For the most part, I watch Westworld for the big philosophical concepts/quandaries it presents on the topics of humanity and artificial intelligence. This is why the Dr. Ford (Anthony Hopkins) sections of S1 were my favorite of that campaign and I wholeheartedly enjoyed seasons 2 & 3. In this fourth season, however, I found the show largely pivoting away from the "deep stuff" and towards more visual/action-oriented storytelling. While perhaps an upgrade for some, it proved to be a downgrade for what I had previously enjoyed in the series.
Don't get me wrong-Westworld still tries to bring out some heavy-hitting ideas and big twists. The episode "Zhuangzi" was easily my favorite for its "even Gods get bored" musings. Caleb (Aaron Paul) is given the biggest time-based wrinkle (always a WW staple) of the season, and in the moment it is a doozy. Ed Harris-in a sort of "dual William/MIB" role-is always given meaty material and pulls it off with aplomb. But it quickly becomes clear that these concepts are not the focus of S4. Instead, I found them to be offset by a number of disappointing storylines...
-The oft-philosophically tortured Bernard (Jeffrey Wright) reduced to a "future oracle", of sorts, spouting predictions that may or may not come true but in the end seem to have little bearing on the events at hand.
-Caleb given the most emotional angle of the season (involving his daughter), but then having it abruptly end in quite awkward fashion.
-The first four episodes expertly teasing just who in the heck this Christina (Evan Rachel Wood) might be and how Teddy (James Marsden) is back in her orbit. The resolution of that angle is probably the biggest letdown I've experienced in watching the show to date.
-The almost unlimited plot potential of Hale (Tessa Thompson) largely discarded in favor of the actress wearing stylish outfits, performing big stunts, and hamming up the villainous dialogue (hollow as it often was).
In short, I really felt as if S4 of Westworld "lost its fastball", so to speak, in dealing with the big philosophical tenets it once was so masterful at handling. Though perhaps accusing the show of trying to be HBO's new "Game of Thrones" replacement in terms of incredible production value & cultural cache goes a bit too far, I think at least some speculation on that front is warranted. The character of Maeve (Thandiwe Newton) is perhaps the personification of this approach-once given at least a tertiary plot/character background, she is now simply a wise-cracking "female warrior" trope. All in all, it seemed very clear that since S3 was not a hit for most viewers, S4 was streamlined a bit to try and pull back from the big-swing craziness (which just happened to be the stuff I loved!).
Another theme of this season was the setting up of what will almost certainly be a fifth and final spate of episodes. In fact, one could almost call the entirety of S4 a setup for the show's endgame-again, softly resetting expectations after a critically disappointing S3. In lieu of S4's ending and the show's future direction, I can now at least better understand some of the early-season thematic choices that were made. That being said, I cannot fully excuse the lack of truly great plot material on those grounds.
Of course, the high production value and top-notch acting make it virtually impossible to give S4 of "Westworld" anything less than 7/10 stars. It remains a solid show and is never boring or trite in that there is always some mystery to unravel or some character to puzzle over. But this season's inability to stick the landing on its big-picture concepts left me disappointed as much as awed, leading to the "entertaining but little more" 7/10 ranking.
Don't get me wrong-Westworld still tries to bring out some heavy-hitting ideas and big twists. The episode "Zhuangzi" was easily my favorite for its "even Gods get bored" musings. Caleb (Aaron Paul) is given the biggest time-based wrinkle (always a WW staple) of the season, and in the moment it is a doozy. Ed Harris-in a sort of "dual William/MIB" role-is always given meaty material and pulls it off with aplomb. But it quickly becomes clear that these concepts are not the focus of S4. Instead, I found them to be offset by a number of disappointing storylines...
-The oft-philosophically tortured Bernard (Jeffrey Wright) reduced to a "future oracle", of sorts, spouting predictions that may or may not come true but in the end seem to have little bearing on the events at hand.
-Caleb given the most emotional angle of the season (involving his daughter), but then having it abruptly end in quite awkward fashion.
-The first four episodes expertly teasing just who in the heck this Christina (Evan Rachel Wood) might be and how Teddy (James Marsden) is back in her orbit. The resolution of that angle is probably the biggest letdown I've experienced in watching the show to date.
-The almost unlimited plot potential of Hale (Tessa Thompson) largely discarded in favor of the actress wearing stylish outfits, performing big stunts, and hamming up the villainous dialogue (hollow as it often was).
In short, I really felt as if S4 of Westworld "lost its fastball", so to speak, in dealing with the big philosophical tenets it once was so masterful at handling. Though perhaps accusing the show of trying to be HBO's new "Game of Thrones" replacement in terms of incredible production value & cultural cache goes a bit too far, I think at least some speculation on that front is warranted. The character of Maeve (Thandiwe Newton) is perhaps the personification of this approach-once given at least a tertiary plot/character background, she is now simply a wise-cracking "female warrior" trope. All in all, it seemed very clear that since S3 was not a hit for most viewers, S4 was streamlined a bit to try and pull back from the big-swing craziness (which just happened to be the stuff I loved!).
Another theme of this season was the setting up of what will almost certainly be a fifth and final spate of episodes. In fact, one could almost call the entirety of S4 a setup for the show's endgame-again, softly resetting expectations after a critically disappointing S3. In lieu of S4's ending and the show's future direction, I can now at least better understand some of the early-season thematic choices that were made. That being said, I cannot fully excuse the lack of truly great plot material on those grounds.
Of course, the high production value and top-notch acting make it virtually impossible to give S4 of "Westworld" anything less than 7/10 stars. It remains a solid show and is never boring or trite in that there is always some mystery to unravel or some character to puzzle over. But this season's inability to stick the landing on its big-picture concepts left me disappointed as much as awed, leading to the "entertaining but little more" 7/10 ranking.