The Borg is arguably, maybe not even arguably, the most daunting and scary villain ever created in the history of science fiction media. There may be some that rival it, but it may not be one that we’re familiar with. The Borg however would give anyone a run for their money. Often times they’re nearly invincible, and relentless in their pursuit of new drones to assimilate and new technology to claim as their own. While in recent years, thanks to shows like Star Trek: Picard, they’ve been neutered, the mystique and aura they once had was legendary.

But they weren’t always going to be the finished product you saw on your screen. They were imagined firstly to be more locust-like in their design, destroying the environments of civilizations before moving on. It was too expensive an idea, and so it was ultimately scrapped. Aliens and characters change from concept to execution but there’s a myth going around that the Borg were only ever interested in technology and not people

Both in a recent CBR column and on the Memory Alpha page, the writers explain that the Borg were never interested in people upon their first debut, only in technology. The notion is that this was retconned later on. Except, it wasn’t.

In the first episode that the Borg ever shows up in, “Q Who”, it’s made abundantly clear that the Borg cares about more than just technology. Yes, no one is seen being assimilated on screen, but Q and Guinan both highlight the fact that The Borg are not to be trifled with, with Guinan going on to say that the Borg eradicated her people, leaving no one and nothing behind.

Later in the episode, they watch as an infant is essentially assimilated in a Borg nursery of sorts. A baby, clearly human or human-like is being transformed into a Borg drone. The notion that the Borg “only cared about technology” is immediately moot when seeing this scene. Yes, it’s true The Borg don’t always react to strangers, that’s not something that’s unique to this episode; it’s part of their core set of beliefs.

They don’t attack if they don’t perceive someone as a threat, or if they don’t offer anything worth having. The writers of the Next Generation showed in the first encounter with the Borg that they abduct and assimilate more than just technology, so let’s put this rumor to rest once and for all.