.

 

The "it could have been anyone" ending was a cop-out though. I thought it was brave to take that step beyong what TNG would never do - have a main cast member responsible for the deaths of millions because of their mistake. More time could have been spent with Kelly angsting over that - one scene of her crying in her room wasn't enough. Something that huge deserved more discussion. That kind of what-if is exactly what science fiction is for.

 

No, it's really not.

If anything, an sf story might prompt one to look at a thing in a slightly different light than one's used to.

Trek would have treated her moment of empathy as a colossal ethical issue.

This show more often suggests "get over yourself."

I've seen the former more than enough times and welcome more of the latter.

 

Who Watches the Watchers is one of my favorite TNG episodes, but I have to admit, I think this was actually a more interesting take on the whole crew member is worshipped as a god idea. Being able to see how the religion that grew up around Kelly changed and effected the planet over time was really interesting.
I think it should be a rule from now on to never play Malon games.

 

Who says it’s off the table? Real marriages have ups and downs. For all we know they’re trying to reconcile. Episodic format doesn’t mean narrative threads don’t wind their way along with the series progression.

 

Agreed, though I was initially leaning more toward the Kryptonians from Superman: The Movie, especially after being slapped in the face (delightedly, mind you ) with what sounded amazingly like a sample from one of John Williams's compositions for that film: Specifically, the haunting bit usually reserved for the green crystal Jor-El sent to Earth with baby Supes, which eventually built the Fortress of Solitude all by itself. It can be heard a few times shortly after Kelly first takes notice of the primitive village from that hilltop. I've only watched the episode one time, so without analyzing it further I'm not sure if the music was a near 4-note quote of Williams's 5-note motif for the crystal, or just highly reminiscent, but Krypton was on the brain the instant I heard it. Thus, the evolved aliens' appearance didn't surprise me a smidgen.

Of course, I've long connected the two separate alien cultures of "Krypton" and "Ship of Lights" in my mind, since I've never doubted the obvious influence Donner's film must have had on BSG's interpretation of the Light Beings' and their superior technology, as presented. Also, as distinct as they are, the religious parallels of those two story-lines are both unmistakeable and intentional.

Likewise, the eventual attitude of the "7/11" planet's advanced inhabitants seemed just as enlightened as the perspectives of both Adama and Jor-El, in regards to the dangers of misinterpreting things and events when one is simply ignorant of the actual circumstances at hand (much less "the bigger picture").

Given the way these guys really know how to tug our multiple fan-strings... Coincidence?

 

Wait--that was the last episode of the season????

 

Yep.

I'm sure they're writing and will be back before the cameras real soon. Post on this show is apparently pretty intense and needs a lot of time - you know, this operation was second nature to the Trek folks after five or six years (although always energy and time intensive) but starting a production like this up from scratch must have been quite a climb.

 

The scene of them playing that Molcan game of tossing the ball was hilarious.

 

At first I thought that a simple game of "Hot Potato" or simple "catch" was funny enough for them to consider it a game "too intense for humans" but the knife jutting out of the "ball" was the capper.

 

Episodic format usually means they'll get to it when they do and ignore it when they don't. Would it have been so hard to put in a line to reference a thread that's been there all season? It just comes off as lazy and makes me wonder why we spent so much time this season on the martial struggles they were going through not to at least mention it in the season finale.

 

I'd rather them not mention it if its not needed. I tire of shows forcing things into a story that doesn't fit.

 

Keep in mind, this wasn't supposed to be the season finale.

 

Yes, it really is.

 

Nah...but hey, you've always got the Other Show...

 

And, I also say again their marital struggles seem to me to just be the usual ones couples may go through when dealing with a first child. Much of what's been shown is similar to things I've seen friends deal with. It may simply be no deeper than that, their living conditions have changed and they're trying to cope.

 

"What's insane is, apparently I won"

Another great episode for me. I could actually see the whole Kelly thing happening if that group of people were from the largest village of the time. Largest village=most powerful group who could push their views on anyone else they came across (the very definition of religion).

 

If you look at them, it's amazing how multi-racial the Bronze Age group of people are considering the time period and practicality of such a thing.

 

I've had four kids and am now divorced. I totally get the real life struggle. But I don't think it was there just to show a real-life situation. It seemed to be going somewhere. Maybe the original finale will touch on it.