The Ultimate Computer

"The Ultimate Computer"
Star Trek: The Original Series episode
The M5 computer
Episode no.	Episode 53
Directed by	John Meredyth Lucas
Written by	D. C. Fontana story by Laurence N. Wolf
Production code	053
Original air date	March 8, 1968
Guest stars
Barry Russo William H. Marshall Sean Morgan Frank da Vinci Eddie Paskey William Blackburn Roger Holloway
Episode chronology
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List of Star Trek: The Original Series episodes

"The Ultimate Computer" is a season two episode of Star Trek: The Original Series, first broadcast on March 8, 1968 and repeated June 28, 1968. It is episode #53, production #53, written by D.C. Fontana, based on a story by Laurence N. Wolf, and directed by John Meredyth Lucas.

Overview: A new computer designed to control the ship causes havoc aboard the Enterprise.

Plot

On stardate 4729.4, the Enterprise is summoned to a space station without explanation. Commodore Wesley, commanding officer of the Lexington, explains that the Enterprise will be a test vessel for a revolutionary tactical computer called the "M5 Multitronic System", designed by the brilliant Dr. Richard Daystrom. The M5 will handle all ship functions without human assistance. While Kirk and Dr. McCoy are unhappy about the test, Mr. Spock is impressed with M5. Kirk learns that four earlier prototypes were unsuccessful, giving him further doubts.

At first M5 works well, performing ship functions more quickly and efficiently than a living crew. Later, M5 exhibits quirks such as turning off power and life support to unoccupied parts of the ship. It draws increased power for unknown reasons. Daystrom maintains M5 is working properly.

In a drill, M5 defends the Enterprise against mock attacks from starships Excalibur and Lexington. The Enterprise is declared the victor, prompting Commodore Wesley to call Kirk "Captain Dunsel". Spock explains the term is used by midshipmen at Starfleet Academy to describe a part serving no useful purpose. Kirk is visibly shaken by this.

Soon after, M5 detects the Woden, an unmanned freighter that is not part of the test, and attacks with real weapons, destroying it. Kirk orders M5 taken offline, but Daystrom continues to believe M5 is working correctly, and refuses. Kirk tries to disconnect M5, but discovers it is protecting itself with a force field. Engineer Montgomery Scott assigns Mr. Harper, a technician, to unplug the main connection, but the crewman is killed in the process. Spock and Scott desperately attempt a manual override, but they discover M5 has bypassed its power source and now draws energy directly from the ship's warp engines. Daystrom persistently defends M5 and refuses to disconnect it.

Spock questions Daystrom on his computer design. Daystrom reveals he has programmed human engrams into M5. Pressed further, Daystrom admits the engrams he used were his own, meaning M5 thinks similarly to Daystrom himself. With increased stress and anger, Daystrom appears unstable. M5 now shows similar instability. An attempt by the Enterprise crew to isolate M5 from the ship fails, as they are duped by a decoy.

Meanwhile the other ships in the test continue unaware of the problems with the Enterprise. Next follows a war game against Federation starships Lexington, Potemkin, Excalibur, and Hood. M5 detects the ships, but does not treat them as part of the trial, instead firing on them with live weapons. Daystrom states the M5 is programmed to preserve itself by any means. Although surprised by M5's actions, Daystrom simply views them as mistakes made by a learning "child". An angry Kirk asserts these "mistakes" are costing lives, and the computer must be shut down.

The crew watches as M5 pounds the other ships relentlessly. The Enterprise fires on the Lexington, killing 53, then completely cripples the Excalibur - killing all aboard her and leaving her to drift in space. From the Lexington, Commodore Wesley orders the remaining ships to destroy the Enterprise at all cost. Since M5 has disabled communications, Kirk is unable to explain what is happening. Kirk demands that Daystrom act, but the scientist will not accept M5 as another failure. He rambles about proving his worth and curses colleagues taking credit for his work. McCoy sees a psychotic episode coming, and warns Kirk the scientist is becoming delusional.

Kirk has Daystrom taken to sickbay after Spock fells him with a Vulcan nerve pinch. Kirk then talks to M5 to see whether he can persuade it to stop the attacks. The M5 acknowledges Kirk, who asks M5 what its purpose is. M5 responds "To save men from the dangerous activities of space exploration." Kirk rejoins that it just acted contrary to its purpose by killing people. M5 recognizes the penalty for murder is death, so it shuts itself down. In so doing, it cripples the Enterprise, setting the ship adrift.

The other Federation ships now close on the Enterprise to destroy it. While Scotty frantically attempts to regain control of the ship, Kirk decides to let the ship drift with shields down, hoping that Commodore Wesley will realize what the situation is aboard the Enterprise. The gamble pays off as the Commodore orders his ships to stand down at the last moment.

McCoy says that Daystrom will be committed to a rehabilitation center. Kirk explains that he knew that Bob Wesley would not fire, because he gambled on his humanity. McCoy pointedly comments that compassion is something computers lack. Spock responds that machines are more efficient than human beings: not better. He then dryly remarks that if McCoy's engrams were impressed in a computer, the resulting torrential flood of illogic would be most entertaining.

40th Anniversary remastering

This episode was remastered in 2006 and aired February 9, 2008 as part of the remastered Original Series. It was preceded a week earlier by the remastered "The Changeling" and followed two weeks later by the remastered "Operation: Annihilate!". Aside from remastered video and audio, and the all-CGI animation of the USS Enterprise that is standard among the revisions, specific changes to this episode also include:

• The space station that the Enterprise arrives at has been redesigned. Originally it was a reuse of the model for Deep Space Station K7 seen in "The Trouble With Tribbles". The new station is of the same class as Starbase 47 from the Star Trek: Vanguard novels published by Pocket Books.^[1]
• The planet Alpha Carinae II has been given a more realistic appearance.
• The supply ship Woden has been changed to look similar to the drone supply ships from the Star Trek: The Animated Series episode "More Tribbles, More Troubles". It is likewise similar to the S.S. Antares model seen briefly in the remastered episode "Charlie X"^[1] Originally, the Woden was a reuse of the S.S. Botany Bay from the episode "Space Seed".
• The other starships partaking in the battle simulation are Constitution Class like the Enterprise. However, each bears its own name and registration number, along with other subtle changes. The combat between the ships has been reanimated to establish more dramatic action sequences.
• The Lexington viewscreen, originally a reuse of the Enterprise viewscreen, has rounded edges to differentiate it from the Enterprise.
• The defensive beam projected by the M5 computer, originally appearing as a dark helix-like shape surrounded by a glow, has been changed to a solid glowing beam of energy, with a reflection on the Engineering-room deck.
• With a small crew complement, most of the ship's view ports are shown darkened on the exterior shots of the M-5 equipped–Enterprise.

Notes

• James Doohan (Scotty) was the voice of both the M5 and the starbase commanding officer, Commodore Enright. Doohan pulled double duty doing many extra voices on the show.
• Robert Wesley was a pseudonym frequently used by Gene Roddenberry when he wrote episodes of Dragnet while still on the LAPD.^{[citation needed]}
• In episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, there are references to the Daystrom Institute.^[2]
• The M5 computer makes another appearance in the video game Shattered Universe, in which it controls an area of space in the Mirror Universe and a multitude of Warships (at least 4 Constitution class ships)
• A Klingon copy of the M5 appears in one of the simulated scenarios of the video game Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. This version can also be "talked to death" by the player, by appealing to Klingon rather than Federation values (pointing out that its success will make Klingon warriors obsolete and deprive them of the chance to die in battle).
• The M5 also makes an appearance in the ST:TNG novel Immortal Coil.
• This episode is one of two instances in the Star Trek universe where John Masefield's poem "Sea Fever" ("all I ask is a tall ship") is quoted by Kirk, here as he reflects his impending obsolescence. He also quotes the poem in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.
• The strategy to show a computer his nonsense logic was adapted in the movies WarGames (1982) and Echelon Conspiracy (2009).

References

1. ^ ^{a b} TrekMovie.com interview with Mike and Denise Okuda, and Dave Rossi
2. ^ Daystrom Institute - Memory Alpha, the Star Trek Wiki

External links

• The Ultimate Computer at StarTrek.com
• The Ultimate Computer at the Internet Movie Database
• "The Ultimate Computer" at TV.com
• Review of the "Ultimate Computer" remastered episode at TrekMovie.com
• The Ultimate Computer at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
• Dunsel at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
• Richard Daystrom at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)