BCV Burton

The wreck of the Burton.

The **BCV *Burton*** was a Planetary Union battleship which served during the war with the Tzel in the early 24th century.

The *Burton* was destroyed shortly after surviving a vicious battle with the Tzel and was considered lost until its rediscovery in 2420.

## Schematics

Battleships of the early 24th century were more angular than their modern counterparts.

The Bridge is similar in design to modern Union ships, though smaller and with flat-backed chairs. The Mess Hall is a large room with two Food Synthesizers. The *Burton* was capable of faster-than-light travel with a single quantum drive ring. The *Burton* has a Docking Bay in the rear of the ship.

### Armament

Typical of battleships of this time, the *Burton* came equipped with a very large Particle Beam Cannon located on the ship's center topside. Smaller, rotating cannons can be found on the sides of the ship, both above and below.

### Buoys

   The ship held at least two communication buoys.

## History

The *Burton* was constructed and commissioned years before 2320 and served in the Planetary Union as a battleship under an unnamed commander.

Some time before 2320, the *Burton* fought in the Battle of the Chog Homeworld alongside at least one Union ship and probably others against the Tzel.

The location was between 8,750 to 9,000 light years from Earth and deep in uncharted space. The Tzel had fabricated a distress call to lure the *Burton* and other Union war ships into an ambush.

The *Burton* survived the battle, but was badly damaged. With all its senior officers killed, Ensign Hodges assumed command of twenty survivors. The *Burton* launched a distress buoy Bv2. The buoy's log stated the ship was damaged in a battle at a star system three light years away.

### Crash-landing on the Chog homeworld

The *Burton* crash landed on a habitable planet in the system. Damage from the crash exposed the quantum reactor; a leak gradually poisoned the planet, extinguishing "all plant life and most animal life." A group of friendly Chogs attempted to help the survivors; in gratitude, the remaining crew of the *Burton* repaired the reactor and diverted all power to the Food Synthesizer and Particle Beam Cannon to protect them.

Owing to the distance between Union space and the battle, the *Burton* and any fellow ships were lost to history.

### Rediscovery

   Captain Ed Mercer and Helmsman Gordon Malloy discovered the Bv2's "faint" signal *en route* to a tactical conference in the summer of 2420, and followed the coordinates to the ship.

The *Burton*'s particle cannon had fired at Ed and Gordon's shuttle, nearly destroying the shuttle and almost killing them in the process.

## Production

Executive producer and writer David A. Goodman conceived of the *Burton* for the comic *New Beginnings*, which was developed by artist David Cabeza. The *Burton* is similar to the USS *Orville*, but in the final draft of the *Burton*, some parts of the ship are not covered in panels (the reason for this is unknown) and, where the *Orville* has a Shuttle Bay, the *Burton* has a Docking Bay.

## Trivia

* According to Second Officer Bortus' screen, the *Burton* is "armed" with active "shields" and 72 percent structural damage.
* The name of the ship was taken from Richard Francis Burton, a British explorer believed to have discovered the source of the Nile river.

## Appearances

* *Episode 1.5x01: New Beginnings, Pt. 1*
* *Episode 1.5x02: New Beginnings, Pt. 2*

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 @kashinorei. "David Cabeza@kashinoreiLet's see what happen's in #TheOrville comics issue 2, out next week! Excited? Meanwhile, here's another design. @DarkHorseComics @DavidAGoodman #SethMacFarlane #PlanetaryUnionShip". Twitter. Aug. 6, 2019.
2. ↑ The call sign Bv2 on the buoy implies the Burton had launched a previous distress buoy as well. Episode 1.5x01: New Beginnings, Pt. 1
3. ↑ Gordon states that the distress buoy from the *Burton* has a message ***over*** 100 years old. Episode 1.5x01: New Beginnings, Pt. 1
4. ↑ The wreck of a "BCV *Cons*"- can be seen afloat in space. Episode 1.5x01: New Beginnings, Pt. 1
5. ↑ The vast amount of debris in space suggests many ships were involved (and destroyed) in this battle.
6. ↑ Ensign Hodges: "Our task force was suckered into this uncharted system with a false distress call."Episode 1.5x02: New Beginnings, Pt. 2
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Episode 1.5x02: New Beginnings, Pt. 2
8. ↑ Ensign Hodges. Episode 1.5x02: New Beginnings, Pt. 2
9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Episode 1.5x01: New Beginnings, Pt. 1
10. ↑ David A. Goodman, Executive Producer and Writer. Quantum Drive. May 10, 2022.