For the last twelve generations, mankind has been enslaved by an alien race and imprisoned in concentration camps by androids, who use their human captives to manufacture spaceship fuel.
Opening narration
| "Our history is filled with grim reminders of our inhumanity. Armies are crushed, populations ravaged, enemies imprisoned behind walls of stone. But the human spirit is not so easily confined." |
Plot
One woman, Prisoner 98843 (played by Harley Jane Kozak), is a maintenance worker who dares to challenge the authority of the Commandant, who oversees the administration of the prison camp. Her desire to be free is pitted against the seemingly-invincible alien New Masters. All of the prisoners believe the world outside the Camp is uninhabitable by humans.
Prisoner 98843 discovers that the Commandant and the guards are androids who have received no maintenance for decades and are in desperate need of repair. She mends them from spare parts gleaned from other guards that have ceased to function, and finally forces the Commandant to reveal that the rocket fuel made in the camp is no longer used by the alien fleet, which has since moved beyond Earth.
He also reveals that he has received no communication from the New Masters for a century and has maintained the camp regimen simply because those were his orders. She leads a revolt that overpowers the guards and beheads the Commandant. In the process, the new Elder (Bill Cobbs), who replaced Prisoner 98843's father, the previous Elder, is killed.
The episode ends with the inmates looking through the open gates at a beautiful landscape.
Closing narration
| "Of all the needs which drive us: hunger, thirst, desire... perhaps the most powerful is the simple need to be free." |
Notes
- This episode was followed by "Promised Land", in which Jessica Harmon and John Tench reprised their roles. One week passes between the events of the two episodes.
- The android exoskeleton prop was later reused in "The Hunt".
- This episode is included on The Outer Limits: Fantastic Androids & Robots Collection DVD set.
- Archive footage of this episode was later used in the clip show "In Our Own Image". However, it was used out of context as evidence of a concentration camp run by androids during the Second Balkans War.
Cast
- Harley Jane Kozak as Prisoner 98843
- David Hemblen as Commandant
- Bill Cobbs as Second Elder (Prisoner 91777)
- John Tench as Scarred Man
- Frank C. Turner as Elder
- Karen Elizabeth Austin as Old Woman (as Karen Austin)
- Jessica Harmon as Little Girl
- Robert Weiss as Overseer #1
- Mark Gibbon as Overseer #2
- David Cameron as Overseer #3
- Jonathon Young as Young Man
- Izabella Zalewski as Young Woman
- Mike Dopud as Overseer (uncredited)
- Ken Jones as Prisoner (uncredited)
- Kevin Conway as the Control Voice (voice)
| Innobotics Corporation | "Valerie 23" • "Resurrection" • "The Hunt" • "Mary 25" • "In Our Own Image" | |
| Major John Skokes | "Quality of Mercy" • "The Light Brigade" | |
| Alien Infiltration | "Birthright" • "The Voice of Reason" | |
| Strong Brothers Investigate Conspiracies | "The Voice of Reason" • "A Special Edition" | |
| Dr. Theresa Givens' Time Machine | "A Stitch in Time" • "Better Luck Next Time" • "Final Appeal" | |
| Genetic Rejection Syndrome | "Unnatural Selection" • "Criminal Nature" | |
| The New Masters | "The Camp" • "Promised Land" | |
| Dr. Martin Nodel | "Double Helix" • "The Origin of Species" | |
| USAS | "The Joining" • "The Vessel" • "In the Blood" | |
| Earth Coalition-Free Alliance Conflict | "Phobos Rising" • "The Human Factor" • "Human Trials" | |
| Jack the Ripper | "Ripper" • "Better Luck Next Time" | |
| Nicholas Prentice | "Tribunal" • "Gettysburg" • "Time to Time" | |