Plot: Love, Death, + Robots presents a collection of animated short stories that span various genres, including science-fiction, fantasy, horror, comedy, and noir.
Review: Netflix is about to unleash Love, Death, + Robots Vol.3, which continues the science-fiction animated anthology series created by Tim Miller. The series features a brilliant collective of meteoric talent in animation across multiple studios and mediums. Each episode explores the concepts of love, death, or robots, and sometimes, all three. These stories delve into several of the darkest chambers of the human condition and often ask if we as humans deserve to survive our many acts of hubris.
Previous seasons of the series have included animated short films by such filmmakers as Alberto Mielgo, Owen Sullivan, Oliver Thomas, Damian Nenow, István Zorkóczy, Vitality Shushko, Robert Valley, Jennifer Yuh Nelson, Simon Otto, Elliot Dear, and many more. While each story varies in the quality of execution, style, and lasting appeal, each chapter of Love, Death, + Robots presents a unique take on well-worn genres and tells new stories within its respective arena. Your mileage may vary from one episode to the next, but each endeavor presents a unique vision while showcasing some of the best digital artistry in the game.
Please be aware that this review extends only to three episodes of Love, Death, + Robots Season 3, as that is what Netflix provided ahead of the show’s official May 20 launch. With that bit of business out of the way, let us continue toward the good stuff.
The first episode on offer, Episode 6: Jibaro, was my favorite of the bunch. Beautifully shot and written by Spanish director Alberto Mielgo, this dialogue-free fable about a deaf knight who encounters a deadly golden siren is worth the price of admission. From the first confounding frames of Jibaro, I was captivated beyond speech. I put my phone away, gave the short my full attention, and held my breath for the story’s duration. Visually spellbinding, meticulously rendered, and containing some of the most brilliant sound design I’ve heard put to film, Jibaro is a dark mythology-tinged mindf*ck for your senses. Fans of David Lowrey’s The Green Knight will eat this up with a fork and knife, while lovers of dance will become hypnotized by the haunted movements of the story’s antagonist. Or is she the victim? You decide.
The next episode available for review was Episode 7: Three Robots: Exit Strategies, directed by Patrick Osbourne and written by John Scalzi. Presented as a direct sequel to the Season 1 episode Three Robots, Exit Strategies follows three robots on a world tour through apocalyptic lands. The trio of automatons provides a scathing and humorous commentary on humankind’s hubris and how we became our own worst enemies in the game of life and survival. Visually, Exit Strategies reminded me of beloved properties like Fallout and Portal. The robots serve as endearing guides through our downfall fueled by greed and mistakes, and they’re rather funny about it. While it’s not the most compelling short in the bunch, Exit Strategies injects plenty of levity into an otherwise grim scenario. The story also poses several more critical questions about who we are as a species and what we’ve done to deserve the direction we’re heading in.
The final episode up for grabs was perhaps the most anticipated of the group, Episode 5: Bad Traveling. Making his animation directing debut for this gory tale of terror amidst the high seas is David Fincher. The short is written by Andrew Kevin Walker, based on a short story by Neal Asher. This chilling tale tells the mutinous yarn of a cursed crew whose sailing ship gets attacked by a giant crab that wants to eat them. After reaching an accord with the accursed creature, madness descends upon the band as they sacrifice one another to survive. Filmed using motion-capture technology, Bad Traveling is a sailor’s worst nightmare realized on film. The disturbing short boasts Fincher’s signature visual grit and grain, with shadows encroaching on every frame. This episode is dark, filthy, and bloody beyond limits. You might want to take a shower after watching it. I know I did. With a cast of complex characters, a bloodthirsty Kaiju-sized crab waiting below deck, and despair washing over the crew in waves, Bad Traveling makes me yearn for a full-length animated feature directed by Fincher.
Like any other anthology-style series, Love, Death, + Robots ranges in quality from one episode to the next. I enjoyed all three episodes to varying degrees, though, as I’d said, Jibaro was well worth taking the ride and grabbing a front-row seat. I want to explore the rest of the season upon release and go back into the archives for stories from previous seasons. If that’s not the mark of a solid series, I don’t know what is.