‘The Orville’ Recap: ‘Primal Urges’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

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When we last settled in to discuss the wonder that is The Orville, which ironically only happened a couple of days ago, I made mention of the fact that a grand shift appeared to be underway on this series, one that would put the characters front and center on this show since the season two premiere was focused heavily on the crew and what makes them tick and well, it would seem that my musings on this matter were in fact correct. For last night’s episode of the show, ‘Primal Urges’, was laser focused on providing us with another quality character study, one that quite frankly, took us to some surprisingly unexpected places.
 
For while the premiere gave us a grand and sweeping character driven story, this episode narrowed its view and took us on a journey with Commander Bortus and well, it turns out the Commander was struggling with everyday life in this tale. Because we learned that his home life is a mess right now, to the point where Bortus made every effort to avoid being at home and the easiest way to make that happen, was to explore his sexual fantasies in the Environmental Simulator. Yet while this was both hilarious and awkward for the audience, since we were in fact, privy to Bortus’ fantasies in detail (allowing for us to bear witness to the Moclan equivalent of a bad romance novel), it was necessary to the story since it eased us into a plot point that was surprisingly deep and powerful. 
 
Because there was a genuine reason as to why the Commander was suddenly so obsessed with living in a world of sexual fantasies instead of spending time at home, and all of it related to the fact that he never got over what happened on Moclus when it comes to his child. In fact, he outright resented that Klyden didn’t fight harder to keep Topa female and that decision created quite the rift in their relationship and honestly, I didn’t see this plot twist coming. I truly thought this was going to be a story about addiction and the power and draw of that, but instead, this was a tale about a broken man, one whose heart was still in two pieces over how his mate didn’t fight harder for their family and a greater cause and that was definitely powerful and poignant because it allowed for a greater message to come forth.

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In essence, the story put forth that we never quite know what kinds of decisions our loved ones will make when faced with a life changing crisis, and it is up to both parties in the relationship to discuss the matter and figure out a way forward once the dust has settled, and not doing that, was the grand mistake that Bortus and Klyden made. They barely discussed what happened on Moclus and the resentment grew silently between them and really, I love the fact that the episode explored this part of the human condition. It’s simply something that you don’t see examined in science fiction all that often, or in any genre for that matter and kudos to writer Wellesley Wild for putting together a story that dealt with some sensitive and powerful stuff and what was equally as impressive when it comes to this episode, is that it had plenty more to offer the audience.
 
Because outside of the Bortus/Klyden storyline, the crew had their hands full with a big-time rescue mission. For a planet that was being devoured by its sun, just so happened to have people living beneath its surface. Meaning it was a race against time to get them aboard the Orville and that push made for some intense and tear-jerking television, since John and Isaac had to work hard to combat a nasty virus that Bortus inadvertently uploaded, in order to save the ship from danger, and the people on the planet had to decide who from their doomed civilization would survive since they were out of time, and there simply wasn’t enough room on the rescue shuttle to save them all. And it was quite beautiful and heartbreaking to witness how one family’s sacrifice helped Bortus to realize that the past must remain in the past, and that it was imperative that he work with Klyden on their marriage, to ensure a sound future for his family.
 
When all is said and done however, I have to admit that I was quite impressed with how this episode blended together so many powerful elements over the course of the hour, seamlessly. Because everything worked perfectly in this tale. The jokes were flawless, the drama was on point, and I was on the edge of my seat during the finale and well, once again, this series simply delivered another incredible episode, and I do find it interesting that Commander Bortus has now provided this series with two emotionally loaded and poignant episodes and I really do love the fact that the show took the time to follow up on ‘About a Girl’ in this fashion. But alas, our super-sized dose of The Orville this week has come to its end, and we are back to only enjoying this magnificent saga once a week and once more, I’ll be counting down the minutes until next Thursday to see what storytelling wonders await us on this stunning series. 

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