That's pretty much my biggest problem with the show... there are plenty of annoying WTF problems with the design (JJ Abrams style lens flares) and storyline (Spock's never-before-mentioned black human stepsister), but the 800 lb. gorilla in the room is the huge missed opportunity here. There's really nothing they're giving us that would make me want to watch every week to "see what happens next". Pretty much the last thing I want to see is some dour melodrama about "war with the Klingons" supposed set in the Captain Pike era.
Why can't Discovery actually be about... y'know... DISCOVERING something?