10 Laziest Star Trek Alien Designs

3. Lanthanite

Star Trek Pelia
CBS Media Ventures

Lanthanites makes their first appearance, via Pelia, in Strange New Worlds. They are effectively immortal, unless an external force kills them, meaning that they can blend in with the humans on Earth as well as, well, half of the other aliens on this list.

Conveniently, Lanthanites look exactly like humans, on the outside at least. So, this allows them to serve as a metaphor for the humans on Earth who are living secret lives. So this 'laziest' alien design is actually quite deliberate. Pelia even states outright that Amanda Grayson was the first human that she came out to, as a non-human, to Spock.

Coming out is a theme running through rather a lot of Star Trek of recent times, whether it is as non-binary, via Adira in Discovery, or genetically engineered via Dal or Una. Having a character like Pelia, one who has lived through all of human history, yet is still perfectly well-adjusted and a source of comedy for the series, goes another step toward normalising the 'other' in this long-running franchise.

 
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Seán is the host and head writer/presenter for TrekCulture, as well as a writer/presenter on WhoCulture and WhatCulture Horror. He has authored two novels, dozens of short stories, and hundreds of articles for WhatCulture. He holds a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from University College Dublin. As part of his work with TrekCulture, Seán has been invited to participate in collaborations with Roddenberry Entertainment, as well as contributing to several Star Trek community projects. An avid fan of Star Trek, Doctor Who, and the horror genre at large, Seán's expertise has helped develop these channels to the successes they are today. As host of the Ups & Downs series on TrekCulture, Seán has become internationally recognised for his positive yet critically informed approach to reviewing every episode of modern Star Trek, ensuring he is one of the go-to voices in the Trek community. Favourite Quote to describe himself: "I'm serious about what I do, just not always about the way that I do it"