It is designed to match the experiences and viewing habits of younger people, who are considerably different from the older, veteran fans.
(Spoilers three paragraphs below this point.)
Before we go any further, we need to accept that this new incarnation of Star Trek exists to make money. It is not a "service" for fans. It is not a reward for the long wait since the last "new" Trek episode, May 13, 2005.
It was created to be a profit center.
Let me say it another way: The ONLY reason that CBS decided to make Star Trek Discovery is the likelihood of return on investment and profitability.
The problem is that while Trek has been a cash cow for the studios over the years, the spendable income in the United States today resides in the younger demographics, such as 18-49. So, to succeed, the new series must appeal to them, as the current generation of "customers."
So we [spoilers] get a 13-episode story arc about war with the Klingons, with the main character being a court-martialed and jailed Starfleet officer who apparently becomes central to the outcome of the war.
To the veteran fans, Star Trek has done extended war stories before, in Deep Space Nine and Enterprise. We have even had main characters convicted and sent to prison. So this comes off feeling like a retread of things past.
But the younger fans have been weaned on a diet of Game of Thrones, and endless similar Dystopian story lines. Their frame of reference in fiction is anti-heroes and, more generally, unlikable people doing unethical things to each other.
The producers had a huge challenge to a) create something that could legitimately be called Star Trek, but also b) create something that would feel familiar, and therefore appeal to the generation that made Game of Thrones, The Hunger Games, Divergent, and Twilight hits
So we have a disgraced Starfleet Officer who gets pulled into the cauldron of wartime events, in a context that is generally based on past Star Trek -- the Federation, Klingons and Vulcans, generally familiar weaponry and technology, and other side allusions and terminology that are derived from past Trek.
The point I made about familiarity is very important. Familiar situations are easy for viewers to relate to. That is why all starship bridges look roughly the same, across Star Trek, Battlestar Galactica (both of them), Star Wars, GalaxyQuest, Forbidden Planet, etc. That is why cthe chains of command on starships are always more or less the same. Commanders always have chairs. It is familiarity factor.
The characters also tend to be familiar -- the captain, the first officer, the engineer. In general terms, we know what they are going to do before they do it, because it is all familiar.
Therefore, our stories don't need to explain all of that. We can just move ahead to the elements of the story that are unique to us. It is these innovations, or things that are different from all the other stories, that are seen as being "creative."
For Discovery, it is not what is familiar to the old folks who don't spend as much money. It is the younger 18-49 year old demographic that has the money to spend on Trek stuff, and on the things the advertisers want them to buy.
But these things are not the only way that Star Trek Discovery is customized to the younger folks.
Did you notice that there was no To be continued at the end of the episodes? They just stopped, and the next episodes pick up at the same place. That is the binge watching dynamic. Yes, the new episodes will come out week-by-week, but CBS clearly expects the long-term revenue to be from binge watchers.
About 9.6 million people watched the premiere episode on the broadcast CBS network. That doesn't sound bad, but the adults 18-49 rating/share was a 1.9/7, which is only decent, not fantastic. CBSAllAccess had a record number of sign-ups, but we have no information about the demographics, i.e. the ages of people paying to see Discovery up-front.
So I am sorry to say that many of the long-term Star Trek fans may not be as interested in Discovery. But the series is not made for them. It is made for people young enough that previous Trek was before their time.
Because new fans means new merchandising, new streaming revenue, and highly desirable audiences for advertiser commercials. Plus some of those folks may be intrigued to check out the older Trek series and merchandise as well, thus refreshing that demand, also.
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