So I do like Star Trek a lot, especially TNG, DS9, and Below Decks. Voyager and TOS are fine. Space socialism is pretty good and I can't get enough of it. There are a few common tropes that irk me. tho.
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Baseball is cracker Amerikkkan nonsense - You telling me that all these different species and planets get together to chill, and the vibe they're gonna channel is Ohio?? Football (soccer) or some version of hockey make a lot more sense, you can pick up and start playing immediately. I can't imagine Worf wanting to learn all those pointless rules about balls and strikezones and fowls. Sisko is arguably the best captain of any series, and I really get pulled out of an episode every time he drops some awful baseball trivia. It's only slightly better than Nascar. I actually know one Scottish person who really likes baseball, and he's literally the worst person I know.
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The tribunal - It's so damn common. It seems like every season there's got to be a court-martial, hearing, or appeal against a Starfleet decision. I guess Law and Order is big there. It's probably a minor critique, but it does reinforce the ideology that Western courtrooms are fair.
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Kirk is a sex pest - This has been said to death, but leave your subordinates alone.
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Poker in TNG - Poker has to be the worst form of entertainment, and I genuinely like maths. I blame TNG for reigniting the poker craze of the 90s and ruining all my guy friends' personalities.
When I look at the stats, the only countries where baseball beats football in popularity is 9 current or former colonies of the US. I don't see how it's all all different from cricket.
"A man of his times" is a problematic argument.
it depends why you're critiquing the show. most of what TOS did right is stuff we take completely for granted now, and the semiotics of things like miniskirts have flipped over time. The flaws will be in nearly any production of the time because 60s tv all kinda blows outside of trek and some twilight zone episodes; but anything a modern looks at with disdain won't be why people loved it or why it was so culturally important.
kirk's womanizing is also rather exaggerated by the post-run fandom and old memes, but that doesn't excuse what is there.
tbh this is a bit lighthearted. I do like the show despite its faults. Ya tv in the 60s scares me.
Yeah it's literally just American cricket, and just as boring.
cricket is shit baseball is shit