Storytime, now where were we? I oddly admire Akela Cooper, Benny Russell, & Onitra Johnson’s “The Elysian Kingdom.” It is as camp as Brian Blessed marching down the street clad only in a big trans-pride flag shouting obscenities at those saying pride isn’t something to be had. This is that fantasy episode that every Star Trek seemingly has to labor through, with only medium success for each iteration on the lords and ladies of the stars; Royal Shakespeare Company actors to Janeway’s holodecks toy. I think out of all of Strange New Worlds’ first season, this is the divisive one.

The stars of Benny Russell’s The Kingdom of Elysian, as adapted by Akela Cooper and Onitra Johnson for TNG-levels of campness have to be Mount, Olusanmokun, Bruce Horak’s Hemmer, and Sage Arrindell’s Rukiya. Of course, there should be a special mention to the writers for getting us a reference back to the writer of this out-there story of a Black captain commanding a space station called Deep Space Nine.

No one would ever believe that weird sci-fi story, let’s stick to reality, where everything is in Middle Ages Europe and there are dragons, magic, and castles. Am I just trying to confuse my editor? Possibly, but that’s enough about Penny Johnson Jerald’s sci-fi lovers.

Struck by the Nebula and the sentient non-corporeal lifeform within it, the Enterprise is plunged into what Bookstagram/Tok calls “Royalcore.” We have Mount in a brilliant green piece, Chong’s La’an in a fantastic gown, Bush in a simple ren-fair getup, and Olusanmokun in this part Arabian/North-East African costume with hints of that European influence due to typical fantasy.

The set and costume designers genuinely outdo themselves with not just the constraints of the ship but also each person too. Uhura playing the evil Queen Neve has this fantastic, almost white Maleficent dress providing this sense of power to one of the smallest crew members.

I keep saying that “The Elysian Kingdom” is camp and there is a sense of campness to it. However, I think the best way to explain it is to use another show as an example, Eureka. Once I was able to calm down and sit to watch the Sci-Fi Channel show I understood it. Before that, I thought it was a weird show that did stupid things. With Pike’s over-the-top quote of “I’m scared,” Ortegas’ “I’ll kill them all!,” and La’an’s “Prissy princess” countered by M’Benga and Hemmer’s stone-faced “We have a problem,” the episode brings that fun energy to an episode that typically I’d be rolling my eyes at.

Once the Jonisian Nebula gives everyone a case of the Lords and Ladies, M’Benga and Hemmer are left to complete the story by Russell which M’Benga has been telling to his dying daughter for far too long now. On the brink of time running out for M’Benga to find a cure for Rukiya’s cygnokemia, the consciousness in the nebula lifts the story from Rukiya’s mind. This sets up the crew to play the parts. It is a bit like a Shakespeare play, but actually entertaining. It is fun, it is light, and it is about hope and care. That’s everything I want sci-fi to be.

Major parts of the Enterprise become portions of the kingdom. The bridge is King Ridley’s castle in the North, the cargo bay is Queen Neve’s land in the South, the corridors are the woods, lady Audrey’s (Chapel) little realm is sick bay, and the raven-haired huntress of Z’ymira roams the forests. For what seems like a single episode’s story, the world of Russell’s fantasy kingdom feels rich when written by Cooper and Johnson. From double-crosses, lesbian twists when a role is gender-swapped, and just the dumbest little camp lines that make me laugh, “The Elysian Kingdom” is drama and comedy brilliantly balanced.

Having a negative criticism is somewhat a must, and I can’t go on without pointing out that maybe Spock’s role as the double-crossing wizard might just be a last-minute thing. I don’t want to blame Peck here, he actually does a decent job. I think it was just a last-minute addition because if we don’t feature him in a prominent spot someone on the production team will be upset. Though she’s quickly dropped from the story, Christina Chong’s La’an feels more central to the plot than Spock’s brooding, dark-haired wizard Pollux.

Some costumes might have also been rushed via “We don’t have much time” and thus they threw together a bunch of dark colors: specifically costumes for Pollux, Z’ymira, and to a lesser extent Sir Adya. Ridley is cast in reds, Caster in blues, Neve in whites, Amand in lush greens, Thalia in that big bejeweled gown, and lady Audrey is in this basic middle ages corseted everyday wear dress. You have very distinct character designs that take up a lot of time and energy on screen, then you have two and a half that feel like they were told to stand in the corner and be quiet unless spoken to.

The anal-retentive among us (most long-standing Trek fans) will spot the plot hole in that Hemmer escapes Debra’s attempts to take over the crew’s minds, but Spock doesn’t despite being similarly known for telepathic abilities. I think the point is raised fairly well and then brushed off that Hemmer can hardly hold off Debra’s initial attempts to control him. It is stated that she could have killed him nor does he remember after the fact. Meanwhile, Spock might not be the super-space Jesus everyone is pretending he is due to nostalgia and Burnham crying about him every 10 minutes.

In the final act once M’Benga realizes that Rukiya is the quest (the quest for the Mercury Stone) he has been on to find throughout the swords and sorcery tale, the fun and lightheartedness falls away. I said it in the opening review: “[…] both M’Benga and Hemmer are going to make me cry again.” The heartwarming and downright heartbreaking story of Rukiya’s illness comes to a close as a parent has to give up seeing his young kid again to save the crew and her. In truth, it is quite a sad ending.

I’ve said it throughout, but I’ve never really found the land of fantasy to be all that exciting and even this out-there plot could have easily lost me with just a simple blunder. Those with great excitement in their life (probably watching beige paint dry) will take the pantomime acting from all but Babs, Sage, and Makambe Simamba as a negative. Though in truth, if the whole thing was played without any self-awareness it would have landed like a banker on the pavement. There was no pretension on what “The Elysian Kingdom” was from the first moment to the final seconds in the second act.

The entire time watching “The Elysian Kingdom” I’ve spent with a smile on my face and a little bit of happiness knowing the DS9 reference, which isn’t always the case when writing these reviews. Ultimately, I had giddy happiness throughout my rewatch simply because there isn’t much like this anymore. If TV/film isn’t serious and depressing, it is boring, and Akela Cooper and Onitra Johnson can’t be accused of that. A pure delight of an episode that is unlike anything else going on right now.

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SNW "The Elysian Kingdom"

9

Score

9.0/10

Pros

• Unlike anything else on TV, it is camp as can be.
• Fantastic costume and set design overall.
• Benny Russell.

Cons

• Pollux, Z’ymira, and Sir Adya's costumes rely too much on similarly dark colors.