Seth MacFarlane is possibly the next divisive character in my family close behind Matt and Trey, of South Park fame. My dad has for several years now stated his mild to strong disdain towards Family Guy and its creator, and while in high school I’d hear about Family Guy but be told I couldn’t watch it at home.

However, for FOX Seth MacFarlane is a cash cow pumping out several shows and movies such as Ted, Family Guy, American Dad (Since moved to TBS), The Cleveland Show, and a few other projects. It seems you either love him or you hate him. His crass and often times simple humor is often what puts several people off to him.

You may want to rethink that position if you feel so. I say this because I’ve made that stodgy man that I’m related to realize you can polish the man that makes gay jokes and get a diamond. I should probably step back and set up what The Orville is.

Several hundred thousand Star Trek fans have sat at their computers and typed out their vision of the diplomatic future of the galaxy. As a Star Trek fan myself, I wonder what specific sections of the lore could be touched up and given a fresh look now we’ve moved on from the ’80s and ’90s. Ten years ago, CBS seemed to think the same. It was time to reboot Star Trek with JJ. Abrams in the director’s chair. Now, either you want a spike up him for that, or you think the lens flare will bring back Jesus. Abrams is as divisive to hardcore fans of two specific sci-fi monoliths as anyone could get.

Many hardcore Star Trek fans pine for the days of Jean-Luc Picard yelling at someone for being stupid. I’d even give favors to CBS executives for Janeway era Star Trek providing we officially remove the episode Threshold from existence and fix the series. While we’re on topics of a divisive nature, let’s not forget Star Trek Discovery. I would rather have a big dog rip my genitals off than watch the first few episodes of that show again. I think I’ve made it clear, I like the Star Trek of the ’80s and early to mid-’90s, and everything else can be wiped by Will Smith.

This is where Seth MacFarlane comes in; He has made Star Trek. A bold statement I’m sure, and for anyone who has seen the first two episodes, a confusing one, for sure. However, the clinching point of The Orville is Episode 3 of Season 1, “About A Girl.” If you told me the man who created, stars in, and still produces Family Guy would write an episode about transgender issues and not make it awful, I wouldn’t believe you. The alternate universe Seth MacFarlane we have here does make some jokes, but for the most part, The Orville does the social commentary and moral questions that are key for Star Trek.

As I’ve been setting up, MacFarlane has done what those Star Trek fans I spoke about a few paragraphs ago could only dream of doing. Not only that but Macfarlane has managed to snag several Star Trek Alumni or general big stars for his show, including Jonathan Frakes (William T. Riker) to direct two episodes, Marina Sirtis (Deanna Troi), Robert Picardo (Voyager‘s Doctor), Tim Russ (Tuvok), Ron Canada, Ted Danson, Liam Neeson, Charlize Theron, and Bruce Willis, to name a few. Star-studded is one way of explaining it.

However, with the second season finally wrapped last week, and there is no note of a third season in the works, I and many others are left wondering, what is next? Fox has a history of canceling sci-fi shows, I still hear about Firefly to this day. If they were to cancel the show based on reviews, it would have been the first season’s Rotten Tomatoes rating of 31%, not the second season’s 100% rating. TV viewership (the US only) for Firefly was about 4.7 million, while the first season of The Orville was 6.55 million, and Season Two sat comfortably around 3 million, not bad but not perfect.

Though a third season isn’t out of the question. According to Deadline, The Orville received a tax incentive from the California Film Commission in the range of fifteen million dollars. With a tax incentive and a strong response from critics and fans alike, one has to wonder what FOX are doing waiting around?

I also assume this has been my way of saying, “Go watch this show. It is strangely well made and not what Seth Macfarlane is known for.” Though it may also be my small plea with FOX to renew the show, not end on the suspense the second season had been building, and to never get a final pay off. Ultimately, I think FOX shot themselves in the foot early on with fans, billing the first season as a comedy and not the space drama it is since MacFarlane fans were confused and Star Trek fans were wandering the desert looking for something new and interesting.

If you haven’t already, give The Orville a few episodes to show you it can be more than the fart and gay jokes of MacFarlane’s past. If you can go all the way to the second season, which gets stronger with every episode, even going back to refer to the episode on gender, and the transformation some are forced into. I cannot recommend the show enough without spoiling it. I can not praise it highly enough, and sadly, I can not strap you to a chair and force you to watch it.

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