The Elysian Kingdom

This episode evokes episodes like "Plato's Stepchildren" and "Shoreleave" along with TNGs "Qpid", it is much more lighthearted with a sad undertone that hits hard at the end.

It wasn't this seasons best episode, but it was good, and allowed some growth for Dr. M'Benga and Lt. Hemmer.

I enjoyed it.

I don't mind when shows try something. This just didn't work. Shore Leave is one of my favorite TOS episodes so I don't mind weird when it's done correctly. Maybe if the rest of the ship was less campy and played it straight with a few quips it might have worked out better overall.

Seriously. This was a very bad idea poorly executed. If you do make a farce or, at least a comedic episode, hire somebody who can write comedy AND who knows Star Trek history.

Hey, guys. Just because it's Star Trek doesn't mean it can't be goofy. 90's Trek certainly had its share of silly moments in the holodeck.

The difference is that those episodes always had a side-story that brought us back to the sci-fi. While all the actors clearly had a good time playing alternate roles for this episode, I found myself mostly waiting for the silliness to be over so we could get back to the show about space ships.

But, gosh-darnit, they really tugged on my heart strings at the end.

Even then, I found the doctor's choice a little too quick, easy, and unlikely... but I was happy to see his story move forward.

Thanks for taking creative risks, Paramount. I remain a huge fan of this show.

I have high hopes for this new series. But for some reason I just could not get into this episode that I ended up turning it off less than half way through. I can't exactly place my finger on what was bothering me, but it didn't feel like Star Trek. I'll have to come back to this. Maybe I didn't give it an honest chance and later it will make up for what I saw. If it does, I'll update this review.

Update: gave the episode another try. I fell asleep. That rarely happens.