The Orville: New Horizons (Season 3) – TV Review

TL;DR – The terrain constantly shifts out from underneath the crew of the USS Orville, as enemies become friends and friends become enemies.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I streamed this on SBS OnDemand

Ed and Kelly look out over Earth.

The Orville Review

A few years ago, it was announced that Seth MacFarlane, most well known for Family Guy, would do his take on a Space Opera, a show like Star Trek but with more jokes. It was a premise that had me both intrigued and concerned. That is because I was sure you could make that balance work, just that it would be hard, and Season One was rough at times. But by the time Season Two drew to a close, it had wholly found its feet and was soaring forward. Now it is time to dive into the much delayed and possibly final season, titled New Horizons, and if it is the end, at least it went out on a bang.

So to set the scene, in The Road Not Taken, the threat that the Kaylons pose is shown when we see a universe where the crew of the USS Orville never came together, and the galaxy is in ruin. But there is hope, and the team come together for some last-ditch time travel shenanigans to set the timeline right. It worked. But now, everyone on the ship has to work to get it ready for the next attack, and while the refit takes place, there is a lot of resentment brewing on board, with most of it landing square on the lap of the ship’s lone Kalon crewmember Isaac (Mark Jackson). While captain Ed Mercer (Seth MacFarlane) and first officer Kelly Grayson (Adrianne Palicki) work to keep the ship together, there are crew members like new navigator Charly Burke (Anne Winters), who lost people in the war and have legitimate reasons not to trust. But they will need to find that trust because the galaxy is on the precipice of collapse. Now from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.     

Continue reading
Advertisement

The Expanse: Gaugamela – TV Review

TL;DR – Everything so far this season has led to here, and it did not disappoint.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Amazon Prime subscription that viewed this series.

The Expanse: Gaugamela. Image Credit: Amazon Studios.

Gaugamela Review

When you have set up a narrative to hit an inevitable crescendo, it can be dangerous because it becomes make or break. If you fall flat, all that hard work was for naught, and you can sink your whole narrative. This meant that I came into this episode with a little trepidation as everything from Exodus, Churn, and Mother led to this moment, and well,  I am glad to say that it did not disappoint.  

So to set the scene, during last week’s episode, Amos (Wes Chatham) decided that this was the last time he was ever going to come back down the well, which meant if he had any unfinished business now was the time to fix it. A couple of favours later and he found himself in The Pit, the place where the UN keeps its most dangerous criminals. He is here to meet Clarissa Mao (Nadine Nicole) or as he calls her Peaches. However, as Amos is down The Pit, everything gets put into lockdown, and the room begins to shake. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

Continue reading