SNW Season 1 vs Season 2

[Jedi Marso]

Just finished a re-watch of S1, and as we near the end of S2 I was just struck by how much more S1 seemed to offer on all fronts. Plus, is it just my imagination, or did s1 seem to have a much bigger budget than we've seen on display this season? There have been a lot of shows this season that seem like bottle shows or happen entirely within the confines of the Enterprise sets. (Or on the Toronto city streets.)

In S1 there is only one skipped episode for me: the dress-up one with M'Benga's daughter. When I rewatch S2 I'll be skipping the LD crossover and the musical episode, which comprise 20% of the season. S2 also had far too many relationship hijinks and shoehorned appearances by a certain future captain of the Enterprise. When we see Pike at all, he's far more likely to be cooking in an apron than he is commanding the ship on the bridge.

We'll see what happens with S3 going forward after the strike resolves, but realistically speaking it will be two years or more before the show returns. A lot can happen in that amount of time. I hope they are able to keep up the quality of the production and are given a big enough budget to do great things.

Am I alone in this opinion? Thoughts? Comments? Debate?

 

[Captain Fine]

I feel the opposite almost. I barely remember what happened in S1 but S2 has been quite memorable with some standout episodes like La’an in Toronto and the Lower Decks crossover and the musical episode.

I feel like SNW really hit its pace this season.

 

[fireproof78]

I've liked episodes from both seasons. I think it tried way to hard in Season 1 towards the end, I did not appreciate some of the episodes, and do not rewatch others.

Season 2 is pretty much the same. Some I liked, some I don't. It's definitely treated the cast as an ensemble and while I do not care for (to put it mildly) some guest stars, I don't feel a difference between the two seasons. Other than a wider variety of episode styles in this season.

 

[HotRod]

and while I do not care for (to put it mildly) some guest stars,

Just curious. Who was it you didn't care for?

 

[fireproof78]

Just curious. Who was it you didn't care for?

Klingons and Kirk.

 

[HotRod]

Klingons and Kirk.

Fair enough.

 

[F. King Daniel]

It seems like more of the same to me

 

[Mudd]

Season Two has been bigger and more daring than the first. I like the direction that the show is going.

 

[drt]

There have been a lot of shows this season that seem like bottle shows or happen entirely within the confines of the Enterprise sets.

The first season has a lot, too. I think that's partially due to remnants of COVID protocols and partially because the time of year they film in Toronto maybe isn't particularly suited for doing much location work. I'm hoping they're able to utilize the virtual wall technology more in the third season.

 

[Midquest]

I think Season 1 started stronger than it ended, and Season 2 is ending stronger than it started. They're nearly equal, but Season 2 gets the advantage for me.

Both seasons have given me what are personally all-time great Trek episodes in Children of the Comet and Subspace Rhapsody.

Both seasons also offer me highly rewatchable episodes in Strange New Worlds, Spock Amok, and The Serene Squall on the one hand and Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, Charades, and Those Old Scientists on the other.

And both have had episodes that were fine but didn't grab me, like Ghosts of Illyria and A Quality of Mercy, and The Broken Circle and Lost in Translation.

Where the difference lies is that Season 2 has multiple episodes that impressed me with richer and more thoughtful material as good or (likely) more nuanced and than anything pretty much any other Trek show has managed in a season: Ad Astra Per Aspera, Among the Lotus Eaters, and Under the Cloak of War. The former puts any similar effort of TNG to shame; the later puts any similar effort of DS9 to shame.

The only thing that I have missed in Season 2 is some of the domestic and workplace drama of Season 1, like Una and La'an playing Enterprise Bingo and everyone gathering for meals.

I think Season 1 has the gloss of something fresh and new, which unfairly advantages it with respect to Season 2, and that seeming edge will fade with time.

We'll see how the finale shakes out this week.

 

[Paul755]

It seems a bit early considering we still have one more episode to go in S2. But for right now I would say for me S1 gets the edge but S2 has my favorite episode of the series, the crossover ep with Lower Decks.

 

[Uhura's Song]

I think both seasons have been VERY good. Top notch. I like episodic more than serial. My favorite TV Trek is TNG, TOS, and DS9, in that order. And I can say, so far, that SNW is on that level for me.

I enjoy the others. And there is some fantastic stuff in there, and some duds in my 3 favorites. But I out VOY, ENT, DISCO, and PIC (despite a brilliant 3rd season) in a tier below.

The animated stuff is in a different category.

My favorite SNW eps would be:

S1: Momento Mori (E4) & Lift Us Up Where Suffering Cannot Reach (E6). Classics.

Not much difference between Spock Amok (E5), Strange New Worlds (E1), All Those Who Wander (E9), A Quality of Mercy (E10), Ghosts of Illyria (E3), & Children of the Comet (E2). All very good. Maybe a borderline classic ot three in there (E5, E9, E3, E2).

Serence Squall (E7) & Elyssian Kingdom (E8) were at the bottom for me. Though the latter ended beautifully and the A plot in the former was very good.

In terms of S2?

Classics: Ad Astra per Aspera (E2), Charades (E5), Those Old Scientists (E7).

Borderline/Very good: Under The Coak of War (E8).

Possibly a classic depending on taste: Subspace Rhapsody (E9).

Good to very good: everything else.

The show takes big swings. Comedic (Spock Amok, Charades, Serene Squall B), Horror (All those Who Wander), Child Sacrifice (Suffering), a musical, a fairy tale. I get some may not land for everyone, and they haven't for me, but I certainly applaud the effort.

FWIW, DISCO & PIC took some big swings, too.

Original Trek: TOS/TAS: 5 seasons, 102 eps.
Berman: TNG/DS9/VOY/ENT: 25 seasons, 624 eps.
NuTrek: DISCO/ST/PIC/LD/SNW/PRO: 15 seasons, 164 eps.

 

[Captain Jollydark]

The first season has a lot, too. I think that's partially due to remnants of COVID protocols and partially because the time of year they film in Toronto maybe isn't particularly suited for doing much location work. I'm hoping they're able to utilize the virtual wall technology more in the third season.

They were going to be filming through the summer this time and now may be back to winter.

 

[Charles Phipps]

I feel the big difference is the show is a lot wackier this season. Less focus on Pike's existential horror.

 

[Mechanoid1]

I am of the opinion that any lessons learned from Disco and Picard, that were shown in S1 of Strange New Worlds have now been abandon. Wow! SNW was praised as the best recieved S1 of all Star Treks. S2 has just gone off in a completly different direction.
This bait and switch Star Trek is just not working for me.

 

[trekfan_1]

Season 2 is better in my opinion. The actors seem to have a better feel for their characters. Not sure if its because COVID restrictions got lifted but there's a noticeable increase of synergy amoung the cast. And although it's admittedly subjective, I like the writing and storylines better this season.

 

[Supervisor 194]

I don't really see much difference or separation between the seasons. Season 1 got off to a remarkably self-assured beginning, and season 2 has carried that momentum forward. If anything, seasons 1 and 2 of SNW remind me of season 1 of TOS with its willingness to take risks with the story concepts and rely on the characters and actors to carry the audience on the journey.

 

[Vger23]

I don't see much difference between them. I think S1 was a little bit more "classically Star Trek" with episodes like
"Strange New Worlds"
"Children of the Comet"
"Ghosts of Illyria"
"Memento Mori"
and "Lift Us Up"
...all of which really felt like they could have easily been TOS episodes (even "The Elyssian Kingdom" felt a lot like something TOS would have tried).

This season, I've really only gotten that same feel from a couple of episodes:

"Ad Astra"
"Tomorrow..."
"Among the Lotus Eaters"

Yet, I also felt like S1's only "experimental" episodes (if you can even call them that) were "Spock Amok" and, in a way, "Elyssian Kingdom." S2 definitely swung for the fences more with "Subspace Rhapsody" and "Those Old Scientists." But I thought "Those Old Scientists" was kind of a waste / stunt, while opn the other hand I felt like the musical definitely paid off.

Nothing from S2 stinks as bad as "The Serene Squall," which is still a low-point for the series.

So, I'm rambling, but I kind of view the two seasons as one continuous 20-episode entity, as the quality and direction is all about the same.

If you look at it that way, it holds up against any 20-something season of Trek from the earlier eras...perhaps even better.

 

[Unique]

I feel the big difference is the show is a lot wackier this season. Less focus on Pike's existential horror.

I’m glad they have him in a place of acceptance and other, generally more positive things are being focused on; it’s bad enough to know it’s going to happen without it sucking all the air out of the room.

 

[Cyrus]

As producers have said they took more swings for the fences in season 2. So those viewers who think these swings resulted home runs would like season 2 better. Those who think the results were strikeouts would like season 1 better. The OP said he didn't like the LD crossover and musical episodes which were the biggest swings they took, so he is obviously in the latter group.