About Prodigy and J/C
So, first off, the new season of Star Trek Prodigy is one of the most phenomenal seasons of television I've ever watched, so please proceed and watch the hell out of it so that we can perhaps get a continuation.
With that said, proceed with caution, for there are minor spoilers ahead.
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Regarding what we got (or rather, didn't get) in terms of j/c shipping, I have read several opinions by several people who, apparently, feel betrayed by the promises made by the showrunners, and I hear those complaints.
However, hear me out.
First of all with regards to the actual content of the ship present in the season, I have to say that it's rendered pretty clear that, no matter the type of the relationship, these two people are one another's most important human. This is evident not only in the way others perceive Janeway's emotional attachment as detrimental to her duty as Admiral, but also in the way the characters themselves talk about one another.
For example, Janeway refers to Chakotay as her "number one", and given that she never used that term with other first officers, the phrase seems to convey something different. The hologram Janeway is all that stands between Chakotay and a possible descent to madness during his isolation. In a flashback, he even hands her the rock with the spiral pattern drawn on it, refering to her in no uncertain terms as "home". The list goes on.
But it's not just that, and the fact remains that most fans of the j/c dynamic were looking for a more outspoken romantic tension, a kiss, or a confession. And I understand the frustration that it didn't happen, however keep in mind that the second season had been written in its entirety when news of the show's cancellation hit the press, and the writers were evidently planning ahead with no intention to wrap things up this early (there's also a point to be made about writers not having to abide by the dystopian laws of modern streaming, where there is always the fear of cancellation looming over your head and interfering with the organic development of the plot, but that's another can of worms.)
One final point to be made is about the Hagemans and the nature of the work they usually do. Anyone who has ever watched their work on Tales of Arcadia will tell you they love their romantic sub plots, touching on the love lives of teens and older adults alike. Tales of arcadia is perhaps unique in how much, how delightfully, and how unpredictably it ships main and secondary characters alike, and I cannot believe the people responsible for such a colorful selection of romantic subplots would shy away from dealing with the most notable semi-canon ship to come out of nineties Trek.
The bottom line is, the show is beautiful as is. And hope is not lost on the j/c front. Romantic or not, they are canonical soulmates. And the nature of the showrunners ' previous works makes me believe that there were plans to make the ship canon further down the road.
All the more reason for the rest of us to try and secure a continuation.
