When I needed to pick up on some basics, it actually did help but ultimately not as much as actual guides and tutorials written online. This image of a chimera certainly matches the kind of Frankenstein code I was getting.
That said, when I was having some very interesting ideas about making automated code in R, it did make for a good sounding board. You don't need to Google when everything in R has documentation but you do when you're combining libraries in unique ways to automate 98% of the stupid shit you do at your data researcher job (e.g. can you look up in our database how many students pick their nose during philosophy class on a Friday?)
You're right, the prequels have dead kids, almost no women, and heck, it even has a dear leader taking over the Senate and declaring himself emporer in the name of safety. Republican wet dream.