I will say that older Startrek episodes did have the soap opera feel. My guess is that they’re trying to avoid looking like a soap opera. To me that means audio as well as visual. They mix soap operas in the lower range at a higher volume for older audiences, cutting out the higher vocal range. It makes it sound like they’re in a closet or something.
It’s a quality of life improvement. You wouldn’t worry about the looks of a screwdriver if it’s better than your old one.