Star Trek: Lower Decks
Hacker ApprovedThe most recommended of 10 animated series
Fans call it a love letter to classic Trek, with strong later seasons after a rough first season. Critics point to that weak opening season and visuals that felt distant.
Fans call it a love letter to classic Trek, with strong later seasons after a rough first season. Critics point to that weak opening season and visuals that felt distant.
28 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 24
- criticize it
- 4
- approval share
- 86%
Recommended in 7 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 24 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 6 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 7 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Love letter to classic Trek
“The Lower Decks was good as a love letter to older fans, I do recommend that.”
Comment from 29 Oct 2026 in “Patrick Stewart has died” “Lower Decks which was a love letter to classic Trek”
Comment from 12 Apr 2026 in “Sadly, the End of Star Trek Is Now Official” “It's more like a love letter to TOS.”
Comment from 15 Mar 2026 in “Animated 'Firefly' Reboot in Development from Nathan Fillion, 20th TV” Stronger later seasons after rough start
“Lower Decks in traditional Trek fashion had a rough season 1 but was stronger later”
Comment from 15 Mar 2026 in “Animated 'Firefly' Reboot in Development from Nathan Fillion, 20th TV” “Took a while to find itself but finished strong.”
Comment from 7 Oct 2026 in “Paramount Skydance has completed its $111B merger with Warner Bros. Discovery” Favorite or strongest new Trek spin-off
“Lower Decks is one of my favorite star trek shows, and I normally don't click with animated series.”
Comment from 16 Mar 2026 in “Animated 'Firefly' Reboot in Development from Nathan Fillion, 20th TV” “I have a hard time saying Lower Decks is my favorite Star Trek show, but it really kind of is.”
Comment from 7 Oct 2026 in “Paramount Skydance has completed its $111B merger with Warner Bros. Discovery” “I actually think Lower Decks (post season 1) was the strongest spin off in new Trek.”
Comment from 31 Oct 2026 in “Show HN: To Honor Sir Patrick Stewart, Enjoy the TNG Episode Guessing Game” Accessible, fun Trek energy
“I think it's a very welcome tone change, and it's very accessible to people who haven't watched much of Star Trek”
Comment from 31 Oct 2026 in “Through Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Patrick Stewart taught us the measure of a man” “Lower Decks was absolute blast with so much Star Trek energy in it”
Comment from 14 Sep 2026 in “Writing a better reality: The case for optimistic sci-fi (2022)”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Rough first season
“I wasn't much keen on the first season of Lower Decks either.”
Comment from 30 Oct 2026 in “Patrick Stewart has died” “Lower Decks in traditional Trek fashion had a rough season 1 but was stronger later”
Comment from 15 Mar 2026 in “Animated 'Firefly' Reboot in Development from Nathan Fillion, 20th TV”
Other animated series people recommend
The four most recommended other animated series, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Star Trek: Lower DecksThis page | 24 | 4 | 86% | 7 | — | Approved |
| South Park | 22 | 10 | 69% | 9 | — | Approved |
| The Simpsons | 14 | 15 | 48% | 8 | — | — |
| Arcane | 13 | 1 | 93% | 8 | — | Approved |
| Neural Viz | 10 | 2 | 83% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
29 of the 33 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Lower Decks, and roughly half of SNW”
“I was sharing my excitement at Lower Decks. I'm glad that you liked it too.”
“I actually think Lower Decks (post season 1) was the strongest spin off in new Trek.”
“it enriches Star Trek’s lore”
“I think it's a very welcome tone change, and it's very accessible to people who haven't watched much of Star Trek”
“as it's set in the timeline just after TNG and has guest (voice) appearances from many TNG, DS9 and Voyager characters”
“watch Lower Decks and let them all be dispelled”
“I wasn't much keen on the first season of Lower Decks either.”
“The Lower Decks was good as a love letter to older fans, I do recommend that.”
“Lower Decks and SNW corrected hard on earier NuTrek transgressions against the utopian future.”
“I have a hard time saying Lower Decks is my favorite Star Trek show, but it really kind of is.”
“Lower Decks is the truest Trek to ever Trek”
“Took a while to find itself but finished strong.”
“I'd probably hesitate to use the term "good"”
“Lower Decks is so good too.”
“Lower Decks was absolute blast with so much Star Trek energy in it”
“I found the SNW / LD cross-over episode not only weak but disorienting.”
“Lower Decks which was a love letter to classic Trek”
“Lower decks was an instant turn-off”
“Lower Decks is one of my favorite star trek shows, and I normally don't click with animated series.”
“While they did good job, visuals were giving me this feeling it's a distant memory that fades away.”
“LD, SNW, and SFA are some of the most classic-style Star Trek content you can get.”
“I couldn't get into Lower Decks.”
“Terrific character development and overall really told that story”
“It's more like a love letter to TOS.”
“Lower Decks in traditional Trek fashion had a rough season 1 but was stronger later”
“I didn't like Star Trek: Lower Decks but it didn't make me feel like Trek has been ruined”
“Star Trek animated is pretty good and so is Lower Decks.”
“Luckily Lower Decks was good”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.