I was recently reminded that the local MeTV's cartoon fork picked up the OG Animated Series. I've seen few episodes by now, and it's charmingly weird in its own 70s animation way. On the one hand, the limitations of 30 minute episodes to cram Trek stories into and the janky slash very-budget-conscious animation do take a toll. So, so much stock footage; only having to animate half the frame because the other half is an unreasonable closeup of someone's face; the Hanna-Barbara slide...
On the other, this was the only new Star Trek on TV between TOS and TMP, which given the context of time is pretty significant. And having the actual actors voice their animated characters wasn't exactly common at the time either (props to Nichols and Doohan for basically voicing 90% of the non-main characters too).
And on Arex's third hand, the animated format let them play with a lot of stuff that wouldn't have been possible in live action, whether for practical or 'merely' budgetary concerns. We get weirder aliens like Triaxaians, Caitians/Kzinti, all the gribblies that would have had to been stiff rubber suits or puppets in live action. Ships that could move in more than straight lines. Other ship designs, and weird ones like the Kzinti or Kulkulcan's that would have been crazy as models.
It's weird, it's charming, I know it absolutely has some trashfire-tier episodes amid the good ones...so, basially proper Star Trek anyway.
I found the Animated Series on DVD at Big Lots years ago. I had vague memories of watching it occasionally on Nickelodeon as a kid, but it was my first "grown up" watching. Like you said, some episodes are a bit silly, but it's got some great ones that are every bit as good as the live action version as well.
They really loved reusing the purple pterodactyl footage. That thing must have been in every other episode.
