MURDERBOT Recap: (S01E05) Rogue War Tracker Infinite

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Murderbot Season 1 Episode 5, 'Rogue War Tracker Infinite,' sees our SecUnit's secret come to the fore. It's intriguing to see how the PresAux group reacts to the news of its SecUnit always being in rogue mode. The outing also focuses on the state of Artificial Intelligence and how much we can rely on it. Is it really good? Can it be ethical? It's a relevant topic. 'Rogue War Tracker Infinite' is a delightful blend of biting humor and action that maintains a steady clip until that cliffhanger ending.
RELATED: Read our recap of the previous Murderbot episode, 'Escape Velocity Protocol' Murderbot, 'Rogue War Tracker Infinite'
We open with the PresAux crew talking while Murderbot (Alexander Skarsgård) looks zonked out. We learn they must remove the wires from the override device implanted by the Black SecUnit, which are still protruding from our titular bot. Then, we rewind to the final minutes of episode four, in which SecUnit shoots itself before the override to its combat module, courtesy of the Black SecUnit, takes effect.
Naturally, Mensah (Noma Dumezweni), Pin-Lee (Sabrina Wu), Ratthi (Akshay Khanna) and Arada (Tattiawna Jones) go into panic mode. They decide to take SecUnit back to the PresAux habitat for Gurathin to examine. Mensah asks Arada to keep an eye out for any other hostiles. One woman, Leebeebee (Anna Konkle), calls out to the group from afar. Her reflexes kicking in, Arada fires at her. Thankfully, she stops before she truly harms Leebeebee. MURDERBOT Season 1 Episode 5, 'Rogue War Tracker Infinite.' Photo courtesy of Apple TV+. Leebeebee
We fast forward to the PresAux habitat, wherein Murderbot tells us that, once it wakes up, it'll instantly kill the humans because of the tendrils left from the combat module override. Bharadwaj (Tamara Podemski) offers to extract said tendrils.
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Then, we're back on the hopper, with Ratthi at the helm. We learn Leebeebee is the only survivor of the DeltFall massacre. Arada asks her questions to ensure she doesn't go into shock. Leebeebee tells Arada that she's from Industrial Junction 151523. Corporation Rim.
Mensah asks Leebeebee if she has any idea as to whose SecUnit attacked DeltFall. Leebeebee finds it intriguing that Murderbot shot itself to save the group. She remarks that it's quite handsome for a sentient construct. Then, Leebeebee goes on a tangent about its potential genitalia and how it would use its peepee. Leebeebee and the peepee. Sorry, I'm a 13-year-old boy. Also, this monologue made me snort, and it feels like something Konkle's Pen15 character would say as an adult. All Amateurs
Next, we zero in on Ratthi and Pin-Lee. Ratthi asks about having children. Have Pin-Lee and Arada broached the subject? There's something about a massacre and a near-death experience that makes one think about the future. Pin-Lee admits they haven't thought about kids.
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Back in the present, Bharadwaj removes the wires from the override device. Huzzah! Leebeebee is naturally triggered by seeing SecUnit. She learns our group hails from the Preservation Alliance and remarks that her DeltFall bosses referred to them as amateurs. Murderbot dryly states that only amateurs would risk their lives to save a rogue SecUnit. It sees more footage of it attacking and killing humans in its past. How ominous. MURDERBOT Season 1 Episode 5, 'Rogue War Tracker Infinite.' Photo courtesy of Apple TV+.
After Bharadwaj finishes pulling out the wires, she declares that it's time to reboot SecUnit's system. She asks Gurathin (David Dastmalchian) to plug into its system to check for any bad codes. Uh-oh. Unfortunately for Murderbot, Gurathin's search yields results — he learns that our bot has hacked its governor module and gone rogue. Gone Rogue
Later, Murderbot wakes up to all our PresAux crew's smiling faces. It's grateful that it's out of med bay and it didn't kill all its human clients. Gurathin informs the group that SecUnit is immobilized from the neck down thanks to HubSystem.
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Then, Gurathin informs the group about Murderbot's rogue state and that it hacked its governor module prior to working for the PresAux crew. Double uh-oh. Leebeebee starts panicking. She insists SecUnit is undoubtedly plotting its next move. Murderbot admits it was … sort of. Leebeebee leaves.
Bharadwaj defends SecUnit, claiming that, despite hacking its governor module, it's been acting within the group's best interests. She believes they should trust it. Gurathin insists they have every reason to be cautious. After all, they've been sabotaged since they first set foot on this planet. The missing hazard reports. The gaps in the map. He places the blame squarely on our bot. And what about the DeltFall massacre? It could be connected somehow. Seccy Is One of Them
Ratthi and Arada counter Gurathin, defending SecUnit. It told them to kill it after the Black SecUnit overrode its combat module. Why would it do that if it wanted to hurt them? Seccy is good! (I hope this nickname sticks.)
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Bharadwaj adds that if the Company wanted to use SecUnit to kill them, they'd be dead by now. Murderbot finally speaks up, contributing its two cents. It reveals that the Company would poison their supplies using the recycling system. However, the Company has a financial interest in keeping the PresAux crew alive. Then, the conversation pivots to how SecUnit spends its time — downloading thousands of hours of TV shows.
Gurathin assumes it's using the downloads to send encoded messages to the Company. Ratthi references a deep cut of a Sanctuary Moon episode, which Murderbot instantly comments on. It's watched every episode. Also, Season 19? Any show going past Season 3 these days is a miracle. MURDERBOT Season 1 Episode 5, 'Rogue War Tracker Infinite.' Photo courtesy of Apple TV+. Trigger the Emergency Beacon
After this, Murderbot proves it's not truly immobilized as Gurathin planned. It hacked HubSystem to override it. SecUnit begins choking Gurathin, pinning him to the wall. The others urge SecUnit to let him go. Murderbot tells Gurathin it doesn't like him. Once SecUnit releases Gurathin, Mensah insists it remain part of the team. She doesn't want to send it away. She promises not to disclose its rogue state, nor will anyone else in this room.
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Mensah makes SecUnit promise it'll protect Gurathin as much as it does the others. SecUnit begrudgingly vows to honor her wish. Gurathin reminds Murderbot that HubSystem has been recording their conversation. Murderbot fires back that it fed HubSystem 'an hour of mundane activity from the logs.' So, take that. Then, SecUnit informs Mensah that HubSystem may have been compromised by an outside agent. Do not trust it.
SecUnit also advises that they trigger the emergency beacon. Mensah agrees. Later, SecUnit finds Leebeebee staring at it, just like actors do in its favorite shows. Leebeebee reveals that she doesn't know if DeltFall launched their own beacon. She worked in maintenance and cleaning as part of her seven-year indenture to InterTrav Mining Solutions. MURDERBOT Season 1 Episode 5, 'Rogue War Tracker Infinite.' Photo courtesy of Apple TV+. Sometimes, You Gotta Do It Manually
Gurathin remarks that he can't reach the emergency beacon. Neither can Murderbot. That can't be good. Leebeebee asks how the beacon works and how long it'll take the Company to get here. Ratthi reveals that it'll take them five days. Leebeebee wonders what'll happen if whoever orchestrated the DeltFall massacre finds out they're here.
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Murderbot volunteers to take the hopper to the emergency beacon to activate it manually. Mensah offers to accompany it since she's the best pilot. Later, Leebeebee apologizes to Murderbot for claiming it would kill them all. She didn't realize it was so nice. Then, she awkwardly kisses its chin for good luck. Hilarious. 'Melt me down now,' Murderbot thinks to itself.
Meanwhile, Gurathin vows to analyze the data from the combat module override, reboot HubSystem and try to figure out why all this is happening. Mensah grabs Gurathin's hands and reveals she's glad he's here. Gurathin expresses the same sentiment. Then, SecUnit interrupts to tell Mensah that it's time to go. I'm still curious about the Mensah/Gurathin relationship. MURDERBOT Season 1 Episode 5, 'Rogue War Tracker Infinite.' Photo courtesy of Apple TV+. An Enemy in Disguise
Later, Leebeebee asks Gurathin if she can assist him. 'I highly doubt it,' he replies. Ouch. Elsewhere, in the hopper, Mensah tells Murderbot all about her kids. Humans love to do that unprompted, don't they?
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The conversation pivots to how DeltFall fell prey to rogue SecUnits. Perhaps the enemy pretended to be the PresAux crew, making DeltFall believe they're lending a helping hand to another team. SecUnit observes that Mensah would've let an impostor like that in, no questions asked. It's the human way. Murderbot thinks to itself that it's strange to have an exchange like this without receiving orders.
Then, our duo sees the emergency beacon ahead. Mensah tries to launch it with a burst communication. When the launch fails, Murderbot shares that they'll have to reboot it by hand. It encourages Mensah to land close by so it can plug in and start the sequence. They'll have four minutes to clear the area prior to launch. Fly Through the Fire
Mensah tries to ask Murderbot about it choking Gurathin earlier. What was that about? Has it ever hurt a client before? Suddenly, SecUnit orders them to turn around. It gets an alert about a significant threat. The emergency beacon explodes in a fiery blaze. It engulfs the hopper as it nosedives toward the ground.
Murderbot drops new episodes every Friday on Apple TV+.
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