All the Drama
Props to the writers here. One of this season’s most compelling plots followed Topa (Imani Pullum), who was born—er, hatched—in The Orville season one to Lt. Commander Bortus (Peter Macon) and his mate, Klyden (Chad L. Coleman). Their home planet is almost entirely male; women are seen as inferior, to the point that female babies undergo compulsory gender-reassignment surgery. This is a topic that The Orville has returned to throughout its run; born female, Topa was surgically altered to be male against Bortus’ wishes, but in season three, as a young teen, realizes she’s not living life as her true self, and returns to being female. This decision has huge political ramifications, as well as personal ones for Topa and her family and friends, and The Orville manages to handle particularly the latter with surprising sensitivity—especially given the fact that the whole thing is a fairly heavy-handed allegory.
