Well, same “crew” is very different from the same showrunner. He would have done his own prep, approved his own scripts, etc. A showrunner and crew have almost nothing to do with each other. A showrunner doesn’t even hire crew—he hires the people who hire those people. I was a location manager on a network series, and I never met our showrunner or even saw him from afar. Using the same crew for a back-to-back shoot is incredibly cost-efficient, and that’s why you would do it. They know the ropes of the series, they know each other, and they have a rhythm. They’ll hit the ground running.
As for messing up in the final edit, well, it’s possible, I’m skeptical of the idea that it would happen, but time will tell.
Also, given James Cawley’s renowned (and confirmed to me by several who know him) obsession with accuracy and detail, knowing he didn’t care at all for Strange New Hair (though he’s glad it’s around because it will bring new fans to TOS/TNG), knowing he worked on TNG building Wesley’s costumes, and finally, knowing he’s close friends with Doug Drexler, Michael & Denise Okuda, and others from that era, I trust his word.
