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.
That the first season/part of first season was awkward qualified it as part of the Star Trek tradition, they all stumbled around to figure out what they were doing at first. I would say that it is Star Trek just as much as Galaxy Quest is a Star Trek movie, and perhaps that's the issue with some not liking it fully...it's a parody/alternate take of the idea carried out a bit too long, whereas Galaxy Quest was the perfect amount.
As a Star Trek fan since the 70s, I can say that all versions have their highs and lows, there isn't a perfect one. And from the Vulcan philosophy of IDIC (Infinite Diversity In Infinite Combinations), this is how it should be. The more the better, even some of Discovery. I think the idea of Discovery was great, it just wasn't implemented well, but again, I could point out other Star Trek that shared that.