Unimatrix Zero

Infobox Star Trek episode
name = Unimatrix Zero


The Borg Queen rules her drones
series = VOY
ep_num = 147
prod_num = 246 & 247
date = May 24, 2000
October 4, 2000
writer = Mike Sussman
Brannon Braga
Joe Menosky
director = Allan Kroeker (part I)
Mike Vejar (part II)
guest = Susanna Thompson as Borg Queen
Mark Deakins as Axum
Jerome Butler as Azan
Joanna Heimbold as Laura
Ryan Sparks as Alien Child
stardate = 54014.4
year = 2376
prev = The Haunting of Deck Twelve
next = Imperfection"Unimatrix Zero" is a two-part episode of "", the cliffhanger between seasons six and seven.

Plot

Seven of Nine dreams, her first according to the Doctor, of a beautiful forest. However, it turns out that this is a real subconscious realm inhabited by the minds of certain Borg drones during regeneration periods. Few drones possess the recessive gene required to experience the realm called Unimatrix Zero.

In the surreal, utopian Unimatrix Zero, Borg of various species and ages (including children) from throughout the massive geography of the Collective exist as their individual, unassimilated selves and interact with one another as such. While out of regeneration, they revert to normal drones and have no memory of their time spent together there. The Borg Queen knows about Unimatrix Zero, considering it a disease, and destroys drones discovered capable of visiting it. However, the process of detecting affected drones is very time consuming, and she is eager to find a faster method of finding and deactivating them. Those who are detected are deactivated, dismembered, and studied in an effort to speed up the search.

Seven of Nine journeys with Captain Janeway to the subconscious realm and reverts to acting more like an individual. It turns out that she used to visit Unimatrix Zero when she was still part of the collective. Her forgotten lover, Axum, has made contact with her so that she may help them; the inhabitants of Unimatrix Zero have developed a masking nanovirus which would inoculate them against being detected by the queen, but it can only be administered from the corporeal world. Seven soon becomes overwhelmed and discouraged by her newfound emotions and denies them at first, although she eventually comes to terms with them. If Unimatrix Zero cannot be stopped in the real world, the Queen plans to destroy it from within. Assimilated drones attack the subconscious "unassimilated" drones constantly.

As Voyager plans to help the Unimatrix-drones, the Borg Queen contacts the ship. She knows of Voyager's recent communications with the Federation and offers Janeway transwarp technology, if Voyager is accommodating and ceases helping the Unimatrix-drones. Janeway refuses. After being blackmailed by Chakotay (he promises to have the Doctor remove her from command), Captain Janeway, Tuvok and B'Elanna penetrate the Borg cube to reach the central plexus and administer the nanovirus. Voyager distracts the Cube while they infiltrate the cube but are caught. Voyager leaves them to be assimilated. The cliffhanger episode of Season 6 ends there.

In the continuation in Season 7, it is revealed that they allowed themselves to be assimilated because the Doctor had inoculated them with a neural inhibitor, which protects their individuality. However, Tuvok's inhibitor wears off and the Collective eventually overcomes his mind.

The Borg Queen confronts Janeway, demanding that Unimatrix Zero be destroyed. The Queen is ruthless, and prepared to destroy entire vessels, each housing thousands of lives, if only a handful within are "offline" and therefore suspected of being the newly sentient drones from the dream realm. Having discovered a means of sending Borg as drones into Unimatrix Zero, she then threatens to release a Borg-modified form of the nanovirus from within Unimatrix Zero which would kill every affected inhabitant's corporeal drone, unless Janeway agrees to destroy it.

The captain thus instructs her crew to destroy Unimatrix Zero (though Chakotay realizes what she is really after-—destroying the matrix so the Queen can't reach the affected drones as easily), but only after Janeway has a chance to tell them that they would retain their individuality when they awake from their regeneration cycle. Seven is forced to say goodbye to her lover, who is on a Borg ship far away in the Beta quadrant. The episode ends as the independent Borg, who now, like the Queen, have the advantage of self-consciousness, take command over a number of vessels, rebel, and start a civil war with the Collective.

External links

* [http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/series/VOY/episode/111631.html Episode summary from Startrek.com - Part I]
* [http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/series/VOY/episode/112328.html Episode summary from Startrek.com - Part II]
*imdb title|0709003|Unimatrix Zero: Part 1