I liked it. Very traditional Trek in style (so much so that I figured out pretty much instantly what was going to go down, but that didn't stop me from enjoying it still).

Ditto. A re-tread for sure, and a highly predictable one, but still fun to watch.

We do see the memorable first meeting of Kirk, Spock, and Uhura…

And we see James Kirk meet Christopher Pike…per “The Menagerie, pt. I” (1x15) this should be there only meeting. Kirk says he met Pike just once, when Pike was promoted to Fleet Captain, as seen in this episode.

Of the nadir of the franchise.