ketose

I was a little disappointing that the reveal was a mass grave. I was half expecting a bunch of humans hooked up as an energy source like in "The Matrix."

Groups that do these cases don't hinge their support on the innocence of their clients. Many times it's about a matter of law, using bad police and prosecution methods to show reasonable doubt.

I'm starting to worry that MacFarlane et al. may not be able to write themselves out of this one. The Borg and the Dominion essentially sent out scouting parties and they were (momentarily) defeated because of their small numbers. But Kaylons have their whole planet backing them up. Any simulation ending is going to diminish my respect for the show. I probably wouldn't be happy about a sudden defeat of the Kaylons, but that's a pretty common scifi trope. It would be interesting if they did the whole fake command code thing with Isaac the whole time, like with Ed and the Krill earlier. If Isaac turns out to be a spy the whole time, Mercer is going to be the new Chakotay, the commander of a crew full of spies he didn't know about.

You must have missed the part where it's a stereo holo projector that uses two projector units to make an even more realistic hologram. Don't worry. No one saw that part.

Anyone else notice how many times the slugs changed sizes depending on the shot?

Or there might be a Kelly cult even centuries later who comes to save her. The planet was already capable of teleportation, which is the cat's ass in terms of technology on the show. Plus, they had 700 years to examine Isaac. Maybe they were waiting for the off switch to mount a rescue mission. I was thinking the Kaylons were either a collection of computers or technology left behind by a long departed civilization. The Kaylons are almost like the Replicators from Stargate.

It would be good for Isaac's longevity on the ship if this were a simulation. But it would also be a cheat and permanently box this show in as a Space-Com. Plus, they did that fake out last season.

I'm glad this isn't a season finale cliffhanger. Besides the fact it would drive me nuts, I don't think they have the impact they used to. The concept has always been manipulative and I doubt it really retains any more viewers that any other new episode.

After seeing too many renditions of "Rent" in the last few weeks, I had to laugh when Alaric threw some shade at the overuse of it.

Pro-tip: If you find billions of humanoid carcasses buried on a planet of completely superior AI, DON'T CONFRONT THEM WITH IT.

1. Daaamn 2. This show needs to stop being classified as a comedy. Straight-up murder tonight. Obviously, Earth won't be destroyed but I have to wonder how this all gets put back in the box. I kind of doubt Seth is planning to get rid of Isaac.

Probably. On Cheers, we never saw Norm's wife Vera, either.

I would tend to give some slack to the show for what is basically a pre-credits scene. They wanted to set up Grey's relationship with his wife and you have to give exposition to someone. Could that have been written better? Sure, but the TV landscape is littered with meticulously written dramas that were cancelled anyway.

Since Chen is a super cop, I liked the fact that she still can fall asleep on a night shift like a human being. They aired out of sequence, but I still remember the big tease about how the rookies were going to have to reveal their secrets. Then it was like "Did you cover for another cop?" "Yes." "Was it about the money?" "No." "Okay, let's move on." Also, lie detectors are unreliable and cops use them to trick dumb criminals into telling the truth.

TNG Klingons were not quite the good guys, but were usually worthy of respect.

On the board that vanished into the ether, there was a long, drawn out discussion of species that self-fertilized but could also reproduce sexually. Any science fiction is going to involve fiction, but I subscribe to the idea that all aliens are just allegories for the human condition.

I think if a felony conviction is overturned, you are no longer a convicted felon. There's a little more information in Episode 2, but my guess is that he police and the DA decided they were the likely suspects and everyone else went along with it. Madeline was probably able to go to Yale because the school thought it would be good (publicity, diversity) to admit her and they are less hung up on the actual case. With Levi, he didn't leave town so he had an uphill battle with all the townies who figured he was guilty and got off on a technicality. The stuff with the teenage murder and being let out of prison reminds me of Rectify. Of course, that show had better acting, writing and directing.

Plus, what we're learning now about the Doctor isn't all that great, anyway. In the original, we learned that the Doctor was something of a rebel in a society that was almost regal and actually called themselves "time lords." My favorite piece of information was in the 1996 movie where the Doctor said he was half human on his mother's side. That was quickly negated as not being canon. However, it would have made a lot of sense with the character being sort of an outcast and having an outsized interest in Earth.

I watched a little of "About a Girl" today and Isaac was the one who mentioned the birth rate of Moclan females. Either there is a cultural database on Moclans or Kalons have more information than the Union.

I've been a fan of Rachelle Lefevre since "Big Wolf on Campus," so I can't really evaluate her acting ability. The people at home looking down on her and Levi reminds me of Rectify. The problem is that the A plots are going to be solved by "hard to find, but not too hard to find at the last minute" clues because no one wants to see realistic cases where the person probably did it, but the DNA sample was tainted and so they get a new trial / go free. I hope I heard correctly that the murder mystery will be over this season, because Rectify dragged it out for 4 years and it was completely stale by then.

In "About a Girl" there was the revelation that one of the greatest Moclan poets was female. In this episode, Talla offered Locar sanctuary aboard the Orville, but he refused. I would assume that Ed would have gotten involved if Locar requested sanctuary. Of course, if the Moclans chose a military response, the Orville would be dead meat.

The deviant in this episode was super hetero. I think the Moclans don't like to talk a lot about how they got where they are, even to their own people. So far, the Union doesn't seem to push them into providing that information. I understand that there should be some due diligence, but it's not like the Orville can ask a planetary government to fill out 100 forms and reveal all their horrific secrets. There would never be any first contact. Plus, a successful First Contact episode would be really boring.

The child stabs the parent he doesn't want.

Going back to the Hartnell days, he was supposedly traveling through time with his granddaughter, which would imply that he had a wife and children. I also believe Tennant's Doctor mentioned being a father once to Donna. I think we can be reasonably certain that the Doctor is hetero, but any other spectrum identity is more speculation.

Frankly, the Cardassians never got that fleshed out. They were both cruel and foolish. Their secret police were infiltrated and their planet was in ruins at the end. Of course, Garak was always supposed to be a little mysterious. We also never knew how Changelings went from being "solids" to shape-shifters. Moral relativism is an illusion anyway. Saying that Moclans should be allowed their beliefs is a way of keeping them as "the other" as well. If Moclans murdered people who cut in front of them in the chow line, the Union couldn't accept that. Sentient beings have beliefs and believe in them. If they didn't, they'd be sheep. Klyden decided to gender change Topa. It's morally offensive to the crew, but it's Moclan culture. Klyden stabbed Bortus in the chest. That's a crime, but Bortus didn't press charges. I believe Ed had the authority to kick Klyden off the ship. However, he accepted Bortus' pleas on the matter. This time, however, Klyden was the victim according to Union law, but Talla and the crew knew what Klyden wanted to do. That's why Talla told him to walk the other way. Just because Klyden is acting within the confines of his culture, he is a bad fit for a Union ship. Bortus is actually very evolved for a Moclan and I think he represents the "toxic male" who isn't really toxic. That moral relativism also seems to apply to Moclans to some extent. Bortus does not stab or turn fellow Moclans in as his go-to move.