Nitpicking Star Trek: Prodigy – An Unwanted Prophecy

For the first nit covered for Star Trek: Prodigy, I decided cover THE BIGGEST MISTAKE ever made in Star Trek since NBC looked at raw numbers instead of demographics. But since I can’t nitpick real world decisions made by suits…

The Protostar makes it back to Federation Space only to find Starfleet rallied against the crew and ship. Admiral Jellico is adamant that the Protostar be taken out. Where’s the nit? (I can hear you asking). As I was researching some Prodigy nits, EVERY website, blog, or social media thread I encountered basically stated that the biggest mistake in Prodigy was Paramount+ canceling the series. The irony of Starfleet wanting to cancel the Protostar before it arrives home was never intended by the showrunners. In fact season 2 was complete and ready to go when Paramount+ ‘The Home of Star Trek’ canceled the series as a cost-cutting measure and removed it from the streaming service.

Paramount/CBS/Viacom was undergoing corporate changes, including merging with Showtime, leading to major budget cuts. Prodigy was part of a larger group of shows removed from the service to take financial write-downs. Despite being well-liked and one of the less expensive Trek shows, it apparently didn’t attract enough new subscribers or viewership on Paramount+ or its Nickelodeon runs. I’m not privy to whatever numbers the suits need to justify the continued hosting a TV series for streaming. But canceling and removing a completed series without EVER airing any episodes seems pretty short-sighted to me. Almost as short-sighted as Admiral Jellico is in the two episodes.

Paramount had (has) no idea how to market the series. Is it a kid’s show? Yes, Prodigy was and is foremost an introduction into the Star Trek franchise that parents can sit down and enjoy with their children (unlike the latest episode of Paw Patrol).

So the biggest Nit I have discovered thus far is the unintentional foreshadowing of the fate of the series within the episode itself. Who knows, maybe someone at Skydance will have the courage to bring Prodigy back for season 3 on Paramount+. Janeway and the kids got a new ship at the end of the part 2 episode.

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