Strange New Worlds Explains DS9's 24-Year Sisko/Benny Mystery
Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Episode 8 — «The Elysian Kingdom»
A remarkable Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Easter egg in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds episode 8 helps explain a 24-year-old mystery surrounding Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) and his alter ego, Benny Russell. In Strange New Worlds episode 8, «The Elysian Kingdom,» a powerful sentient being in the Jonisian Nebula transforms the crew of the USS Enterprise into characters from «The Kingdom of Elysian,» the fairy tale Dr. M'Benga (Babs Olusanmokun) reads to his terminally ill daughter, Rukiya (Sage Arrindell). But the author of «The Kingdom of Elysian» directly ties to the classic DS9 episode, «Far Beyond The Stars.»
A landmark and beloved episode from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 6 aired in 1998, «Far Beyond The Stars» sees Captain Sisko receive a vision from the Prophets of Bajor that transports him back to New York City in the 1950s. Sisko lives the life of Benny Russell, an African-American writer for the sci-fi pulp magazine Incredible Tales, while the other cast members of DS9 are also turned into people Benny knows, including his enemies like Gul Dukat (Marc Alaimo). Inspired, Benny decides to write a story about a 24th-century space station called Deep Space Nine whose Captain is a Black man. Believing this is the tale he was born to write, Russell's dreams are crushed by his editor, who refuses to publish a story with a Black hero. Tragically, Benny has an emotional breakdown and is sent to an asylum in a powerfully unforgettable performance by Avery Brooks, who also directed the episode. In another of Sisko's visions, Benny was seen again furiously writing his Captain Sisko story on the walls of his cell inDS9 season 7.
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