I haven't watched much of Prodigy because it's just not adult enough for me overall, but I do appreciate a Star Trek show with no human characters (unless you count holograms).
By the start of the second block of ten episodes (which should have just been labeled season 2 with the wait time) it's more recognizably Trek. They just needed a handful of episodes to establish characters and the larger conflicts.
I do love a 20 episode season, but i watched it on netflix, so it flowes pretty nice. But yeah, as soon as they had found their groove, that show really rocked, and felt more trek than much of Lower Decks. I really enjoyed it.