Murderbot Is Almost the Real Thing

Photo: Apple TV+ Murderbot, Apple TV+'s new adaptation of Martha Wells's science-fiction book series, teeters on the margins of greatness. A story about a security cyborg with violent capabilities that's learned how to be human by hacking its control chip and binging bad TV, Murderbot the TV series gets more right than it gets wrong. It pokes at all the most interesting questions about its world and its protagonist. How human can Alexander Skarsgård's Murderbot be, and should it even want to be human? Is humanity required for compassion? Where is the line between mimicking behavior . . .