REVIEW: ‘The Orville: Digressions,’ Issue #1

The Orville: Digressions #1 is published by Dark Horse Comics, written by David A. Goodman, with art by David Cabeza, colors by Michael Atiyeh, and letters by Richard Starkings and Jimmy Betancourt. When a past Kelly Grayson is accidentally brought to the present, she becomes privy to information she shouldn’t be. Even though she has been returned to the past, things cannot be the same for her, and the changes she will make could alter history forever.

Each of the previous The Orville limited series I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing delivered a concise story that provided an entertaining read. They felt aware of their short two-issue run times and always managed to keep the stories simple enough to fit nicely within that window. However, The Orville: Digressions #1 looks like a bird of a different feather. Because of its complicated setup, this story leaves the reader a bit more confused as it reintroduces the cast in their alternate places within the changed timeline while also trying to get the story moving at the same time.

While the overall story feels a bit clunky, writer Goodman manages to deliver enough moments of genuine emotion, as well as a chuckle or two, that allow the narrative to overcome the awkward hurdles laid out by the core time displacement plot. As one would expect from the above story set up, the majority of the more emotional moments revolve around Commander Grayson.

As The Orville: Digressions #1‘s story unfolds, Commander Grayson finds herself coming into contact with elements of the life she never had or would’ve had, or…Look, time travel is complicated. You know what I mean. As events unfold, Grayson is forced to navigate the hard decision of whether or not she should be interfering with events that may, or may not, happen. And even while the story focuses primarily on the Commander’s struggles, she certainly isn’t the only one facing difficult decisions in this story.

Artist Cabeza continues to do an excellent job of capturing the real-life cast of the show in a well-executed comic book style. Everyone is easily recognizable, and the presentation of faces is spot on with its consistency. The only place where the art stumbles a bit is in the panels where characters are being particularly active. During these moments, there tends to be a bit of stiffness in the characters, making them feel more like they have been placed in their pose instead of being a captured moment of fluid motion.

The colorwork in The Orville: Digressions #1 does a solid job of augmenting the variety of environments the story occupies with numerous color palettes. This breaks up the story’s visual look well and keeps the different scenes district from each other. While this is always a good thing, it is beneficial here as scenes often bounce between characters that would traditionally be together, but they are now worlds apart thanks to the timeline shift.

Rounding out this book is Starkings and Betancourt’s lettering. This letter work does a commendable job of guiding the reader through the story’s many scene changes and plot beats.

When all is said and done, The Orville: Digressions #1 delivers a story with some great moments, despite having a bit of a confusing plot.

The Orville: Digressions #1 is available now wherever comics are sold.