Exactly so. Fan productions and trailers and the like have all demonstrated that the themes and stories they want are darker, edgier, less utopian, than prior Star Treks. Looking at more war stories, more action and more direct threats to the Federation. And yet, the moment they do it is the moment that they get taken to task over it.
Though I think that's the "never let your fans dictate the story you will tell" -
because most of them don't really know what they want.
Star Trek - at it's most popular points - is a
very lighthearted and optimistic show. Not that it doesn't get dark repeatedly - but the overall universe is a more cheerfull one, a familiar reality people actually want to live in. (In contrast to, say, nuBattlestar Galactica, which has much, much more intense stories, but honestly no one in their right mind would want to live in).
Everytime Star Trek
did get dark and series, it had a
profound "shit just got serious"-vibe, making it even more so intense and memorable. That's why these episodes (Best of Both worlds) are so beloved -
because they were so rare!
It's the same thing with Spock - Over decades and decades, (mostly female) fans always wanted to see him smile, be happy! And yet - he never really did. That's why every single little smirk he did had such an impact. People
craved for it. Whereas Quinto-Spock went very fast full emotional (because that's what people wanted to see for
decades) - and yet, when he did, it didn't leave as much of an impact as it should.