I really enjoyed reading this one, McMahan seems like he truly cares about the franchise. The part about basically making Orion from scratch was especially interesting to me. Also:

Q: Speaking of Prodigy — that show’s story is just a few years ahead of Lower Decks in the Star Trek timeline; Picard was twenty-something years down the line. Do you know how the Lower Decks characters have progressed during those time periods?

MCMAHAN: …I do know. [Laughs] I’m being very careful!

what are you hiding from us

what if they find Peanut Hamper in the Delta Quadrant