10 Problems With Westworld Nobody Wants To Admit
9. It's Bloated And Pretentious
One of Westworld's biggest plot elements was the Man in Black's search for the Maze... whatever that is. Eventually, it turned out the Maze wasn't even real and was more a symbol for the path of the hosts finding their consciousness within. This was a huge plot thread, which was one big red herring that led nowhere and didn't really say anything. That's a perfect metaphor for Westworld in general.
It's just a load of twists and puzzles that only lead to either nothing, or more twists and puzzles. Westworld insists on telling its audience ideas about AI and man playing god that they've heard many times before in the slowest and most convoluted way possible. Worst of all, the observations Westworld makes aren't even particularly deep or interesting. The observations about how being in the park can bring out the worst in people and the Hosts finding consciousness feel ideologically one-note and thematically predictable.
Nevertheless, these are interesting themes and always have been. Unfortunately, the show insists on smothering them beneath layers of flashbacks, arty visuals, red herrings and twists. It's so insistent on being arty and deep that it becomes painfully off-putting. There's just far too much material to absorb, and the show is so pretentious at times comparisons with Terrence Malick feel justified.