‘The Orville’ Recap: ‘Identity, Part 2’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

I have been, and will forever be, a sucker when it comes to the cliffhanger. I just love seeing the words ‘to be continued…’ when watching my favorite television shows, because the excitement and anticipation that comes from seeing those words is rarely rivaled and if there’s one genre that has done a fine job with this particular type of episode, it’s science fiction. Because some of the finest shows from the sci-fi world have provided us with some truly thrilling cliffhangers over the years, the kind that leave you talking and speculating, and it just so happens that The Orville has managed to join the tiny list of science fiction shows to pull off this magnificent feat.
 
For last week’s episode of the show provided us with a chilling cliffhanger, one that saw trouble brewing for humanity and the other species of the galaxy as the Kaylon fleet began its journey to Earth with the Orville leading the way and man…I know I’m not the only fan of this show whose mind was filled with to the brim with questions revolving around this stunning sequence of events and what all of it might mean for some of the characters going forward, especially when it comes to Isaac. After all he seemed just fine with turning on his friends/surrogate family, and one had to wonder if there was any chance at salvation for our favorite android. But the bigger question on my mind is how in the universe the crew would manage to get out of the stickiest mess they’ve been involved in to date and thankfully, last night’s episode of the show, ‘Identity, Part 2’, was more than happy to answer all of our questions in downright epic fashion. 
 
But before this episode answered those all-important queries, the story took the time to build up the danger and the tension, for the early part of this tale revealed exactly why the Kaylons didn’t exterminate the entire crew when they had the opportunity. It turns out that they needed Mercer and the crew in order to sell their surprise attack upon the Union, and the expectation from Primary, was that the Captain would sell a lie to his superiors, in that, the Kaylons had followed the Orville with a diplomatic fleet to Earth in order to join the Union and once planetary defenses were lowered as a peaceful gesture, the Kaylons would attack, and unfortunately for the crew, they were able to get a taste of Kaylon might and their resolve when an attempt to warn the Union via the crew of the U.S.S. Roosevelt, ended in violent fashion.

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​Yet the danger didn’t end there, since Primary made a point to kill a member of the crew to keep the Captain from deceiving them again, but thankfully, Mercer resolved himself to keep the good fight going so that his crew-member didn’t die in vain. Which meant that everyone pitched in to save the Earth, to the point where Kelly and Gordon took a shuttle to Krill space to ask for their enemy’s help in defeating the Kaylon, and even young Ty stepped up to the plate, in order to help Yaphet get a message to Union HQ and well, it turned out to be a good thing that this young man helped in the fight. Because his eventual capture brought him face to face with Isaac and seeing Ty once again, changed Isaac for the better. For instead of following through with Primary’s order to kill the boy, Isaac instead turned on his leader and the guards, and helped to retake the ship.
 
Which quite frankly, was a freakin’ relief because none of us wanted Isaac to ever be evil, and it was touching to see that he cared after all, and his act of genuine heroism and kindness could not have come at a better time, for shortly after the Kaylon aboard the Orville were disabled, the fleet arrived at Earth and that’s went this episode went to some explosive places. For the battle that took place over the moon, was downright stunning to say the least thanks to its savagery as Mercer and the Union did their best to fight off these invaders. But, while they held their own for as long as they could, they needed help and thankfully, they received it from the Krill, and with an ally at their side, humanity and one of their greatest foes were able to drive off the Kaylon and save countless lives and while there is a lot to celebrate when it comes to this tale, there is still an uneasy air hanging over the future of this show, since the Kaylon are still out there, likely calculating their next move…
 
However, that ominous thought aside, this really was one incredible episode. The Battle of Earth had my heart pounding with the thrilling visuals and tense moments it provided us with and that fight, will definitely go down as one of the greatest space battles ever seen on a sci-fi show, and it instantly reminded me of the high stakes battles we saw during the Dominion War on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and well, my hats off to Seth MacFarlane and his entire crew for delivering an amazing conclusion to this cliffhanger, one that left us on the edge of our seats. And now that this mess is out of the way, I’m sure the crew of the U.S.S. Orville will be headed back out toward the stars to continue their mission of discovery, and thankfully, they’ll have Isaac alongside them because what would this surrogate family be, without their curious android? Until next time. 

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