"The Elysian Kingdom"

Running Time: 53 minutes 48 seconds
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While conducting a routine survey of the Jonisian Nebula, the Enterprise becomes stuck in a cloud of gas known as Debra. Soon the crew finds themselves as characters from The Kingdom of Elysian, the book which Doctor M’Benga regular reads to his daughter. To return everyone to normal, he and Hemmer, the only other person unaffected, must defeat Queen Neve. And in the end, M’Benga must also let his daughter go, so that she can live her life free of illness and explore space … with Debra.

In this episode of Saddle Up! hosts C Bryan Jones and Matthew Rushing discuss “The Elysian Kingdom,” the eighth episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ inaugural season. We debate the choice to go to this Trek trope so early in the run of a series limited to 10 episodes per season, and delve into the resolution of the plotline involving Doctor M’enga’s daughter Rukiya. And, as certified Niners, we discuss the choice to make Benny Russell a real person in the Star Trek universe.

Chapters

Intro (0:00:00)
A Literary Setup (00:02:36)
Too Soon for This Type of Story? (00:08:29)
Rukiya’s Resolution (00:13:30)
Spontaneous Brain (00:26:02)
Here’s Hemmer! (00:29:36)
Back to the Boltzmann Brain (00:32:01)
Will the Real Benny Russell Please Stand Up? (00:40:53)
Final Thoughts and Ratings (00:44:56)
Closing (00:49:19)