Westworld

 Swim too deep and you'll drown.

Much was expected from Season 2 of the HBO Drama. We often praise any form of expression, whether it be a television show, a film, a book or a video game when it takes its time to move onto the next installment instead of rushing in, be it for annual revenue or due to pressure from the top (The Assassins Creed franchise and the Song of Ice and Fire book series being the two extremes). And so, with great acclaim in it’s first season and having garnered a reasonably large fan base, there were murmurs that maybe this could be HBO’s successor to Game of Thrones; a commercial and critical juggernaut the likes of which have never been seen on the small screen. 

I think it’s fair to say that Westworld could never live up to the commercial success of Game of Thrones quite simply because the plot itself was too convoluted for the everyday consumer to keep up with. Well, you could say fantasy and historical fiction aren’t necessarily cash cows either so that’s no defense. Another defense would be that; ‘LOST’,
one of the biggest critical and commercial successes of the 20^th century was a show more labyrinthine than even Westworld. The point here is that Westworld was rather unfairly seen as the show that could fill the vacuum of both of these iconic television shows,that is when Game of Thrones pulls down the curtain next year.

Why these comparisons took place in the first place, you 

might ask. Well, it helps when you have an ensemble cast lead by legendary actor, Anthony Hopkins and the ever impressive Ed Harris. Thandie Newton and Evan Rachel Wood had also made a big comeback; and television has often kick started a path for many actors to go back onto the big screen.

Now moving onto the second season itself, there was always a fear that the first season was almost as good as it could be despite it’s complicated structure which included a non-linear narrative and numerous time periods. They had to tread carefully and I’m afraid they failed to live up to the expectations. Another show in recent times that fell short in this very manner was Sam Esmail’s Mr. Robot which also had a stellar first season. Strong arguments had been made against a second season for both Westworld and Mr. Robot and it would seem that those arguments were unfortunately vindicated in both cases.

Despite, showcasing the larger world, lots of biblical symbology for those who love to find a reason to put on their tin foil hats , and the excellent performances from the ensemble; it was a shame that I had to force myself to watch some of the episodes because of what I’d grown to expect from Season 1. What was the point of Shogun world? Was HBO just trying to showcase its financial muscle? And what was the point of the ‘William’/’Man in black’ arch, which had already come full circle in Season 1. I couldn’t end this piece without mentioning Ramin Djawadi, who yet again has proven himself to be ‘The outstanding composer’ for the small screen. He’s phenomenal yet again and I hope I can hear him live someday.  

When they did answer some of the questions, they didn’t do it with the conviction that we’d grown to expect from Season 1. It seems as is the case with many shows/ movie series that Westworld drowned itself in it’s own hype a bit like the hosts do at the end of episode 1.