Raised by Wolves (HBO Max, 2020)

[shevek]

Figured I'd err of the side of caution: this Ridley Scott show features people in tight spandex displaying use of incredible superpowers, but since it's technically considered a science fiction show, it goes in General Movies, I guess.

Plowed through the first three available episodes, which were riveting and creepy even if the pace did start to drag by the third one
(and I hear it drags a bit more when you get further in).

The basic premise is that a war between a totalitarian-utopianist atheist faction and a fanatical religious group destroys the Earth,
causing both groups to launch 'arks' to re-seed the human race on the Earthlike planet Kepler 22b, many light years distant. The alien world looks great, if a little barren (filmed in South Africa).

The standout spandex-clad characters are two androids named Mother and Father. The actress who plays Mother looks like she was specifically cast to look as unfeminine and non-binary as possible..but the plus side is that she transforms into an indestructible flying sexy robot with the superpowers to make people explode with a sonic scream and to burn through anything by spitting some sort of acid gas. Not sure how that works (like, who exactly built such a thing?) but more than any other factor, the character of Mother is going to make or break how viewers accept the series.

The way that the series designed the religious sect seems a little haphazard: even though the year is approximately 2150 and not that far removed from present versions of Abrahamic religions, there's no trace of them. The religion is based on the Roman cult of Sol Invictus, where the sun disk Sol is worshipped, and the mighty warrior god Mithras is considered to be humanity's savior. Accordingly, all the garb of the religious sect is emblazoned with a sun symbol. And despite being the saviors of humanity, *they also have androids who travel with them*. This just seems sloppy and lazy, and I'm going to bet we don't get *any* depth or background story on how this particular religion developed within the show. But I guess we'll see.

Any one picking up this "remixed elements of Bladerunner / Alien" vibe that this series is putting down?

[Femina]

Ridley Scott is now officially outed by me as TERRIFIED of robots. Alien, Prometheus, now this... all his robots are psychotic death machines. The ONE time they weren't in his Alien series was the time James Cameron was the director.

I call Androidist! Ridley Scott is a raging Technophobe... you heard it hear first! xD

[shevek]

Ridley Scott is now officially outed by me as TERRIFIED of robots. Alien, Prometheus, now this... all his robots are psychotic death machines. The ONE time they weren't in his Alien series was the time James Cameron was the director.

I call Androidist! Ridley Scott is a raging Technophobe... you heard it hear first! xD

And don't forget the Replicants. Especially the lovely Pris..so deadly! Ridley Scott is so afraid of robots that he devised the Voight-Kampff Test to make sure it was always possible to differentiate the synthetic from the organic.

There's definitely some heft to your thesis. Raised by Wolves now has its own commentary podcast (which I listened to, for about half an hour) and the very first episode is an interview with a TED-Talking MIT professor who has been warning the world about the extreme dangers of artificial intelligence when not tempered by human supervision.

[Femina]

There's definitely some heft to your thesis. Raised by Wolves now has its own commentary podcast (which I listened to, for about half an hour) and the very first episode is an interview with a TED-Talking MIT professor who has been warning the world about the extreme dangers of artificial intelligence when not tempered by human supervision.

Well I mean.... that follows right? There's a reason we have parents raise children. I think it ought to be common sense that if you could create a SELF AWARE AI.... that it's incumbent upon you to then also be like.... you know... a mom (or dad)

[Dogfish]

Ridley Scott hates androids so much he ruined Alien about it.

[shevek]

Ridley Scott hates androids so much he ruined Alien about it.

I just realized: Mother is the Alien Queen! They're both raising a brood, they're both ruthless killers. and they both emit acid from their bodies which can burn straight through anything.

Ridley repeats himself.

[Maskripper]

....
The standout spandex-clad characters are two androids named Mother and Father. The actress who plays Mother looks like she was specifically cast to look as unfeminine and non-binary as possible..
....

Judging from the trailer and some images I would clearly say that's actually latex and not spandex
Would love to know the thoughts behind casting a woman looking like that into a stunning suit like that.
One the one hand you could put a gorgeous woman into that suit which would increase the audience for the show, possibly quite a lot.
Or you do it like the producers here did.... perhaps you are right with your assumption.

However this show looks quite interesting, and I will take a look.
Perhaps Kate Beckinsale will enter the show in a later episode and steal that latex suit for herself.
After all she has proven how awesome she looks in latex.

[shevek]

Who's been following this rather complex and dark series? I got to the season finale yesterday and was a bit unfufilled with
so many story threads left unraveled and up in the air. Snake baby much?

But Grace Randolph is right - the world-building is fantastic, if a bit convoluted. She has some great theories about what Kepler22b
is supposed to be, and the themes underpinning the show, although it's interesting that she never even mentions Alien, Bladerunner
or Prometheus when they all seem to be pretty relevant. Anyway, do NOT watch this video unless you've seen the finale, since
there are many spoilers afoot!



Also, the music by Ben Frost for this series is amazing. I've been reading about him for years in The Wire magazine (hey! Brits!)
and have a couple of his earlier records, so I'm familiar with his work. But his collaboration with Swedish vocalist Maria Wallentin,
who was in the Leaf Records band Wildbirds & Peacedrums, makes this show's theme the best one since the Mandalorian (and a lot
more original, since the Mandalorian theme is essentially a really good Morricone ripoff).

[Maskripper]

Watched the first 6 episodes so far, will watch the last two next week when they are available in german.
Mostly I watch new shows with english audio but this one is running on a pay-tv channel that I can access.
Next week they will show the episodes 7 and 8 and post my opinion on it.

But the fact that I still watch it might indicate that I like it enough to keep watching ;-)

[Dogfish]

I've heard the story compared to Metropolis. Which is an interesting bit of narrative antique hunting if so.