Definitely maybe?
In a two-part episode, "Lost and Found," Prodigy set into the place the premise for the series: a group of children from a forced labor planet in the Delta Quradrant discover an apparently abandoned Starfleet ship, and use it to escape to future weekly adventures. To me, Prodigy compared most to the beginning of Star Trek: Discovery, in that its first episode wasn't exactly itself "a regular adventure," but rather setting things up for future "weekly adventures."
It was an intriguing setup, introducing a lot of distinct and interesting characters. The fact that they're mostly children and/or cute creatures is, I suppose, what ultimately makes this a show "for kids." But the same show heavily featured themes of child labor, torture, and subjugation. Future episodes could be a good deal lighter, for all we know, but Prodigy sure seems geared "for the whole family" and not just for a younger audience.
Prodigy also seems to be taking a run at being the most accessible Trek show for non-Trekkers. It has steep competition there from Lower Decks, which tries to be inviting through humor (while flinging more franchise in-jokes than even the fans can always keep up with). Prodigy -- at least, before a holographic Kathryn Janeway arrives on the scene -- tries pretty hard to stand on its own from existing Star Trek. Sure, Medusans, Tellarites, and Kazon are all things from Trek history, but you don't need to know any of that to watch Prodigy. And by setting itself in the Delta Quadrant (and not a part we saw on Star Trek: Voyager, at that), the show is well-positioned to include or steer clear of existing Trek lore in whatever balance the writers deem best.
Indeed, the tone of the first episode was partly Star Trek in its optimism and depiction of "skilled people working together," but was also equally something else. I've seen online reviewers compare it to Star Wars a fair bit, but I'd say it felt most like the Marvel Cinematic Universe -- specifically the Thor / Guardians of the Galaxy / Captain Marvel side of the MCU. (You know, "the weird space stuff" about to be joined by Eternals.) Prodigy felt grand and colorful, and in many ways "bigger" than Star Trek sometimes feels, because it showed us this part of the universe we hadn't really seen before.
The voice cast seems interesting -- a mix of actual young actors, actors known for giving good villain (Jimmi Simpson and John Noble), and actors who have done a lot of voice-over work (Jason Mantzoukas) and a lot of voice-over work (Dee Bradley Baker). As is Star Trek tradition, the secondary characters -- with their wilder, alien personalities -- are off to an early lead in likeability, but there are plenty of episodes ahead to get to know them all. (I do feel compelled to point out, though, that in contradiction to screenplay law, they literally did not Save the Cat. And it was a really cute, young cat too. Weird.)
I figured I would know in just one episode of Star Trek: Prodigy if it was going to be too "kiddie" for me. And sure enough, it feels like I know: it's not. Whether I'll enjoy it as much as I have Discovery, Picard, and (most of all) Lower Decks remains to be seen. But also, that's probably not where the bar is really set. If Prodigy can be entertaining and carve out its own distinct niche in the Star Trek franchise, I'm happy to keep giving it a chance. I give "Lost and Found" a B.
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