I’m blue (da ba dee da ba die)
(This review contains
spoilers!)
After a shaky last two weeks, The Orville returned with full force
this episode. Easily the funniest episode we’ve seen from them so far, this was
a really fun take on the classic Trek “crew
members going coocoo for Cocoa Puffs” storyline, blending both humour and a
serious alien diplomatic dispute excellently.
The cold open with Bortus getting cut
off before we finally got to hear him sing set the tone for the rest of the
episode, which felt like near non-stop jokes. There were running gags,
references, physical humour and one-off jokes aplenty, and in a case pretty
unusual for this show, nearly all of them landed perfectly. I was laughing from
beginning to end this week, and while I’m not sure I’d want every episode to be
this way, it was a welcome change of pace from the previous two episodes.
The crew has been caught into a
dispute between two warring alien races fighting over ownership of a planet. An
archeologist has been brought onboard to discover who really owns the planet,
but surprise! It’s blue alien Rob Lowe!
In all seriousness, Rob Lowe plays the
alien who Ed found Kelly in bed with in the pilot. It’s a great twist that adds
some extra depth to their relationship, a plot device that hasn’t seen much
action recently. Things get especially complicated towards the end, but one
thing at a time.
It turns out that blue alien Rob Lowe
secrets a toxin that makes anyone he touches fall in love. Ed and Kelly quickly
fall head over heels for him (but seriously, it’s Rob Lowe. I’m straight and
even I’m in love with the guy), and meanwhile Claire has suddenly become smitten
for Yaphit the green slime guy. It’s a fun premise that thankfully knows its
boundaries and never gets too annoying.
The ending is equally fantastic. After
the toxin wears off and everyone goes back to normal, Kelly confronts blue
alien Rob Lowe and asks if she was under the influence of the toxin in the
opening scene of the pilot, to which he responds he doesn’t know. I couldn’t
tell you if they’re setting up Ed and Kelly getting back together as the big ending
for the season, but this was a subtle and sublime ending to an overall over the
top episode.
My only real complaint is how obvious
the solution was to solve the diplomatic issue with the warring races. As soon
as it became apparent what blue alien Rob Lowe’s powers were I knew they were
going to be used to make the leaders fall in love. It felt a little too easy
and I would’ve liked a more complicated answer to a problem with so much
build-up.
It would’ve been so easy to make this
another annoying episode with everyone running around and being a jerk, but
thankfully the writers didn’t go that route. This episode was a complete joy to
watch, juggling the comedy and the serious moments with perfect balance. I
really hope this is a sign of what we’re in store for later on down the line.
FINAL SCORE
9/10
Amazing
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