I have finished watching Star Trek Next Generation and Deep Space 9 following a friend’s recommendation. I enjoyed both shows and started watching the other one, Star Trek Voyager.
So far, I’m not finding it as enjoyable as the other two. I want to try to see it through the eyes of someone who enjoys the show, maybe it will also help me understand why it feels different somehow.
It definitely gets better as it goes along. It’s a great concept for a ST show, and the cast is strong. And aside from resting too heavily on the holodeck, and having a few real lemon episodes (like the one where Janeway and Paris turn into amphibians), it’s pretty dependable. But yeah, the first 2-3 seasons can be a chore to watch.
It got a lot of hate for the first 15-20 years, but it seems like it’s getting a bit more appreciation these days. So I think it’s agreed pretty well.
On a non-ST show topic, I highly recommend Stargate SG-1 if you haven’t already seen it. Really fun show that also gets better in the later seasons (especially around seasons 6 and 7). Some very clever ideas, a lore-rich universe, a very solid cast, and it manages to hit hard with the drama sometimes while still not taking itself too seriously (and actually has a surprising amount of comedy).
Some of the criticisms definitely make sense. Parts of the premise are barely utilized. Some characters barely change at all. The finale makes a complete joke of one of the major threats in the setting. Janeway somehow manages to challenge Sisko for being the most liberal about Starfleet principles while simultaneously being a hardass when others do it. Neelix has screen time. (No offense to Ethan Phillips who did a wonderful job portraying him; the character just happens to be intensely annoying.)
I’m not going to list “the first episodes/seasons suck in comparison” as a downside; that’s a fairly common Trek ailment. People need time to nail those shows down.
On the plus side, it does make for a good space cozy and it takes the Trek ethos way more seriously than some newer shows. Some of the ideas it comes up with are genuinely cool. It has some of the better holodeck episodes. The Doctor is a better vehicle for exploring the rights of artificial sentiences than Data (The Measure of a Man notwithstanding). Seven of Nine was added as a mobile pair of tits and somehow ended up massively upgrading the show in terms of character development.
I’d say that out of the TNG/DS9/VOY/ENT quartet it’s definitely the second weakest but it’s not a bad show overall.