Created in August 30, 2024 by Minh Tran, ChatGPT
2024 · cinema · cinema
*The article contains spoilers for some episodes
Love, Death & Robots (❤️❌🤖) is an 18+ animated TV series produced and released by Netflix, with the first volume debuting in 2019. The series was created by Tim Miller, the producer behind the success of Deadpool (2016) and Sonic the Hedgehog (2020). Co-producing with Tim Miller is David Fincher, a renowned director known for notable films such as Se7en (1995), Fight Club (1999), and The Social Network (2010). Unlike most traditional series, each episode of Love, Death & Robots has an independent plot, allowing viewers to enjoy the episodes in any order. As expressed in the title, every episode focuses on three main aspects of humanity: love, death, and robots. The duration of each episode ranges from 6 to 21 minutes, and most of them present compelling and weighty stories filled with cinematic visuals, climaxes, and even plot twists. The series combines humor and sarcasm with violence and sensuality, addressing thought-provoking issues about reality, dreams, and human nature. Additionally, the eye-catching visual effects and top-notch sound design provide viewers with an experience akin to watching a true cinematic film.
Volume 1 of Love, Death & Robots contains 18 episodes, with each episode ranging from 6 to 17 minutes in duration. Due to the independence of the plots, the quality of the episodes varies. In this article, I will discuss a few specific episodes from Volume 1 that I found particularly interesting and share my thoughts on them. The order of the episodes in this article reflects the sequence in which I watched them, not their quality.
Beyond the Aquila Rift
Thom, the captain of the Blue Goose ship, along with his teammates Suzy and Ray, were on their way back to Earth after completing a mission. However, the system malfunctioned, causing the ship to become lost in space. Greta, Thom’s former lover, unexpectedly appeared and informed them of the ship’s status, leaving Thom and his teammates confused and unsure of what had happened. After some discussion, Thom and Greta made love. Following their passionate encounter, Greta revealed the ship’s true condition, disclosing that they would never be able to return to Earth. Thom, filled with confusion, demanded that Greta show him reality. Greta cried, explaining that she cared for all the lost souls who ended up there. At that moment, Thom truly awakened to find himself older, surrounded by a desolate scene where his comrades were either unconscious or dead. A spider appeared and approached him. The episode ends with Thom waking up in his normal body and reuniting with Greta, just as at the beginning.
“I do care for all the lost souls that end up here” - Greta
The plot of Beyond the Aquila Rift draws clear parallels to the classic film The Matrix, with its iconic red pill and blue pill, each symbolizing a choice between beautiful fantasy and harsh reality, respectively. The episode challenges us once again with a fundamental question about the nature of life: Do we prefer to live immersed in a beautiful but deceptive illusion, or face a cruel and painful reality? It also prompts us to consider whether we are merely puppets, programmed and controlled by an unseen force, and losing our true selves in the process. Moreover, the ambiguity surrounding the character of Greta, the spider-like entity, is worth debating. Greta claims to care for all the souls lost in her domain, with a deep, tearful gaze, and she conjures a dreamlike scene to help them forget their painful realities. However, there are also perspectives suggesting that Greta may not be as benevolent as she appears. After lulling the souls into a state of bliss, she gradually reveals the truth, pushing their minds into the depths of despair, leading some to believe that her true nature is that of a predator absorbing her prey.
Sonnie’s Edge
Sonnie, a young girl along with her teammates, was preparing for the Beastie arena, where gladiators connect biologically to their monsters and control them with their minds to fight each other. Sonnie had consecutively won 17 matches, and in the upcoming match, she was demanded to lose and receive a sum of money by Dicko, the host of the arena. She immediately refused this demand. Her teammate revealed that in Sonnie’s past, she had been raped and tortured very cruelly, and at that time, she fought not for money, but for honor, for revenge. This was her advantage. The match began, and Sonnie controlled her monster, Khanivore, and fought against the opponent, Turboraptor. The match was intense, and Khanivore won. After the match, Dicko’s lover attempted to seduce Sonnie but then killed her. Dicko mocked Sonnie triumphantly. However, Sonnie was not actually dead; the body that was killed was a biological machine, and her mind was integrated into Khanivore. Sonnie revealed that every match she fought was a fight for her life. Khanivore then killed Dicko’s lover and ended with an obsessed statement to Dicko:
“That fear of death. Do you feel it?” - Sonnie
Set in a dark cyberpunk world with advanced technology, this episode is one of the most violent in volume 1 of the series. However, it is imbued with a strong feminist spirit, symbolized by Sonnie. The girl endured all kinds of pain, both physical and mental, with the ultimate pain being betrayal. However, this did not cause Sonnie to lose herself; instead, it made her stronger and braver. Additionally, the episode is also a journey of discovering the power within us, a way of confronting our ego. In this world, the body is merely a tool, and the mind is what defines a person. Sonnie turned every pain, fear, hatred, and resentment into her strength and advantage. Do not let fear kill us; instead, let it make us stronger than ever.
The Secret War
The Witness
A stripper at a sex club, preparing for her shift, accidentally witnessed a murder in the apartment across the street. Strangely, the killer was a man, and the victim was a girl who looked exactly like her. Quickly, he spotted the stripper, and a chase began. She immediately fled, taking a taxi to her workplace. The man caught up and was drawn into the club’s services, where he was fondled by two girls while another performed a hot striptease in front of him. Incidentally, the girl performing the striptease was the one he was chasing. As the man became immersed in pleasure and the girl reached her climax, they recognized each other. Once again, she ran away, but this time she armed herself with a gun for protection. The man continued to chase her, though he had no intention of harming her. The chase ended in an apartment where the girl used the gun to shoot the man dead. At that moment, in the opposite apartment, another man who looked exactly like the one she had just killed appeared to witness everything. The episode ended, leaving us to imagine what might happen next.
The Witness is probably the most explicit episode of the series. Although it runs for only about 10 minutes (excluding the introduction and credits), for me, it is the best episode of volume 1 due to its perfect blend of vision, music, plot, and storytelling. We are immersed in a vibrant cyberpunk world filled with skyscrapers and twinkling neon lights, which I believe is inspired by the scenery of Hong Kong. The graphic style also draws easy comparisons to the animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, with its comic book-like frames, especially the way sound is visually expressed through the movement of letters. The episode constantly shifts between close-up and wide-angle shots, combined with electronic music that heightens the tension to a climax during the chase between the two main characters.
The story of The Witness conveys many thoughtful messages. In the episode, it seems the man was chasing the girl to explain what happened, with no intention of harming her. However, the girl refused to listen, believing only what she saw, and ultimately turned herself into a murderer. The ending depicts an endless chase between the two characters, trapping them in a cycle of sex, violence, and death. This episode raises questions about the importance of trust and listening in a relationship, as well as how we perceive and evaluate events. We may lose ourselves and harm others if we only see part of an event and lack listening and understanding. Additionally, some view the episode as a metaphor for toxic love, where a man and a woman, failing to understand each other, turn their love into control, leading to torment and abuse, both physically and mentally.
Good Hunting
Shape-Shifters
Zima Blue
