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Electric Sheep

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Electric Sheep is the first episode and season premiere of the third season of The Orville. The crew of the USS Orville deals with the wounds left by the Battle of Earth, and not everyone is ready to move on. Meanwhile, the vessel itself undergoes an extensive refit to better prepare it for future confrontations.

Electric Sheep was written by Seth MacFarlane[1] and directed by both MacFarlane and Jon Cassar.[2][3] Music was composed by Kevin Kaska. Its title is believed to refer to the 1968 science-fiction novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick.

The episode was first shown to a limited audience at the California Science Center on May 25, 2022, an event which included a full-size model of the Pterodon.[4] The episode's official premiere date was June 2, 2022, although the episode had actually opened in the western United States the day before.

The episode was dedicated to actor Norm Macdonald (Yaphit), who passed away from cancer shortly before airing. When MacFarlane announced the dedication to the late actor, he said,

It's sad to have lost him. And at the same time, I'm very grateful that he left us with all of these great Yaphet [sic] bits that have yet to come. The fact that The Orville has the privilege of doling out the last comedy moments that he left us in these recordings, we're lucky. We're lucky that he was a part of the show, and we're lucky that he's in this third season.[5]

The episode holds a 7.5 rating on IMDb, the second-lowest score of the season (above only Shadow Realms) but the highest of the show's other season premieres, Old Wounds and Ja'loja.[6]

Plot[]

Act 1[]

The episode opens to a pitched firefight in the Battle of Earth between several Planetary Union ships, including the USS Orville, against multiple Kaylon spheres. A Union ship explodes, and the Orville is heavily damaged. Marcus Finn races down one of the Orville's hallways to his family's quarters. He finds his brother, Ty Finn, and (to both of their surprise) Isaac. Isaac's head opens to reveal monstrous teeth; Marcus suddenly awakes in a cold sweat on his bed - it was a nightmare.

Meanwhile, the Orville is ported at the Union Dockyard in orbit around Earth. Chief Engineering Officer John LaMarr enters the Astrophysics Lab where Isaac is working. John apologizes to say that he needs to use the Lab for a ship-wide diagnostic and attempts to make a joke, but Isaac does not understand it and awkwardly exits. Isaac enters the Mess Hall and sits beside several other officers, including Navigator Charly Burke. The officers coldly leave the table, but Charly returns to tell him of how she had lost her best friend on the USS Quimby in the Battle of Earth and blames Isaac for her loss. She ends by telling him to stay out of the Mess Hall because it sickens officers like her to look at him. Isaac returns to the Astrophysics Lab and sees someone has graffitied 'MURDERER' in red paint on the wall.

Act 2[]

Chief Security Officer Talla Keyali calls Captain Ed Mercer and First Officer Kelly Grayson to the Astrophysics Lab. She reports that the culprit scrubbed their DNA and used a stolen identification code to synthesize the paint. Talla also reports that she observed Charly say abusive things to Isaac in the Mess Hall. Isaac downplays the incident because he "cannot be hurt" emotionally. Ed and Kelly call Charly into the Captain's Office, and Charly says that most of the crew is incensed Isaac remains on the ship and his presence insults the memory of Union lives lost. Ed confesses he, too, worries he made the wrong decision to re-activate Isaac, but given how advanced the Kaylon are, Isaac is the only being capable of finding and exploiting a Kaylon weakness.

John supervises the Engineering team's repairs to the ship's exterior, while Helmsman Gordon Malloy zips through space in a new Union fighter. Once Gordon lands in the Shuttle Bay, Charly admires the new ship but expresses her annoyance when she learns Isaac will make upgrades to it. Gordon confides that he also mistrusts him.

Doctor Claire Finn and Ty Finn check on Isaac in Engineering, who affirms is not upset. Meanwhile, Gordon takes the Pterodon on a new flight test against drones controlled by Charly. Talla tells Kelly that she has discovered who replicated the paint: Marcus Finn.

Act 3[]

Claire confronts Marcus, but Marcus is unrepentant and says he wants to leave the Orville if Isaac stays. Isaac apologizes to Marcus, but Marcus says he wishes Isaac were dead. Isaac wanders the ship's halls and stares out into space. He returns to the Astrophysics Lab, leaves a message detailing improvements to the ship and his best wishes to the Finn family, and kills himself.

John reports that Isaac used amplified electromagnetic pulses to fry his interior circuitry. Lieutenant Yaphit enters Isaac's body but reports the damage is far too severe to repair. The senior officers grapple with the knowledge that the crew's abuse led Isaac to kill himself.

Act 4[]

That night, Claire enters Marcus' room to tell him that Isaac's suicide was Isaac's decision alone. Marcus rebuffs that he is fine.

Kelly finds Claire staring out the window. Claire admits she struggled to understand her feelings toward Isaac and whether she could forgive him. Kelly encourages her to explore her emotions.

Later, Ed leads Isaac's funeral. From a hallway, Marcus quietly listens to his eulogy.

Claire enters the Environmental Simulator to find Ty speaking with a simulation of Isaac. Claire warns him that using the Simulator to bring back those lost could impede the grieving process and lead to psychological harm. Ty exits, so Claire runs Isaac 8443 - Isaac's program of Claire's favorite restaurant back on Earth - sits at their old table, and weeps.

John's Engineering team completes repairs. Once the team's inside, Ed orders the Orville to leave the dockyard. As the Orville flies traverses space, John beds a Dakeeli woman, Irillia. As the two chat after sex, the woman discovers a fork in John's drawer. John explains the fork was a gift from Isaac, who did not understand the concept of a good birthday present. When the conversation turns to Isaac's suicide, she says that in Dakeeli culture, suicide is a purely personal choice that is not seen as sad. Instead of grieving, the living cherish the memories of those lost. Suddenly, John has an idea.

In Engineering, Johh orders Unk to smash a chip extracted from Isaac's core. He reports to the senior staff in the Briefing Room that within that chip was an even smaller memory storage cell that could be "revived," but revival would require the ability for the lead engineer to see in four dimensions, an ability only Charly possesses.

Act 5[]

Ed pleads with Charly, but she is adamant that Isaac "deserves to be dead." Suddenly, a Sphere attacks. The crew flees to the Phycor system and enters the atmosphere of a planet. The planet has extraordinarily intense cyclonic storms, and the Sphere does not pursue them. The Sphere waits in orbit, expecting the storms to destroy the Orville. Ed orders Second Officer Bortus to load the ship's Plasma Torpedoes onto a shuttle. Gordon guides the shuttle remotely through the planet until the Orville fires upon it, exploding the shuttle. From orbit, the Sphere mistakes the explosion for the Orville's destruction and leaves.

John reports there is only a couple hours remaining before Isaac's storage cell cannot be revived. Charly refuses a second time to fix Isaac, so Ed relieves her of duty.

Charly retires to the Mess Hall for a drink. Marcus finds her and begs her to help Isaac. He confides that he was the reason Isaac killed himself. Charly says that Isaac's decision was his alone, so Marcus simply states that he did not want Isaac to die.

In Engineering, Charly begins restoring pathways within Isaac's body and revives him. Isaac asks Charly to explain why she revived him; Charly states only that she did not revive Isaac for him.

Claire chats with Isaac in her office in Sick Bay. Isaac explains that he committed suicide because his presence was "detrimental" to the crew and deactivation would be better for everyone. Claire wants affirmation he will not commit suicide again, so she convinces him that in her professional capacity as an expert on biological life, she can authoritatively state that the crew is not better off for his absence:

There is no problem so immense that it cannot be solved in time. You're a Kaylon. Your people would like to see us all dead. But you're also a person, and you're here with us, and it's a lot harder to hate from up close.

Isaac promises to talk to Claire if he thinks of suicide again, and she says she is glad he is alive.

Later, Marcus finds Isaac working in the Astrophysics Lab. Marcus motions to say something... but turns and leaves.

Production[]

By May 2019, the writing team gathered to plan the story arc for this episode. Executive producers David A. Goodman wanted to explore the repercussions of Isaac's decisions in Identity, Pt. 1 and Pt. 2,[7] while showrunner Seth MacFarlane and executive producer Brannon Braga wanted to show the fallout from Kaylon's attack on the Planetary Union and what happens to Isaac.[8] They hammered out the major plot points for Electric Sheep where everyone hated Isaac,[9] and MacFarlane then filled in the gaps with a script.[1]

While reviewing the script, the writing team were sensitive to the fact that Electric Sheep was the season premiere and needed to be accessible to audiences who were new to the show. That proved difficult because the episode addressed the repercussions of Isaac's decision to remain on the USS Orville, which requires the audience to have seen Season 2. They ultimately decided to use flashbacks and characters explaining past events.[8]

The script for the episode underwent blue revisions on October 3, 2019.[10]

The cast gathered for a table read of the script on October 15, 2019.[11]

Production crew received the production meeting draft on October 16, 2019.[10]

Filming[]

Electric Sheep was directed by Jon Cassar and MacFarlane, the first episode filmed for Season 3.[3][12] Filming of Marcus Finn running through the ship was directed by Cassar.[13]

Preparations for the episode concluded around October 17, 2019.[2] Filming of Electric Sheep began on October 21, 2019 with general crew call and rehearsal at 7:00 a.m., shoot call at 8:00 a.m. and a break for lunch at 1:00 p.m.[14]

In the first week of shooting, one of the first scenes was the flashback of Charly Burke and Amanda in the Kaylon invasion of Earth. However, at the time, Anne Winters, who plays Charly, mistakenly assumed Charly's relationship with Amanda was "a coworker, one of my friends." Winters learned of Charly's secret love for Amanda "a couple of weeks later." Showrunner Seth MacFarlane offered Winters the chance to retry it, "If you do want to reshoot it, it could look the same, it could look different, we don’t know. But if you want to, let me know." Winters accepted, "Actually, yeah. I’m going to take you up on that."[15]


The scene was re-shot. In a later interview with Yahoo! Entertainment, Winters explained her reasoning:

There was this girl that she loved and she never got to say it, and since that was a core part of her story and in her mind all the time, it felt right to do the scene again with that in mind. I don’t know if it looked any different to the naked eye, but it felt different as an actor.[15]

The original take of that scene has not been released and is considered lost media of The Orville.

According to actor J. Lee (John LaMarr), the first shot of Engineering was unusual in that the crew used an extremely long crane to bring the camera from 30 feet in the air, through the ship's quantum core, and up to the cast.[16]

By the morning of October 24, Cassar tweeted "two big days of shooting" had worn him out.[17] He filmed a scene coded "V-49M" on October 30.[18] The show continued to film even as late as November 6, shooting parts of this episode and "gathering material" for Shadow Realms, Mortality Paradox, and possibly Gently Falling Rain.[19]

Post-production[]

Post-production of Electric Sheep was considered complete by July 22, 2020,[20] although a week later, editor and associate producer Tom Costantino said that parts remained unfinished.[21]

Costantino later published a photograph of the sound effect cues for a storm, earthquake rumble, a "crysknife" being unsheathed (a knife from the Dune franchise), and a "horror" sound.[22] The scene in question occurred at 55 minutes into the episode,[23] so it is probably the Orville entering the cyclonic atmosphere of a planet in the Phycor system.

Music[]

Music was performed by a live orchestra. It was likely recorded on September 16, 2021, the first day of score recording in general.[24]

Reception[]

Viewership[]

The Covid-19 pandemic had significantly delayed the premiere of Electric Sheep, and several years had passed since the finale of Season 2. Studio executives, cast, and crew all wondered how the pandemic would impact ratings. Days before the premiere, Seth MacFarlane seemed nervous but hopeful audiences would turn up to watch The Orville.

I guess the pandemic gave audiences a chance to step away and discover the show on their own terms and not be told what it was. How many people discovered it during that time, we're about to find out because I just don't know. We're about to find out when Season 3 airs.[25]

Trivia[]

  • When Charly Burke tells Ed Mercer that reactivating Isaac was a mistake, Ed says, "Isaac is the only person who might be able to help us devise a potent enough defense that we can all feel secure again." In Domino, Isaac and Charly will work together to create a quantum weapon capable of destroying the Kaylon and bringing peace to the galaxy.
  • This episode was director Jon Cassar's 200th directing credit.[2]
  • Electric Sheep was the first episode to be produced and aired by Hulu.
    • Hulu sent the cast and crew Orville-themed cookies on the first day of shooting to commemorate the occasion.[26]
  • The episode was delayed many times over due to the Covid-19 pandemic:
    • Electric Sheep was originally slated to premiere in the year 2020[27][28] in the autumn.[29][30]
    • Due to the global Covid-19 pandemic, it was then moved to late 2021 or even 2022.[31]
    • On September 23, 2021, it was officially reported that the episode would premiere on March 10, 2022.[32]
    • On February 4, 2022, however, it was announced that the release had been delayed until June 2, 2022.[33]
  • Including all credits, but not commercials, the episode is approximately 70 minutes in length, easily episode the longest up to that point, though ultimately one of the shorter episodes of the season overall.
  • The scene between Charly and Amanda was reshot after actress Anne Winters became aware of a major revelation regarding their relationship during a later episode, and Seth MacFarlane offered her the chance to film the scene again with that in mind.[34]

Timeline[]

  • The episode probably takes place in 2422, as upgrades to the Orville's auxiliary power, which happened in 2421, are said to have taken place in the prior year.[n 1]
    • About one year has passed since Locar's upgrades on the Orville's deflectors, which happened in January 2421. This implies that Electric Sheep takes place in early 2422.
  • According to Kelly Grayson, the Orville has been stationed at the Dockyard for three weeks.
  • Thirty minutes pass between John LaMarr entering the astrophysics lab, Isaac going to the mess hall, and returning to the lab to find the graffiti 'MURDERER' on the wall.
    • No more than several hours pass between John entering the lab and Talla Keyali opening her investigation of the graffiti.
  • No more than two hours pass between the Orville eluding a Kaylon Sphere and Charly Burke reviving Isaac.

References[]

  • The title Electric Sheep is generally believed to refer to the 1968 science-fiction novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick.
  • One of the first things Charly Burke says to Isaac is that she has loved pancakes with butter since she was a child. This would become part of Isaac's eulogy for her in Domino.

Mistakes[]

  • In one shot at the start of the episode, when Isaac enters the Mess Hall, a female Human Engineering Officer ascends the stairs directly to the left of Isaac. When the camera angle changes, she disappears.

Cast[]

The following cast list is drawn from a variety of sources and is not officially confirmed.

Main cast[]

Recurring cast[]

Guest cast[]

  • Alexis Knapp as Irillia
  • Amanda Joy Erickson as Amanda
  • Deep Rai as Crewman
  • Jonny Siew as Engineer #1

Uncredited[]

  • Eric Satterberg as Mr. Reynolds[35] (also listed as Teacher)[36]

Gallery[]

Videos[]

Still images[]

Notes[]

  1. ↑ "In theory, if we were to tap into the auxiliary power boost we got last year from the Moclan upgrade, the Orville's quantum drive is almost on par with a heavy cruiser."

References[]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 @EgotasticFT. "Hey, #TheOrville Fans!!! Season 3 is in production but this first episode needs a title... give me your best guess in the comments!". Twitter. Nov. 2, 2019.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 @joncassar. "Final days of prep for the first episode of season 3 of #TheOrville. Cameras roll on Monday. This episode will be my 200th directing credit.". Twitter. Oct. 17, 2019.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 /u/editboy1000. "The Orville season 3: Who is writing, directing premiere?". Reddit. Dec. 24, 2019.
  4. ↑ The Orville Season 3 | Electric Sheep Spoiler Free Review. Egotastic FunTime. May 25, 2022.
  5. ↑ Bennett, Tara. "The Orville: New Horizons - Creator Seth MacFarlane Talks Season 3, Norm Macdonald, and More". IGN. June 1, 2022.
  6. ↑ The Orville Season 3 Episode List. IMDb. Retrieved on August 20, 2022.
  7. ↑ Pascale, Anthony. "Interview: David A. Goodman On How ‘The Orville’ Wrapped Up Season Two And Where It Could Go Next". TrekMovie. May 3, 2019.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Pascale, Anthony. "Interview: ‘The Orville’ Producers Talk Epic Scale And Big Cameos In ‘New Horizons’ Season". TrekMovie.com. May 27, 2022.
  9. ↑ "THE ORVILLE: NEW HORIZONS - Funny cast interview with the boys on the bridge!". Tanavi P. Feb. 7, 2022.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 @tomtheorville. "Final @theorville pre-production 🎬meeting. For those playing along with the home game. #theorville @hulu". Instagram. Oct. 16, 2019.
  11. ↑ @tomtheorville. "#Repost My phone isn’t just for MORE - @theorville 🤣👾👽🚀・・・First table read of #TheOrville Season 3! Get excited for the new adventures ahead!👍🏻💫". Instagram. Oct. 15, 2019.
  12. ↑ The Orville Season 3 New York Comic Con Reel. Planetary Union Network. Oct. 6, 2019.
  13. ↑ Weintraub, Steve. "Seth MacFarlane on ‘The Orville: New Horizons,’ Directing While Acting, and Why He’s Grateful to Hulu [Exclusive]". Collider. July 2, 2022.
  14. ↑ @TomCostantino. "See ya Monday. @TheOrville @hulu #TheOrville @planetary_union 🚀". Twitter. Oct. 18, 2019.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 The Orville's Anne Winters Talks Charly's Heroic Act, Why a Scene With Her 'Love' Amanda Was Reshot. Yahoo! Entertainment. Aug. 2, 2022.
  16. ↑ Inside The Orville | GENTLY FALLING RAIN + Sneak Peek & Scott Grimes/JLee. Talking The Orville. June 26, 2022.
  17. ↑ @joncassar. "Feeling a little worn out from two big days of shooting on #TheOrville. https://instagram.com/p/B4AneIPJM5jmjrnz7e0O9gfj-jUGPgAc5DVADU0/?igshid=3u5szjn6wpp". Twitter. Oct. 24, 2019.
  18. ↑ @TomCostantino. "Put on the red light. @theorville @hulu @joncassar @planetary_union #theorville 👽🎬🚀🎥 https://ift.tt/2PAEyDc". Twitter. Oct. 30, 2019.
  19. ↑ An Interview with Tom Costantino, Co-Producer of The Orville. Multiverse Tonight. Nov. 6, 2019
  20. ↑ THE ORVILLE SEASON 3 | The Day Productions Shut Down - Biggest Season Yet | TOM COSTANTINO INTERVIEW. Egotastic FunTime. July 22, 2020.
  21. ↑ /u/editboy1000. "Tom Constantino wraps today’s “news” up with a pretty little bow". Reddit. Aug. 1, 2020.
  22. ↑ @tomtheorville. " tomtheorville Tetris anyone? #TheOrville #S3 #postproduction #post 🖥🪐". Instagram. Aug. 25, 2021.
  23. ↑ THE ORVILLE SEASON 3 | Premiere Episode Climax - Theory Correction Breakdown. Egotastic FunTime. Aug. 27, 2021.
  24. ↑ @macfarlaneseth. "First day of scoring for #TheOrville Season 3!". Instagram. Sept. 16, 2021.
  25. ↑ Mission Log: The Orville - Supplemental 03 - Seth MacFarlane. Roddenberry Entertainment. May 25, 2022.
  26. ↑ @joncassar. "A nice treat for the cast and crew on the first day of shooting of #TheOrville - thx #Hulu". Twitter. Oct. 21, 2019.
  27. ↑ Rice, Lynette. "See Fox's 2019-20 primetime schedule". Entertainment Weekly. May 13, 2019.
  28. ↑ Halterman, Jim. "Fox Fall 2019 Schedule: 'Last Man Standing' & 'Orville' Held to 2020, 'Empire' to End With Season 6". TV Insider. May 13, 2019.
  29. ↑ "Mindscape 58 | Seth MacFarlane on Using Science Fiction to Explore Humanity". Sean Carroll. Aug. 5, 2019.
  30. ↑ u/tqgibtngo. "I'm confused. — Reports say Fox indicated a "midseason" 2020 premiere. Doesn't "midseason" traditionally span from January to circa May? Is Fox going for a RUSHED production schedule?". Twitter. May 13, 2019.
  31. ↑ Pascale, Anthony. "Exclusive: ‘The Orville’ Season 3 Is Returning To Production In December". TrekMovie.com. Nov. 9, 2020.
  32. ↑ Kim, Matt "The Orville: New Horizons Season 3 Release Date Announced". IGN. September 23, 2021.
  33. ↑ Kim, Matt "The Orville: New Horizons Season 3 Release Date Announced". IGN. Updated February 4, 2022.
  34. ↑ "The Orville's Anne Winters Talks Charly's Heroic Act, Why a Scene With Her 'Love' Amanda Was Reshot". Yahoo. August 2, 2022.
  35. ↑ ERIC SATTERBERG. BreakdownExpress.com. Last accessed Aug. 22, 2021.
  36. ↑ Episode #3.1. IMDB. Last accessed March 22, 2020.
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