Summary
The rest ofStar Trekin 2024 is all animation, which is both good and bad. The 5th and final season ofStar Trek: Discoverycloses the chapter on live-actionStar Trekseries for the year, sothe onlyStar Trekseries left this year areStar Trek: Lower DecksandStar Trek: Prodigy,both well-received animated series.LikeStar Trek: Discoverybefore it,Star Trek: Lower Decksis said to end with its 5th season on Paramount+, although fan campaigns to saveLower Decksare well underway. After being picked up by Netflix,Star Trek: Prodigywill adhere to the Netflix model, soStar Trek: Prodigyseason 2 drops all 20 episodessimultaneously on July 1.
As animated series,Star Trek: ProdigyandStar Trek: Lower Decksare true gifts to fansthat push the boundaries ofStar Trek’s storytelling.Lower Decksbrings back alien species likeStar Trek: The Animated Series’Catians and Edosians, and expands canon with visits to Ferenginar and Orion.Star Trek: Prodigy’s castof alien kids would be difficult to achieve in live-action, but animation makes it possible to bring Dal R’El (Brett Gray), Gwyndala (Ella Purnell), and the rest of the USS Protostar’s ragtag crew to life. Both series soar beyond the limits of live-actionStar Trekwith epic, multi-ship space battles and ambitious visuals.
Star Trek’s 5 Animated Series Ranked Worst To Best
Star Trek now has several animated series accompanying its live-action TV shows and movies, and here are the best and worst of animated Star Trek.
Prodigy & Lower Decks Are The Purest & Most Adventurous Star Trek
Prodigy & Lower Decks Are Some Of The Best Trek Out There
Star Trek: ProdigyandStar Trek: Lower Decksare the purest and most adventurousStar Trekseries to date.In addition to being a great introduction toStar Trekfor any age,Star Trek: Prodigyrefuses to talk down to its audience.Prodigy’s adolescent characters act like real kids who find themselves in difficult situations, guided by variousversions ofStar Trek: Voyager’s Kathryn Janeway(Kate Mulgrew).Star Trek: Lower Decks' deep-cut humor celebrates all the weird and wacky parts ofStar Trek,whileLower Decks' main characters are deceptively complex, driven by past trauma, inner critics, ambition, and a deep desire for acceptance and camaraderie.
Star Trek: Lower Decks polishes the raw material provided by decades of canon into sparkling gems of story.
BothStar Trek: Lower DecksandStar Trek: Prodigyare passionate love letters toStar Trek.Lower Decksdigs in to the core ofStar Trek, mining the deepest and most obscure references, and polishes the raw material provided by decades of canon into sparkling gems of story starring surprisingly multifaceted characters.Star Trek: ProdigyembracesTrek’s broader themes with teenage characters whose worldviews become reformed by Starfleet’s philosophies, and learn how to ward off despair, adversity, and oppression through cooperation, compassion, and connection. Make no mistake:Lower DecksandProdigyare both pure, concentratedStar Trek,no matter what they look like or who they’re for.
2024 Could Be The End Of Star Trek Animation
After Star Trek: Lower Decks and Star Trek: Prodigy, No New Animated Star Trek Series Are Scheduled
The end ofStar Trekanimation may be on the horizon in 2024. Earlier this year, a bittersweet announcement declared both thecancelation ofStar Trek: Lower Decksafter season 5, which is scheduled for a fall 2024 release, and the renewal ofStar Trek: Strange New Worldsfor season 4.Star Trek: Prodigyseason 2 was originally slated to stream on Paramount+ in late 2023, and was picked up by Netflix for a summer 2024 release. Despite aggressive fan campaigns to save both animatedStar Trekshows,bothStar Trek: Lower DecksandStar Trek: Prodigyare currently facing their final seasons.
Besides that, there are no animatedStar Trekprojects in the slate ofupcomingStar Trekshows. Netflix has the option to continueStar Trek: Prodigyfor season 3, but it’s certainly not guaranteed. Even ifProdigydoes well enough to merit a continuation, it will take 2 years minimum to produce a 3rd season ofStar Trek: Prodigy. The cancelation ofStar Trek: Lower Deckswasn’t planned, but the animation process doesn’t warrant the addition of a satisfactory wrap-up like the one inStar Trek: Discovery.Althougha one-off movie could provide a satisfying conclusion forStar Trek: Lower Decks, only one so-called “Long Trek” has been produced so far, and it’s not animated.
Star Trek’s Paramount Plus Movies Must Keep Canceled TV Shows Alive
Star Trek on Paramount+’s potential series of made-for-streaming movies can keep canceled shows like Picard, Discovery, and Lower Decks alive.
2024 Only Has 1 Live-Action Star Trek Possibility Left
Star Trek: Section 31 Could Debut By The End Of The Year
WithStar Trek: Discoveryseason 5 in the rearview, andStar Trek: Strange New Worldsseason 3 slated for a 2025 release at the earliest, the made-for-streaming movieStar Trek: Section 31, starring Michelle Yeoh asStar Trek: Discovery’s Emperor Philippa Georgiou, remains the only possibility for additional live-actionStar Trekin 2024.Section 31, written by Craig Sweeny and directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi, wrapped filming in March 2024 and still hasn’t gotten an official release date. Despite the heavy post-production that sci-fi series likeStar Trektypically require,it’s possible thatStar Trek: Section 31could still stream on Paramount+ before the end of the year.
With 40 episodes of television (and one possible movie) in 2024,Star Trekis still going strong. Even without another live-actionStar Trekscheduled this year, it’s a great time to be aStar Trekfan, sincethe rest of 2024 promises the long-awaited return ofStar Trek: Prodigyand the continued adventures of the USS Cerritos' Warp Core Five inStar Trek: Lower Decks. It’s just sad to seeStar Trek: ProdigyandStar Trek: Lower Decksat their premature ends after both of these excellent animated series have consistently delivered high-quality, character-drivenStar Trekstories that deserve to continue.
