The Radical Child

When I first started watching this live-action science-fiction dramedy on Fox the last decade, I assumed it would be a knockoff of the Star Trek series, but given the repertoire of showrunner Seth MacFarlane, responsible for animated series such as Family Guy, American Dad!, and The Cleveland Show, I knew it would be a more lighthearted take on the sci-fi genre. The series opens with up-and-coming Planetary Union officer Ed Mercer, portrayed by MacFarlane, catching his wife, Kelly Grayson, having an affair with an alien, which leads to their divorce. A year later, Mercer receives command of the eponymous spaceship, with Grayson, to his shock, becoming his first officer.

The Orville isn’t shy about its Star Trek inspirations, beginning with its music. The opening credits theme takes inspiration from “Life Is a Dream,” Jerry Goldsmith’s central composition of the first and the fifth Star Trek Original Series films as well as The Next Generation, a similarity more so apparent in the season three remix. The Planetary Union is a nod to the United Federation of Planets from Trek, along with the various alien races, with sundry conflicts erupting throughout the series, chiefly with the Krill, a vampiric and ultrareligious society. The robotic Kaylons, with one of its members, Isaac, serving as a neutral ambassador aboard the Orville, also come into play later.

Other notable crew members include Bortus, a member of the Moclan race with deadpan speech patterns that make for some occasional humor, who mates with Klyden and has a child named Topa, born female, which is rare among their species in their male-dominant society. The episode “About a Girl” focuses on the couple’s decision to change Topa’s gender to male to conform to Moclan society, which hit home to me as an autistic and receives a follow-up in the third season. Another first-season episode, “Majority Rule,” focuses on a twenty-first-century society reigned by upvotes and downvotes, touching upon themes such as the role of social media and public shaming, which parallels modern cancel culture.

The Orville has a pretty good selection of stars, both guest and recurring, aside from Seth MacFarlane. Brian George, who played the Pakistani restauranteur Babu Bhatt in Seinfeld, and various other Indian or Pakistani characters in other media (despite being Israeli), plays a researcher in the first episode. The late Norm Macdonald plays Yaphit, an amorphous blob with a crush on Doctor Claire Finn, and briefly appears in human form thanks to the ship’s Environmental Simulator (which Isaac also uses when he tries to woo Finn). Patrick Warburton plays a long-nosed alien in a few episodes, and Ted Danson recurs as an Admiral in the Planetary Union throughout the entire series.

Overall, I had a great time watching The Orville, which largely avoids the pitfalls of MacFarlane’s animated shows, such as the drawn-out gags and topical references (but there is some sound sociopolitical commentary that never becomes ham-fisted) and strikes a balance between being humorousness and seriousness. I found it an excellent homage and even rival to the various Star Trek series (and it did semi-compete with Discovery upon its original release), which evokes Trek’s feel (musically and aesthetically) while standing well in its own right. I would happily watch future seasons should the series continue and consider it a capstone among Seth MacFarlane's television productions.

Beastars, Vol. 1 by Paru Itagaki
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Ever since I watched the original Fullmetal Alchemist, Japanimation, colloquially called anime, has fascinated me, although I wouldn't realize that most Japanese animated series derived from manga, Japan's equivalent of comic books, with the Land of the Rising Sun, in fact, the origin point for what would ultimately become contemporary comics. One particular modern anime that would catch my attention is mangaka Paru Itagaki's Beastars, with my first exposure being the anime adaptation, of which I have a positive impression, and, upon the official English release of all volumes, make it the honor of being my first manga.

The first volume occurs in a world inhabited by anthropomorphic animals, divided based on whether they’re herbivores or carnivores, starting with the brutal devouring by one of the latter beasts of an alpaca student at Cherryton Academy named Tem, with even more hostility consequentially arising between meat-eaters and vegetarians. Legoshi the wolf, active in the school's drama club as a crewmember, hears news of this and gives Els the alpaca a love letter that Tem wrote before his demise, although naturally, she is wary of the lupine and fears he will devour her.

The actors in the drama club are rehearsing for a school performance of a play focused on a grim reaper named Adler, with Tem initially having a role in it. Further active in the acting troupe is the red deer Louis, who admires Legoshi’s ferocity and wants him to be a lookout for Zoe the goat, Tem's replacement in the play. Legoshi soon has a run-in with a rabbit named Haru, with whom he seems to share a special connection, with the lapine fearing the wolf will devour her. Haru herself faces ostracization from other herbivores such as a harlequin rabbit.

That night, Legoshi fitfully sleeps, and has conflicted feelings about Haru, with his instincts insisting he devours her, although in the animanga's world, eating meat is a crime, with school cafeterias attempting to compensate for the nutritional shortcomings carnivores consequentially face; baring fangs is also taboo for meat-eaters. Animals exemplifying the best characteristics of society receive the eponymous title of Beastar, with Louis wanting the play to send a message to the polarized society. The first manga volume ends with Legoshi meeting Haru in the school garden, and it was for me a solid experience, with some quirky extra content after the main comic.

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The latest adaptation of Richard Adams' novel comprising of four Netflix episodes, the series opens with the author's lapine mythology, and involves a rabbit tribe fighting for survival against antagonistic animals and humans. Fairly enjoyable, and has some major celebrities in its voice cast.