Westworld: Season Four (UHD Blu-ray) review

[David Vaughn]

Studio: HBO / Warner
Release Date: November 29. 2022
Rating: Not Rated
Film: 3.5/5
 
Plot
The fourth season picks up over seven years after the protracted war between A.I. hosts and sentient humans – humanity is finally free. Or so it seems. Maeve and Caleb soon begin to suspect that Hale and a host version of The Man in Black are seeding a conspiracy to regain control of the human race. Meanwhile, Bernard returns from The Sublime with a new power. And a young writer, by the name of Christina, begins to question the nature of her reality
 
My Thoughts
Westworld has been a show that I’ve both loved and hated for its first three seasons. The premise is outstanding, and the world building is, well, out of this world. Unfortunately, the story lines are a bit of a mess and if you aren’t paying very close attention 100% of the time, you’ll no doubt miss something that will have you scratching your head later. This is a thought I’ve had after every season thus far. It had been over three years since I’d watched season three and couldn’t remember everyone’s backstory given the pandemic hiatus.
 
Season four starts out quite well and unfortunately, starts to lose its way about halfway through the season. Maybe it’s because I felt little to no connection with the characters anymore or my patience with the convoluted storyline had finally reached the point of apathy. Truth be told, it’s probably a combination of the two. With a change of leadership at Warner, the fifth and final season has been cancelled and unfortunately, there are some loose ends that will never get taken care of. Maybe they can convince the studio to let them do a final two-hour special to wrap things up, but that may not be enough time to satisfy the fans.
 
The UHD presentation from HBO is extremely good with the eight episodes spread out over three discs given them plenty of room to breathe. A lot of the show takes place in nighttime environments which allows the shadow detail to shine and the flyovers of the cities look spectacular in both the daytime and night. The Atmos track is just as impressive and features some great directional queues from the overhead speakers that make the most of the immersive format.
 
Video 9/10
 
Audio 9/10 (Dolby Atmos)
 
Special Features (Housed on Blu-ray):
 
8 ONE-HOUR EPISODES

• The Auguries
• Well Enough Alone
• Années Folles
• Generation Loss
• Zhuangzi
• Fidelity
• Metanoia
• Que Será, Será

 
BONUS FEATURES

• Westworld on the Road
• Westworld: An Exploriaton of Humanity
• Westworld’s Temperance: A Set Tour
• Creating Westorld’s Reality Episodes 1-8
• 4K UHD / Blu-ray / Digital Code

 
 

 
Conclusion
I’m a bit torn about the show ending prematurely. It’s not a show that I couldn’t wait to watch and did it for the sake of completion rather than for enjoyment. There are elements in Season Four that I enjoyed, but the time between the airings of the last two seasons didn’t help me keep up with the characters and their backstories. Maybe this is a show better suited to binge through over the span of a few weeks versus five years. Who knows?
 
 

 Reference Review System:
JVC DLA-RS2000 4K Ultra High-Definition Front Projector
(Calibrated with Portrait Displays CalMAN color calibration software & C6-HDR Meter from Portrait Displays)
Stewart Filmscreen - Firehawk 88” 16x9 Fixed Screen
Trinnov Altitude 16 Audio/Video Processor
ATI AT527NC Powering Bed Channels
ATI AT524NC Powering Atmos Speakers
Panasonic DP-UB820 Ultra HD Blu-ray Player
System Controller: URC MX-990
M&K S-150 THX Ultra (R-C-L Speakers)
M&K SS-150 x4 (Surround Speakers)
Atlantic Technology IC6-OBA x 4 Overhead Speakers
SVS PC-Ultra Cylinder Subwoofer
HSU VTF-15H MK2 Subwoofer
JL Audio Dominion F110 Subwoofer x 2
Mini DSP HD controlling all subwoofers
Audioquest and Monoprice - Audio/Video/Speaker Cabling
PureAV PF60 Power Conditioner

[Paul Heroy]

This show seems to be a really frustrating mix of highs and lows. I did watch the first season and it was well done and interesting. The 2nd season got some mixed reviews early on, so I didn't prioritize it. Fast forward thru the pandemic etc., and it gets canceled by surprise with what I heard was a bit of a cliffhanger that the producers thought they would be able to resolve in a final season. I'm not surprised (unfortunately) when it happens on Netflix or Amazon streaming as they throw a lot of darts at the wall but HBO is usually better about that.