Author Topic: The Orville premiere on Fox  (Read 61478 times)

Offline sanman

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #40 on: 09/30/2017 06:07 am »
Apparently, next week's episode has Charlize Theron guest-starring:


Offline MATTBLAK

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #41 on: 09/30/2017 10:52 am »
I just watched the first four episodes of The Orville with my Wife - we are both seasoned and probably cynical SF fans - and we rather enjoyed them. The affectionate parody aspect of Star Trek is definitely a factor, but that is not getting in the way of enjoying the characters and their interplay. The plots so far, while not wholly original, are not treading on the toes of cliches - they are in fact, dancing lightly with those cliches; and wringing some enjoyment out of them one last time.

I'd say Seth McFarlane's gamble is paying off. I hope this fun little show doesn't end up like another famous casualty of Fox executives. Some of you will know what I'm talking about...
« Last Edit: 09/30/2017 10:53 am by MATTBLAK »
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Offline sanman

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #42 on: 09/30/2017 05:47 pm »
Apparently, the voice of Dural in Ep4 was indeed Liam Neeson. Charlize Theron's in the next Episode 5, and Patrick Stewart also being a friend of MacFarlane's is also going to make an appearance. Jon Favreau directed Ep1,  and Ep 5 is directed by Jonathan Frakes. Talk about a royal sendoff.

https://redshirtsalwaysdie.com/2017/05/16/orville-packed-star-trek-alums/


« Last Edit: 09/30/2017 06:22 pm by sanman »

Offline Blackstar

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #43 on: 09/30/2017 11:35 pm »
https://trekmovie.com/2017/08/31/6-takeaways-from-a-set-visit-to-the-orville/

6 Takeaways From A Set Visit To ‘The Orville’
| August 31, 2017 | By: Anthony Pascale 235 comments so far

TrekMovie was invited to the Fox lot to visit the sets of The Orville, Seth MacFarlane’s new sci-fi dramedy due to premiere on September 10th. The event was done last week, a day after they wrapped the 13-episode first season. The sets were kept up an extra day for the assembled online media to tour and talk with some of the people who make the show happen. TrekMovie has been covering this show because it is a clear homage to Star Trek and because a number of Star Trek vets are working on the show, and like many Trek fans, we find it interesting. I came away from the event with a few takeaways that stood out.   
Fox is sparing no expense

Of course the first thing as a Trekkie you sense when walking onto the sets of Fox’s The Orville is how familiar it feels. There is no doubt that you could be on board a Starfleet ship from the 24th century. But once you get past that, the main thing that strikes you is the scale of the main U.S.S. Orville sets which are built on two levels. The lower level has corridors, crew quarters, captain’s quarters, captain’s office, sickbay and the mess hall. The upper level has more corridors, more quarters, a meeting/briefing room, the second level of the captain’s quarters (yes he has a two-story cabin) and the bridge. And there were also other stages housing engineering, shuttle bay and a swing set for alien ships and settings we didn’t even get to.

Beyond the size, there is also an impressive amount of detail and technology being used. For example they use the same kind of on-set display technology utilized for Rogue One (basically a massive screen of LEDs) to allow shots on the bridge to have visual effects displayed practically, such as when the ship is at warp (sorry, “at quantum”). And speaking of visual effects, producer Jason Clark revealed they are doing a total of 3,800 effect shots over the season.

And beyond the sets and VFX as you talk to the various behind the scenes people you can start adding things up like how costume designer Joseph Porro talking about how they literally shipped in two tons of fabric from China. Or makeup designer Howard Berger (Oscar winning co-founder of the KNB EFX Group, probably best known for The Walking Dead) talking about how they did 5,000 different prosthetic applications during the first season. One of the reasons for this quantity of work is that the show is episodic so very little gets re-used as the crew visits a new world (with new creatures, sets, props, etc.) every episode. As producer Clark noted “It’s like we did 13 movies.”

These stairs aren’t for show, The Orville set is a double-decker
It looks like TNG for a reason

Just looking at promos for The Orville, many Trek fans have noticed similarities with Trek and specifically Star Trek: The Next Generation. Of course there are a number of high profile TNG vets working behind the scenes including Brannon Braga and Andre Bormanis. And Jonathan Frakes even directed an episode, but it goes deeper than that. Seth MacFarlane even hired Marvin Rush (veteran of TNG, VOY, DS9 and ENT) as the director of photography. Rush said that MacFarlane explicitly wanted The Orville “to feel like Next Generation…he wanted that vibe.” Rush also noted he is using ARRI Alexa Mini camera which he feels is the best digital camera to get a cinema feel to replicate the look of shooting on film as he did while on Star Trek.

And the connections go beyond hiring Trek veterans. Production designer Stephen Lineweaver noted that when it came to designing the sets, Seth definitely had a “Next Gen sensibility” to the approach for the designs. This kind of thing even flowed into hiring production staff. Editor Tom Costantino – a genuine Trek fan and apparently regular reader of TrekMovie.com – told me that he feels he nailed his final interview with MacFarlane when he made a reference to a TNG episode, specifically “Chain of Command, Part 2.”

You could mistake these bridge consoles for a Federation ship
Seth is a perfectionist

The Orville is something that has been a dream for Seth MacFarlane since his childhood, and so he is paying attention to every detail of the show. Pretty much everyone you talk to will tell you how much passion MacFarlane puts into The Orville, and how he works closely on every aspect – very, very closely in fact. Costume designer Porro said that they went through 75 different prototypes for the uniforms until Seth signed off, noting “It was a challenge.” Makeup designer Howard Berger told a similar story of how it took three months to finalize the look of the character Bortus to the point where finally he took a clay mold into Seth’s office and they worked it out together as the shooting date approached.

As for the U.S.S. Orville itself, producer Jason Clark revealed they went through 140 different designs of the ship with 13 different designers including Ryan Church (who designed the U.S.S. Enterprise for J.J. Abrams) and Andrew Probert (designer for Star Trek: The Motion Picture and Star Trek: The Next Generation). However, apparently nothing was working for MacFarlane so in the end Seth made his own doodle sketch of the ship which was then finalized by concept artist Matt Tkocz.

The final shooting model for the U.S.S. Orville – yes they use a real model
Don’t expect goofy looking aliens

The general consensus from the writers and crew of The Orville is that the humor on the show comes from situations and character moments and not silly looking things. The remit for those designing the show is like any serious sci-fi movie or series. Listening to the various designers, you would never know they were talking about a show with a strong element of comedy. They all talk about creating a believable futuristic science fiction universe with practical props, costumes, makeup and sets. As noted by makeup designer Howard Berger, “everybody is very immersed in this universe.”

Berger told me that when it comes to his department, they aren’t using the aliens the crew meets each week to create the laughs by the way they look. “I never wanted anything to feel goofy or cartoony.” said Berger, “I wanted it to feel real. They are designed so that you believe they exist.” You get a similar story from the prop department. Not only are they not going for laughs, Bryan Rodgers noted that when designing the weapons for the recurring main bad guys (the Krill), the objective was to give them “a scary looking feel to create a tension and fear in anyone who sees them coming.”

Some of the makeup prognostics used for The Orville
There is a science to it

One of the Trek vets on the show is Andre Bormanis who began his career as a science advisor for Star Trek: The Next Generation before moving on to writing and producing in the franchise. He is also wearing those many hats for The Orville and he is again striving to make this futuristic sci-fi show grounded in real science. When it comes to Orville science, they are paying attention to the little things, such as how the wall paneling on the ship is supposed to be a form of plant life that acts as CO² scrubber.

Bormanis has written a whole show bible about the various science elements within the universe of The Orville. A good amount is dedicated to the ship. On The Orville you don’t have a warp drive, but you do have a “quantum drive.” And for this faster than light sci-fi ship they are using the theories of physicist Miguel Alcubierre who has postulated a form of drive that works within Einstein’s general relativity. And this theory’s call for torus rings are what is behind the rings of the U.S.S. Orville itself. They have even named the exotic matter that is required for such a drive “Dysonium” after physicist Freeman Dyson.

This rendition of the Alcubierre drive effect shows how the U.S.S. Orville got its shape
The Orville is trying to do something different

One thing is clear from talking to all the people behind the show and that is a deep commitment and a passion to create something different for television today. They want to tell serious sci-fi stories with a message of hope and optimism. They want to to make people think through allegory while making them laugh through relatable characters and situations. As noted by Jason Clark “no one is doing this now.”

Audiences who tune into The Orville will not find it packed with gags like MacFarlane’s Family Guy. And even though this is an hour-long show set on a space ship, it really isn’t like The Expanse or even Star Trek: The Next Generation. For The Orville, they want to find a sweet spot in between, and the closest analogy they come up with is M*A*S*H, a half-hour comedy about Army doctors in the Korean War which has been off the air since 1983.

A word you hear a lot from the writers and producers on the show is “balance.” That will be the key for The Orville. Can they strike that balance and find a sweet spot of making a fun (and explicitly funny), optimistic, entertaining, exciting and thoughtful sci-fi show? From what I have seen so far, this show has that potential. Hopefully Fox can give them time to find their way and find an audience for new kind of show that still feels familiar to fans of Star Trek.

Offline sanman

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #44 on: 10/01/2017 11:13 pm »
Something I appreciated was not just the show's overall production values, but also the music in particular, which is really well done and also very evocative of various famous pieces from Star Trek.
(Given Seth's own singing talents, I wonder how long it will be before he does a singing number on the show?)


Another thing I do wonder about is - will they get sued?
The show clearly owes a lot to the Star Trek franchise, and many resemblances are intentional rather than coincidental. Even if they claim spoofing rights, the show isn't entirely a spoof/parody, but is also a sincere emulator in the genre. (A fan-fiction, even?)

Right now The Orville is just starting out - but what happens if/when they become a big hit, and start to rake in more and more money? Will Paramount, or others like CBS, begin to see this as happening at their expense?
The more you're worth, the more you're worth suing.

George Lucas famously sued Universal over Battlestar Galactica by claiming they ripped off various ideas from Star Wars (ie. the ILM special fx, certain scifi story elements, etc). Even if he didn't have the strongest case, his persistent legal action certainly imposed costs.

On the other hand, with Star Trek's own Brannon Braga being an executive producer for The Orville, maybe the show has the back-channel ties to the Trek franchise owners to get more latitude than others might get.

http://comicbook.com/startrek/2017/08/16/the-orville-star-trek-brannon-braga/

Offline Ben the Space Brit

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #45 on: 10/02/2017 09:24 am »
Any lawsuit against The Orville's producers for CBS (the current TM owner for Star Trek) would have to prove a deliberate use of their trademarked properties for profit without license.

'Deliberate artistic or conceptual similarity' has succeeded before (George Harrison's 'My Sweet Lord' was found to have deliberately copied the melody of an earlier song). However, proving it would be difficult and I get the feeling that Fox would take delight in being seen to take down the mighty Star Trek machine for a variety of reasons, only some of them commercial.

The problem is, at what point does protecting a trademark prevent a competitor from legitimately trying to move into a market? At what point does protecting artistic ownership protect shoddy workmanship from its consequences?
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Offline hektor

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #46 on: 10/02/2017 11:31 am »
So if I understand well, they took the shape of their spacecraft propulsive elements from a graphical illustration in the Alcubierre drive entry on wikipedia ?

Offline SpacedX

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #47 on: 10/02/2017 02:17 pm »
So if I understand well, they took the shape of their spacecraft propulsive elements from a graphical illustration in the Alcubierre drive entry on wikipedia ?

It has a resemblance to that drawing and that's what I thought already.

I like the show. It's a little slow at times but some of the stuff is good and, in some ways, it's more like Star Trek than Star Trek:Discovery.


Offline RonM

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #48 on: 10/02/2017 03:39 pm »
While the Orville has a lot of resemblance to ST:TNG, it's really common generic space opera elements. Read some old SF novels or watch Forbidden Plant and you'll see what I mean. Nothing here that would lead to a successful lawsuit.

Offline Davp99

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #49 on: 10/02/2017 03:48 pm »
Tough room....

I actually Liked it...& Hate CBS for their $10 a monthly Star Trek Discovery Klingon Show......Nice try, Not this Guy...
You Only Live Twice

Offline QuantumG

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #50 on: 10/02/2017 09:14 pm »
That episode three... wow. Classic sci-fi.
Human spaceflight is basically just LARPing now.

Offline sanman

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #51 on: 10/06/2017 06:47 am »
Latest episode wasn't too bad -- at least they're covering all the tropes.

And the humor seems to be finding its footing.

Offline sanman

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #52 on: 10/13/2017 06:26 am »
Episode 6 was another particularly good episode - with an ending to ponder (echoes of TNG or DS9)

The Krill aesthetically remind me a lot of the Jem'Hadar -- I wonder if the similarity was deliberate?
(Also possibly shades of Covenant from Halo)

http://memory-alpha.wikia.com/wiki/Jem%27Hadar

Again the mix of wacky humor juxtaposed with serious or straight action is getting better.

This show definitely offers an interesting yet irreverent ride (be sure to fill the tank before coming back, Unbeliever)
« Last Edit: 10/13/2017 07:30 am by sanman »

Offline sanman

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #53 on: 10/14/2017 08:55 am »
I see people comparing this show with MASH - mainly because both mixed comedy with drama. But remember that MASH at least had a laugh track, as most other comedies have. Seth MacFarlane's shows, such as Family Guy, have never had any laugh track to identify their funny moments, and in the same vein neither does The Orville. It's completely left to viewers to recognize when a joke has just happened, even a hipster in-joke like a reference to the TV show Friends. That puts some viewers at a disadvantage, if they aren't necessarily as culturally savvy or as quick to see certain jokes. The whole reason the laugh track was invented was to help everyone to know when to laugh, so everyone could do it together and not miss out on the mirth.

What I notice is that they seem to be recalibrating their use of humor to move more towards sight-gags and other jokes which are more universally identifiable, so that more people can recognize them and laugh together, instead of remaining clueless that something funny has occurred.

Offline Oli

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #54 on: 10/14/2017 03:53 pm »

I like this show as well, the humor is hit and miss though. The 3 aliens on the crew are the best part.

Offline schaban

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #55 on: 10/14/2017 06:58 pm »
I never watch star trek and not planing to (for some reason doesn't click with me), but I like Orville.
So, I'm curious, if there any episode, or story, or premise, or anything else (with exception of costumes, decorations and effects) could be traced back to Star Trek?

I wasn't able to find any sites devoted to this as well. Would appreciate if someone shares the link...

Offline Blackstar

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #56 on: 10/14/2017 07:03 pm »
I never watch star trek and not planing to (for some reason doesn't click with me), but I like Orville.
So, I'm curious, if there any episode, or story, or premise, or anything else (with exception of costumes, decorations and effects) could be traced back to Star Trek?

I wasn't able to find any sites devoted to this as well. Would appreciate if someone shares the link...

Do you mean things on The Orville that can be traced back to Star Trek? Look at the writing and producing staff. Lots of Trek veterans there.

Offline schaban

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #57 on: 10/14/2017 07:42 pm »
I never watch star trek and not planing to (for some reason doesn't click with me), but I like Orville.
So, I'm curious, if there any episode, or story, or premise, or anything else (with exception of costumes, decorations and effects) could be traced back to Star Trek?

I wasn't able to find any sites devoted to this as well. Would appreciate if someone shares the link...

Do you mean things on The Orville that can be traced back to Star Trek? Look at the writing and producing staff. Lots of Trek veterans there.

something like that, yes.

Here's an example of what I tried to find out: was there anything on Star Trek, resembling time accelerator from Orville episode 1? in what context?
Another example: was there any Star Trek episode where someone from Enterprise was abducted by more advanced species?

Offline eric z

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #58 on: 10/14/2017 08:02 pm »
 Yes, there are plenty of advanced creatures hijacking Kirk and the gang; the episode with the god-like Apollo and the episode with the spoiled-harpsichord player come to mind. The one where Kirk and an alien commander who looks like a upright alligator with a golf-ball head duking it out for the survival of their species;  man, there's a million of 'em.... 8)

Offline schaban

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Re: The Orville premiere on Fox
« Reply #59 on: 10/14/2017 08:12 pm »
Yes, there are plenty of advanced creatures hijacking Kirk and the gang; the episode with the god-like Apollo and the episode with the spoiled-harpsichord player come to mind. The one where Kirk and an alien commander who looks like a upright alligator with a golf-ball head duking it out for the survival of their species;  man, there's a million of 'em.... 8)
thank you.

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