Murderbot episode 7 recap: The crew engages in a trustbuilding game

As Season 1 nears its end, Episode 7 of Murderbot slows down the action to focus on the emotional struggles and healing within the PreservationAux team. Instead of corporate drama, this episode dives deep into the relationships between the team members and their connection with it.

The episode begins with a flashback from a dinner at Port Free Commerce that happened before their current mission. To build trust, the team plays a game: each person has to share one happy and one painful memory involving someone else in the group.

At first, it’s a little awkward. But things get serious fast.

Dr. Bharadwaj, the team’s doctor, admits she once misunderstood Pin-Lee’s kindness and thought it was a romantic interest. It’s an honest and slightly embarrassing moment.

Then Gurathin, the quiet and often blunt tech expert, shares something shocking. In the past, he was forced to spy on Dr. Mensah for a corporation called Rim. His task was to make her look bad by planting fake research. But after Mensa helped him recover from his addiction, he stopped the mission and confessed everything to her.

Deep down, it’s clear Gurathin still has feelings for her, though he never says it out loud.

This flashback changes how we see Gurathin. He’s not just a grumpy team member; he’s someone who was broken and slowly found purpose (and maybe love) because of Mensah.

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Looking at where trust is breaking

Back in the present timeline, the team is still shocked by the betrayal and death of Leebeebee from the previous episode. Murderbot, overwhelmed by guilt and fear, tells everyone to evacuate the habitat. But things are chaotic, and the weather isn’t helping.

The team starts to doubt if they can really trust it. Gurathin becomes its loudest critic. Even though Murderbot has saved their lives several times, Gurathin says they can’t forget what it's capable of, after all, it killed someone recently.

As the group argues, it stays quiet. Inside, it’s struggling with sadness, frustration, and loneliness. In a touching moment, it lifts its face shield and softly says, “Please.” It's a rare display of emotion, showing that Murderbot isn’t just a heartless machine; it wants to be trusted, to be seen as more than a tool.

Dr. Mensah is the only one who doesn’t waver. She stands up for it and says it should be free to choose kindness, even though it was built for destruction.

As the team tries to reach their escape shuttle (called a hopper), they’re blocked by two huge mating insect creatures. One of them looks similar to a dangerous species from Episode 1. These bugs leave an egg sack on the shuttle, making it impossible to use.

While this moment seems weird and a bit gross, it also reflects Murderbot’s inner struggle. The bugs act on instinct, just as it was programmed to kill. But now it’s fighting that instinct every step of the way.

Suddenly, a hostile SEC unit attacks. The enemy has technology that scrambles its sensors, making it hard to fight. The team tries to help, but they’re outmatched.

Just when things look hopeless, one of the giant bugs defends its eggs by attacking and brutally killing the enemy bot. It’s violent and strange, but it shows how strong the instinct to protect can be, just like its growing desire to protect the team.

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Murderbot’s inner thoughts: Am I a threat?

Throughout the episode, we hear Murderbot’s internal monologue. It’s sarcastic, emotional, and painfully honest.

It’s scared, not just of losing the team, but of what it means if the team is right to fear it. Murderbot remembers how watching the fictional soap opera Sanctuary Moon used to help it escape these feelings. But now, even that doesn’t work.

At one point, it imagines quietly dying alone in the woods. A peaceful but lonely idea. Still, its thoughts always return to the team. Whether it wants to or not, it cares about them.

That growing sense of emotion is what makes Murderbot such a powerful character. It reflects how many people feel, like outsiders trying to find where they belong.

After the fight, Gurathin collapses from exhaustion and fever. He’s not just physically weak, but mentally broken. The crew wants to return to the dangerous habitat to get medical supplies, something Murderbot warns against.

This creates a final tension: should they follow logic and stay safe? Or listen to their emotions and risk everything for a teammate?

Dr. Mensah approaches it and doesn’t command it; she asks. She tells it that it matters, not because of its programming, but because of who it is.

These words don’t magically fix it. But they make a difference. It chooses to go back, not because it's ordered to, but because it wants to.

This is more than saving Gurathin. It’s about taking a real step toward becoming something more human.

At its core, this episode is about trust - trust in it, trust in each other, trust in one's own choices.

The team claims to value honesty and openness, but under pressure, cracks begin to show. At one point, Gurathin misgenders Murderbot, calling it "he." This isn’t just a slip; it reveals jealousy, especially as he sees Mensah, and it is growing closer.

Meanwhile, it keeps balancing between wanting to stay distant and feeling emotionally tied to these humans. It tells itself it wants to be alone, but its actions show otherwise.

Even during its darkest moments, the show brings humor, like it thinking, “I should have downloaded more shows,” while nearly dying.

Episode 7 is less about alien threats and more about inner battles, trust, identity, and belonging.

Gurathin’s story adds depth to a once-cold character. The insect scene, while odd, perfectly mirrors its emotional struggle. And the bond between Mensah and it becomes one of the most important parts of the story.

The episode ends on a cliffhanger: the team heads back into danger. Their relationships are damaged, but not broken. And for the first time, it leads them not as a tool, but as someone making a choice.

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