AboutDeran McKean Expertise I am a 38 year fan of all the incarnations of Star Trek from the original show to the newer incarnations, to the books, comics and toys. I can answer most questions regarding the storylines and characters including their non-screen histories.
Experience Thirty-Eight years of collecting Star Trek merchandise, pouring over the books, comics and attending a number of conventions
Education/Credentials I have a Bachelor's Degree in Sociology and an MBA
Question If some (or all) of the Edos wanted to somehow relocate to another planet, would the Edo god allow them to?
If the Edos told the Edo god that they didn't want his attention or care anymore, how would the Edo god react?
If the Edo god itself came down to the planet and broke a law, how would the Edos react, if A) the Edo god broke a law intentionally; and B) the Edo god broke a law accidentally?
How would the Edo god react if Trelane threatened to put it on trial for being a savage? (You did state recently that the Edo god would simply destroy anyone who tried to put him on trial, but Trelane is a lot more powerful than most Star Trek beings.)
If the two warred, do you think the Edo god could completely kill Trelane?
Answer Hiya John -
My impression from the episode was that the Edo God was a pretty rigid entity and for some reason thrived on letting the Edo do pretty much whatever they wanted so long as they obeyed its rules to the letter, no matter how insane they sounded.
That indicates a being that wants/needs to be obeyed, even over the most trivial of details (for whatever reason), so, to be obeyed he/she/it needs followers willing to do that.
My guess is the God would see some of the Edo's desire to leave as a threat and would take steps to insure that those that wanted to didn't go, and that their 'radical ideas' didn't infect the rest of the Edo culture.
Most 'dictators' (at least on this planet) operate with a similar strategy and generally react very badly when any of their subjects even expresses an idea of leaving. Despite its impressive powers and nature the Edo God was, in essence, a dictator who I think would make pariahs out of those who wanted to leave and, eventually, would most likely eliminate them as 'rebels who were destroying the established order' or some such thing.
The Edo didn't seem particularly bright to me, no starships, a society with few accomplishments other than rampant sex, an unwillingness to challenge the authority of their 'god', and no concerns whatsoever of bettering themselves.
To me they seemed like a population of 'sheep', willing to be led without question so long as their physical needs were met.
So, if the God broke one of the laws I'd imagine they would rationalize it like many followers of dictators on this world do.
They would say "well he/she/it's a god so only they can determine when the rules don't apply to them" etc. I doubt it would raise questions in the minds of the Edo or incite any type of discord or rebellion as they didn't seem very upset over Wesley's pending execution it was 'just the way it was.'
I think the Edo God would react badly if Trelane threatened it. It might try and attack Trelane and, if that didn't work, hide in some other dimension until Trelane stopped looking for it. I didn't see any on screen evidence that Trelane could cross dimensions so I don't know if that would be an effective strategy or not.
It's hard to say who would win in a showdown between Trelane and the Edo God. It wasn't made entirely clear in "Squire of Gothos" how much of Trelane's abilities came from him and how many from the machine Capt. Kirk blasted.
Also, Trelane seemed very inexperienced with his abilities and we know he was capable of making mistakes as he was shocked when the Enterprise showed up at Gothos while he assumed humanity was still stuck in the 17th or 18th Century.
The effects of relativistic time dilation in space are known to the scientists of our century and we've all heard the old saying that the light we see from the stars is several years old because of the time it takes that light to reach Earth from the star's point of origin. So, if most civilians on 21st century Earth know that, any image we look at from space isn't real time because the image had to travel through the distance of its origin point to Earth, and Trelane couldn't figure that out for himself, that indicates (to me at least) a 'new' intelligence just taking his first steps into the greater universe.
I don't doubt that Trelane could potentially be more powerful than the Edo God, I just don't know if he would be as cunning, violent and strategically smart.
The Edo God seemed pretty cold blooded and (I think) would attempt to take advantage of Trelane's naivete in any conflict between the two. Whether or not that would be enough I don't know.
