With this episode, The Orville finally becomes a great show. There's so much about this episode that's well done. The focus on Claire and her two sons, as well as Isaac, brought much needed focus to the show, and while it's the atypical stranded on a planet/moon with unsavory locals scenario, the episode told the story in a satisfying manner that brought growth to all four characters.
The greatest highlight of the episode was Claire. I loved that she actively chose to be a single mother and the show presented that choice in a positive light. Not many shows show single parents in a casual manner like most do with "nuclear families," and its even rarer to see a woman who deliberately chose that life, let alone present that life without negative commentary.
On a smaller level, I liked how Claire didn't hesitate to give her oldest son a weapon in a moment of crisis when he stood up to say he would help Isaac. She quickly pointed out the necessity of the stun setting, but there was no whinging about arming a child in that moment, and then Claire quickly disarms him after the battle commences. And I say that as someone who is not a fan of guns in general.
I also liked how there's essentially no B-story, trusting Penny Johnson Jerald and company to carry their story on their own. The Orville tracks the shuttle crash, but it's only a small part of the episode so they can reasonably arrive in time to do the final clean-up of the attack.
I hope the show continues to do episodes like this one because this was a great balance of drama and comedy while telling a good story. And here's the kicker, which I know without reading this thread that some people hate, Brannon Braga co-wrote and directed episode...and did a great job all around.
