It's only really Voyager I've heard Moore truly be disparaging of, for much the same reasons many fans do (the reset button etc.)
Elaborating on this (my link to the old article’s messed up as is the wayback machine for me rn,
but here’s a copy-and-pasted version of the interview for those who haven’t read it), Moore’s not disparaging of the concept or characters of
Voyager—all of whom he used well in “Survival Instinct”—and he’s certainly not disparaging the staff writers, singling out young Bryan Fuller and Mike Taylor (who started out with “The Visitor” on DS9) for praise. He’s disparaging of the attitudes set at the top, the people running the show, for their cynicism about the show and how that soured the entire creative environment, top-to-bottom, how that cynicism hand-in-hand with their poor treatment of people, and how you can see those attitudes manifest in the final product. Moore clearly
loves Star Trek—he says outright—as did many of the people working on
Voyager. The issue is that they were trying to work on something they loved in a toxic environment.
This is something I continually struggle with is the idea of hostility from writers towards the product they're working on. Imagine being angry and irritated and having to write for something you dislike.
I was an academic scientist, I love science, but I’m glad I’m not in my old department because it was a terrible environment. My family asks me why I tried so hard to get another academic job for so long, my friends ask me why I’m still complimentary of my old lab head’s research and intellect, and the answer is that it’s great work, just awful to work in.
Anyway back to Moore, Behr, and DS9 I definitely see DS9 as very much in keeping with Trek’s ethos—going back to TOS many of those classic Kirk speeches are basically, “It’s hard to be a saint out here.” “…in paradise” pokes a little at the Roddenberry box, and I can see why that rubs some people the wrong way, but that box didn’t exist in TOS and most people’s favorite TNG episodes are ones where that box isn’t really relevant or visible.
***
Going back to the
original question (clearly the issue of loving something and trying to work on it clearly got to me) my family gave up on ENT during the original airing after the end of season one. It wasn’t conscious or anything—we gave the entire season a try (or just kept tuning in via inertia), didn’t enjoy it, and just never came back over the summer hiatus and only mentioned it occasionally in the context of how bad we found it. I eventually watched the “short” fourth season (Spiner arc through Weller arc) in 2013 on recommendation of the AV Club’s comments section and enjoyed it, though I think a lot of it was novelty value of having not just “new old” Trek and also finally seeing ENT embracing its place as a TOS prequel.
I gave
Discovery a couple of chances but didn’t take either time. The first time, starting with the premier and a bit into the first season the look, the characters, the writing—worked for me, I just disliked it all. I tried another time with the second season and while I liked Peck’s Spock and Mount’s Pike I just drifted away and never finished again. Nothing I’ve read or heard has made me think I’ll ever enjoy any
Discovery, and that’s fine, not for me.
I gave
LD a chance, really found it grating and gave up at “Moist Vessel” (the new agey “ascension” was the last stray), and then literal years of friends reposting good jokes made me go back, starting somewhere late in season one, keeping an open mind, and getting hooked.
