Star Trek, the original series, season 2 episode 24: The Ultimate Computer

"We're all sorry for the other guy when he loses his job to a machine. But when it comes to your job -- that's different. And it always will be different." - McCoy

release year: 1968
genre: television sci-fi
viewing setting: home streaming 10/7/26 and several other times in the distant past

synopsis: The Enterprise becomes the test ship for a new computer which is intended to be better than human crew, but there are problems.

impressions: So the thing goes a little nuts and takes the wargames too seriously, leading to much death and destruction. The guy who invented the computer couldn't even admit that it was malfunctioning. Anyhow, I know it was 1968 but there seems to be a cautionary tale about AI here. This episode had some good dialogue and a lot of space-battle action; four other Constitution-class starships appeared.

acting: Kirk is quite annoyed that he could possibly be replaced by a computer. McCoy is also dubious of the M-5's functions. William Marshall is the genius who can't admit that his creation has problems.

final word: Good episode with AI gone bonkers and plenty of space/ship battle action.

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