Star Trek: Starfleet Academy takes the franchise in a bold new direction, following the first class of cadets in over a century at the newly reopened Academy more than 100 years after the cataclysmic event known as "The Burn." Tasked with rebuilding a fractured Federation, the series is designed to resonate with younger audiences.
On paper, Starfleet Academy has all the makings of a strong entry point into the franchise. In practice, however, its first season has proved divisive among long-time fans.
Longtime series veteran Jonathan Frakes, best known for portraying Commander William Riker on Star Trek: The Next Generation, does not understand the hate the series is receiving.
“What’s with the haters? This show is great,” Frakes told Den of Geek following the premiere of Episode 9 "300th Night."
Frakes, who has become a fan favorite behind the camera in the Star Trek universe, directed the penultimate episode of Starfleet Academy, which many consider to be one of the season's strongest.
“Really, I’m thrilled with it. I think it has a real optimism," he said of the series. "It’s representative of Star Trek moving into the future. I mean, it’s all really in the future, but this is after the Burn, this is after so much other stuff. There’s a lot of canon that is in place that Starfleet Academy is reestablishing itself in San Francisco after a hundred years, so there’s a lot for the hardcore Trekkies to dig into, to say, ‘Oh, okay, this is where they are now’ while still being [full of] surprises.”
Having directed numerous episodes across Deep Space Nine and Voyager, Frakes is experienced in dealing with passionate fandoms. No stranger to troll behavior online, even Frakes, who considers himself an "eternal optimist," acknowledged that he is surprised by the backlash surrounding Starfleet Academy.
“I was prepared because when Next Gen came out almost 40 years ago, we were trolled,” he jokingly told IGN. “Nobody wanted us. And this was pre-internet. But it’s still dimensionally more painful [today] and the trolls are hiding and the trolls are hating. It's the first rule of the Constitution. I guess they are entitled to their opinion, but it surprises me how aggressively ‘anti’ they are with each new iteration of the show. And it continues to surprise me, and I try not to let it upset me.”
With just one episode left in its inaugural season, the series holds an 88% rating on the Tomatometer among critics. However, it sits at only 51% among general audiences. While some of the lower scores have been attributed to backlash over perceived “wokeness,” the show has f
Despite the rocky start, Starfleet Academy appears to have found its footing in the latter half of the season, with Frakes helping set up a thrilling Season 1 finale that will air this Thursday. CBS and Paramount have already renewed Starfleet Academy for a second season. The series is designed to run for four seasons, mimicking a cadet's college experience, but if ratings and viewership do not pick up, there is no guarantee the series will continue beyond Season 2.