News Season 2 will be the last (show cancelled)

[Damian]

This was the first Star Trek show I quit on. I got about halfway through and honestly I was bored and frankly the stories were abysmal IMO. I tried. I really did. I made sure not to look or watch any reviews before watching the show for myself because I wanted to keep an open mind. But I was finding myself nodding off, checking the counter to see how much time I had left and thinking, Christ, there's still 35 minutes left . Then finally I was like why am I torturing myself with a show that I clearly don't like so I just stopped.

The Kurtzman era did do something I never thought possible. Create Star Trek that I don't like. I didn't like season 2 of Picard (which is obvious in my Blu-Ray collection as I have season 1 and 3 but no 2 LOL). The Section 31 movie and now Starfleet Academy. I mean there are individual episodes of previous series I was meh on (Enterprise: TATV, Voy: "Threshold" come to mind) but never entire seasons or even shows. I guess you can say I'm ready to move on from the Kurtzman era at this point.

I only wish I could delete it off my continue watching screen on Paramount+. For some reason it won't let you remove shows on Paramount+ (I can get rid of shows on Hulu and other platforms). It's not the end of the world of course, just a nitpick lol.

 

[Ragitsu]

Bad TV proves Einstein's theory of relativity: the closer one gets to a black hole (in this instance, one of quality), the more time slows down.

 

[BillJ]

I mean there are individual episodes of previous series I was meh on (Enterprise: TATV, Voy: "Threshold" come to mind) but never entire seasons or even shows. I guess you can say I'm ready to move on from the Kurtzman era at this point.

It just points to the problem of the streaming-era short seasons. There is less time and opportunity to bounce back from less than stellar stories.

The second part is the filming of seasons one on top of the other. There is no time to sit down and analyze what worked and what didn't between seasons.

 

[Ragitsu]

Therein lies the problem with heavily serialized shows ->

If you love what you are offered, there is nothing to put up with; if you detest what you are offered, an entire season can be a slog to move through. The latter is how I felt about a certain Star Trek series centered around a war; I do not watch Star Trek for wars and, so, it was a miles-long mire.

 

[Damian]

It just points to the problem of the streaming-era short seasons. There is less time and opportunity to bounce back from less than stellar stories.

The second part is the filming of seasons one on top of the other. There is no time to sit down and analyze what worked and what didn't between seasons.

Certainly true. That's what happened for me for season 2 of Picard. Because I didn't like the overall plot of the season the whole season was effectively over for me.

On the other hand I did not like the 'musical' episode of SNW, but since that's more episodic it didn't ruin an entire season for me. Just one episode. I actually prefer the balance on SNW for that reason. It's got some continuing storylines, but the main plot is concluded at the end of the episode. So one bad episode doesn't ruin everything.

And yeah, certainly taking a moment to breathe between seasons and look for improvements might help. IMHO though Starfleet Academy had such big flaws that I don't really think there was any saving it short of starting over from scratch. And from what I read after I stopped watching that the ratings were abysmal. Apparently it was being beat on Paramount's own streaming by shows that ended years ago. Never a good sign for a show that's expensive to make. I'm wondering if Paramount+ will even release season 2 or sell it to some other streaming services, or just take a loss for a write-off.

Doesn't much matter for me in either event I guess since I couldn't even make it through the 1st season.

 

[Damian]

Bad TV proves Einstein's theory of relativity: the closer one gets to a black hole (in this instance, one of quality), the more time slows down.

LOL. Yeah. I was certainly counting the time on season 2 of Picard, and the Section 31 movie. Somehow I made it through Season 2 though I never plan on revisiting it. and the movie was a one-time thing so I managed to finish that.

But with Starfleet Academy it was just a slog. Every couple of minutes I'd be checking the time to see how much was left. And finally I realized why was I watching a show that I clearly did not like? I just couldn't get into any of it, the stories, the characters. At times I found myself wishing the Borg would just assimilate them so we could start over LOL. I honestly didn't like any of the characters, even the Doctor. And I don't know if they didn't have the actors micced up properly but half the time I couldn't even understand what they were saying. I had to put the closed captioning on a couple times (when I cared enough about what they were saying that is). The editing could have used some work too. I remember the doctor reciting that quote from TNG "The Drumhead" and it seemed like they cut half the quote out because it didn't make it any sense.

 

[fireproof78]

Growing up not liking TNG prepared me far early on for this experience.

 

[Turtletrekker]

Growing up not liking TNG prepared me far early on for this experience.

Likewise with being so totally, completely, utterly and absolutely disappointed with both Voyager and Enterprise. I'll tell you, I've never wanted Alex Kurtzman fired, but I would have celebrated for 7 days and nights if they had gotten rid of Rick Berman.

 

[Noname Given]

You never miss the water till the well runs dry.

That well hasn't run dry for more than 4 years between TV or film projects. Star Trek is a franchise that seems to consistently put out more stuff than other similar franchises.

 

[BillJ]

Here's the objective point: SFA was cancelled, and the ST franchise's fate (regarding confirmed new content) is up in the air--on the 60th anniversary year of the series that started it all. There's nothing good about that from a business or cultural standpoint.

Eh. It’s all gravy at this point, for me. Trek with a couple of exceptions has been relatively niche for the entirety of the 21st century.

Optimistic space fantasy simply doesn’t sell the way it used to.

 

[cooleddie74]

It wasn't even an entire four years between "TATV...." and the first Abrams movie. May 13, 2005 to May 8, 2009. And that's just the official release date for the 2009 film. Production began even earlier. Trek dies occasional "deaths, " but they don't last long.

 

[Firebird]

It wasn't even an entire four years between "TATV...." and the first Abrams movie. May 13, 2005 to May 8, 2009. And that's just the official release date for the 2009 film. Production began even earlier. Trek dies occasional "deaths, " but they don't last long.

'09 was supposed to original come out at Christmas of 2008, so it would've been an even shorter hiatus.

As a famous Vulcan once said, "I've been dead before..."

 

[fireproof78]

Eh. It’s all gravy at this point, for me. Trek with a couple of exceptions has been relatively niche for the entirety of the 21st century.

Optimistic space fantasy simply doesn’t sell the way it used to.

Trek has proven that the action aspect sells more. What's optimistic in TWOK or First Contact? Yet those are considered high points. What's optimistic in Best of Both Worlds ? Yet it is one the highest rated episodes.

Star Trek can do optimistic very well (Kelvin films show that) but history tells a different story around what sells.

 

[BillJ]

I guess the difference between now and when Rick Berman was in charge, is that the Kurtzman-era will go out on having tried something a little bit different. Instead of doubling-down on more of the same.

 

[BillJ]

What's optimistic in TWOK or First Contact?

Birth of a new world, humanity moving into a new age.

 

[fireproof78]

I guess the difference between now and when Rick Berman was in charge, is that the Kurtzman-era will go out on having tried something a little bit different. Instead of doubling-down on more of the same.

And there's validity to both approaches. TMP and TWOK couldn't be more different but that variety makes the TOS films stand out. I love Balance of Terror and Trouble with Tribbles (top 2 Star Trek episodes for me) but I enjoy them for different reasons of the story.

Birth of a new world, humanity moving into a new age.

So the end of the story? That's not a slam but an acknowledgement that the optimism comes out of hardship at the end.

 

[BillJ]

So the end of the story? That's not a slam but an acknowledgement that the optimism comes out of hardship at the end.

Of course. Optimism comes from our understanding of the universe changing. For the optimism to be worthwhile there has to be some kind of struggle to obtain it. Which is what TOS still ended up doing better than any other series/movie to date.

 

[fireproof78]

Of course. Optimism comes from our understanding of the universe changing. For the optimism to be worthwhile there has to be some kind of struggle to obtain it. Which is what TOS still ended up doing better than any other series/movie to date.

TOS is the best. TNG forward was all about obtaining to enlightenment not optimism.

 

[BillJ]

TNG forward was all about obtaining to enlightenment not optimism.

To a large degree, yes. Though they still had their moments.

 

[Farscape One]

Trek has proven that the action aspect sells more. What's optimistic in TWOK or First Contact? Yet those are considered high points. What's optimistic in Best of Both Worlds ? Yet it is one the highest rated episodes.

Star Trek can do optimistic very well (Kelvin films show that) but history tells a different story around what sells.

FIRST CONTACT - the optimism in us aiming for better despite ourselves. Like when Cochrane first saw Earth from space. He now started to change his mind about doing the flight just for money and about doing it for humanity.

THE WRATH OF KHAN - the optimism in facing death with integrity and honor. The optimism of being able to move on from feeling old to feeling younger.

"The Best of Both Worlds" - the optimism in individuality triumphing over a collective.