There's a counter-narrative where the writers' strike was a convenient scapegoat for a production that was always going to be a trainwreck. IIRC they were going to turn the first season's titular heroes into villains and have an all-new cast of supers oppose them, and the obvious response of 'what no ew' saw them scramble to make up the trainwreck we got instead.
On the plus size, Zachary Quinto's career took off.