“TV is a problem only if you’ve forgotten how to look and listen,” claims a university professor in Don DeLillo’s novel White Noise. He complains that his students are no longer open to the medium; they find television “worse than junk mail… They’re ashamed of their television past. They want to talk about movies.” White Noise was published in 1985, when television programs were regularly criticized for being formulaic, lacking real substance and focusing more on commercial success than artistic profit. In fact, television’s reputation as an artistic medium was so bad that, in 1996, the premium network HBO began running ads with their new slogan: “It’s not TV. it’s HBO.”
But now, the tables have turned. Personally, I have heard countless college students share viewpoints in perfect contradiction to the students in DeLillo’s book; they believe that film is dead, that television has been reborn. Avid fans of Game of Thrones and Mad Men will tell you; while Hollywood got hooked on commercially successful gimmicks like 3D superhero movies, television emerged as the premier platform for long-form storytelling. The “auteur” has been replaced by the “showrunner,” and art house cinemas are losing business to Netflix-streaming laptop computers.
HBO has long been fighting at the front lines of this television revolution. Oz, which debuted in 1997, was the network’s first long-form dramatic series, a dark story about life in prison that could be considered a forerunner in the push for weightier television content. Though Oz achieved little commercial success upon release, it paved the way for widely-acclaimed series like The Sopranos and The Wire. Then, unsurprisingly, the success of these high-quality dramas inspired imitations. The revolution that began on HBO spread across the television channels like static electricity. We saw Lost on ABC, then Friday Night Lights on NBC, followed by Mad Men and Breaking Bad on AMC. Fans and critics alike flocked proudly to their tubes; it was a new century, and the new content was no longer “worse than junk mail.” It was art.
But are we truly living in a “Golden Age” of television? Or is it a gilded age?
Though television may be better than it has ever been, I am too often disappointed by new series that turn out to be as formulaic as they are trendy. It is as if these shows are bouyed by the success of recent gems but still held to the low standards of classic television. This could be said of HBO’s most recent release, Westworld, a big-budget series that the network is banking on being the #NextBigThing. Though HBO’s Game of Thrones has maintained its army of followers, many of the network’s recent debuts—Vinyl, True Detective—have swallowed millions of dollars only to be cancelled in the prime time of their youth. For this reason, argues critic Emily Nussbaum in her New Yorker review of the series, Westworld “can’t just be good—it needs to be a hit, too.”
Unfortunately, Westworld, like those other eventual flops, blew its budget on flash to blind audiences to the sloppiness of its narrative. Critics should be the ones to remind us how to “look and listen” like DeLillo’s professor, to watch television with a critical eye. But for an array of reasons, critics like Nussbaum and the AV Club’s Zack Handlen are largely complacent in the inflation of the medium’s reputation. Though Nussbaum’s review of Westworld raises important questions about the show, it is ultimately as toothless as Handlen’s in its judgment.
Based on the Michael Crichton film from 1973, Westworld is an intriguing offering; the show follows an ensemble of characters involved in a fictional Western-themed amusement park where the wealthy guests can have their way—sexually and violently—with the artificially intelligent “hosts” that populate the expansive artificial frontier. The series is ambitious; it tackles the darker sides of entertainment and human nature, placing the AI robots in center frame and featuring most of the human characters as creepy executives or their bloodthirsty clientele. As the robots slowly gain awareness of their sad situation, they increasingly inspire our empathy; the poor things get shot, stabbed and raped until night falls and their memories are wiped for another day of human amusement.
“The show introduces itself as a science-fiction thriller about cyborgs who become self-aware,” writes Nussbaum, but “then reveals its true identity as what happens when an HBO drama struggles to do the same.” She argues that the series is an attempt at criticizing our sadistic enjoyment of sex and violence in the media, “an exploitation series about exploitation.” The show actually works though, argues Nussbaum, because of its “elegance” and the way it “gets under your skin.” She is not wrong; like its opening credits sequence—needled artificial ligaments and a shiny player piano—the show is often as unnerving as it is stylish.
Similarly, Handlen believes that the first episode of Westworld succeeds because it “never lets the horrors it depicts completely undercut a certain sense of wonder.” He discovers this sense of wonder in the hopeful robotic hosts, and also in himself as he puzzles over the mysteries of the amusement park. However, there is an important distinction to be made between elegance and wonder—while the former is a question of aesthetics, the latter is largely a function of plot. And the plot of Westworld creates a sense of wonder more through formulaic twists than through the emotive eyes of Dolores (the park’s “farmer’s daughter” attraction and the series’ main star).
Specifically, In order to build the foundations of a narrative that could last longer than the first episode’s ninety minutes, Westworld introduces layers of enigma that are clearly intended to reel audiences in without demonstrating any relevance to the rest of the story. For example, there is Ed Harris’ character, “The Man in Black,” who is searching for some kind of hidden objective within Westworld. Apparently, the only way to find this meta-game is to torture the robotic citizens until they divulge any relevant information—The Man in Black scalps a poor cowboy to find a maze hidden under his plastic forehead. Why should we, as an audience, care about this puzzling meta-game? It is not related to anything else that happens in the episode; the subplot only exists to develop a pervasive sense of conspiracy, as if beneath the main narrative there is something “bigger” going on. This tactic has been popular mostly in sci-fi and fantasy programs since Lost employed it to keep viewers intrigued for 121 cliffhanging episodes. The series constructed endless layers of mysteries while promising to reveal every secret, to eventually tie up each of its loose-ends. Spoiler alert: at Lost‘s finale, most of the series puzzles went entirely unsolved. If the generally held consensus is that a show is successful as long as it keeps audiences watching; I would argue that television succeeds only when a series keeps its promise to tell a complete and satisfying story. Lost‘s failure in this respect is enough to make me “wonder” about where Westworld is headed.
Though Handlen agrees that The Man in Black is “an element that doesn’t quite work,” the lack of real plot development only makes him nervous for the episodes to come. He perceives the pilot as a success even though it functions only as extended exposition, more like the first part of a riddle than the first chapter of a full story. I find this logic confusing, as you would never endorse a riddle without knowing its solution—one half is meaningless without the other. Although she is more hesitant to demonstrate outright support of the series, Nussbaum similarly advises that we keep watching.
Primarily, Nussbaum criticizes the show for making use of the same exploitation that it claims to denounce—patriarchal violence against women in entertainment tailored to straight men. This is a valid concern; social satire can be even more problematic than its targets when it takes societal flaws to extremes without delivering the message that they are, in fact, flaws. Nussbaum worries that Westworld rides dangerously close to this type of ambiguity. She asks, “Is Westworld the blinkered macho fantasy, or is that ‘Westworld’?” This is the kind of scalpel-sharp critique that is too often lacking in television criticism; looking past the face value of a show to dissect it under the light of a larger political framework.
But the way that Nussbaum follows her query reveals why serious critique of the medium can be so challenging: “It’s a meta-cliffhanger with its own allure,” she writes, “leaving us only one way to find out: stay tuned for next week’s episode.” Handlen makes a similar statement in his review, sharing that he is uncertain whether or not the story will be sustainable, but is “eager to find out.”
This is the paradox of television critique; a critic’s job is to swallow works of art whole, to digest them completely in oder to judge them fairly, but television is rarely complete. When a show has a strong following and commercial success, it can afford to close its narrative arcs and tell a whole story. But many series, like Lost, and probably Westworld, intentionally leave plot-lines soaring and mysteries unsolved so as to keep audiences hooked. How is a critic to judge a work that might be nothing but bait, that will only take off its mask after years of seasons have come and gone? Nussbaum and Handlen are somewhat critical of Westworld, but they hold their tongues in light of the fact that the series is only getting started, that their worries could be assuaged by future episodes. However, this position is insufficient, because future episodes will only exist if the audience responds positively to early episodes. In this way, television critics have their hands tied; they cannot fairly judge a show until it is finished, but still must play a role in whether or not that completion ever occurs. Netflix’s all-in-one season release model would help critics navigate this issue, but HBO has maintained its commitment to the classic episode-per-week trickle.
Moreover, the problem is only complicated by the fact that directors and writers are often shuffled between episodes and seasons—Westworld, for example, has had a unique creative team for each installment. Where does a singular work of television end and the next one begin? Handlen has written reviews of each Westworld episode one by one, becoming increasingly critical as HBO reveals more of its hand. “Spending hours showing us a curtain might hold our attention,” he writes in his review of episode five, “but sooner or later, you have to pull the curtain back.” Of course, penning piecemeal reviews like this limits a critic’s ability to judge the whole picture at once. On the other hand, Nussbaum’s review covers the first four episodes, an arbitrary number that is still too few to judge Westworld’s complete narrative, yet simultaneously too many to treat the episodes like individual works.
It is tempting to submit the movie Ex Machina as the converse of Westworld (the film about artificial intelligence is subtle where Westworld is exploitative and narratively-taut where the show is tangled). It is equally tempting to entirely dismiss the show because of the painful performances from two of its actors, Simon Quarterman and Sidse Babett Knudsen, who play important Westworld executives (while he overacts enough to make Anthony Hopkins seem like a robot, she comes off colder than the robots due to her monotonic attempt at an American accent). But to make such warranted criticisms would be unfair to an artwork that is still unfinished. There is only one way to find out the truth about Westworld, and that is to pay for an expensive premium network subscription and watch one episode each week until most fans lose interest and the series is canceled. Only then will it be finished and we can criticize fairly in retrospect. But do not be discouraged! We are lucky to be living in the Golden Age of television.
7,765 Comments
This website is a shining example of what I strive for. Its elegant design and insightful content are a constant source of inspiration. https://thabetviet.com/
I wonder if this is all possible, see for yourself. Sugar Defender
Bushang Technology offers a comprehensive suite of manufacturing services, encompassing SLA, Vacuum Casting, CNC Machining, Aluminum tooling & Injection Molding, and Steel tooling & Injection Molding, catering to product development across various stages. Cnc Machining
I found so many interesting stuff in your blog especially its discussion. From the tons of comments on your articles, I guess I am not the only one having all the enjoyment here! keep up the good work… simpkb
Thanks for sharing such valuable information.how did dora die
i like to search the internet for new kitchen gadgets to add to my kitchen;; Sugar Defender
situs slot gacor adalah sebuah situs permainan online yang mendominasi di slot gacor seluruh indonesia
The appearance efficiently excellent. Every one of these miniscule information and facts will be designed working with wide range of track record practical experience. I like it a lot. alamat kantor bpbd karo
melalui link slot gacor hari ini. slot gacor
We combine field studies in Northeastern Brazil of the species in its natural habitat with baccarat online
The things that you find here in this website are really something else, I’m enjoying it Coffee Loophole
The content that you posted is something I’ve never seen before Exotic Rice Method
Thank you for very usefull information.. เว็บตรงไม่ผ่านเอเย่นต์
You have performed a great job on this article. It’s very precise and highly qualitative. You have even managed to make it readable and easy to read. You have some real writing talent. Thank you so much. BIOMA PROBIOTICS
This unique, broadly integrative approach provides a novel platform in which to examine situs slot gacor
The post is written in very a good manner and it contains many useful information for me. a course in miracles
Certain dissertation web sites over the internet courses currently have evidently unveiled while in the web-site. bk8
This article gives the light in which we can observe the reality. This is very nice one and gives indepth information. Thanks for this nice article. a course in miracles
My brother suggested I might like this website. He was totally right. This post actually made my day. You can not imagine just how much time I had spent for this info! Thanks! Emergency Lockout Dundee
Alpharetta, Cumming, Roswell, Dunwoody, Sandy Springs, Buckhead, Midtown, Brookhaven, Gwinnett County, Liliburn, Suwanne, Buford, Lawrenceville, Duluth, Norcross, Stone Mountain, Snellville, Dacula, Greyson, Loganville, Lithonia, Doraville and more! handyman alpharetta ga
“Sugar Defender is a game-changer for anyone living with diabetes. It’s helped me better manage my blood sugar levels and has given me peace of mind knowing that I’m taking control of my health. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a natural way to improve their health.”
Sugar Defender
Sugar Defender
I exactly got what you mean, thanks for posting. And, I am too much happy to find this website on the world of Google. Ice Cream Bakery In North carolina
Hello! I would choose to supply a huge thumbs up with the great info you have here with this post. I will be returning to your website to get more soon. the best iptv provider in france
Can I just now say what relief to get one who truly knows what theyre talking about on the internet. You actually discover how to bring a worry to light and earn it crucial. Lots more people need to see this and understand this side in the story. I cant think youre no more popular since you absolutely develop the gift. Sluggers Hit Disposable
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don’t know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often. acim
Thanks to the author’s comprehensive description, I learnt everything I needed to know about my topic after reading this post. sbobet88
I came across your blog and I’m really surprised with the content here Coffee Loophole
https://the88thai.net/lucky-neko/
Just wish to say your article is as amazing. The clearness in your post is simply nice and i can assume you’re an expert on this subject. Well with your permission let me to grab your feed to keep updated with forthcoming post. Thanks a million and please continue the enjoyable work. nhà cái bk8
assume you’re an expert on this subject. Well with your permission let me to grab your feed to keep updated with forthcoming post. Thanks a million and please continue the enjoyable work. nhà cái bk8
This blog is really something else I’m really glad to be here Boostaro
Thank You For Sharing Interesting Post, If you are looking to bring a change into your life by learning yoga for self-rejuvenation or transfer the benefits to others, by getting a professional certificate and expertise, then Book Yoga Rishikesh is the perfect fit for you.
This article was written by a real thinking writer without a doubt. I agree many of the with the solid points made by the writer. I’ll be back day in and day for further new updates. Auto Packaging Machine
This article was written by a real thinking writer without a doubt. I agree many of the with the solid points made by the writer. I’ll be back day in and day for further new updates. Greenhouses
This article was written by a real thinking writer without a doubt. I agree many of the with the solid points made by the writer. I’ll be back day in and day for further new updates. Pavement Marking Tape
I am impressed. I don’t think Ive met anyone who knows as much about this subject as you do. You are truly well informed and very intelligent. You wrote something that people could understand and made the subject intriguing for everyone. Really, great blog you have got here. 에볼루션카지노
Great post, you have pointed out some fantastic points , I likewise think this s a very wonderful website. gb whatsapp download
Them believes altogether best suited. Every one of lesser areas ended up being built by lots of track record instruction. I like the necessary paperwork a good deal. LATEST GIFTS AT UNBEATABLE PRICES
1688starbet
1688starbet (https://www.1688starbet.com/)
คาสิโน ออนไลน์ เป็นเว็บไซต์อันดับ 1 ของประเทศไทย สำหรับคนที่ชอบเล่นคาสิโน ออนไลน์และสล็อต ออนไลน์ ผ่านทางเว็บไซต์ STAR BETTHAI เป็นเว็บพนันที่ดีที่สุดอย่าง 1688Star bet รวมของเกมคาสิโนและสล็อต ออนไลน์ต่างๆ ยอดฮิตมากมาย เช่น บาคาร่า เสือมังกร รูเล็ต แบล็คแจ็ค สล็อต และเกมอื่นๆ อีกมากมาย ให้ท่านสามารถเลือกเล่นได้ตามที่ต้องการ อย่างสนุกสนาน คาสิโน ออนไลน์ที่ดีที่สุด และ ครบวงจร มากที่สุด เต็มไปด้วยเกมคาสิโนและสล็อต ออนไลน์ มีระบบธุรกรรมการเงินที่มั่นคง ด้วยระบบฝาก – ุถอนอัตโนมัติ
The writer has outdone himself this time. It is not at all enough; the website is also utmost perfect. I will never forget to visit your site again and again. a course in miracles
Just want to say your article is as amazing. The clarity in your post is just nice and i can assume you are an expert on this subject. Fine with your permission allow me to grab your RSS feed to keep up to date with forthcoming post. Thanks a million and please continue the rewarding work. lodeonline68
매우 유익한 게시물! 성공적인 소셜 네트워킹 캠페인을 시작하는 데 도움이되는 많은 정보가 여기에 있습니다! 토토사이트
Them believes altogether best suited. Every one of lesser areas ended up being built by lots of track record instruction. I like the necessary paperwork a good deal. innenfolie rund
Good website! I truly love how it is easy on my eyes it is. I am wondering how I might be notified whenever a new post has been made. I have subscribed to your RSS which may do the trick? Have a great day! whatsapp gb download
“여기에 제공해 주신 귀중한 정보와 통찰력에 감사드립니다 … 토토사이트
Really a great addition. I have read this marvelous post. Thanks for sharing information about it. I really like that. Thanks so lot for your convene. acim
Cool stuff you have got and you keep update all of us. acim eckhart tolle
Registered capital of group is 12 million USD and factories area are 60,000 square meters. Actual investment is 43 million USD.The group company is an innovative coffee enterprise integrating whole freeze-dried industrial chain Bru Strong Coffee
Engineering has always been right now there in making premature ejaculation treatment existence connected with men and women easier. In truth, on account of engineering the entire world regarding inner thoughts in addition has already been overcome. Don’t attempt to assume dirty below folks. What exactly I’m talking about could be the adore connection that may take place through online dating sites in addition to talking bedrooms or even software for instance ICQ, LIVE MESSENGER as well as MIRC. b2b near me
It seems you are getting quite a lof of unwanted comments. Maybe you should look into a solution for that. Have a nice day! 全瓷牙套