To me, having 8-10 episodes less every season means less opportunities (or no opportunities) to explore characters in depth. Like, what's the point of having Nhan or Linus if we learn nothing about Balzar and Saurian cultures? Or how societies adapted to the Burn etc? Tom e that's always been an important piece of Star Trek that I wish we could get back.
What do you miss the most about 20+ episode seasons?
- Thread starter Krog
- Start date
Slow, specific character central episodes... I'd prefer them over the action packed two parters we always had at the beginning, middle and end of a season.
Not a thing.
Episodes that were just fun such as Trials and Tribble-ations, Take me out to the Holosuite, and A Piece of the Action. The X-Files and Buffy did fun episodes as well. No time for such episodes anymore.
I'm happy that there are no filler episodes, making the streaming era Trek shows much more consistent than the previous era. I also like that the budget divides into the episodes at a higher rate, giving us actual mini-movies. I also enjoy that they have 2-3 weeks to film instead of 7-8 days, so there's an attention to detail.
We've also had 4 series and 34 episodes this year (Children of Mars aired in January), almost 2/3rd of the year.
So the answer is: nothing.
RAMA
We've also had 4 series and 34 episodes this year (Children of Mars aired in January), almost 2/3rd of the year.
So the answer is: nothing.
RAMA
I'm guessing you haven't actually watched the new shows then?
I've watched the first two seasons of Discovery and Picard. They were dour. I haven't seen Lower Decks or the third season of Discovery. Lower Decks is supposed to be light-hearted. I guess I'll find out.
For myself personally, I like the more serious stories, and the premise for DSC early on made it pretty serious, but we did have the fan-favorite: "Magic to Make the Sanest Man go Mad", probably 75% of Short Trek is light-hearted, then 10 episodes of Lower decks. So we're talking a fair portion of the most recent streaming stuff.
RAMA
RAMA
Indeed. For me, longer seasons are a great risk of me losing interest and miss those better episodes because early on is a slog.
I haven't watched a 20-episode season of anything first-run since... the third season of Battlestar Galactica. That was during the 2006-'07 Season. Even that was an exception at the time. I'm not going to count the fourth season because they split it up and aired the two halves about a year apart. For all intents and purposes, the second half of the fourth season was really the "fifth" season.
Everything new I've watched since has normally had 10-to-13 episode seasons. So the old "20-plus episodes per season!" type of show has been over for me for a long time. I don't miss it.
The Star Trek shows we have now are each going for a different tone. Short Treks and Lower Decks will have the goofy stuff. I have no idea what Strange New Worlds will bring, but I think it'll be some sort of middle-ground.
I don't like the idea that people keep insisting that Discovery should become something it isn't. If you absolutely have to watch Star Trek because you'll go nuts if you don't, then watch or wait for one that's more to your liking.
Everything new I've watched since has normally had 10-to-13 episode seasons. So the old "20-plus episodes per season!" type of show has been over for me for a long time. I don't miss it.
The Star Trek shows we have now are each going for a different tone. Short Treks and Lower Decks will have the goofy stuff. I have no idea what Strange New Worlds will bring, but I think it'll be some sort of middle-ground.
I don't like the idea that people keep insisting that Discovery should become something it isn't. If you absolutely have to watch Star Trek because you'll go nuts if you don't, then watch or wait for one that's more to your liking.
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My biggest thing is that even with 20 episodes I did not watch them all-ever. So, this idea that we need more episodes seems counterproductive in this new age.
Also, I agree. Discovery is not going back to an old model. Trying to make it something its now will only result in frustration.
To be honest, I don't miss anything from 20+ episode seasons. Sure, they gave more focus to more characters, but they didn't necessarily develop those characters more or advance their arcs more. Too me, even after seven seasons, many TNG or VOY characters remain ciphers moreso than quite a few DSC characters after the equivalent of one season.
And for every sterling episode there were two or three that ranged from pretty good to poor, even in my absolute favorite seasons, like TNG season 3. It's all quite subjective and personal, I know, but there are perhaps six episodes that season that I love, seven or eight that are OK, and about ten or twelve I don't need to see again.
I just really like the more focused nature of a short season, and I think it produces far more nuanced and intentional character journeys while still providing a range of different stories.
And for every sterling episode there were two or three that ranged from pretty good to poor, even in my absolute favorite seasons, like TNG season 3. It's all quite subjective and personal, I know, but there are perhaps six episodes that season that I love, seven or eight that are OK, and about ten or twelve I don't need to see again.
I just really like the more focused nature of a short season, and I think it produces far more nuanced and intentional character journeys while still providing a range of different stories.
They are in their third season and Discovery still doesn't have enough episodes yet to do their "Shades of Grey" clip show episode! What gives? /s
Seriously, it's fine as it is. They pack the seasons a bit too full, resulting in a bit of a breakneck pace but they seem to hit the breaks in this season. So, good. But 22-26 episodes isn't some magical number that makes a show better, especially since that wasn't some creative decision to have so many episodes because the writers had a story to tell that needed that many episodes. It was just the number you needed to hit to fill a time slot for syndication, and get enough episodes together to even be considered as syndication fodder.
It's a bit silly to claim that you can't make a good show with less episodes. Plenty of other shows manage. The Expanse doesn't need 22+ episodes to grip you and make you care about the Rocinante's crew. And they have their share of character moments, too.
Seriously, it's fine as it is. They pack the seasons a bit too full, resulting in a bit of a breakneck pace but they seem to hit the breaks in this season. So, good. But 22-26 episodes isn't some magical number that makes a show better, especially since that wasn't some creative decision to have so many episodes because the writers had a story to tell that needed that many episodes. It was just the number you needed to hit to fill a time slot for syndication, and get enough episodes together to even be considered as syndication fodder.
It's a bit silly to claim that you can't make a good show with less episodes. Plenty of other shows manage. The Expanse doesn't need 22+ episodes to grip you and make you care about the Rocinante's crew. And they have their share of character moments, too.
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