It’s no more limiting to TNG era stories than the TNG era itself was to TOS era stories. They can’t blow up the Earth or genocide any major races, but beyond that we’ve been given very little information about any character’s future. I didn’t find Star Trek VI any less exciting because I knew the Klingon empire would still be around 80 years later, and I’d say SNW is flourishing under far tighter restrictions.

I think the mirror universe arc was the best.

As someone who enjoyed S1 the most, I completely agree. The closest trek yet came to “prestige” and then it slipped away :(

Don’t worry. I’m sure Michael Burnham will come back somehow and help the writers get out of their block.

The mirror universe arc was, IMHO, when Georgio was at her most interesting and I also liked it.

Not really. That’s a 700 year gap. A LOT can happen in 700 years; Star Trek itself was only set 300 years in the future when it was released.

I see it as freeing: they can have any major event shift the timeline and move Discovery into being merely one possible future instead. No need to constrain themselves to some of the show’s more questionable moves.