12 Most Beloved Star Trek: The Next Generation Episodes

I Borg is a well executed fresh take on the Borg that tackles questions of who we are and who they might be. The Enterprise discovers a crashed Borg scout ship on the surface of a planet with a sole drone survivor. They capture him with Picard planning to use this drone to carry a deadly computer virus back to the hive to wipe out the Borg Collective.

At first, everyone is onboard with the plan except Doctor Crusher who insists that it is ethically wrong to commit genocide. But as the crew members keep spending time around the drone, who is slowly gaining a sense of individuality, they find themselves getting attached eventually even naming him Hugh. There is no sudden act that instantly transforms the characters' viewpoint. Rather, it is a sustained process as they continually discover new sides to Hugh causing them to rethink their previous beliefs. This is shown with subtle details like Geordi unconsciously shifting from calling Hugh an 'it' to a 'he'.

The writers were also aware that viewers had strong preconceived notions of the Borg and thus gave voice to that through Picard's strong objections to the idea that Hugh is an individual. Guinan too, who is usually so pacifist, argues strongly in favor of destroying the Borg. Yet even their convictions falter when they realize that Hugh has grown into a unique entity with feelings.

By breaking down the crew’s prejudices, I Borg is able to challenge ours as well and perhaps make the strongest case yet for the Trekkian ideals of peace, individual responsibility, and diplomacy. It’s an optimistic view of the world that the episode earns so that by the end, we too see him as Hugh.