Welcome to a very special edition of The Redenbacher Report! The Orville has rightfully been renewed for a third season! We were all on the edge of our seats for the last couple of weeks waiting for this news and finally, we can rest easy knowing the future will have plenty more of The Orville in it! As someone who blogs and podcasts about the show, I’m elated but as a fan of television, especially Sci Fi and the work of Seth MacFarlene, I couldn’t be happier. I can’t wait to see where the show goes to from here, so off I go to speculate.

Let the good times roll!

I haven’t written about the second season (not series!) finale yet. “The Road Not Taken,” was a fitting end to the season. We got to see the repercussions of Past Kelly altering the timeline. I’m pleased to say that some of my predictions in the last blog were pretty spot on. Especially my mention of Isaac and him not turning on the Kaylon because he didn’t have a bond with Claire in the kids in this timeline. I love a show that rewards viewers for getting invested, and thinking deeply about small details. I’m still hoping we get more of the Kaylon and Aronov’s research in season 3. They read Isaac’s data banks in Identity Part 1, and with what we assume is a restored timeline in season 3, they should still have that knowledge. The Kaylon read Isaac’s data before he finished the research but a ship of Kaylon should be able to figure it out as fast or faster than one of them. I think that the Kaylon threat, with time manipulation abilities would be a really cool two parter for next season.





I could’ve watched a whole series of this alternate timeline. Seeing a universe where The Planetary Union has Fallen is very grim but oh so intriguing. Very Star Wars esque as we see our former diplomats become rebels. This was definitely not lost on the writers when we saw Yaphit shove his mouth through the peephole. Thinking about it now, I just realized how silly it is to have Yaphit look through the peep hole to greet people. Even without the memory loss, he still doesn’t have eyes, and he’d have to stretch himself just to get a view. I have no idea how Yaphit see’s, if anyone has any idea let me know in the comments or @TheRedenbacher on Twitter!

Of course the biggest question is, where is Dann in this timeline?

I mentioned in the last blog that an Alara appearance was extremely likely, and wouldn’t you know it, we were graced with her presence this week. It was great to see her, even if just for a couple of minutes. Most of the situations in this timeline highlighted just how good it is in the timeline where The Union is still around, but Alara’s situation really hit it home for me. She didn’t have Ed as a mentor on the Orville and she didn’t get the chance to grow as much as she did in her time on the show. It reinforced how great her arc was and helps me cope with her being off the show, knowing that Alara is getting to spend time with her family and finally bond with her father.

The connective tissue of the love story between Ed and Kelly really tied these past two episodes together. We managed to get both a happy and sad ending where one timeline appears to be fixed and another is wiped from existence. At least that’s what I assume happened. Claire successfully wiping Kelly’s memory and the episode ending with Kelly agreeing to the second date with Ed seems to ensure things is back to normal (as normal as things can be for the weirdest ship on the fleet). One has to assuming that the “dark” timeline we spent most of the episode in was wiped from existence. Although, the romantic in me can’t help but picture Ed and Kelly in some cabin on an abandoned planet, finally getting to be together

Still we don’t know if Ed and Kelly are going to get together in the regular timeline. I don’t think things have changed for Kelly. I don’t think she’ll be aware of the events from her past self’s escapades. And honestly, it was Kelly’s choices that helped lead to the exact circumstances that allowed the Orville to overcome the Kaylon. I think we’re still in Ross and Rachel “will they, won’t they” territory, even though they they’re already gotten married and divorce.

Moral of the story: Always go on a second date with Ed Mercer.

I’m so damn giddy right now. This show really is a gift. If CBS didn’t turn down Seth we never would’ve gotten such a gem of a tv series. The fact that it gets to continue on both in comics and television is fantastic! Thanks to everyone who helped make the show possible, and thank you to everyone who remained vocal about our eternal desire for this show to continue. The season 2 ending would’ve worked as a great ending for the series, but with writers and VFX team like The Orville’s, I’m confident that we haven’t even seen the best of the series yet. The future is oh so bright when The Orville is out there.

If you’d like to hear more about “The Road Not Taken,” check out this week’s podcast on Podbean, iTunes and Spotify for more speculation. If you enjoy it, think about throwing us a like or a subscribe! You can also follow us on Instagram @TheRedenbacher. Thanks for all the support. There will be more of these in the summer as we go over season 1 and cover the comics. Until next time!