I like the show, but it keeps nostalgia-bating and it's getting annoying. The balance of terror what-if was cool. I don't think I will ever get over that they chose to make a boy band joke instead if doing klingon opera in subspace rhapsody. The wedding episode was fun but after watching it, annoying. I don't need to see ALL the people and things from ToS. It's an okay show...but is it okay because it keeps reminding me about ToS or because it's solid on its own? The answer changes with the episode.
this post was submitted on 16 Sep 2025
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a season that veered largely in quality from one episode to the next, including a particularly notable nosedive in its back half
I greatly enjoyed this season (no really, the good ones are so good), but I must agree here about the nose dive.
That documentary episode is probably my least favorite Star Trek episode of all time.
And that finale? Too much unwelcome Mass Effect 3 energy in this ending for me to enjoy.
Ley lines. Hey, they’re real!
Absolutely my least favorite treknobabble of all time.
Season 2 was already meh
Somewhere in Season 3 is where I finally completely lost interest. It's been slowly coming for me for a while. It wasn't even a conscious decision, I stopped watching mid episode and haven't cared to start again. I don't even really remember what was going on (some Gorn related thing). At some point I had pulled out my phone and stopped paying attention.
Apparently, this season seems to be controversial, some people really love it and that's great. Not here to hate on it or try to take that away from them. But I think post Discovery Trek really isn't for me and I'm just feeling done.
My interest was lost in the Holo deck episode and I havent been back. Does that episode get better?
to me it's more like post Enterprise that I just can't get into anymore. Time to time I try again though, hoping one day I will magically start to like them.
I should have said "Post Enterprise." Discovery lost me mostly during the section 31 season and completely during the time skip season.
They boiled down the essence of Enemy Mine into a Gorn episode, fuck the haters this season was excellent.
Terrarium was pawbably the only genuinely great episode this season, and it still didn't really do anything new as there have been several Enemy Mine episodes in past series (The Enemy - TNG, Dawn - ENT). This season also had pawbably the worst SNW episode to date in Four-and-a-Half Vulcans, which was just all kinds of problematic.
I found four and a half vulcans the weakest episode in my opinion, but a friend of mine loved the episode. My biggest problem with the episode, other than why was it really necessary, was actually pointed out by Kirk in the episode. They didn't actually even act like Vulcans they were just dicks, Pike especially was uncharacteristically rude and would have never treated anyone the way he treated Spock in the episode.
Most of the season scored between 5-7/10 for me. Terrarium was an 8.5, Vulcans was a 4, This is Starfleet was a 3, but if it was filmed differently could have been so much better. I really this that This is Starfleet had one of the better stories and checks a lot of "Classic Trek" boxes for me.
Zammis approves.
Hope so! Season 3 wasn't the worst thing ever but not really good or memorable.
Season three was freaking amazing!
It's like the album your favorite band made when they were trying to get kicked off the label and did all the dumb shit they always wanted to do but didn't have the money.
Season three is some of the best ST ever made
I didn't get the music analogy but I agree with you that "dumb shit" can apply to a large part of this season.
Season 3 was pretty good tho.
It wasn't bad but it wasn't good either
Especially the questionable Vulcan episode...
They set a high bar with the first two seasons.
I felt like there were highlights in season 3. But it also felt uneven. The episodes I liked felt good, but not great. The first two seasons had great episodes.
There was also a distinct lack of social commentary, which I feel is important in Star Trek. The best we got was Terrarium. Definitely a fun episode, but it's core is a trope we've seen a number of times. What Is Starfleet looked like it was thinking about commenting on something, but frantically pulled the ripcord partway through, and went in a direction I wasn't comfortable with. (Which is too bad because I thought the directing in that episode was very cool.) There's nothing on the level of Ad Astra Per Aspera. Instead we got 5 episodes of mortal struggle vs unreasoning monsters.
the list of unreasoning monsters
Gorn, plant zombies, the "pure evil" on Vadia IX, the ship-eating ship
I don't understand the dislike it gets. It had a couple fun episodes and that's a bad thing?
Yeah beats me. It's still the best trek since the aughts.
By a wide margin too.
Agreed. Unless we're counting Risa/ tenforward. Then it's second best.
This is the problem with modern TV shows. We only have 10 episode seasons now vs the 20+ long ones from the TNG era. If these were all episodes in a season that lasted 20 episodes I doubt we would be seeing as many complaints, but as it is 10 episodes does not leave much room for any change of pace mid season. This season, while in my opinion was quite well written, was a little all over the place and didn't really seem to have a lot of direction. It really bounced around a lot, which wouldn't be a problem as much if there was 20 episodes to work with, but when you only have 10 its hard to justify some of the "fun" or experimental episodes.
As an aside. My least favourite episode "This is Starfleet" was also my favourite story in the season and if it was shot as a normal episode I think would have probably be my favourite of the series so far. It really captured the "Classic Trek" vibe for me.
The 10 episodes really is not enough. What's worse is the shows with 10 or even 8 episodes that have two+ years between seasons.
I mean... There was at least 2 years between season 2 & 3.
You are right, with 20+ episodes it's easier to have a common theme while still being episodic enough to have episodes that don't advance the plot but are either funny or explore some unrelated theme. 10 episodes season work for a serialized series (like discovery), but an episodic 10 episodes series is a hybrid of the two and more difficult to pull throught.
However, I still think they did a good job, the season was fun and enjoyable, and I don't really care there's no "big picture plot". After all, this is not telling the voyage of a ship lost in the galaxy or a multi-year war with a foreign dominion, it's a character build-up story that will eventually become the original series, it's a prequel and doesn't try to be anything else. Surely I enjoyed it more than galaxy-destroying-threat-of-the-year discovery.
Also, even if some more "experimental" episodes may be a little failed, I can surely appreciate the attempt and, even if more boring or over the top, at least they are memorable, si they have value.
Yeah. I do think they did a great job btw. This season was such a ride and I can't wait for season 4. I just meant that with so few episodes you really feel when one doesn't hit right.
They need to hate something. Discovery has ended, Lower Decks and Picard too, and Academy isn’t out yet, so what are they gonna hate on?
I also really like Season 3, but I do feel it is the weakest of the 3 seasons we got so far.
one word: musical.
Agreed. It was still good tho.
Agree - I enjoyed it a lot.
Yeah, the whole wrap up of Batel's storyline was pretty stupid, NGL.
I don't understand why they didn't just go with the moral dilemma of having to choose between her life or the possibly dozens of baby Gorn that were growing inside her.
I mean, if you want to have a heart-wrenching example of how far Star Fleet is willing to go, in the name of peace and the preservation of innocent lives...leaving Batel to choose whether or not to sacrifice herself, in exchange for them...as well as the prospect of continued peace between the Federation and the Gorn? Wow. Now, that would have been a powerful display of compassion and benevolence.
None of this "Universal Star-child" bullshit. Just a good old fashioned moral dilemma, about the needs of the many, outweighing the needs of the few.
My entire issue with this season was how they handled the Batel stuff. I thought it was really really interesting and then she just kinda... poof...
Her struggling with being a gorn host wouldve been significantly more interesting and it wouldve made more sense while being sadder.
> None of this "Universal Star-child" bullshit.
Bang on. It's the same reason I couldn't stand Discovery. There's a universe ending problem and you alone are the key to solving it? Blech.
Fan fic with higher production values.
I think Batel was a well written character, otherwise.
It's usually a bad sign when they have to say that.
The only way anything can be better is when the majority of everyone says it's better.
Saying it out loud doesn't make it better.
I, for one, loved Season 3, NGL. 🤷🏼♂️