I don’t watch much television. There is just too much. It’s unfortunate I don’t have unlimited time because outside of the reality show trash, there seems to be some nutritious stuff being produced right now. Someone strongly recommended Westworld and I gave it shot and really was amazed at how quickly I became hooked and it became a drain on my time! I justify it because it really is thought-provoking on many, many levels — about human nature and the future; things that change and things that never will.

I realize that I appreciate all art more if it’s useful in this way–making me think more about life or explore something more. If there isn’t an effort to do this, what’s the point? Most stories I’ve seen before. I watch a new Superhero movie and most of the time feel like I am just watching the same good vs. evil story I have seen a million times. Tackling something and provoking new thoughts in the minds of an educated, thoughtful audience is hard!

What has been accomplished in Westworld, from what I have watched so far, really sets a high bar. I usually watch something and think, “Uhhh, I could write something better than that.” Westworld is different though–the mental effort to come up with a program this intricate and layered is really an amazing achievement.

The more educated the audience the more stuff there is to enjoy in the show, it seems. The episode I watched was filled with shots resembling Renaissance artwork, like Raphael’s “The Last Supper.” Very satisfying to see his embedded in the story as a hint at what’s to come. This story is so taught, it seems nothing is a throwaway line and no capture frame is capture randomly, without thought for how it provides new insight about what’s to come.