Murderbot–If I tell you, I’ll have to kill you
In this witty and wry sci-fi comedy, Murderbot, based on author Martha Wells Murderbot Diaries book series, we see a robot trying to understand humans, and inevitably being disappointed in their limited capabilities. It would be so much easier to kill them. “I was built to obey humans,” explains SecUnit/ Murderbot. “But humans… well, they’re assholes.”
Self-aware and partly human, with organic tissue that bleeds, the security android, SecUnit aka Murderbot (played brilliantly by Alexandre Skarsgård), disables its governor module that makes him obey any commands given. Now a rogue security robot, SecUnit has secretly gained free will. He reluctantly joins a “hippie” group of scientists on assignment to a dangerous planet.
Murderbot would prefer to binge soap operas, particularly “Sanctuary Moon” (a playful riff on Star Trek). In every crisis Murderbot faces, he remembers the dialogue and actions of “Sanctuary Moon” before taking the security measures he was formerly programmed to do. Heavily armed with guns for arms, like a transformer, Murderbot hates his former–now disabled– programming that relegated him to techno-slave.
The property of the Company Rim, a powerful mega-conglomerate (echoing Elon Musk’s tentacled monopolies), SecUnit/Murderbot simulates the robot’s algorithm to serve and protect without question in order to avoid detection. His mission team is led by Dr. Ayda Mensah (Noma Dumezveni), a highly sensitive, sympathetic, and moral leader as well as an intrepid scientist. Still believing Murderbot is functionally programmed to obey without question, Dr. Mensah nevertheless respects him as a sentient being worthy of equal rights . Murderbot does not return Dr. Mensah’s feelings, because he doesn’t have any.
Even for non-scifi fans, Murderbot is engaging with smart dialogue. The plot is primarily a sci-fi mission to take out the evil-doers but it is interlaced with themes of corporate greed, enslavement to a company, and values of community and egalitarianism.
The cast is outstanding, filled with actors who are not household names, with the exception of Skarsgård. Renewed for a second season, the finale has some weak plot points but is precisely set up for continuing adventures in the life of a rogue robot.
Availability: Apple+