The Orville Season 2 Episode 1 "Ja'loja" Review

The crew faces personal challenges on their way to witness Bortus perform a Moclan ceremony on his homeworld.

This was a really fun episode that did a really nice job of reintroducing all of the main cast and establishing where they left off last season and showing some potential growth for them throughout this coming season. Everything around Bortus and the Ja'loja was really fun with how each of the different crew member sort of took the idea of going through this ceremony for Bortus and how they each chose to approach it was really interesting to see. Especially around Alara and Gordon where they needed dates to go to the ceremony otherwise, it would be seen as rude to show up alone to this kind of ceremony so both of them working to figure out who they can potentially take as a date and what all that means for them was really exciting to see. Then everything with Commander Grayson and Ed was really great with them sort of moving on to their own personal relationships away from each other. And Ed is grappling what that means now that Kelly is moving on with someone new and him not necessarily agreeing with that at first but then went to grow and except it to some degree. Then just overall this was a really entertaining and fun episode and I'm so excited to see what the season will bring.

The Orville Season 1 Episode 12 "Mad Idolatry" Review

The crew crash land on a planet from another universe; Ed and Kelly consider getting back together.

This was a really interesting and entertaining season finale episode that had a lot of really great moments do it. And I really enjoyed the concept that they put out in this episode with them dealing with the rise of this religion around Kelly. And just how the team tried to come up with solutions to get the citizens of this planet away from worshiping Kelly was interesting with all their different attempts that they did to try and fix the problem. Then the whole idea around this planet that they discovered was really cool with them finding out that this planet lives in two dimensions and when it skips between those dimensions the planet's timeline moves ahead about 700 years so that being a problem that the team had to work around was really cool because it was a kind of new idea. Then the final solution that the team came up with to actually fix the problem was well done with them knowing the consequences actions but realizing it's their best solution. Then the whole conversation at the end of the episode was well done with citizens from the planet talking to Kelly and bring up that what she did wasn't necessarily a bad thing because the people on the planet were just looking for an idol to worship and if it wasn't her it would have just been something else so her impact wasn't as big of a deal as they thought. Then the whole part of Ed and Kelly getting back together was an interesting storyline that I'm kind of happy how it turned out. Usually, I'm not a huge fan of the whole will they won't they storylines but I really don't like the idea of them being a couple because it complicates the storyline more with them dealing with their relationship as well as being captain and first officer. And just overall this was a really amazing season finale episode and I'm very excited to see where they're going to take the storyline next now that it has been confirmed for a season 2.

The Orville Season 1 Episode 11 "New Dimensions" Review

The Orville gets damaged by a spatial anomaly causing harrowing effects to all living things.

This was a really great and interesting episode that had a lot of really fun moments to it. I really enjoyed the set up that they had around this anomaly that the Orville discovered and how the crew dealt with that was really interesting to see. And then once it was actually discovered what this anomaly is and how they decide to deal with that was also interesting. Especially once it came to the ending of this episode where they had to go inside the anomaly to hide from the Krill. Then everything around lieutenant John was interesting with it being discovered that he’s actually really intelligent and Kelly decided that he should get an opportunity to become the new head of engineering and just how all that worked out was interesting to see. With John not really knowing how to be a leader and him figuring out what best leading example works for him. And then everything with Ed was interesting with it finally being discovered that Kelly helped to get him his position and him dealing with that and figure it out how he could carry on with this position knowing that he doesn’t fully deserve it. And then that moment where he made the decision that he was possibly going to sacrifice himself to just prove to himself that he is worthy of being the captain was interesting to see. And then just overall this was a really entertaining and interesting episode to watch and see how everything played out and I’m really excited to see what’s going to happen in the season finale.

The Orville Season 1 Episode 9 "Cupid's Dagger" Review

While the crew attempts to mediate a peace treaty between two warring cultures, tensions rise between Ed and Kelly when a familiar face comes aboard.

This was a really fun and weird episode that had a lot of really interesting moments to it. I really enjoyed all the moments between Ed and Kelly and them struggling with their newfound relationship when they’re and joined by the person who originally tore them apart. And the whole sort of thing around this old acquaintance of theirs was interesting to see how it all turned out once the truth was revealed about what was going on that was causing several the crew members to act out of place. And I just really enjoy the moment where Ed went to the meeting to try and do the peace talks between the two warring cultures and he just wasn’t there because he was focused on other things than just that was really entertaining to watch. And then I also really enjoy the final moment when Kelly brought up that when she was cheating on Ed with this other guy and she wanted to know if he was in heat then so she would know if she didn’t actually have feelings for him or what was actually going on there and the fact that he didn’t answer that fully was really interesting. And then how they actually solve the problem of the two warring cultures was an interesting way to sort of wrap things up but I wish they would have done it better because once everything wore off they would be at war again probably because nothing on the planet was actually resolved. And I kind of wish that the artifact that was being examined was actually the cause of everyone acting weird and not the guy researching it so then the artifact would have played a more important role in this episode. And then the truth coming out of who this artifact actually belongs to I could easily see coming so it was entertaining to see that finally come true and the fact that the two cultures still had to share the planet by the end of all this. And just overall this was a really entertaining and fun episode to watch.

The Orville Season 1 Episode 7 "Majority Rule" Review

Kelly leads a team to find two missing Union anthropologists on a planet similar to Earth.

This was a really interesting and fun episode that had a lot of really great moments to it. Now to start off as I was watching this episode it reminded me a lot of the Black Mirror episode Nosedive where this whole society that they're trying to fit into bases everything off of a like system and in order to fit into certain places in society you need a certain amount of likes. But with that, I did really like what this episode did wear when you get a certain amount of dislikes big problems start to happen to you where they will take you to a place that will essentially reprogram your brain to become a vegetable. And when you do get this big traffic of dislikes you have to go on essentially a press tour to try and prove yourself as likable that was all really interesting and done really well. And I really enjoyed the whole final scene where they are trying to make lieutenant John likable to the public by posting a bunch of stuff about him that would make him seem popular. Then just overall this was a really great and fun episode to watch and see how everything turned out.

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 5 "Choose Your Pain" Review

While on a mission, Lorca is captured by the Klingons and unexpectedly finds himself in the company of prisoner of war Starfleet Lieutenant Ash Tyler and notorious criminal Harry Mudd.

This was a really interesting and entertaining episode that had both a really good main story and side story. I really liked Michael tried to do all she could to protect Ripper because she is so sure that the space jumping is hurting the creature. And it was interesting how Michael and some of the other scientist tried to come up with other ways to make that same connection between the spores and the machine without using the creature but the best solution they can find it to use a human instead because they are just similar enough to Ripper. Then the moments with Saru acting as captain and he is trying to find a way to be the best captain possible but he is struggling to seem powerful and unafraid and because of that he really isn't listening to what others are saying. Then the moments with captain Lorca were really great with him figuring out how things among the prisoners work and what the Klingons want with him. I really loved the whole escape scene and how captain Lorca got away and back save aboard the Discovery. And I can't wait to see how Ash will fit in among the rest of the crew, and I can't wait to see how they might eventually bring Harry back into the mix since Lorca turned on him. Then just overall this was a really entertaining and great episode and I'm curious to know what they are going to do next.   

The Orville Season 1 Episode 6 "Krill" Review

Ed and Gordon are sent on an undercover mission to infiltrate a Krill ship and obtain a copy of their bible.

This was a really interesting and entertaining episode that was a little different because they had no side story in this episode all the focus was on Ed and Gordon. It did feel a little long and boring at some moments because there were no cutaways to other things going on that much. But watch the two of them being disguised as Kill and trying to fit in on board the ship was really fun. Then I really liked how the one Krill who was like the religious leader on board the ship had suspicions about Ed and Gordon right away so it was interesting to see how this one Krill was always right on Ed and Gordon’s tail waiting for them to do something wrong. Then I really loved when they compared the Krill to vampires because of the fact that the Krill’s home planet is in complete darkness so they don’t do well in light and making that comparison to vampires was really great. And I really liked how while on board the ship Ed and Gordon made friends with one Krill who helped give them information on how to be Krill and how things on board the ship work. Then the ending was great where the one Krill that they saved a bunch of children Krill made the comment the children who they saved will never see them as heroes but instead will forever see them as monsters because of all the people they killed. Then just overall this was really entertaining and fun episode to watch.

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 4 "The Butcher's Knife Cares Not for the Lamb's Cry" Review

With tensions and stakes high as Starfleet continues in their efforts to end the war with Klingons, Burnham begins to settle into her new position aboard the U.S.S. Discovery.

This was a really entertaining and interesting episode that was really interesting to see how everything played out. I enjoyed watching Michael finding her place aboard the Discovery and figuring out her new work position which was to find out more information on the creature that attacked her in the last episode and turn it into a weapon. And I really loved when the truth came out about the creature that she refers to as Ripper and how it is connected to the warp system by it essentially being the navigator. I really hope that in the episodes to come Michael will come up with some kind of device to help the creature to navigate without it causing so much pain, or somehow gain the creature's trust enough that the creature will navigate without needing to be hooked up. Then all the moments with the Klingons were interesting with there continued war between one another about which families should rule in this war environment and which should go away. And I really enjoyed the ending of this episode for the Klingons where one was left behind and he has become determined to get his revenge and prove himself to the rest of the Klingons and win this war for himself. Then the ending where Michael opens the gift from her old captain was really great and I can't wait to see her used the telescope in some way. And just overall this was a really interesting and entertaining episode and I'm really excited to see what will happen next.   

The Orville Season 1 Episode 5 "Pria" Review

Ed becomes smitten with the captain of a stranded ship, but Kelly suspects all is not what it seems.

This was a really entertaining and interesting episode that got a little confusing and hard to follow but still, it was interesting to see how everything turned out. I really liked what they did with the character of Pria she was really interesting to see how her whole story played out and how she was portrayed and what they had her do was just all really interesting. Then the truth about Pria was a weird twist of events and the whole idea of time travel and changing history was a little weird and hard to follow in my opinion. Because they talked about how if Pira wasn't there to help them everyone on the Orville would have died and because on history they can't go around being alive. Which is odd to me because once Pria did save the Orville all of that original timeline kind of got thrown out the window so it shouldn't have mattered as much as they put it out there as mattering. I did like the moments with Kelly in this episode with her realizing that something is not right with Pira so she is kind of trying to figure out if what she is doing is because she wants to protect the ship or out of jealousy for Ed affection towards Pria. And I loved the moment once everything was settled where Ed and Kelly had a conversation and decided that from now on they would trust each other for the safety of the ship and not let there past history get in the way as much. Then the moments between Isaac and Gordon were fun with Gordon trying to teach Isaac about humor and he tries to show Isaac about pranks and when Isaac tries to get back at him things don't go as planned and all that was just really funny. Then how the team actually got the ship back from Pria was really fun with how they communicated with each other without Pria catching on. And just overall this was a really fun and entertaining episode and I'm really excited to see what will happen next.  

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 3 "Context is for Kings" Review

Burnham finds herself aboard the U.S.S. Discovery, where she quickly realizes things are not as they seem, including the mysterious Captain Gabriel Lorca.

This was a really interesting and really great episode that did a good job of bringing everybody aboard the Discovery and really establishing who the main characters are. And I really enjoyed each of the new main people that we meet, where the captain is a big mystery, the head scientist who Michael works under is very angry and aggressive, and Micheal's roommate is very happy and shy, so all them mixed together with Michael was really interesting. And I liked that they had Micheal sort of starting from the bottom of ranks and she doesn't want to be there and she doesn't know why she is there, but she just goes along and uses her intelligence to help fix the problems she comes across. And it was really interesting to see how she figured out some of the secrets that people are hiding from her because no one really trusts her. And it was really cool how they sort of started talking about the creation of warp technology, because I was a little afraid of what they might do because this whole series takes place 10 years before the Enterprise so a lot of the technology that the Enterprise had didn't exist much when the Discovery was around so I was worried what they were going to do and if they were just going to ignore everything and do what they want. But with them talking about the creation of warp technology it shows they are trying to give some effort to stay correct to the timeline of things. Then I loved the scene where Micheal goes on this side mission with some of the other characters and while she is leading the monster away while everyone else escapes Micheal is quoting Alice in Wonderland. And as a big fan of the Alice in Wonderland story that was just so great the lines she was quoting fitting perfectly to the situation she was in, I just loved it so much. And then the ending made it better where Micheal pulls out of her bag an actual book and it is Alice in Wonderland. I have to say that this was a really interesting episode because despite this being the third episode it really felt like a pilot episode where the first two episodes could have easily been told in a back story but instead they decided to show everything. And just overall this was a really great first sort of episode and I'm so excited to see where they will go from here. 

The Orville Season 1 Episode 4 "If the Stars Should Appear" Review

The crew encounters a vessel adrift in space that's about to collide with a star.

This was a really entertaining and interesting episode that took the ideas of a first encounter situation and did it in their own ways. It was really cool because the characters had to go out on board this ship and talk to a bunch of people who don’t realize they're on a ship and that there is a whole universe outside of the little home that they know. It was really interesting how they chose to approach the situation, in my opinion, they could have done it a bit better because all they did was show up and be like “hi, you're on a spaceship.” So it could have gone better to where they learned about the people more and talked to them in ways they understood. Then the scene with Alara and Kelly were interesting because they go a very different kind of welcome compared to the rest of the group, where Alara got shot and Kelly got kidnapped and tortured because the townspeople didn’t understand who they were. Then it was really weird how it was addressed at the very end that oh hey these people on this ship have never seen night or the stars. I feel it would have worked a lot better if they would have addressed that night never came earlier in the episode and then at the end have Mercer be like let's show them a little night or something like that. Then I loved how they randomly had Liam Neeson show up as the captain of the ship and because of time he has changed to become this god-like man among his people. Then the other part that kind of bugged me was the beginning of this episode with Bortus and Klyden where it showed off that they are having some marital issues and then it was never addressed again throughout the whole episode. Yes, I know it will be addressed in later episodes but still, it felt weird to be included in this episode. But overall this was a really great and entertaining episode that had a nice storyline to it. 

Star Trek Discovery Season 1 Episode 2 "Battle at the Binary Stars" Review

Burnham is confined to the Shenzhou brig for mutiny as the Federation battles the Klingons.

This was a really entertaining and great episode that did a good job of picking up where the last one left off and bring that story to a conclusion. Which I'm a little disappointed because I really enjoy what the Star Trek series do where every single episode is its own story but I can kinda understand it for this because it is just the second episode and they're still doing a lot of introducing of everything so I can kinda understand it, but I was a little disappointed. And all the battling between the Federation and the Klingons was so great with how they did all the action and all the planning and who came into play when and how all that played out. But on the Klingon side of things it was a little confusing because at first it made it seem like all the different Klingon families had gotten together and were fighting to reintroduce themselves together but then on the other end so things it really seemed like it was just this one Klingon leader there doing everything himself so that was a little weird and hard to follow. But if it was just the one guy it kind of makes sense because how he seemed to be putting himself out there it seemed like he was trying to prove himself to the rest of the families so that kind of makes sense if that's the way that they were supposed to go but like I said it was kind of hard to follow what they were trying to do. And then all the moments with Michael were really interesting with her being stuck on a part of the ship that was just completely destroyed in the battle and the walls that are holding her and place from not getting sucked into the vacuum of space are starting to fail us the power starting to fail more and more on the ship so she had to come up with the way to try and save herself and how all that works out was really interesting. And then the whole scene where Michael and her old Vulcan teacher are talking to each other was interesting but a little weird because of how it was explained where apparently because they have mine melted with each other in the past they can essentially do it at any time so that was a little weird but I guess it helped to make the scene flow more. Then it was weird how even though Michael did all this Mutiny stuff in the last episode when she showed up and started offering ideas and help they just kind of accepted her back into the group. And as I predicted the captain didn't last very long so that that was a little sad because I really enjoyed her she was a great captain so that's a little disappointing but the rest of my prediction didn't really play out. Because at the end of all this stuff the Mutiny on Michael still held and she was sort of taken out of commission all that stuff. And with that the whole last 3 minutes of this episode was really kind of confusing because it was just showing like all the different stuff that's going to come up for the series and it was weird because it was just sort of thrown in there and it took a bit of time to realize oh hey that's what they're doing so it just felt really kind of weird. But I do have to say overall this was still a really great introduction to the series and I'm really excited to see where they might take everything and how Michael is eventually going to get her position in life for it back.

Star Trek Discovery Season 1 Episode 1 "The Vulcan Hello" Review

While patrolling Federation space, the U.S.S. Shenzhou encounters an object of unknown origin, putting First Officer Michael Burnham to her greatest test yet.

This was a really entertaining and amazing first episode that just dropped you right into the middle of all this Star Trek lore and didn't do a lot of describing and like setting up the main sort of plots to every Star Trek show which I really enjoyed as someone who has watched several different Star Trek things and is a big fan. Yes, I can understand that can difficult for someone first coming into the Star Trek show fresh but I feel like it is pretty easy to pick up on things and understand how everything works they won't find it that much of a problem. And I really enjoyed what they did with the character of Michael where she isn't Vulcan as far as we know but she was raised in the Vulcan education system and has learned act the way they do so she has like the personality somewhat of the Vulcan but then she still has like the emotional side of a human to more of an extent then Spock did. And I really enjoyed the relationship between Michael and the captain and yes and Star Trek shows in the past always there is a great relationship between the first officer and the captain but this seemed to be a whole other level. And it is really interesting how they're doing the show from making the first officer the main character instead of usually where they have it be the captain so that's really interesting and kind of makes me think that the captain might not last long and Michael has to step up and become the captain or something like that it's probably bound to happen.It was really interesting with what they did with the idea of this artifact being out in space that they had to go and investigate and having that lead to the artifact being related to some Klingons was done really well with how all that was revealed. And then I really liked that they had this Klingon ship just hidden away from all the Radars and away from view until it was revealed to be directly in front of the Shenzhou. And just all that sort of hesitation that the team had afterward was really interesting to see how everyone had their own opinions and own ideas of how to deal with running into a bunch of Klingons that hadn't been seen in a hundred or so years. And with that, I really enjoyed seeing how Michael reacted and what her ideas that she brought to the table based on how the Vulcan have approached this in the past were really interesting and really great. Just overall this was a really entertaining and great first episode and I can't wait to see where they might take this story next.

The Orville Season 1 Episode 3 "About a Girl" Review

Bortus and Klyden debate whether their newborn child should have a controversial surgery.

This was a really interesting and great episode that took a kind of hard topic and talked about it in a very nice and interesting way. I really enjoyed how they had everyone giving their own ideas on how Bortus should proceed, but they also really just kept it up to him to make the final decision. And each member sort of brought into play something to prove that the ideas of Brotus's people are somewhat wrong in that they believe that being a woman is like having a life-ending disease and that it's a major crippling part to being a part of their species. And they had each of the team members bring something in the play to prove that wrong and a lot of that didn't work, but I did really enjoy that the one thing that did work was Bortus watching Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. And just the life lesson of that movie being that being different can sometimes be an advantage. So then after that point, Bortus was on their side but Klyden wasn't so that became a big problem. And what that the whole Court scene where the final decision had to be made was interesting to see what each side brought to the table of why or why not the newborn baby should be changed into a boy. And then with that, I really enjoyed the ending where Mercer found a woman living on the planet who had survived there all these years to be an old woman and then the actual discovery of the truth about this woman was so great to sort of end everything on. And I did really enjoy how the ending actually turned out for everything because it was an ending that like set the ball in motion to fix the problem but didn't just completely change everyone's mind there and then. And just overall this was a really entertaining and really fun episode and I can't wait to see where they'll go next.

The Orville Season 1 Episode 2 "Command Performance" Review

Alara must take command of the Orville when Ed and Kelly end up imprisoned in a replica of their old home.

This was a really interesting episode that did a kind of a good job of continuing on some plots that were established in the last episode but it also had it's whole own independent story to it. I really liked the plot of this episode where Alara is left is in command of the ship and through the whole and it is all about her kind of figuring out what that means. And I did kind of like how everyone was there to help her but they also did their best to not do the work for her they still left all the desition making up to her. All the moments with Ed and Kelly were a little weird because of how quickly they seemed to bounce back and forth between being okay with each other and hating each other. I did like the scene where Alara finds a way to bargain with a guy to get Ed and Kelly's freedom and what she ended up bargaining with was really interesting. Thee moments with Bortus where okay because I understand them from the standpoint of giving Alara the room to do her own thing but otherwise the scenes seemed kind of pointless. That is however until the twist ending that I kind of can't wait to see how all that plays out. And just overall this was a really entertaining and interesting episode and I'm very curious to see where they will go next.  

The Orville Season 1 Episode 1 "Old Wounds" Review

In 2417, Ed Mercer is promoted to Captain of the U.S.S. Orville, but his enthusiasm is dampened when his ex-wife is assigned as his First Officer.

This was a really great first episode that did an amazing job at introducing a lot of the main characters we will get to know through the season as well as having a good solid story around this first episode. So this episode wasn't just dedicated to introducing the character but there was the story around them protecting this invention that could become a weapon in enemy hands. I was a little worried that with the writer and actors involved with this series the jokes would kind of fall flat or relied on a lot of bathroom humor. And that was defiantly there but there were also some jokes in there that were really great and kind of made up for the jokes that fell a bit flat. Like the one joke in there that I probably enjoyed the most was where Mercer told one of the scientists to follow Alara and the scientist asked which one was Alara and made the comment about still learning names, and that is the kind of 4th wall breaking humor I love in shows. I really kind of liked how each of the main characters interacted with each other and they all seemed to get along with each other for the most part and they all brought certain skills to the team. The only main conflict was between the captain and the first officer which got fixed pretty easily by the end of the episode. And the idea of the two of them being in a relationship which is something the end of this episode kind of teased I'm kind of okay with because they have already set up a background set of feelings between the two characters and it is not just something that was thrown in there or something that there whole basis's for working together is based on of them being in love with each other and with out that love they have nothing. The two of them seem like a team that can work together with or without feelings being present. One thing that I didn't much care for was the ending of this episode where the truth was reviled about how Mercer got the position of captain. Because now it sets up this whole storyline about the first officer having a secret from the captain and I would have much rather they stick to the storyline that was originally set up where the fleet is kind of giving Mercer a chance to prove himself to all of them. And just overall I have to say this was a really great first episode and I'm curious to see where they will go from here.