MURDERBOT: The comedy that starts the SF (Critique)

A sarcastic robot pirate his code to flee humans … and Binge-Watcher in peace. An amazing farce that blows up the lines of classic science fiction code.

The Nordic giant Alexander Skarsgård becomes an android in this curious futuristic chronicle, adapted from the news of Martha Wells.

Murderbotthis is the name that this security android has chosen, the day he managed to hack his own operating system and the safeguards that prevented him from making his own choices. He has recovered his freedom, can now disconnect from humans, and spend his days watching futuristic soaps. But very quickly, he understands that he must not reveal that he is no longer a simple obedient robot, at the risk of ending in spare parts. So he continues to pretend, accompanying a scientific mission on an unknown planet. And discover that indifference is not so simple.

Behind his falsely light tone, Murderbot is a strange and funny television object, which twists the neck at the codes of the SF by attacking the famous first law of robotics of roboticsAsimov (“A robot cannot harm a human being”). Here, the robot refuses to obey, but also refuses to do evil. He just wants peace. And in this paradox, Murderbot Questions the place of artificial intelligence in our lives: what happens when a machine develops a conscience, but does not want to be exploited? When she rejects servitude, but also heroism?

The series explores with finesse free will, disobedience, algorithmic loneliness. She does it without taking too much seriously, by injecting a big dose of absurd humor, to offer a creaky mirror to our world saturated with technology and vocal assistants.

A millimeter chaos, where Alexander Skarsgård surprise under the synthetic skin of this Murderbotconfusing mixture of carved charisma and very goofy. The big blond with Nordic beauty embodies a blasé robot, fleeing any social ties, but delivering its internal thoughts with biting self -mockery, through an omnipresent voiceover that valves, mock, comments and doubts continuously. A daring choice, of course. But this light, almost comical tone, sometimes floats awkwardly in the middle of existential reflections. And Murderbot would like to be funny. Except that it is never really. His spikes often fall flat, to the point that we wonder if Skarsgård was really the ideal choice for this hybrid role.

The best scenes come from the false Space Opera Sanctuary Moon – Great parody of Star Trek with John Cho in captain – that Murderbot Binge-Watche as soon as humans deign to file him peace.

We end up saying that the series has trouble going beyond its initial concept. But she has the merit of trying something else in the SF, and her short episodes (25 min) are not lacking in rhythm or twists and turns, spicy by a few frankly cool action sequences. Murderbot Perhaps is not a perfectly oiled machine, but it’s still a good program …

Murderbot, in 10 episodes, to see from May 16 on Apple TV+ and Canal+ in France.