Westworld

[Tyler Purcell]

I feel some of the characters are underdeveloped and there just doesn't seem to be enough of them for such a big facility. People would be more up in arms about the trickery going on behind the scenes I fret. Maybe the big reveal tonight will answer some of those questions. Over-all I'd say the series met expectations, but I wasn't expecting much. This ain't no Boardwalk Empire or The Knick, far from it actually. A lot of that comes from hurried writing and a lot of controversy surrounding the production.

 

I look forward to giving a full impression once the season is over later tonight. :)

[JD Hartman]

Ten episodes for the entire 2016 season, not much coverage considering how much there is going on with multiple plots and timelines, etc. Ten episodes for the season and then nothing until 2018?

 

It's not The Wire or Oz either.

Edited December 4, 2016 by JD Hartman

[Tyler Purcell]

Well, Westworld had a rocky start, so it's honestly a miracle they produced 10 episodes. Remember, the pilot is over an hour and the final episode is feature length, coming in at 1hr 32 minutes. So it's more like 12 - 13 episodes worth of content had it been on a regular network with commercial breaks.

 

Over-all, I thought they did a good job with the series. The final episode answers a lot of questions and starts an all-new narrative that I think all of us saw coming. Even though the series is somewhat limited in scope, compared to say HBO's other top series, it actually fits their model very well. There are a few scenes that felt really rushed (writing wise) in the final episode. Some character decisions didn't seem on-par either, but over-all it worked well and it opens up a whole new can of worms.

[Chris Burke]

Limited in scope how? Your observation, but how?

[KH Martin]

Only started watching two days ago and am already through 7 eps. Most recent surprise was something I guessed 5 eps back, but for most part am very entertained, and like that it seems to have a brain in its head and is about more than surface storytelling. Am most impressed with the performances by those playing hosts, there is some really subtle work, a lot of thought must have gone into it. Not sure about the rewatchability factor being high, though.

[Tyler Purcell]

Limited in scope how? Your observation, but how?

After the first few episodes, you know all the characters, you know all the locations, you're in the show and then you just sit back and watch it unfold.

 

Most of the other big HBO drama's are FAR greater in scope. Boardwalk Empire for instance, much bigger bringing in all sorts of characters each episode and traveling to new locations, etc. How about Game of Thrones? Same deal, HUGE scope. In fact, I can't think of a recent HBO drama with LESS scope then Westworld.

 

It's just, Westworld seems more like an NBC drama then it does serious HBO drama and I believe that feeling comes from the lack of scope. I also feel the characters feel a bit one dimensional, they all have a singular mission and all we know about is that mission. I understand they're "hosts" and the whole point is repetition and programming, but even the humans in the story act the same way. I can tell you the dialog for most characters before they even utter it. Not saying it's poorly written, because the twists and turns are cool, the way time is dealt with is also very cool. Yet, cool doesn't make it "good"... To add scope, they could bring in more of a story to the humans, like why are they working at Westworld? With so much hostility, why would you ever want to work there? There are SOOO many possibilities and none of them are even remotely explored. The filmmakers focused to much on the single vision, the one that was wrapped up in a little bow in episode 10.

 

I don't want to spoil the end of the show for anyone, so lets just say there are more specific things I can talk about, but won't at this juncture until people have seen it. Maybe next season will be different, but I have a feeling it will be a while before we know.