Honestly, Deadline is misusing the word “pilot” here.

“The Cage” was a pilot. “Where No Man Has Gone Before” was a pilot. “Mudd’s Women” and “The Omega Glory” were both pitched as pilots but weren’t used as such.

“The Man Trap” was the series premiere, but it wasn’t a pilot.

Gotcha. Thanks for clarifying!

The Final Reflection which, although rendered non-canon by events

I don’t think it was ever “canon,” though maybe in the early eighties the novels were viewed as canon by some before TNG? I was too young at that point to really be confident. Mainly mentioning it in case you meant something closer to “incompatible with canon.”

Curious what “events” you’re referring to in any case. Not familiar enough with the novel to say for sure.

A few notes on the animated sequence near the beginning:

It has the first appearance of an Aquan since TAS: “The Ambergris Element”. She is notably not underwater. (Or the Andorian next to her is notably underwater.)

It also features an Edosian, though that’s becoming less and less notable.

The Vulcan on the harp strongly resembles Sarek as he appears in TAS: “Yesteryear” down to the jagged eyebrows.

The woman on the couch holding the drink is dressed like Andrea from TOS: “What Are Little Girls Made Of?”

after I calmed my rage (Because real fans would have a top 47…)

To be fair, the list was made for the 57th anniversary of Trek three years ago.

As far as the question goes, “The Game” has aged surprisingly well and is a pretty good introduction.

bit.ly link appears to be a scam direct.

the audience ends up being (I’ll allow myself this just once) men rather than women

I know Trek has a rep here for the fans all being guys—specifically guys who can’t get a date—but I don’t know if it holds up to much scrutiny. The campaigns to rescue TOS were spearheaded by Bjo Trimble and I believe the participants were a pretty mixed crowd, including a lot of women who appreciated good sci-fi in addition to those who thought that—in the immortal words of Isaac Asimov’s daughter—“Mr. Spock is dreamy.” I haven’t been to a lot of cons, but the ones I’ve seen felt like pretty mixed crowds as well.

the average viewer is, well, just that—the average person in the country where it’s broadcast

Isn’t the average in most countries a roughly equal split of men and women?

I really liked it.

The Switch version is arguably a step down from the PC version (not sure about other consoles), but both have their distinct charms. Well worth grabbing while you can.

Did they just re-release the 50th Anniversary issue and change the cover? That would track content-wise.

Entertainment Weekly’s “The Ultimate Guide to Star Trek” 60th anniversary issue is largely a reprint of their 50th and 55th anniversary issues if the copyright dates in the indicia are any indication, though they definitely made some updates to keep it current by including more recent shows.