This is my favorite episode over VOY so far, I hope there are others at this level. It had a story that would have been perfectly comfortable as a really good TOS episode. First of all it is real scifi of the type that you generally only get from short stories, the kind of thing you get from Theodore Sturgeon or Harlan Ellison. It also involves a crazy over powered race that we only ever see in this one episode. And finally it involves the prime directive, but in this case the PD turns out to be the correct choice which is really nice to see. So often it seems like a silly rule that keeps them from doing genuine good in the universe, but stopping this robot war from destroying all life in the galaxy is clearly the right move.
The episode opens with a view of Voyager from the outside and then we hear a beam in progress and the viewpoint shifts to engineering looking up at Torres. She seems to be working on repairing a power system and Tuvok expresses concern that it may be a security risk. Finally we see a display showing a metallic human figure on a table. Back to our normal perspective Torres and Kim are trying to get the power system on the mechanoman working, but they don't have the right kind of plasma. Kim heads to bed and Torres goes for coffee, but Neelix eventually cuts her off so she goes to sickbay to talk with the Doctor about it. He suggests a modified transfusion with plasma from the warp core and something he says sparks Torres' interest. The plan works and the robot asks her name before introduces itself as Automated Unit 3947.
3947 is impressed with Torres ability to repair the power module. It seems they lack that ability and their race is dying. The builders died off and now the Automated Units will as well unless they find a way to make new power units. She offers to help, but Janeway refuses to let her citing the prime directive. 3947 doesn't seem to like this, but they find the ship he came from and return him. But just before he beams over he knocks up Torres and then the transporter chief before beaming over to his ship with Torres. She is obviously unhappy about being kidnapped and refuses to help. Janeway meanwhile is also pissed and opens fire, but the robot ship is way more powerful and almost destroys Voyager before Torres agrees to help if they stop. She tells Janeway who is obviously pissed, but they don't have much choice.
Torres and 3947 work together on the new power unit while Voyager works on repairs and a plan to send Paris in with a shuttle to beam her out. She eventually solves the technical problems and the prototype awakes and asks for programming. But just then another robot ship arrives and opens fire. They are from a different race of builders and Torres asks why they can't work out peace with them. That is when she learns both races of Automated Units killed their builders when they made peace since peace isn't winning. She is horrified to realize this and that she just gave one side the ability to "win" by being able to reproduce. She stabs her creation in the heart/power unit and gets blasted by 3947. Just then Paris is able to fly in with the distraction of the other ship and rescues her.
Review: I really good episode of Trek regardless of series. I am hopeful that I had completely forgotten it, maybe there are other gems waiting for me in the run of VOY. Oh, and someday they all turn into newts or something.
9 out of 10
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