Westworld (HBO/Sky Atlantic) [ Spoilers ]

Riddle101 · 06-10-2016 12:08am

I thought the show was interesting, has potential, but slow paced. I'll keep watching though as it was a good watch.

pickarooney · 06-10-2016 7:12am

MeatTwoVeg wrote: »

A tightrope will need to be thread.

This sounds like a cryptic crossword clue.

I agree that SBK from Bergen was badly miscast. Much as I admire her and as impressive her British accent is, her attempt at an American one is very jarring and without her trademark twinkly smile is hard to warm to her but impossible to hate her.

frostyjacks · 06-10-2016 8:12am

Thought it was a promising opener. Agree about the Danish woman and the English guy, their scenes together were stilted and as robotic as the hosts. I liked the fly motif, perhaps a nod to Norman Bates.

The villainous cowboy, Escaton, was slightly camp with the embroidered hat and shiny clothes, like something a 7 year old girl would draw. But I suppose if it's a theme park they have to be a bit OTT to bring the punters in.

Five or six seasons of this seem like a lot, unless they break it up between the different worlds. But then you'll have the problem of essentially the same themes but in a different setting. I prefer a clear narrative arc.

CastorTroy · 06-10-2016 8:53am

For what Ed Harris is, the version I watched had a conversation about the Marsden/Harris scene where they talked about both characters so I can tell you that they referred to him as a

human. Of course they could just be working along those lines for now, revealing later that he's a robot

The Black Oil · 06-10-2016 9:19am

Positive overall.

The hook seems interesting enough - I didn't have much in the way of expectations as I'm not familiar with the story. Good production values, tone consistent - did become a little swashbuckling when business kicked off in town, but fun. The synthetic people/hosts were eerily realistic in the laboratory/analysis setting, with their movements, etc. Have to confess I was also unsure about Sidse Babett Knudsen - so much so that her presence also pulled me out of the show. Hearing her speak English in a professional capacity does take some getting used to, but that aside, she just seemed misplaced, tbh.

Red P90s and Paint It Black. A shame the late Michael Crichton isn't around, at least his work lives on.

FunLover18 · 06-10-2016 9:34am

Arghus wrote:

I'm reading here that HBO want to make five seasons of this. To me that seems like a lot. I think you'd be better off making two solid and satisfying seasons, without running the danger of stretching the material too thin.

Given the pacing of the first episode I don't think we're in danger of overstretching. 5 seasons, 10 episodes a piece with potential to explore other themed worlds as well.

Unearthly wrote:

Ed Harris such a good villain actor

I have a sneaking suspicion we may end up half rooting for him, he's clearly after something and there's something mighty funny about that design inside your man's scalp. He's been going there long enough he may have uncovered some secrets guests aren't supposed to know.

Joeface · 06-10-2016 9:44am

Watched it last night , very good pilot episode .
Looking forward to seeing more , but at the moment I cannot see past 3 or maybe stretch to 4 seasons . And I think I would like them to limited it to that.

pixelburp · 06-10-2016 10:07am

If you watch enough Network US TV, it's sometimes easy to forget just how Blockbuster (for want of a better word) the material coming out from HBO can be; that first episode represented a lot of money on-screen, executed with the kind of panache and intelligence that other channels could only dream of.

Only the smallest dabs of personality, human or otherwise, were applied through what was clearly a scene-setting episode, but there were enough hints from characters of bigger things going on in this world. I hope it manages to maintain that tone & pace.

homerun_homer · 06-10-2016 10:13am

Snake Plisken wrote: »

Deadly Serious lol! Loved that show and thought the ending was great!

I liked the ending too. It was always going to be a hard one to land but ultimately I think it proved a very good finale.

cowboyBuilder · 06-10-2016 10:18am

Unearthly wrote: »

Thought this was a great pilot episode. Loved the scenery shots.

Ed Harris such a good villain actor

Yep, stunning stuff allright - Moab Utah, dead horse point .. amazing place..

silverharp · 06-10-2016 12:36pm

any non spoiler speculation on what the guy wants with the robot "scalp" , he made some cryptic comment about he deeper levels of the game?

ManOfMystery · 06-10-2016 1:24pm

This might have been posted already? Trailer for upcoming episodes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwxD_L5gIrQ

cowboyBuilder · 06-10-2016 2:04pm

I'd advise against watching the trailers, some spoilers in there ..

Hazys · 06-10-2016 6:46pm

cowboyBuilder wrote: »

I'd advise against watching the trailers, some spoilers in there ..

Yeah i saw the extend trailer on HBO On Demand as it came right on after the credits where I was enjoying Johnny Cash. When the extended trailer of whats coming up in the season, it was like a car crash, i couldn't look away. IMO it reveals too much of where the season is going, very disappointed that I saw that.

Snake Plisken · 06-10-2016 6:59pm

Thanks for the heads up! Going to avoid any trailer that's up on the net!

Dair76 · 06-10-2016 8:27pm

Has a lot of potential based on that episode, and am desperately hoping they get it right. Really liked the subtly foreboding final scene.

cowboyBuilder · 07-10-2016 9:39am

Hazys wrote: »

Yeah i saw the extend trailer on HBO On Demand as it came right on after the credits where I was enjoying Johnny Cash. When the extended trailer of whats coming up in the season, it was like a car crash, i couldn't look away. IMO it reveals too much of where the season is going, very disappointed that I saw that.

Yep, I watched 1st episode and then was checking it out on imDb stupidly thinking the trailer would only show parts of pilot episode .. :mad:

Now I know things about some characters I don't want to know ..

EoinMcLovin · 07-10-2016 10:28am

Second episode was released early

BoJack Horseman · 07-10-2016 10:35am

Finally got to see episode 1 last night.....

Loved it!

Question on Ed Harris's character:

Why are his actions not flagged up to the game masters?
Sure, the game is about hedonism etc, but he has tortured and raped the automotons.
Are the guests tracked at all like the robots they interact with?

pixelburp · 07-10-2016 10:43am

BoJack Horseman wrote: »

Finally got to see episode 1 last night.....

Loved it!

Question on Ed Harris's character:
Why are his actions not flagged up to the game masters?
Sure, the game is about hedonism etc, but he has tortured and raped the automotons.
Are the guests tracked at all like the robots they interact with?

My theory is that:

He's not a guest; I suspect he's living in the wild somewhere, unbeknownst to those running the park & his actions are just written off as uhm, 'high jinks' on the part of actual guests. Maybe the scalping of the croupier will get flagged as suspicious, but his other actions seemed depressingly standard going by what other guests were getting up to

BoJack Horseman · 07-10-2016 10:50am

Did anyone notice that the score used pop songs that were changed to sound more 'Westerney'

I noticed Soundgarden's Black Hole Sun (which was played on the mechanical-piano thing) & the Stones's 'Paint it Black' used also in the shoot out.

Birneybau · 07-10-2016 12:48pm

silverharp wrote: »

any non spoiler speculation on what the guy wants with the robot "scalp" , he made some cryptic comment about he deeper levels of the game?

Looked like it had a QR code printed on it. He'll probably scan it with his phone and get a free drink or something.

MeatTwoVeg · 07-10-2016 1:41pm

BoJack Horseman wrote:

Did anyone notice that the score used pop songs that were changed to sound more 'Westerney'

I believe you may be the first to do so.

ManOfMystery · 07-10-2016 2:14pm

pixelburp wrote: »

My theory is that:
He's not a guest; I suspect he's living in the wild somewhere, unbeknownst to those running the park & his actions are just written off as uhm, 'high jinks' on the part of actual guests. Maybe the scalping of the croupier will get flagged as suspicious, but his other actions seemed depressingly standard going by what other guests were getting up to

I like the thought of ....

...

the MIB being a skilled human who's somehow gone unnoticed and manages to evade detection. I'm just curious as to how he could do that - we've already seen that in the control room they can pretty much monitor, zoom in on and listen to any part of the park. All the key robots seem to get recalled daily for mind wipe, repairs, etc, so surely his OTT actions would have been noticed by now?

It's also feasible that some of the Park staff are secretly working with him to conceal his presence.

I have lots of questions about him and his actions. He's been coming to the park for 30yrs, or so he says - at $40k a day, that's a lot of money. So is he simply a bored billionaire who gets his kicks there? Or is someone else financing him as part of a corporate espionage deal?

He's human and presumably comes into the park, then dresses for the settings like the others do. What's with the all black outfit?

He's been presented as a villain, yet utters some curiously un-villain like lines - "What if I told you I'm here to set you free?". Is this all misdirection?

BoJack Horseman wrote: »

Did anyone notice that the score used pop songs that were changed to sound more 'Westerney'

I noticed Soundgarden's Black Hole Sun (which was played on the mechanical-piano thing) & the Stones's 'Paint it Black' used also in the shoot out.

Noticed BHS straight away as I'm a massive Soundgarden fan. Loved the way they dropped modern music into a western setting. Chris Cornell said the song had no real singular meaning when he wrote it, it was more a 'surreal dreamscape' so was a very apt choice for this show.

MeatTwoVeg · 07-10-2016 2:23pm

Perhaps the presence of Ed Harris was influencing me, but I thought there was a real Truman Show vibe running through Episode 1.

ManOfMystery · 07-10-2016 3:02pm

Pat Mustard wrote: »

I'd guess that he is a villain. He might say "What if I told you I'm here to set you free?" but only because it suits his own agenda. He's after something and he will stop at nothing to get it. If robots get freed or fried along the way, it doesn't matter to him, as long as he gets what he wants, whatever that may be.

I'd also say that his actions have not gone unnoticed but that they simply blend in with the actions of the other human 'guests' in Westworld. They see him but he doesn't stand out. That's why he appears invisible.

I doubt that the MIB is anything other than a human guest because otherwise the results of his actions would be observed and he would be sought out. The robots are property of Westworld and if that property is getting damaged by anybody or anything other than standard human guests, it will will cost money in parts and maintenance and will unnecessarily interfere with the running of the theme park. The MIB is shooting, maiming and damaging the robots. He must be causing a lot of damage and costing a lot of money. I reckon that the security team would be all over the MIB if he was anything other than a human guest, who had already paid handsomely for the privilege of running amok in Westworld. There would hardly be any chance of him running through the raindrops as a rogue or interloper for three decades, without being noticed and stopped.

I reckon he is as he appears to be, a human villain. It will be interesting to see his obsession and what drives it.

Thinking about not only his actions, but the things he actually says - I wondering why the control staff hadn't come down on him for being so open with the robots about the simulated reality that they're in. But I guess with them being seemingly reset at the end of each day, that was never a massive concern - not until now anyhow, now that some of them seem to be exhibiting memory retention of some kind.

Still, he's just scalped one of them and drained him almost entirely of blood. I wonder how far a human has to go for the control staff to actually sit up and take notice.

claiva · 07-10-2016 3:10pm

pickarooney wrote: »

Much as I admire her and as impressive her British accent is, her attempt at an American one is very jarring and without her trademark twinkly smile is hard to warm to her but impossible to hate her.

Aha......and therein lies the conundrum............
Is SHE a robot aswell ?????
Her English speaking accent is almost otherworldly....neither one thing or another....almost not human......
I LOVED Borgen and she was amazing in that so I am absolutely prepared to give her a few more episodes before I condemn her casting in this role.

The scenes with the English guy were very jarring. Ridiculously over the top with all of the F-Bombs.
Perhaps we are not supposed to like her.......I would be very surprised if they bump her off `soon though because she is a fabulous actress and the show would definitely suffer without her in it.

pixelburp · 07-10-2016 3:31pm

ManOfMystery wrote: »

I like the thought of ....

...
the MIB being a skilled human who's somehow gone unnoticed and manages to evade detection. I'm just curious as to how he could do that - we've already seen that in the control room they can pretty much monitor, zoom in on and listen to any part of the park. All the key robots seem to get recalled daily for mind wipe, repairs, etc, so surely his OTT actions would have been noticed by now?

I have lots of questions about him and his actions. He's been coming to the park for 30yrs, or so he says - at $40k a day, that's a lot of money. So is he simply a bored billionaire who gets his kicks there? Or is someone else financing him as part of a corporate espionage deal?

That's kind of why I think he lives in Westworld: he'd have to be phenomenally rich to be able to visit the park for 30 years, plus his constant presence on the train would surely have raised some eyebrows. He'd practically be a celebrity.

As for the surveillance, they can monitor the town and habitats, but by all accounts Westworld looks huge; it's not inconceivable a human could live in the wilderness, way beyond the 'main' areas without the staff realising there's a hermit in the desert. The control-room only seemed to zoom in on events when the bugs started manifesting or they wanted to admire their work.

As for OTT stuff, other than the scalping (which again, took place way outside of town), nothing the MiB did seemed all that different from the other horny/blood-lusting guests visiting. Presumably the park is relatively hands-off if there's a rake of programmed narratives that are allowed to evolve and change on their own.

stevenmu · 07-10-2016 6:30pm

pixelburp wrote: »

That's kind of why I think he lives in Westworld: he'd have to be phenomenally rich to be able to visit the park for 30 years, plus his constant presence on the train would surely have raised some eyebrows. He'd practically be a celebrity.

As for the surveillance, they can monitor the town and habitats, but by all accounts Westworld looks huge; it's not inconceivable a human could live in the wilderness, way beyond the 'main' areas without the staff realising there's a hermit in the desert. The control-room only seemed to zoom in on events when the bugs started manifesting or they wanted to admire their work.

As for OTT stuff, other than the scalping (which again, took place way outside of town), nothing the MiB did seemed all that different from the other horny/blood-lusting guests visiting. Presumably the park is relatively hands-off if there's a rake of programmed narratives that are allowed to evolve and change on their own.

He said at the start that it was good to be back, so he has been visiting for 30 years, but not there continuously all that time. At the time, I thought of him as a tourist who visits the same spot every year, or takes the same cruise etc.

I suspect the MiB will actually turn into the hero of the show, if maybe a flawed one. I think whatever mystery he's chasing could be related to whatever the hidden purpose of the park is. He could even be an undercover cop of some type.

I also think that as the hosts become increasingly self-aware (I'm making an assumption here, but I think it's pretty obvious that's where the show is going), he will actually start to defend them.

Unearthly · 07-10-2016 9:01pm

Episode 2 leaked. No spoilers but superb again.

Westworld (HBO/Sky Atlantic) [** Spoilers **]

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Westworld (HBO/Sky Atlantic) [ Spoilers ]