The Star Trek franchise finds itself in the strange position of having two upcoming shows that feature a cast of Starfleet Academy students. With Star Trek: Prodigy season 2 premiering on Netflix in early 2024, and Star Trek: Starfleet Academy already in development, it feels like the two shows are in danger of stepping on each other’s toes. Both shows are targeted at a younger audience, and both shows feature protagonists who get hands-on experience of what it means to be part of both Starfleet and the United Federation of Planets.
With Star Trek: Prodigy on Netflix and Star Trek: Starfleet Academy destined for Paramount+, the similarities may not be as pronounced as if both shows were on the same streamer. However, it’s inevitable that within fan circles, there will be debate over which Star Trek show is a better depiction of coming-of-age within Starfleet Academy and the Federation. This debate will only be exacerbated by Paramount’s bizarre decision to cancel Prodigy and sell the animated series to Netflix.
Prodigy’s Netflix Deal Pits It Against Star Trek: Starfleet Academy
With Star Trek: Prodigy being kept out of Paramount+’s Star Trek collection, there’s a danger that it will be looked upon as less “essential” compared to its franchise stablemates. Having such a similar show about young Starfleet recruits on Paramount+ will only help to sell this false narrative. Star Trek: Prodigy is canon but its exclusion from the so-called Home of Star Trek unfairly makes it a franchise outlier. Although the release schedule of modern Star Trek shows means that Prodigy likely won’t ever go up against Star Trek: Starfleet Academy directly, there’s still a weird sense of competition baked into their similar audiences and placement on competing streamers.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy has a strong pedigree, with Nancy Drew creator Noga Landau and Alex Kurtzman serving as co-showrunners. Starfleet Academy also has the edge over Prodigy because it will be live action. Animated Star Trek has traditionally had a hard time from the more puritanical corners of fandom. Therefore, Starfleet Academy‘s live-action format and placement among the “official” Star Trek shows does create the unintended optic that it’s a more “traditional” replacement for the canceled Prodigy.
How Starfleet Academy Will Differ From Star Trek: Prodigy
While Star Trek: Starfleet Academy and Star Trek: Prodigy are both about young adults learning about an almost mythological Federation, there are key differences between both shows. Aside from Prodigy being one of Star Trek‘s five animated series, there are other substantial differences from the upcoming Starfleet Academy show. Prodigy season 2 is set aboard the USS Voyager-A, with Dal and the crew being sworn in as junior warrant officers. They’re effectively Academy students on a field trip, albeit one that will take them into the uncharted territory of an alternate 25th century timeline.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy will be set within the titular institution, following a young group of cadets through their studies. Whereas Star Trek: Prodigy is a sequel to Star Trek: Voyager, Starfleet Academy will be a backdoor sequel to Star Trek: Discovery. The spinoff will pick up the story of the Federation in the 32nd century, expanding Discovery‘s legacy, and adding to Star Trek‘s existing mythology. Hopefully, this helps to establish Star Trek: Starfleet Academy as its own thing, and not an attempt to occupy the territory once held by Star Trek: Prodigy.
Star Trek: Prodigy season 1 streams from December 25 on Netflix.
Star Trek: Prodigy
Star Trek: Prodigy is the first TV series in the Star Trek franchise marketed toward children, and one of the few animated series in the franchise. The story follows a group of young aliens who find a stolen Starfleet ship and use it to escape from the Tars Lamora prison colony where they are all held captive. Working together with the help of a holographic Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew), the new crew of the USS Protostar must find their way back to the Alpha Quadrant to warn the Federation of the deadly threat that is pursuing them.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy
After being closed for over a hundred years, Starfleet Academy is reopening its doors to those who wish to pursue a career as Starfleet Officers. Star Trek: Starfleet Academy will follow a new group of cadets as they come of age, and build friendships, rivalries, and romantic relationships while being threatened by a new adversary that could destroy the Academy and the Federation itself.
