The Orville in the "Star Trek" universe

[WarpTenLizard]

(Disclaimer: I did a quick search to see if this topic had already been covered, and it doesn't seem so. Apologies if it has been.)

So, we all know that Seth McFarland's space-dramedy "the Orville" is basically "Star Trek" with the serial numbers filed off. He's not subtle about it at all. Naturally, Trekkies who love "the Orville" like to imagine that the latter is set in one of the many alternate universes of the "Star Trek" multiverse. That if Worf had traveled to enough other universes that one time, he might've found himself on the bridge of the Orville, facing Captain Mercer.

This begs the question: does the Orville have an equivalent in the "main" universe?
Does Captain Kassidy Yates have a half-sister named Claire Finn, working as a doctor on a Starfleet ship called the U.S.S. Orville? Are Alara and Talla Romulans, or Vorta, in the main universe? Is Bortus a Jem'Hadar, or Klingon, or Hirogen? Is there are Noonian-Soong droid named Isaac serving in Starfleet?

Or, is "the Orville" set so "far away" into the multiverse, that the ship and its crew are the counterparts of ones we already know (born to different names in this universe)?

Captain Kassidy Yates' counterpart in that universe was named Claire Finn, and chose medical school; Tom Paris was born to the name Gordon Mallory; etc.

OR.... is "The Orville" simply a work of fiction within the (main) universe of "Star Trek?" A contemporary, dramedy sitcom, airing on 24th-Century Earth. The show invents fictitious species, to avoid offending Vulcans/Klingons/etc (much as how a "foreign" character on a 20th Century show might be from a made-up country, to avoid offending anyone). The show likewise replaces the real Federation with a fictitious organization, to avoid causing political offense.

Ideas? Go wild.

 

[Phoenix219]

god, i know i've read a serious take on how it could be a splintered timeline where other species rose instead of the standard ones, but i'll be damned if i can remember the details now.

Federation TV fiction is the best of those ideas, for sure.

 

[Lord Garth]

If Seth MacFarlane wants to make a show that's officially called Star Trek, he should not renew his contract with FOX (or whoever) when it's up, then negotiate a contract with Paramount, approach Alex Kurtzman, and see what Alex says.

 

[WarpTenLizard]

god, i know i've read a serious take on how it could be a splintered timeline where other species rose instead of the standard ones, but i'll be damned if i can remember the details now.

Federation TV fiction is the best of those ideas, for sure.

TV Tropes, maybe?

 

[F. King Daniel]

The Orville is the early 25th century, staring in 2419. I can 100% see it as part of the Trek multiverse but a far off branch.

Prime is #1
Novelverse is #2
Kelvin is #3
All Good Things, Endgame, Shockwave, the rest of those one-off episode timelines are #4-20
Mirror is further out with stuff like human eyes being more sensitive, and it probably #24 or thereabouts.

Renegades is probably #150something, where Starships evolved differently, terminology differs, Tuvok is a human named Kovok but everyone and everything has an analogue and they all have the same personalities.

The Orville is a universe with different Starship evolution, no human transporters, no known local Trek aliens so galactic history and evolution would have to differ quite a bit and those differences probably mean there aren't analogues of Trek characters (and vice-versa) as in Renegades. Probably in the #400's of universes away from Star Trek. But who knows, maybe that NX-02 engineer is a distant multiverse relative of Captain Mercer.

Doctor Who crossed over with Trek in comic books and television crossovers were discussed at one point (at least on the Who side), one can speculate that the Temporal Wars of Trek and the Time War of Doctor Who are perhaps linked in some vague way. An illegally-published fanfic from the 80's (The Doctor and the Enterprise) goes into some detail and establishes a divergence point being in the ancient past when the Vulcan race died out in Who but not in Trek and their influence over the galaxy led to major differences. With all the timeline changes, Doctor Who would be thousands of universes away from Trek.

If Seth MacFarlane wants to make a show that's officially called Star Trek, he should not renew is contract with FOX (or whoever) when it's up, then negotiate a contract with Paramount, approach Alex Kurtzman, and see what Alex says.

Supposedly, The Orville is the result of him being rejected by CBS years ago.

 

[WarpTenLizard]

The Orville is the early 25th century, staring in 2419. I can 100% see it as part of the Trek multiverse but a far off branch.

Prime is #1
Novelverse is #2
Kelvin is #3
All Good Things, Endgame, Shockwave, the rest of those one-off episode timelines are #4-20
Mirror is further out with stuff like human eyes being more sensitive, and it probably #24 or thereabouts.

Renegades is probably #150something, where Starships evolved differently, terminology differs, Tuvok is a human named Kovok but everyone and everything has an analogue and they all have the same personalities.

The Orville is a universe with different Starship evolution, no human transporters, no known local Trek aliens so galactic history and evolution would have to differ quite a bit and those differences probably mean there aren't analogues of Trek characters (and vice-versa) as in Renegades. Probably in the #400's of universes away from Star Trek. But who knows, maybe that NX-02 engineer is a distant multiverse relative of Captain Mercer.

Doctor Who crossed over with Trek in comic books and television crossovers were discussed at one point (at least on the Who side), one can speculate that the Temporal Wars of Trek and the Time War of Doctor Who are perhaps linked in some vague way. An illegally-published fanfic from the 80's (The Doctor and the Enterprise) goes into some detail and establishes a divergence point being in the ancient past when the Vulcan race died out in Who but not in Trek and their influence over the galaxy led to major differences. With all the timeline changes, Doctor Who would be thousands of universes away from Trek.

Supposedly, The Orville is the result of him being rejected by CBS years ago.

Dang, I forgot all about the lack of transporters!

Thanks for the thought out response. I like your ranking of the Novelverse, Renegades and so forth.

 

[Phoenix219]

I don't usually go there, so no..... a comments thread somewhere, if not here, perhaps reddit. Not sure.

 

[at Quark's]

If only Worf could have jumped to that universe in Parallels ...and be accosted by Klyden ('from what I understand, there's a good chance my Bortus won't return!')

 

[Timo]

In-universe, a TV show having fun at the expense of contemporary Starfleet would run into the obstacle that "TV shows" died in the 21st century already, while the Starfleet being ridiculed is the 24th century one. /

Then again, in-universe, "The Orville" might have been done in the early 21st century just like ITRW, only it would be an actual piece of indigenous creative spark rather than a parody (since if Star Trek existed in Star Trek, Lower Decks would already have mentioned it somehow). And somebody at Starfleet would be a fan, and would have a bit of pull in the mid-24th century... /

Timo Saloniemi

 

[WarpTenLizard]

In-universe, a TV show having fun at the expense of contemporary Starfleet would run into the obstacle that "TV shows" died in the 21st century already, while the Starfleet being ridiculed is the 24th century one. /

Then again, in-universe, "The Orville" might have been done in the early 21st century just like ITRW, only it would be an actual piece of indigenous creative spark rather than a parody (since if Star Trek existed in Star Trek, Lower Decks would already have mentioned it somehow). And somebody at Starfleet would be a fan, and would have a bit of pull in the mid-24th century... /

Timo Saloniemi

Yeah, I just could never buy that movies and TV died out in the Star Trek universe. "Voyager" had Neelix's news show, and the one Admiral Janeway was watching at the start of "Endgame." To say nothing of how hypocritical it is for "Star Trek" to be anti-TV.

 

[Bork359]

I'm glad this forum allows discussions of the Orville because for my money it's the best Star Trek series this decade, in spirit if not in name. Once the stupid out of place McFarlane humor was toned down a bit (but not enough IMO) in season 2, the series really came into its own. Can't wait for season 3.

 

[WarpTenLizard]

If only Worf could have jumped to that universe in Parallels ...and be accosted by Klyden ('from what I understand, there's a good chance my Bortus won't return!')

Tbh I wouldn't mind seeing Worf beat the tar out of Klyden. That winny bigot has no redeemable qualities for me.

 

[ivypool]

In-universe, a TV show having fun at the expense of contemporary Starfleet would run into the obstacle that "TV shows" died in the 21st century already, while the Starfleet being ridiculed is the 24th century one. /

Then again, in-universe, "The Orville" might have been done in the early 21st century just like ITRW, only it would be an actual piece of indigenous creative spark rather than a parody (since if Star Trek existed in Star Trek, Lower Decks would already have mentioned it somehow). And somebody at Starfleet would be a fan, and would have a bit of pull in the mid-24th century... /

Timo Saloniemi

They do seem to still have narrative fiction however. Theoretically it could exist as an in-universe holotape.

Personally I’ve never been fond of the idea that film is a dead medium in the twenty fourth century. I mean, it’s not as if books disappeared with the advent of audio dramas, while audio dramas survive today in the form of the narrative podcast.