I actually think VOY has better follow up episodes than “Caretaker”, which I always found limp as a pilot. I liked “Parallax” giving a glimpse into the kind of show I wish we got more of with Starfleet and Maquis having trouble adapting to work together, literally opening with Carey having been punched in the face by Torres, Chakotay trying to ease things between both parties, Maquis coming up to tell him they’re ready to take over, etc. The technobabble stuff is pretty formulaic, but I really liked seeing that struggle between the two groups. Also really like “Prime Factors” where the two groups are starting to mesh well together, but it looks like they’re both going to collaborate behind the captain’s back, and then Tuvok jumps in and sides with them! Through his perceived logic, he’s taking the burden of breaking the prime directive away from Janeway. Also like “State of Flux” for Seska’s revelation and her motives actually make a ton of sense, so she’s not just an evil Cardassian spy, though where they take her much later on is CRAY-ZEE. After that it’s pretty middling, though I like “Projections”, one of the leftovers of the first season held for season two.
I've read the novelization before the Caretaker aired on German TV (since streaming wasn't possible back then) and I was so disappointed by the show. (The book was pretty good, though)
I rewatched all of Season 1 of Discovery on Netflix before jumping headfirst into Season 2. To my disappointment, I didn't think Season 1 was as good as I talked myself into believing that it was. A slow start, a steady middle, good Mirror shit, then a rushed conclusion. By the time I've started Season 2 there are 8 (I think) aired episodes, I've so far watched 5. Up to now I think Pike has been decent, it was good to see Number One, the bridge crew becoming more important to the narrative as each episode develops, was a plus. But . . . . . The Spore thing / the Mycelial Network shit, is just incomprehensible, its taken technobabble to new levels of bullshit, I mean come on, May, organic transfer device (fuck knows what that was), dead guy comes back from the dead with a shave and a haircut no less, Red Angels that are a mystery to every living soul in the Multiverse except Spock, and then there's the Klingons, who've rediscoverd hair. Tilly is just irritating now, Stamets I'm undecided about. Burnham, meh. But it's not all bad, I am enjoying it for the most part. Giorgiou is fucking amazing although Section 31 is not my cup of tea. I'm hoping by seasons end that I'll be fully convinced.
Is DSC Season 2 better than Season 1? Unequivocally, yes. That said, it's still not living up to what it could be given its budget and scope. I've seen enough of an improvement, though, in the narrative and most of the characters that I'm more than willing to give the series the benefit of the doubt until it ceases to deserve it. As of right now, it's a fair sight more entertaining and cohesive as a series than it was last season and seems more focused. Those changes make a huge difference in the quality of the show and I think this is a strong sophomore season all things considered.
S2 is on par for me with TOS Season 1, DS9 Season 4-7 and now better then ENT 4. It's as good as Trek has gotten.
No season of Trek has been as bad as TNG Season 1. A few scattered gems notwithstanding the first 26 episodes of the series are probably the worst lump of Star Trek stories ever filmed and aired by Paramount or CBS.
Leaps and bounds better than S1s of other trek series. They just need time and money and great imagination to better the best of previous trek series.
I think season 2 made one biiig, important choice, that at this point I think must have been deliberate: There hasn't been a single, real phaser-fight or starship battle! And it's great. It forces the writers to come up with some real, serious plot solutions. Remember how on ENT almost every episode ended with a phaser-fight? Yeah, this show feels immensely more complex and nuanced, because every single episode had some real conflict, action and drama - that ISN'T solved with an easy clean-up-all solution! It also creates anticipation for the next, actual battle. The only one I can think of right now was that Klingon fright on Kronos - but even that wasn't the resolution to the episode, but only a step towards it. I really, really hope the show continues to take this course over the following seasons! It's so refreshing and, for the first time in a looong while, makes Trek feel like it lives up to the ideals it preaches.
The character-driven drama in the Talos IV ep is exactly what I wanted from modern, serialized Star Trek. Good job, Discovery.
The drama in season 2 is coming from the now-established characters and their logical interactions, rather than "shocking" twists like Tyvoq or MirrorLorca. It's making for a very satisfying show, moreso than S1. They still have 4 episodes in which to totally ruin it, though.
nah... I thought it was improved after the first couple of episodes but nope.. to my disappointment it is pretty much the same mess of a show it was during season 1. For me Discovery is very mediocre (if not bad) TV. Bad written, bad acted, very bad directed. I also find it a big weakness that it tries to explore/continue or revisit stories and characters from TOS. I guess many people like this, but I don't. I do not care about what happened to Talos all these years. I do not care to re-re-re-re-discover Spock through an idiotic character, that of Burhnam, I want NEW stories and characters dammit! And I do not care about Michael Burnham, the most annoying and indifferent lead character in the history of ST. And all this angst...angst angst and more angst, does any of these people in this ship enjoy being there? (ok maybe Tilly does) This show is like a bad fan fiction with a big budget and very poor aesthetics.
As much as I've liked picking fun at VOY for its flaws I have to throw up my hands and say that no season of the series was as bad as Season 1 of TNG. I know, I know. But at least "The Fight" wasn't the quality of MOST of its season of episodes.