‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Recap – ‘Among the Lotus Eaters’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Anson Mount as Captain Christopher Pike in Episode 204 of ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ – ‘Among the Lotus Eaters’. (Photo Courtesy of Paramount+.)

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 204 of ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.
​
What is genuinely fascinating about the human experience… is how so much beauty and so much direction… comes from chaos. For our lives really are a random collection of moments and memories and yet, from that storm comes love and wonder and people that we trust and believe in and learn from. And we take those beautiful moments and our relationships with those people, and build upon them further and what we are left with, is a rich and powerful experience that we celebrate through various means. But we also… take this experience for granted unfortunately, since it is so commonplace and routine and that is why… it is nice to be reminded of what it means to us through the magic that is storytelling.
​
In fact, this week’s episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds took the time to remind us of the majesty of the moments and memories we experience and cherish, and how wonderful it is to have them in our lives, regardless of the emotions they sent our way and it accomplished this particular feat by having the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise, return to an iconic world in Star Trek lore… Rigel VII. A world that made its debut in the original pilot of the franchise and eventually was put into canon in ‘The Menagerie’ courtesy of The Original Series, and it was critical to this story… because it reflected a mistake in Captain Christopher Pike’s past. For we came to learn in ‘Among the Lotus Eaters’, that the full story regarding this planet and Pike… was one of sour memories. Wherein crew members died during the first visit to the planet and well… in the process of a hasty retreat… Starfleet gear was left behind.

Which of course, was a direct violation of the Prime Directive and seeing as to how satellite images showed the mark of a Starfleet Delta on the planet’s surface, the time had come for the NCC-1701 to return to the planet and clean up that mess, and upon their arrival… the crew was exposed to some real surprises. Such as the fact that one of the crewmen of that original ill-fated mission survived his wounds and became the king of this world. And his loyal subjects paid tribute to him by building the delta. But that wasn’t the only shocker present regarding this world. For soon the good captain and his away team and crew above came to learn… that Rigel VII was harboring a biological surprise as well. In that, radiation from a fallen meteor had transformed the landscape of the planet and the future of its people. For it harbored the ability… to interfere with memory function in the brain.

---

(L-R) Ethan Peck and Melissa Navia as Lieutenant Spock and Lieutenant Erica Ortegas in Episode 204 of ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ – ‘Among the Lotus Eaters’. (Photo Courtesy of Paramount+.)

To the point where anyone afflicted by this radiation would lose time and eventually their basic memory functions and find themselves in an odd place mentally and that lost crewman, named Zac, wanted Pike and La’an and Doctor M’Benga to suffer through this by casting them out into the world. Where they lost their memories promptly and they weren’t alone. Because the crew aboard the Enterprise was also suffering from this and that put the ship at risk since no one knew what to do with the Big E, and the away team was at risk as well. Since the away team’s base instincts told them to fight back and not deal with the oppression coming their way and that caused injuries to La’an. The kind that needed to be treated post haste if she expected to live and well… that is precisely where this story explored in great detail, why we need to cherish those random moments we take for granted and the wonderful memories and lessons they send our way. 
​
For those are the bits and pieces of us that define us. That shape us, that make us into the person that we eventually find pride and security within, and without them… we would indeed be a shell of ourselves. As evidenced by the cruelty that Pike put on display while out of sorts and the lack of confidence that Spock and Lieutenant Ortegas exhibited when their memories were lost. But while that alone would have carried this episode and provided us with a powerful message, this story also took the time to address something more regarding the human condition. In that, regardless of whether or not we do cherish the essence of who we are, there are times where we lose ourselves and forget what we stand for and that too is tough because we oft wonder if we can find our way back again and this episode took a moment to remind us that yes, we can. 

For sometimes all we need to do is take a moment when the going gets rough and think about the journey and what pushes us to be more and embrace that, and when we do… wonders happen. Such as reclaiming one’s rightful spot as the slickest pilot in the fleet or indulging in the kindness we are known for instead of anger… and that of course… led to a happy ending for the crew and the people of Rigel VII and in the end this was one fascinating tale. One that truly explored the power of memory and of moments and how every single one of them transforms us into something wonderful, and how we should indeed pay them tribute often. For life is a gift, and worth celebrating and now that we’ve reached the end of this wondrous and beautiful, and philosophical tale, it's onto the next mission (and incredible lesson), for this intrepid and brave crew. Until next time.

---

Powered by JustWatch