Official logo of the Planetary Union Network.
The Planetary Union Network: The Orville Official Fan Podcast (also PUN) is the official podcast of The Orville and notable for its interviews with cast and crew. Created by Dan Taylor in early 2017, the Planetary Union Network is the oldest fan podcast. It provides a rare look at the production of the show, and, in some cases, offered glimpses into future episodes.
Currently, the Planetary Union Network is led by hosts Joe Quickle and Michael May, although previous hosts include Taylor, Joe's wife Megan, and director Jon Cassar. During the television season run, new podcast episodes come out on or before the Monday following new episodes of the series. When the series is on hiatus, new podcast episodes come out on Mondays as new content is available to discuss.
The Planetary Union Network became a favorite platform for The Orville's production crew during and after Season 1 to contact fans. As a result, the Network was first to announce many major news updates, including the episode title of Ja'loja, the Season 2 schedule,[1] and the Season 2 outtakes video,[2] ahead of traditional news outlets.
History[]
The Orville Season 2 Gag Reel
The Planetary Union Network published this exclusive video of Season 2 outtakes compiled by the show's editors.
In February 2017, Dan Taylor caught wind of a new science fiction series created by Seth MacFarlane called The Orville; he learned of the name "Planetary Union" and caught a glimpse of the crest that would inspire the podcast's logo. By late June, Taylor recruited Joe Quickle as co-host, and the pair released a teaser for the show on July 22. Taylor and Quickle published their first broadcast as the "Planetary Union Network" on September 12, reviewing the pilot episode. Michael May joined as the third full-time co-host in October 1, just after If the Stars Should Appear aired.
Over the course of early April 2018, the Planetary Union Network held a March Madness-style poll of the first season for Orville fans, asking them to vote on their favorite episodes. The winner was Mad Idolatry, followed by About a Girl, and then Pria.
The Planetary Union Network announced that Taylor would be leaving the show to pursue other creative endeavors on July 30, 2018.[3]
The Planetary Union Network joined with La-La Land Records for the month of January 2019 to give away an album of The Orville: Original Television Soundtrack - Season 1 by contest.[4]
On February 12, 20th Century Fox announced by Twitter that the Planetary Union Network would be the official fan podcast for the show.[5] Quickle and May changed the name to its current form soon after.
Director Jon Cassar served as a special guest co-host for Episodes 32 and 33.
As of 2022, the site remains online. However, no new content has been posted since June 30, 2019 and the site was never updated for Season 3: New Horizons. However, despite the site itself not being updated, podcasts have been posted for all episodes of the third season except Future Unknown.
Episodes[]
2017[]
| Episode | Description | Air Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 00 | Teaser of the podcast. Available only on iTunes. | July 22 | Link |
| 01 | Review of Old Wounds. | September 12 | Link |
| 02 | Interview with actor Patrick Cox (Justin). Review of Command Performance. | September 19 | Link |
| 03 | Interview with Brett Rickaby (Lurenek). Review of About a Girl. | September 24 | Link |
| 04 | Michael May joins as co-host. Review of If the Stars Should Appear. | October 1 | Link |
| 05 | Taylor and Quickle interview Jonathan Frakes, director of that week's episode Pria. After, May joins to review the episode. | October 8 | Link |
| 06 | Interview with David A. Goodman, director of that week's episode Krill. | October 14 | Link |
| 07 | Interview with composer Bruce Broughton who scored the show's theme song and music for Old Wounds. Review of Majority Rule. | October 30 | Link |
| 08 | Interview with executive producer Brannon Braga. Review of Into the Fold. | November 5 | Link |
| 09 | Interview with Mark Jackson (Isaac). Review of Cupid's Dagger and discuss the upcoming book The World of the Orville. | November 12 | Link |
| 10 | Interview with Larry Joe Campbell (Steve Newton). Review of Firestorm. | November 19 | Link |
| Holiday special | Interview with supervising producer and science consultant André Bormanis. | November 21 | Link |
| 11 | Interview with Scott Grimes (Gordon Malloy). Review of New Dimensions. | December 3 | Link |
| 12 | Review of Mad Idolatry with guest Patrick Cox. | December 10 | Link |
| 13 | Interview with wardrobe designer Joseph Porro. | December 20 | Link |
2018[]
| Episode | Description | Air Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | Taylor, Quickle, and May discuss science fiction alternatives to The Orville. | January 12 | Link |
| 15 | Interview with Jeff Bond, author of The World of the Orville. | January 22 | Link |
| 16 | Interview with JP, creator of Talking the Orville and host of Egotastic Funtimes, reviewing their favorite episodes and the information about Season 2. | February 26 | Link |
| 17 | Interview with editors Tom Costantino, Scott Powell, Bart Rachmill, and Hillary Wills about working behind the scenes on the show. | March 19 | Link |
| 18 | Interview with Unit Production Manager Jason Roberts. | April 19 | Link |
| 19 | Interview with Visual Effects Supervisor Luke McDonald, Digital Effects Supervisor Brandon Fayette, and Visual Effects Producer Brooke Noska. | May 23 | Link |
| 20 | Interview with Season 1 make-up department head and Season 2 special make-up effects artist Howard Berger. | June 17 | Link |
| 21 | Discussion of The Orville after the 2018 San Diego Comic-Con. Final episode with host Dan Taylor. | July 24 | Link |
| 22 | Interview with Rico E. Anderson (Moclan Doctor). | November 29 | Link |
| 23 | Interview with prop master Bryan Rodgers. | December 6 | Link |
| 24 | Review of Ja'loja. Discussion of future guests. | December 31 | Link |
2019[]
| Episode | Description | Air Date | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25 | Interview with BJ Tanner (Marcus Finn). Review of Primal Urges and some content giveaways revealed. | January 6 | Link |
| 26 | Interview with director Jon Cassar. | January 13 | Link |
| 27 | Interview with composer Joel McNeely. Review of Nothing Left on Earth Excepting Fishes. | January 20 | Link |
| 28 | Review of All the World is Birthday Cake. | January 27 | Link |
| 29 | Interview with Mark Jackson. Review of A Happy Refrain. | February 2 | Link |
| 30 | Interview with Peter Macon. | February 13 | Link |
| 31 | Interview with Jessica Szohr (Talla Keyali) and Kevin Daniels (Locar). | February 16 | Link |
| 32 | Interview with Kai Wener (Ty Finn). Director Jon Cassar co-hosts a discussion about Identity, Pt. 1. | February 23 | Link |
| 33 | Jon Cassar returns to talk about Identity, Pt. 2. | March 2 | Link |
| 34 | Review of Blood of Patriots. | March 11 | Link |
| 35 | Tom Costantino returns to discuss the Network's official partnership with the show and the episode Lasting Impressions. | March 23 | Link |
| 36 | Joe's wife Megan fills in for Michael May as co-host. Interview with director Jonathan Frakes. | April 16 | Link |
| 37 | Interview with Hillary Wills about Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow. | April 23 | Link |
| 38 | Review of The Road Not Taken and Season 2. | April 30 | Link |
| 39 | Review of Season 1.5. | October 22 | Link |
| 40 | Interview with Neil deGrasse Tyson. | November 29 | Link |
See also[]
External links[]
- Planetary Union Network home page
References[]
- ↑ @planetary_union. "BREAKING: We can now tell you that the episode order has been modified. The episode being aired on December 30th as Season 2 Episode 1 of @TheOrville has been updated to be Ja’loja. Primal Urges will follow as Episode 2 on January 3rd. #TheOrville". Twitter. Dec. 18, 2018.
- ↑ THE ORVILLE SEASON 2 GAG REEL. Planetary Union Network. April 30, 2019.
- ↑ @planetary_union. "PUNcast Announcement: Founding co-host @odddanout has decided to leave the podcast to pursue other creative endeavors. Dan will be missed, but Michael and I will continue bringing you the same show you’ve come to expect out of the Planetary Union Network. Everyone wish him luck!". Twitter. July 30, 2018.
- ↑ "PLANETARY UNION NETWORK: EPISODE 26". Planetary Union Network. Jan. 13, 2019.
- ↑ @TheOrville. ".@planetary_union network, official fan podcast of #TheOrville, welcomes Peter Macon.Releases Wednesday 2/13, 6:00AM Pacific. @SethMacFarlane @TomCostantino". Twitter. Feb. 12, 2019.