Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' Worst Episode (So Far) According To IMDb

Across numerous shows and spin-offs, "Star Trek" has always been known for taking chances. It's not uncommon for a series to stray from a given plot to provide a one-off adventure. Sometimes, these land, while in other instances, they land with a thud. Unfortunately, the "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" episode, "The Elysian Kingdom," falls into the latter category, earning the distinction of being the lowest-rated installment of the show so far on IMDb.

With roughly 5,700 votes, "The Elysian Kingdom" currently has an IMDb score of 6.1/10. It definitely has some fans, as 16% of voters gave it a perfect 10/10, but too many others voted low, giving the episode its disappointing distinction. The story follows the crew of the USS Enterprise who cross paths with a nebula with its own consciousness, creating a make-believe fantasy world to entertain Rukiya (Sage Arrindell) because she's feeling lonely. The ship's inside looks like a high fantasy land with the cast dressed up as whimsical characters, with M'Benga (Babs Olusanmokun) and Hemmer (Bruce Horak) being the only ones aware that something has changed. 

There's an emotional core to the amusing premise, but by looking at the IMDb for "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds," it's clear many viewers could've done without this excursion. 

On IMDb, fans can do more than assign episodes a numeric rating. They can also leave a written review that's as detailed as they like. It's useful for finding trends in why a particular episode didn't work for most people, and judging by IMDb reviews, "The Elysian Kingdom" didn't hit the same high notes as the rest of the season. To be fair, "Star Trek" often provides these weird one-off stories that are a complete departure from what's come before. Still, fans like iwfcyb thought the show would've been better without it, "Although this was your typical TOS or TNG holodeck episode, it came far, FAR too early in the series. The point of these types of episodes is to juxtapose who a character normally is with something completely out of character (think Warfs "I am not a merry man!")."

A self-contained story is nothing new, and other "Star Trek" shows would have these kinds of stories set in the Holodeck. While the story engine was different, fans wanted something more substantial, especially considering there were only 10 episodes total in the first season. User TheMunkeyBoy was of a similar opinion, "Haven't we learnt from this in the past? Holodeck and other such episodes from Next Gen and TOS. Really is hard to sit through." But the episode does have its fans, like celinaduchain, "Love it or loath it, this episode was pure Star Trek from start to finish."

Depending on who you ask, "The Elysian Kingdom" is either a waste of time or a fun way to let the actors break out of their normal characters. But it's a good reminder of how "Star Trek" is willing to take chances even if they don't always excel.