When I first started this show I found it to be a really awkward mix of comedy and seriousness. It had some jokes thrown it at the most inopportune times as some kind of comic relief from a really serious situation. Perhaps the first half of the first season was actually a bit rough or maybe the show just grew on me, but by season 2 I found myself loving this show.
To me it seems as every bit as comfy, intellectually interesting and even funny as some classic Star Treks while still clearly being its own thing. I wish more comfy space shows like this would get made.
What are your thoughts on The Orville? Also I miss Alara.
It was surprisingly good. I enjoyed it a lot. Didn't think I would but it's much better than Picard, such a boring show.
Picard existed for one reason: To provide a vehicle for ending a bunch of TNG-era storylines so they wouldn't end up fucking the next Trek series as fans ask, "What happened to the Borg? Where is Q? Why doesn't Guinan show up? What about the Romulan homeworld?" and so on. (Okay, two reasons: The second is "money!")
In that, it did an acceptable job, presuming you look at it as a series of endings. And season 3 was an absolute blast full of nostalgia, while still giving the post-TNG era a relatively clean slate to start from.
In keeping an audience engaged with an exciting storyline, or a coherent plot... not so much.
The way I read this, what you are saying is that they made PIC so they can make even worse abominations in the future without being limited by classic Trek canon. That is horrible!
Picard season 3 is a beautiful love letter to TNG