The Orville (TV Series) Krill (2017) User Reviews

Outstanding and Awkward

[ionisravell · 9/10 · 13 October 2017]

Orville delivered on balancing comedy and drama while giving us an insight to the society of Krill.

So far series presented this alien species as the default enemy. If the plot needed nameless bad guys, Krill filled the role. This episode gives us a chance to see Orville's universe through Krill eyes - it is a great chance to explore series setting.

Speaking of settings, Krill ship, prognostics and actors in them, present themselves outstandingly and give a believable representation of an alien culture.

Krill bare resemblance to Warhammer 40.000's Empire of Man - with their religious devotion in the age of spaceships, by we can easily compare them to our modern faith-based societies and ask ourselves a question, how to make peace with someone who is on a mission from the Divine?

Orville doesn't present those type of questions openly, but introduces us to a story that grows more complex with each scene - a fairly simple mission gets complicated and moral choices must be made.

That is what sci-fi that inspires to resemble Star Trek should be doing!

It is worth noting that we're having a chance to see Captain Mercer and Lieutenant Malloy being focus of the episode - both characters bring a degree of awkward charm to the story, but there is only one truly memorable funny scene in the whole episode. Both protagonists present rather awkward, bordering of incompetent, attitude towards their mission, especially compared to the very serious negative background of their Krill crewmates. It serves as a lighter tone for the episode but can be seen as overdone.

Light touch when it comes to comedy adds to the dramatic undertone, leaving us asking ourselves the question - can the circle of hate be broken by more violence and death?

Seth Macfarlane proves, beyond any doubt, that his aspirations for Orville go beyond a simple spoof fuelled by humour. Those who want a space comedy might feel disappointed, everyone else will probably enjoy the ride.

Great Ep

[vytas-67196 · 9/10 · 10 February 2019]

This ep has some great buddy-style adventure and fun gags as we watch Ed and Gordon flounder as spies. It also has a good dose of storytelling about the adversarial Krill race and some dramatic themes, without it being too much to take. The best one so far, in my opinion.

All hail Avis! Death to Hertz!!

[bnevs18 · 9/10 · 13 October 2017]

Well, just when I thought I was going to lose interest, they come with another outstanding episode. They have laid a good foundation to the Krill society...it says written by Seth McFarlane, but it seems to be written by a SciFi vet...all the episodes so far show as written by SMF so perhaps there is a mistake. In any case, if he HAS written all of them, it would explain why some are so weak, but is hopeful as this episode and AaG are worthy of the golden age of scifi. We can only hope that the Krill will be fleshed out more in the future, and they wont be seen as one dimensional villains (Evidence to this is the demeanor of the kids). I still cant figure out where this series is headed...is it having the normal season 1 growing pains before taking off, or is it like virtually all scifi nowadays and just hit the mark a couple times. I went from "one more clunker and chalk up AaG to dumb luck" to "lets stick it out".

My favourite episode of the series

[AGood · 10/10 · 23 October 2017]

First of all, the Orville is brilliant. And what Star Trek Discovery should have been. I was eagerly waiting for Star Trek Discovery for years on it being announced. I was then so let down when I actually seen it. It was atrocious. Someone recommended to me to see The Orville instead and I expected it to be some camp poor imitation rip off. Like the Scary Movies series did with Scream.

It is not. It is brilliant. It has the Star Trek 'feel' to it. The characters are all likable and intermix well. And the jokes feel right and are actually funny. This episode, Krill. Hit it right out of the park. It was perfect. The jokes in this had me literally in stitches laughing (no lie). But it also was very well done story wise too. I am so eagerly waiting for episode 7 now. But I suspect it will not top episode 6 and this will be the best of the series. Seth Mcfarlane you are literally my hero for creating this series as it really is the Star Trek of how it should be. And forgetting those trying to be a Star Wars clone that Discovery and the films have become. I hope this series lasts to 7 series like all the star trek's did. It deserves to.

Chillin' with the Krill

[MrGoog · 10/10 · 14 October 2017]

******SPOILER ALERT******

Star Trek connections - This episode was written by David A. Goodman, who co-wrote 4 episodes of Enterprise and is one of the producers of The Orville. James Horan, who played High Priest Sazeran, played 5 different characters in The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise. (Because of his special voice, he has done voice-acting for many animated series and video games.)

In this episode, we learned that (1) Alara has trouble finding a boyfriend on the Orville just because she has 10 times their strength (like Klingons, I appreciate strong women); (2) Isaac is willing to have sex with Alara; and (3) Bortus has the digestive system of a goat. He can eat almost anything - a whole ball of wasabi, a cactus, and glass, among other stuff (this might be important in future episodes).

For the 3rd time in 4 months, the Krill attack Castor IV, which has weak defenses. The Orville arrives to see a huge Krill warship, the Kakof, pummeling the planet. Then the Kakof turns and starts pummeling the Orville. Then Ed uses the Mercer Maneuver (as I call it): He takes the Orville to the edge of the atmosphere while firing plasma torpedoes at the Kakof. This creates a 'smoke screen' which temporarily blinds the Kakof's sensors. Then the Orville pulls a steep barrel-roll and pummels the Kakof with plasma torpedoes, destroying the Kakof. In the wreckage, they find an intact Krill shuttle, the first intact Krill technology obtained by the Union.

Admiral Ozawa (played by Kelly Hu) arrives and informs Ed and Kelly of a special mission. The Union's Admiralty wants to learn more about Krill society, especially their religion. The Krill believe that they have a God-given right to conquer or destroy all others in the galaxy (similar to our 'Manifest Destiny' - look it up). Ozawa wants the Orville's officers to obtain a copy of the Anhkara, the Krill's holy book. Every Krill ship carries an Anhkara, so the Krill shuttle opens this opportunity. Ed and Gordon use miniature holographic generators (MHGs) to look like Krill soldiers.

Flying the Krill shuttle, Gordon plays CCR's 'Midnight Special' while Ed studies the briefing on the Krill. A significant fact: the Krill's planet has thick clouds which block 96% of sunlight. The Yakar, a Krill destroyer, picks up the shuttle, as the MHGs fool the Krill. Ed introduces himself as Chris and Gordon as Devin (if they brought John LaMarr along, they could have called themselves Larry, Darryl, and Darryl). 'Chris' and 'Devin' claim to be the only survivors from the Kakof.

On the Yakar, 'Chris' and 'Devin' meet Captain Haros and High Priest Sazeran. They learn that the Krill's God is Avis, which provokes Gordon into a string of car-rental jokes. They are invited to religious services, where they meet Teleya, a female whose brother was on the Kakof. During the 'cleansing' ceremony, Sazeran produces the severed head of a human colonist and, using a 3-blade dagger, stabs the head repeatedly.

Later, 'Chris' and 'Devin' enter the temple and 'Chris' begins photographing the Anhkara. But their MHGs fail and they barely escape from the temple. They find that neutron radiation interfered with the MHGs. After compensating for the radiation, 'Chris' and 'Devin' find the source: a huge neutron-bomb missile. They learn from Teleya that the Krill plan to test the bomb on Rana III, a Union colony with 100,000 civilians and weak defenses. Ed decides to destroy the bomb by reversing the interference; i.e., sending signals from the MHGs to overload the bomb's radiation and triggering the overload remotely from the shuttle.

Sounds simple, right? However......'Chris' and 'Devin' learn that Teleya is the instructor for the trainees on board, and the trainees are children. Obviously, Ed won't kill children. One of the kids, Coja, is very curious about Earth and humans. While describing humans to Coja, 'Chris' discovers the answer: ultraviolet radiation. Because the Krill are always in gloom, sunshine-intensity UV rays would incinerate them. 'Chris' arranges for Teleya and the children to stay in the classroom while 'Devin' sets a 10-minute delay on a device that will raise the ship's lights to high-UV level for 1 minute. However, the Krill intercept 'Devin' and find his MHG. As the Yakar approaches Rana III, 'Chris' shoots out the lights in the classroom just before the UV device activates and incinerates all the Krill outside the classroom. The neutron bomb is launched, but Gordon, with a bad sunburn, destroys the bomb in time.

Ed and Gordon take the Yakar to the Orville, which tows it to a Union base. The Krill kids will be returned to their families. Teleya is enraged by the deaths of her comrades, but wonders why Ed spared the children. Ed says, "They're not my enemies." Teleya warns, "After what they saw you do today, they will be. They will be!"

I would have put it a 10 ...

[MsMoebius · 9/10 · 27 March 2022]

.... If it weren't for the unfortunate ending.

Great episode with a hopeful message.

This show is a bright light to so many apocalyptic sci-fi shows.

Star Trek is back ....

Scott Grimes as Gordon Malloy

[kellar_flames · 19 December 2021]

This episode had me dying laughing, awesome show. This episode wouldnt of been as funny if i hadnt seen the previous episodes. I always come back to this episode because I always laugh my ass off at it.

When they go on the krill ship they draw so much heat to themselves even though they should be trying to act the part and fit in to avoid attention . When they get stuck walking through the door, saying their names are Chris and Devon. Malloy just so untrained and distracted from the get go.

"Hey. How's a going?"

Excellent to 5th and then OK.

[iliagofman · 8/10 · 13 October 2017]

Started excellent to 5th episode and then 6th is OK. I found Seth's character the captain, a bit silly in only this episode. Oh but 1st to 5th were brilliant with their humour, scifi and action. The actors are doing a great job Overall. With this series I just can't wait to see the next episode :) I enjoy that much more than ST Discovery.

The good and the ham

[absolutelylucid · 7/10 · 2 May 2019]

I wanted to quickly review this episode because out of the first six, I felt it was easily the worst. It's not bad exactly, and I do love the strong classic Star Trek vibes this show brings. It is just that the show needs to know when to tone down the ham and get serious to maximize its potential. I suspect that the second season has learned this lesson and I'll discover that as I move along. Here though, the slapstick humor between Ed and Gordon completely kills the vibe, even if it is entertaining. It's good for entertainment, but sacrifices any potential to ever match some of Star Trek's best Klingon or Romulan episodes. If this show is going to hit the top level, it needs to know when to be full on serious, and this opportunity to establish the Krill on a similar amplitude to the Romulans is absolutely wasted on the humor. Also, the story element of the kids was good, but a bit too hammy in its handling. I suppose the classic Star Trek series had plenty of ham in the early going too. This is a solid show, I just wanted to voice my opinion on the matter in particular to this episode. Sometimes the humor is good, but to be a great show instead of just a good one, The Orville needs to know when to get full on serious.

Religious Zealots

[Hitchcoc · 8/10 · 7 June 2022]

I wasn't comfortable as I watched this. The Krill have a religion that allows them, in good conscience, to kill millions of people on helpless planets. The invasion of their ship was tenuous at best and required so much knowledge that seemed to be learned very fast. They may have a culture and a belief system, but if there were an alliance, they needed to be wiped out.

Krill

[bobcobb301 · 7/10 · 17 October 2017]

This didn't feel entirely like a Star Trek parody, it had a bit of a early 90's sci-fi feel to it. Focusing on two characters on a mission was a good idea too as sometimes with 100 people in the room things get convoluted.

The "moral dilemma" and bizarre Krill group of people felt a bit forced too. I wish we would get an explanation one week as to why these different groups of aliens exist, but I wouldn't hold my breath on that one.

Too Awkward

[zachary-wander · 5/10 · 13 January 2019]

I know cringe comedy is pretty popular, but I can't stand it. It's fine when it's balanced with a good plot, but there's just too much of it in this episode.

It doesn't add anything to the characters or plot, and it's just annoying and frustrating how obviously fake Ed and Gordon are when they go undercover. It's less "oh no, that was a bad slip" and more "oh my god, how are these Krill only slightly suspicious of their religious beliefs?" and it happens throughout the entire episode

The first great episode

[TheDonaldofDoom · 10 October 2019]

It starts off as a deceptively simple plot, and the first half is a little slow, but once it gets going it's great. It branches out into a tense story with moral ambiguity. Indeed, the ending is murky, and I like the short but poignant conversation at the end with the Krill survivor.

Starts well but turns into a frenetic, vulgar, tonally confused mess with nothing to say.

[wolfstar_imdb · 3/10 · 8 January 2018]

This episode was remarkably decent at first, until Ed and Gordon actually boarded the Krill ship and the main plot started. There were some good jokes in the opening section - Bortus being able to eat anything, the "hailing frequencies" joke, the fire-suppression console catching fire. And the opening action sequence felt compelling and like it had stakes. After that though, once Ed and Gordon went undercover, the episode became inane, frenetic and crude, and didn't work for me as either drama, comedy or parody. On top of the dumb action plot and the fact they didn't even try to blend in while undercover, the added cheesy sentimentality of "we gotta save the kids" really sank the episode... resulting in an hour that was just a vulgar, inconsequential mess with nothing to say.

Drama is enjoyable

[jeff-cossey · 5/10 · 6 November 2018]

I enjoy just about everything about The Orville. The humor does not work for me in this show. They say humorous things that seemed way out of place. it's kind of like if I was to be transported back hundred and fifty years make humorous anecdotes about current things people would just scratch their head.

The Wrath of Strawmen

[AlbJohFan · 1/10 · 9 December 2018]

I get the impression that the only religious characters in this show are going to be villains - even Star Trek was fairer and discussed both sides more than that (just look at the Bajoran Republic). Religiously motivated villains in sci-fi is a cliche and often a strawman, and this is a prime example. They're even reptilian aliens, another sci-fi cliche but a forgivable one that can be made to work. Religious people, like non-religious people, can misbehave or screw up that's true, and there can also be religions with bad teachings. Yet these one sided arguments the show's making aren't the way to go. Here Seth is just fanning the flames of hate.

The Krill place of worship looks like a chapel and Mercer mentions the Bible at one point - Seth was always prejudiced against Christianity in his works, and the Krill religious phrase "Temeen Everdeen" sounds pretty reminiscent of the Islamic phrase "Allahu Akbar". The scene with the chant and the severed head calls to mind the beheadings in Islamic terrorist attacks and videos. The whole "hating people because they don't think non-Krill have souls" doesn't make sense as an allusion; most real religions espouse at least some attempt at peace with non-believers. Especially Christianity, apparently Seth's favorite target for ridicule, has the teaching "If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone." Romans 12:18

The moral message of the episode falls flat for three reasons. One, the part that's a strawman argument against religion and veiled attacks on real religions which are nicer than what the showrunners seem to want people to think (way to fan those flames of hate). Two, the bit where they encounter and spare the Krill children seems tacked on - the focus of the episode (agendas aside) was learning about the Krill. Three, the idea that the audience is supposed to care about the fate of the Krill children falls flat for some after the main characters glibly killed the adults and the fact that the Krill seem to be set up as show's go-to bad guys. I recommend Star Trek: Discovery or the Expanse, they're much better.

Moral low ground?

[phoenixnl-16647 · 3/10 · 23 February 2020]

Sofar the episodes of this show had a lot of similarities to the old star trek series. However this one takes a sharp turn away from that. Picard, Kirk, Cisco, Janeway and Archer would have found a better way to save the colony that wouldn't involve killing a full ships crew compliment and traumatising kids. Even against the Borg Picard chose to not use the virus on Hugh before returning him to the collective.

So unlike Star Trek this show didn't choose the moral high ground.

Also the idea that the UV output from increasing the light would kill them is absurd in the first place and rather unbelievable. A shock that makes them loose consciousness would have been believable. But burning alive like is shown in the ep was more then my suspension of disbelieve could handle. Especially since most of their bodies are covered in clothing protecting them from UV. So even if it would cause 3rd degree burns, it should not have been lethal imho.

I found this to be the weakest episode thus far. It started out allright. Then the total incompetence in acting undercover when they went onboard the krill ship was cringe worthy and the weakness and unbelievability of the conclusion made things even worse. Hence a rating of 3 from me

The future?

[poltraite · 4/10 · 17 September 2018]

...so I would have just downloaded the much sought after tome... it seems the internet doesn't work so well in the future....

I'm not feeling the Krill

[apc-05322 · 1/10 · 7 May 2018]

I'm not feeling the Krill. Maybe if they didn't look so much like an Andorian cousin. With that said, the story was good. But a tree growing in outer space stretches one's ability to suspend their disbelief. To the writers: Keep it real; or at least possible and believable. LOL