RAISE THE TITANIC.
Seriously, the point stands. TITANIC didn't lack suspense or drama because we all knew the ship was going to sink in the end, in large part because we were invested with the characters of Jack and Rose and didn't know if they were going to survive or end up together or whatever.
Same with the new show. People will keep watching to find out what happens to Lt. Protagonist and her crew, and to see how they cope with whatever alien crisis or mystery they encounter, regardless of whether or not we all know that Romulus is going to blow up a hundred years later that the Klingons will eventually be our allies, etc. The future history of the Federation doesn't matter when it comes to getting caught up in a story set years earlier.
I mean, look at Indiana Jones. We all knew that the Nazis weren't going to win World War II, but that didn't make RAIDERS any less exciting.
"Indy, you must stop Hitler from claiming the Ark!"
"Why? I happen to know that seventy years from now that the USA and Germany will be staunch allies and partners in NATO . . .."
I get it. It's just that prequels put restrictions on where you can go and what you can do with the show in relation to what you know comes after. Although it wasn't my first choice, I'm actually okay with a TOS-era series. That's hands down my favorite era of Trek, where the post-Dominion War era is probably my least favorite, ironically enough.
But if they are going to do 'TOS' era Trek, I hope they are able to capture the feel and magic of that era. Not that it has to be a 60's era retro joke, but you know what I mean. Anyway, I'm looking forward to the new series even though I don't plan to watch it on All Access. I may have to activate my cloak and go spoiler free for a while.