Westworld

robeiae said:

Premiered last night on HBO. Anyone watch? I thought it was pretty good. It's kind of touching on the original, as well as hitting themes from I Robot and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

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That was one quick 73 minutes of television. I'm already brokenhearted for Dolores. It looks as if the second episode revolves partly around Ben Barnes and Jimmi Simpson, respectively playing a hedonistic frequent flyer to West World and his somewhat reluctant first-timer friend. That sounds just like the James Brolin/Richard Benjamin dynamic in the original movie, so I'm super-excited to see how that story-line is handled in the context of this fictional universe. Ed Harris's character is simultaneously disturbing and intriguing, and I can't wait to see what his end-game is all about.

If this season does well, I wonder if they'll introduce/spin off the other two sections of the Delos resort, Roman World and Medieval World? I had an unhealthy obsession with the original movie when I was a teenager, so I hope so.

I was unable to watch last night (or just too lazy to turn on the TV). Loved the movie when I was a kid. Hope I remember to check it out next week!

robeiae said:

Premiered last night on HBO. Anyone watch? I thought it was pretty good. It's kind of touching on the original, as well as hitting themes from I Robot and Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?

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The memory wipe and abuse aspect also reminds me a bit of Dollhouse.

Zombie Fraggle said:

If this season does well, I wonder if they'll introduce/spin off the other two sections of the Delos resort, Roman World and Medieval World? I had an unhealthy obsession with the original movie when I was a teenager, so I hope so.

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I really hope so too. I wonder what other settings might work as worlds - Pirates? 1920s gangsters? You could even get really meta and have a 1970s world.

I haven't watched it yet because we're having serious trouble with our internet and we stream from HBO Go (I haven't even been able to watch the last 2 episodes of The Night Of ) but Westworld is one I've been looking forward to since I first saw the trailer. I loooove Westerns and Sci-Fi and Anthony Hopkins and J.J. Abrams, so, win-win-win-win!

So there are no mentions of Medieval World and Roman World in the show? Bummer.

I loved the original movie. So creepy and 70s-ish, the pacing was great, the message was good. "Even licensed misdeeds have their consequences." One of the things I always wondered about, though, was in the original movie, it's clear both men and women were traveling to Delos as guests, but the roleplay options for women in Westworld were limited: you could be a dancehall girl or a... well, that was it. Are there female guests in the new version? At least a woman in Roman World could go to the orgies, and in in Medieval World be a princess.

Any nods in the series to the follow-up movie, Future World? That was the one where Delos was rebuilt from its ashes, and included two new worlds, Future World (with expeditions to the jungles of Venus and skiiing on Mars) and Spa World.

I can think of more Worlds, even. How about:

* Jungle World (Tarzan, Mowgli, H. Rider Haggard, fur loinclothes, hostile natives, lost kingdoms, etc.)

* Steampunk World (Victorian-era Europe)

* Druid World

* Arabian Nights World (Flying carpets, harems, djinn, camels)

* Shogun World (Ninjas! Geishas! Kitsune! Samurai!)

Cobalt Jade said:

So there are no mentions of Medieval World and Roman World in the show? Bummer.

I loved the original movie. So creepy and 70s-ish, the pacing was great, the message was good. "Even licensed misdeeds have their consequences." One of the things I always wondered about, though, was in the original movie, it's clear both men and women were traveling to Delos as guests, but the roleplay options for women in Westworld were limited: you could be a dancehall girl or a... well, that was it. Are there female guests in the new version? At least a woman in Roman World could go to the orgies, and in in Medieval World be a princess.

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Well, the scarred bandit woman (I've nicknamed her Lady Hound) was a host but it seems like that sort of role would be open for female guests as well. After all, the African-American guests are being treated as equals.

Hmm I could also see a Post-Apocalyptic World. That could get layers and layers if it was pretty much The Walking Dead with android zombies *and* humans.

EDIT: If we really want to get twisted/disturbing, I could see there being a World War II world. As much as I'd like to think most guests would want to play as the Allies (if more Inglorious Basterds style), I somewhat doubt it....

Do we maybe need a *possible spoilers* tag appended to the thread title? Else I think it's going to take a lot of lavender text, as comparisons to the original movie are a given.

Holy guacamole! I loved every second. So can't wait to see where this goes. I don't know anything about the original work.

ElaineA said:

Holy guacamole! I loved every second. So can't wait to see where this goes.

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Me too! It sucked me in from the start. Looking forward to seeing where this goes.

Best use of a Rolling Stones cover ever! I love the cast! I love the idea! I loved, loved, loved the Marsden twist! I even loved the murder of the fly and all it portends!

But, um, eh, it was ok. <--sarcasm

(Aside to Cobalt Jade: Do you play video games? If so you might like the Kingdom Hearts series as you get to sample all of those themes.)

They seem to really want to explore what makes the robots act up. I like that. Not really going there was one of the flaws of the original movie. Nice use of repetition, too.

Still not a fan of HBO's slow-burn storytelling, though. It's all so slow... Oh, we'll see.

Am I alone in the opinion that the first episode dragged? Perhaps I felt that way because I'm familiar with the original movie, and with the tropes, but did we really need to see Dolores wake up four times? (Well three actually, since one was a flashback and shouldn't be double-counted)

Neat things: The milk-spilling bandit / the white chemical baths
Dolores' new father
The "Fly Wrangler" in the closing credits
Not so Neat things: Anthony Hopkins character -- he obviously thinks that the androids are superior to humans since they can still evolve. Why do none of his contemporaries in the Delos company worry about his unauthorized tinkering with the android's memories?
Who stores 'decommissioned' androids in a powered-up (albeit low powered) state? That's just asking for a revolt. Hell, even the team leader of the internal security force makes mention of it. Especially telling when the cause of the alert that takes them to level B83 is Dr. Ford playing with Old Bill, with the main power turned off and enough time elapsed to build up enough water to flood into the elevator car.
And finally, the pacing. I'm assuming the usual 10 episode run (confirmed with imdb), and given that this was the pilot episode, it still could have moved faster.

ETA: I see that Max also complained about the pacing.

Just watched it. Count me in the "found it slow" crowd. I enjoyed it, and I have no problems with slow-burn shows, but that really dragged in parts. Won't stop me watching the next eps though.

robeiae said:

ETA: There was also the wife of the "hero."

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Okay, can someone help me out here? That "hero" ... I know the actor from somewhere and I can't figure out where and it's driving me nuts. I looked up IMDB, but it didn't help. What show is he from?!?

eta: Never mind! Figured it out. (FTR, my memory randomly pinged him from 24 and House).

Duncan J Macdonald said:

Who stores 'decommissioned' androids in a powered-up (albeit low powered) state? That's just asking for a revolt.

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When they panned back and showed the entire room my son shouted "WHAT ARE THE THINKING??" However, with these two storytellers, I'm willing to believe it won't be something as obvious as it looks.

Also another vote for the music. When we heard Black Hole Sun on the saloon piano my kid and I both started giggling.

I'm not totally gaga over it, but I'm interested enough to keep watching.

If felt a lot like Dollhouse with the violence and nudity dialed to 11, but without the clever dialogue.

I thought it was a superb first episode and that the cast was absolutely brilliant, particularly the dude playing the dad and the wonderful Thandie Newton.

We were sitting here wondering how much of the facial ticking was CGI'd in. None of it looked obviously CGI, but the sheriff's eyes at one point were going in two directions, and one eyelid was half-mast and the other twitching. If it was real, that alone deserves an award.

(Aside to Cobalt Jade: Do you play video games? If so you might like the Kingdom Hearts series as you get to sample all of those themes.)

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I don't have a system :-(

robeiae said:

Just FYI, we don't know that all of his contemporaries are actual humans...

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Hmm. Interesting premise. Besides Dollhouse, Westworld (the Movie), Bladerunner, and I, Robot (not the Movie) you're contemplating Stepford Wives as well? That Dr. Ford is, in reality, the only remaining True Human [SUP](R)(TM)[/SUP] at Delos?

<cue Artie Johnson>Interesting.