Star Trek: Discovery - 9 Reasons To Be Worried

From what we know, Discovery represents a major break from Trek tradition in terms of its structure and characters. As the trailers seem to suggest, there is an overall large story-arc that excludes room for stand-alone episodes, and strangely, centres on at least two Starfleet ships/crews as opposed to one. Michael does not primarily serve on the titular ship nor is she even a Captain; she's instead First Officer on the USS Shenzhou. The series is a character story of her, while the two Captains serve only in a supporting capacity.

The immediate issue with this regards the possible narrow scope of the series. Despite having numerous great characters, Trek has never been (and probably shouldn't be) a pinpoint character study. The bigger picture is typically at hand, where universal issues and conundrums are mused and determined by a character with major narrative power i.e. the Captain. There's a reason why the Captain is typically the main player; it's Trek's essential formula and where its best drama comes from. Unlike the crewmen (even the First Officer), Captains' decisions will distinctively drive and impact a large-scale story.

Expertly written and structured, Discovery could present an original and interesting dynamic, but the show runs a serious risk of straying too far from streamlined Star Trek.