@Chemo
> Why do they turn Federation into a dystopia?

I had the same niggle, but I'm hoping it's a way of setting up a redemption arc.

Like when they replaced Captain Georgiou with Emperor Georgiou. She had to learn the value of the Federation's way of doing things. But they also learned a thing or 2 from her.

I don't follow Trek as much as I used to.

I'd guess that the problem is that it's hard to come up with stories in a happy world where everyone gets to choose their own path.

How in the hell is this the same federation of TNG, Voyager and DS9?

Clearly it isn't. Why should it be? It's the far future. Giant prison colony, shock collars, cruelty, punishment with no semblance of a fair trial on screen; clearly the Federation are the bad guys now, or at least adjacent to them. I was prepared to accept that premise. Could be interesting... but no, they immediately shove that concept under the carpet and pretend it doesn't matter because this one person involved feels really bad about it. It was all just another convenient plot device with no meaning, and they moved right on without stopping to think about it. It's utterly lazy writing, the kind where they go with whatever half-baked idea they come up with first whether or not it makes any sense for the characters and story. I say that with confidence because I've seen so much of it before. In this case the character they betrayed was literally Star Trek itself, but they're doing it all the time in smaller ways.

Anyway I'm off to rewatch DS9 instead.

Thanks for the warning. Any show that continues Discovery’s bullshit isn’t going to be worth a watch in my opinion.

If you pretend Star Trek stopped after First Contact, it's a lot better. I really don't understand why they keep trying to make new trek, or who is watching it. Who is it for? It's too fast, too action-y. Too many camera angles. The writing and acting feels like teen drama. Where is the professionalism, the decorum, the reserved nature of Starfleet? And what little humor there should be, should be dry.

Not a big trekie, but I never trusted the "Earth is a giant utopia and everything is perfect" story

Like, I'm sure there's a class of people most of Starfleet is made up of like Picard, but not everyone on earth owns a fucking vineyard.

I always thought The Expanse was probably how it really was. No one "has to work" because there's not enough work. So the majority of the population gets a little UBI and blows it on drugs and alcohol to numb the emptiness

Like, do they even show "current earth" that much in Star Trek? Or is it just wealthy Starfleet members talking about how awesome their lives were?

I dunno, it's just an unbelievable story. If it's really supposed to be a perfect utopia, it's just unbelievable writing.