The Orville Wiki
Advertisement
The Orville Wiki
The Guide to The Orville

The Guide to The Orville

The Guide to The Orville is an official reference book for The Orville written by its co-executive producer, André Bormanis, and published by Dark Horse Books on September 24, 2024. The book was released in both a normal edition and a deluxe edition. The Guide to The Orville guides readers through the decks of the USS Orville and recounts the crew's voyages through ship logs and commentaries.

The deluxe edition came with a decorative slipcase, an alternate cover, four departmental Planetary Union patches of Command, Engineering, Security, and Medical departments, and a detailed 27” x 40” poster of the ship by illustrator Matthew Cushman.

A draft of the manuscript was reviewed by script coordinator David Shapiro. Graphic designer Doug Drexler provided notes on its technical sections.

Summary[]

The book is written as if the reader is a new member of the crew of the Orville, summarizing the missions of the Orville from the time Ed Mercer takes command of the ship until the end of Season 3. It opens with a forward written by Admiral Thomas Halsey, welcoming the reader aboard the Orville.

The prologue is written by Doctor Emmanuel Saadia, chief historian and archivist of the Central Library of the Planetary Union Council. Doctor Saadia provides a brief history of Earth, the exploration by Humans of space after the discovery of dysonium, and the formation of the Union 150 years ago.

The first chapter outlines the history of the Orville, its design and mission. A brief survey of the different departments and major sections of the ship is also given.

The second chapter explores the engineering systems of the Orville in greater detail, including defensive systems, the computational and data processing network, the interstellar communication array, the environmental control and life-support systems, and personal equipment like environmental suits and weapons.

Chapter 3 addresses emergency operations. Chapter 4 provides biographies of the senior officers. Chapter 5 looks at non-human species such as Xelayans, Moclans, and Retepsians.

The Guide to The Orville Deluxe Edition

Deluxe Edition

The sixth chapter (by far the longest section in the book) publishes personal logs of various crew members, civilians, and a few guests such as Lysella Ravada aboard the Orville, recounting the events of the show in diary format beginning with the series premiere of Old Wounds and closing with the finale of Season 3, Future Unknown.

The Guide to The Orville closes with an afterword by Ed and acknowledgments penned by the book's author.

Trivia[]

  • The book was likely influenced by the reconstructed Timeline of the show by The Orville Wiki, though the book does not acknowledge as such.
  • Bormanis decided the Orville's quantum drive would be based on the Penrose theory of quantum gravity. Bormanis wrote that his old college friend and plasma physicist, Doctor Joel Sercel, ran through the basics of the theory.

Mistakes[]

  • The book states that dysonium was first discovered in the early 23rd century on Earth's moon. However, the episode Twice in a Lifetime established that deposits of dysonium were first discovered in Earth's mantle in the early 22nd century.
  • The book states that the year 2423 is the 150th anniversary of the foundation of the Planetary Union, which means the Union was founded in 2273. However, the episode Future Unknown established that Union officers had visited the planet Gendel 3 in the year 2235.
  • The book incorrectly says that "personal matter synthesizers" were in crew quarters to prepare food and beverages. In reality, those were called Food Synthesizers. Matter Synthesizers were devices used to make inorganic materials and found only in special matter synthesis rooms on Union ships.
  • The book's seating layout for the bridge contradicts the show. See The Seating Problem.
  • An assertion that the Orville had two Environmental Simulators is contradicted by the episode Primal Urges, where Bortus played his erotic programs in Simulator 3 and Isaac specifically mentioned three separate simulators.
  • A statement of the maximum speed of the Orville as 15 light years per hour is contradicted by ensign Charly Burke, who said in From Unknown Graves that the Orville's new fourth-generation quantum engines can take the ship to 17 light years per hour.
  • On page 19, the books says the Orville's maiden voyage was on February 13, 2401. On the fold-out map between pages 33 and 34, it says the Orville's maiden voyage was on November 17, 2400.
  • Page 20 states the length of the Orville as 674 meters. The fold-out map says its length was 410.5 meters.
  • The book calls the PM-44 and PM-488 Titan the "pulser weapon" and "pulser rifle." These names are found nowhere else, and the book does not use their correct titles. Moreover, the PM-488 was not a rifle but a shotgun.
  • Earth 2418

    The episode Old Wounds clearly establishes that Kelly cheated on Ed in 2418. The book incorrectly says the affair happened in 2416.

    The books says the previous captain of the Orville, George Griffith, left the ship when he was promoted to admiral. However, in the episode Old Wounds, Admiral Tom Halsey tells Ed Mercer that the Orville needs a new captain soon because George is retiring from the Union.
  • Kelly Grayson writes that her first date with Ed took place in 2413. This is very improbable. In Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, which takes place in 2421, both Ed and Kelly separately state that they had first met seven years ago.
  • The book says Kelly and Ed divorced in 2416. The title crawl of Old Wounds says that Kelly cheated on Ed with Darulio in 2418.
  • In a review of Charly Burke written by Kelly, Kelly tells the reader that she wants to let them know why Charly has died and why the Orville owes Charly a debt. Kelly goes on to talk about Charly's interests, her ability to visualize in four dimensions, and the time she helped save Isaac's life. However, Kelly never actually tells the reader why Charly died or why the crew owes Charly a debt! The answer is that Charly sacrificed her life to prevent the genocide of the Kaylon.
  • The book completely skips the episode A Happy Refrain.
  • Laura Huggins is from Saratoga Springs, New York. The book incorrectly states she is from Sarasota Springs, New York. Sarasota Springs is a city in Florida.
  • The book provides two contradictory dates for Moclus' departure from the Union: April 5, 2422 and mid-August 2422.
  • In Midnight Blue, the Union votes to expel Moclus. On page 58, the book incorrectly says Moclus seceded from the Union.
    • Funnily enough, the book later correctly states the Union expelled Moclus on page 178, contradicting itself.

External links[]

Advertisement