In 400 years, Earth is part of the Planetary Union, a far-reaching, advanced and mostly peaceful civilization with a fleet of 3,000 ships. Aboard the U.S.S. Orville, a mid-level exploratory vessel, its crew – both human and alien – face the wonders and dangers of outer space, while also dealing with the familiar, often humorous problems of regular people in a workplace. Down on his luck after a bitter divorce, Planetary Union officer Ed Mercer finally gets his chance to command one of the ships, a task complicated by his ex-wife, Kelly Grayson, newly assigned as his First Officer. Ed assembles a qualified, but eccentric crew, including his best friend, Gordon Malloy, who has problems with authority; Dr. Claire Finn, one of the Union’s most accomplished physicians; Bortus, an alien from a single-sex species; Isaac, an artificial life-form from a machine society; and others. Facing cosmic challenges from without and within, this motley crew of space explorers will boldly go where no comedic drama has gone before.