Westworld

[The Professor]

Spoiler Warning: Spolers ahead

HBO's new series Westworld just wrapped up its first season as one of the most promising shows on television. I really enjoyed the series and found it to be far deeper and more complex than I had expected. Is anybody else here watching Westworld? What are some of your favorite moments and theories?

[Atari Adventure Square]

Although I share your wariness of modern reboots of old faves, LD, I was pretty much jazzed from the get-go with this one, since the premise is less dependent on its characters (like BSG, or the Apes series, for example) and more on a modern approach to the concept of a robot amusement park (of sorts).

 

Given this lends itself to both an adaptation of new tech ideas and the philosophical ponderings on the values of social etiquette when all bets are off and violence is condoned, the whole prject was intriguing enough to give it a free pass into my schedule.

 

And I was not disappointed!

 

Although I must say giving a weekly series a view then debating the theories about it lessen the results, cuz either fan theories are wildly wrong but offer more rewarding prospects, never-to-be-seen, or they're right and spoil the 'unboxing' of a limited run series by being ahead of the story and having the show catch up with known reveals.

 

Westworld is not the most surprising show, on that end, but ended up being one of the most satisfying I've seen, maybe for my love of the original movie.

 

I saw Westworld in theaters as a kid and its grand ideals presented in limited-scope format (multiple fantasy RPG worlds viewed through old Americana lifestyle) stuck with me to this day.

Also quite enjoyed Futureworld since it was a sequel to this great concept - although a poor sequel at the time.

The audience laughed at the silly attempt to jam an previous star into the new movie (and that dance scene is pretty ridiculous), but I was just glad to return to that place.

 

Have both on Blu-Ray and they are feel-good watches for me nowadays.

 

The whole sentient robot thing was big in the 70s, with WW, the SIx Million Dollar Man and Jaimie Summers facing off against such foes (the fembots were glorious!).

So, the idea of reviving this Crichton novel into a tv show was as exciting as having old buds reliving the glory days of our 70s childhood, in my mind.

 

Yeah, as a separate construct from my drippy nostalgia, the show lives or dies on one's appreciation of the concept more than the execution (which is fine).

As with the Spielberg/post-Kubrick film AI, I found it near impossible to give much weight to the simulated emotion of bots.

But the journey is still fascinating.

 

I would tentatively recommend an attempt at viewing the series for curiousity's sake, at least.

A pal of mine had to stick with the first half of the run to get to any story weight to keep watching.

Maybe that would be a common experience for most newcomers and even older fans of the original.

[Justin]

I really enjoyed Westworld, it's one of my new favorite shows. Not quite Stranger Things but it's intriguing and I love Anthony Hopkins.

 

On a side note, I'll be introducing Reveries into the Moderators in our next site upgrade.

[Justin]

Saw this today, Funny Or Die has a new video "City Slickers in Westworld feat. Billy Crystal". If you like Westworld AND you remember City Slickers from the early 90s you might enjoy this: