Star Trek: Discovery’s structural problem might be a CBS All Access flaw

The Ringer

“Discovery has the exact same structural problem as All Access’s other original series, suggesting that the conflicting impulses to tell bite-sized and elongated stories might be a feature, not a bug,” says Alison Herman. “When the most unrepentantly conventional network starts making an effort to ape Netflix while also staying true to itself, identity crises naturally follow. The Good Fight, too, quickly falls into procedural-like rhythms, only to quickly run out of room for them and its longer-term narratives. The issue isn’t unique to CBS: NBC was adventurous enough to invest in The Good Place, an almost purely serialized comedy with just 13 episodes a season, but then stuck the show with an awkward, months-long hiatus just as the story was starting to gain momentum — two years in a row. Discovery hitting pause after just nine hours feels similarly abrupt. Networks are branching out from their traditional way of doing things; they’re just not quite ready to go all the way.”