A Comprehensive Review of Love, Death & Robots

[themorikelife]

When Love, Death & Robots first came out, I tried to watch it. My first two episodes were “Sonnie’s Edge” and “The Witness.” The former was actually pretty cool; the latter was not. Both shorts featured sexual assault in some way shape or form, something that I regularly DNW in the fandom exchange letters you’ll find here. I called it after two episodes, though—I wasn’t in the mood for a speculative fiction anthology written for dudes by dudes.

I have a friend who really likes Love, Death & Robots and it was through her assurance that not every episode touched on sexual assault that I decided to watch it. And it was because of her excitement that I spent a weekend with her to do so. I had a great time and decided to write this huge review. Part 1 is my commentary on the series overall, and Part 2 is mini-reviews of all the episodes.

Overall Review

About a year or two prior to my failed first watch, I made the decision to actively seek out more books by women and POC authors, pretty much avoiding content that was written by straight, white cismen with few exceptions. This, I think, helped evolve my taste in a way that demands more nuance from the stories I consume.

Take, for instance, the episode “Sucker of Souls.” It’s a fun romp and adventure. There’s animated gore and swearing and the good guys win in the end. It’s also solidly okay. It doesn’t try to engage with what it would mean to unlock an ancient evil. It doesn’t question the nature of archeology and why people study the past. It’s just a bunch of mercenaries running for their lives while blowing up vampire monsters (Bonus! The one lady mercenary is obsessed with bringing a little bit of C4 on every mission). Doesn’t say much beyond that.

Is this a bad thing? No, not really. It’s the sort of thing that caters to a wide audience because it’s mostly catering to straight cismen. You see, ladies and enbys can enjoy content for dudes but dudes can’t enjoy content for ladies. Because lady stuff has cooties and will make a dude lose his masculinity if he so much as glances in its direction. (I am only partly facetious here.)

Overall, that is what Love, Death & Robots is: a lot of short stories that cater to the straight, Western cisman fantasy. It gets some points for including a little diversity amongst its oeuvre, but I would argue there isn’t enough. Of it’s (currently) 35 episode total, only 13 feature a woman as a main character, 8 feature POC main character(s), and 1 is explicitly queer. A paltry five episodes feature a non-Western culture (and I’m including “The Secret War” in that count).

I suppose the somewhat good news is that only six episodes are what I would consider military propaganda. The low number was a surprise to me.

Regarding the animation, about half of the episodes are made with what I refer to as “video game-style” graphics, which is that 3D animation rendered to look realistic. And while it’s cool—the gore is bloody and gruesome, no doubt—the frequency of episodes animated like this make it contrite. When there are episodes like “Ice” and “Zima Blue” that lean into a unique and compelling visual style, the realistic graphics appear lackluster in comparison. It makes me ponder the choices behind the animation. “Jibaro” in the third season at least attempted something unique with the erratic editing and sound design. Meanwhile, did “Helping Hand” really need to be so goddamn graphic?

Of the 35 episodes, 8 are 2D animated, and 9 have stylized 3D animation. The rest (at least half!) are realistic, video game-style graphics.

Overall, I had a great time watching this series. The second season is the strongest, in my opinion. Short reviews on each episode sorted by season are below the next cut (the order comes from Wikipedia). In my reviews, I warn for things I would expect if these stories were on AO3: nudity, swearing, and smoking are unwarned while things like gore and sexual assault have warnings.

Season 1

**indicates a favorite

SONNIE’S EDGE**
Dystopian, cyberpunk, and grimdark with compelling characters and fantastic monsters. Had me nervous and at the edge of my seat. I can and will criticize this one to death but I do it out of love. CW: sexual assault mention, gore

THREE ROBOTS
Light-hearted, fun, and creative. Did not escape me that the Black-coded robot was the one getting lectured and the woman-coded robot was the most violent. I understand that the violent woman is meant to subvert the gentle woman trope, but the other thing is just racist. CW: none

THE WITNESS
Cyberpunk and skeezy. Skipped on my most recent re-watch. CW: sexual assault

SUITS**
Fun and unexpected. Kinda ruined by the climactic twist towards the end, but worth a watch regardless. Had me at the edge of my seat. I think about this one a lot. CW: major character death

SUCKER OF SOULS
Animated, gory, and will appeal to teenage cisboys trying to be edgy. Does not take itself seriously. The one POC character gets a brutal death. CW: gore

WHEN THE YOGURT TOOK OVER
Whimsical and fun with a cute animation style. A nice break from all the gore. CW: none

BEYOND THE AQUILA RIFT
Video game-level graphics and a storyline that was very meh. Basically a straight, white dude’s fantasy as an extended video game cut scene. CW: explicit sex, spider sex?

GOOD HUNTING
One of the only anime-style shorts in all three seasons (this surprises me too). I liked how it explored magic’s evolution with the rise of industry. I did not like how much of a sexual victim the main character’s friend was. CW: sexual assault, involuntary body modifications

THE DUMP
Fun animation and a story that leans too much on patriarchal ideals for me to enjoy it. My friend really likes this one. I think it’s okay. Only mention of women is with regards to a sex doll and porn. CW: gore

SHAPE-SHIFTERS
Video game-style graphics and US military propaganda. That being said, a decent enough story. Would have been better if the relationship between the leads was more queer-coded. Bonus points for werewolves though. CW: gore

HELPING HAND
I hated this one. The realistic graphics made it hard to watch, and not in a “sit in my discomfort to grow as a person” type of way. Also, I hate stories like these. CW: gore

FISH NIGHT
This one is very pretty, but that’s all that’s going for it. The characters weren’t interesting or compelling, and they had nothing to act off of. It also made me ask “What is even the point?” CW: mild gore, I guess?

LUCKY 13**
Nostalgic and endearing. I like how the ship is given character through POV shots at poignant bits of dialogue. The fact that it’s military propaganda did not bother me. One of my favorites of the entire bunch. CW: none

ZIMA BLUE**
Colorful and bold art style paired with a poignant character study of a long-lived artist. This is the sort of animation I wanted to see more of in this series. CW: none

BLINDSPOT
Robots! Action-packed heists! Token girl character (bonus, she’s hit on)! Okay, that final one I eyeroll at, but the rest of this short is an enjoyable romp and adventure with crude humor and swearing so you know it’s for adults. CW: robot gore

ICE AGE
This is one that’s cute but also doesn’t engage with higher philosophical implications of either godliness or the concept of human civilization. Leaves me wishing it did. CW: none

ALTERNATE HISTORIES
Funny, light-hearted, whimsical, with a cartoonish animation style. A great break from the heavier episodes. CW: none

THE SECRET WAR**
A compelling story, great characters, and scary monsters. The ending had me in tears. A refreshing step away from the standard American/British-centric stories that dominate this series. CW: gore

Season 2

**indicates a favorite

AUTOMATED CUSTOMER SERVICE
Funky animation and funny execution for an annoying concept (calling customer service and dealing with a machine). We need more stories with older people being badasses. CW: the dog does NOT die

ICE**
Ah-MAY-zing art style and a very compelling story. I love when kids are being kids (which is to say, doing things they shouldn’t and almost getting killed). Seriously, the art for this one is fantastic. This is the type of short this series should have put more money into. CW: none

POP SQUAD
Grimdark cyberpunk about a cop hunting down children for population control. Honestly, I’ve read better stories about parenting and child-rearing than this. Not a big fan. CW: child death

SNOW IN THE DESERT
Compelling story but very much a straight, cisman fantasy. What you think is a joke, throwaway line is actually a plotpoint? It’s okay. CW: gore

THE TALL GRASS**
Legitimately terrifying. The main character is (for once) not some macho, masculine manly-man and that’s an asset for it. Monsters are freaky too. The type of story this series should have thrown more money at. CW: none

ALL THROUGH THE HOUSE**
Supposedly based on the original myth of Santa Claus. Creepy but a fun and unexpected twist. CW: none

LIFE HUTCH
The main character for this one cannot catch a fucking break. Kept me on edge. The non-linear storytelling is an asset for it. CW: gore

THE DROWNED GIANT
I really liked this one. Features voiceover narration regarding an odd phenomena in a small, coastal town in England. Peaceful and pleasant and undercuts a lot of the scary and gory stories prominent in this series. CW: mild gore

Season 3

**indicates a favorite

THREE ROBOTS: EXIT STRATEGIES
A sequel to “Three Robots” from season 1. The same attitude, but much more preachy. Hits the nail on the head though. The racism is still present. CW: none

BAD TRAVELLING**
A horror tale that offers big questions and one man’s determination to do the right thing against the will of the crew he struggles to command and the monster demanding passage. I loved the main character’s cunning and manipulation. CW: gore

THE VERY PULSE OF THE MACHINE**
Beautiful. This one was. beautiful. The animation was gorgeous and the story was trippy and made you think. Loved it. CW: drug use

NIGHT OF THE MINI DEAD
Bringing humor into the zombie apocalypse by giving the viewers an aerial view. It’s impossible to take this one seriously. CW: zombie violence as seen from a distance

KILL TEAM KILL
A vulgar and gory romp and adventure. Similar to “Sucker of Souls” in season 1 in that it’s 2-D animation, vulgar, gory, and not looking to be anything more than a good time. CW: gore, animal experimentation

SWARM
This one is a good one. Questions why colonialism/humanity is the be-all-end-all of existence. Also a nice break from the violence with a lot of worldbuilding. CW: gore

MASON’S RATS
This is a fun one. You learn early on that the main character is probably the villain but he comes around in the end. CW: animal gore, animal death

IN VAULTED HALLS ENTOMBED
I criticize this one and there’s no love to it: it would be a stronger story overall if the ending was more ambiguous. Is also military propaganda. CW: gore

JIBARO
Very stylistic in the cinematography and editing. Sound design is very cool. Watching this high will either be fun or a nightmare. Overall, a strong one to end the season. CW: mild gore

I’d love to talk Love, Death & Robots if you also have thoughts! Agree with my assessment? Disagree? Want recommendations of which ones to skip or watch? The comment section is open!

Comments

[pauraque]

I have heard of this but thought it probably wasn't for me, and your review makes me think I was right about that. I generally don't like violent media or anything that falls into the by-dudes-for-dudes category, so I doubt I would connect with this show. Thanks for the review!

[themorikelife]

You're welcome! Thanks for your comment! The show has a lot of masculine energy. Despite that, I had a good time. And my friend was patient whenever I needed a break from the gore and violence, which was very helpful.

[friendofthejabberwock]

I haven't watched the show, but I've heard of it and thought about watching. Sounds like I might give a few of your favorites a try, but probably won't watch all the way through. Thanks for the detailed guide!!

[themorikelife]

No problem! I'd like to hear which episodes you watched and what you thought of them if you get a chance!

[friendofthejabberwock]

Will do! I'm not sure when I'll get around to it but I'll report back. :D

[truebluemoon]

Hello! I watched season 1 in college with friends and largely forgot most of it. I was very meh about it overall. I liked that there were differing animation styles, some of them very beautiful and distinctive. I gave season 2 a try, although I only watched maybe the first four episodes? I really enjoyed Automated Customer Service! That was such a fun episode. The subsequent episodes I didn't really connect with.

I think what bothered me about Pop Squad was the framing around pregnancy and child rearing as this amazing, ultimate joy. It felt preachy in an unpleasant way, largely because society often pushes women into giving birth and becoming mothers. It seems almost tone deaf to have a story that relies on the premise of people trying to eliminate giving birth and childcare. Even more annoying when it's coupled with "population control" as a justification, which is often an argument specifically meant to target racial minorities. There IS probably a way to do it that doesn't feel as pushy about parenthood, or one that doesn't ignore the racist realities of our world, but this episode definitely did not achieve that. I had first seen the episode somewhat recently after the leak about Roe vs Wade, so that was coloring my view of the episode a lot. And now, with recent events, I'm even less inclined to think well of it.

I would love to see the show maybe get some more female writers and tackle female bodily autonomy for an episode, even if it's not directly about pregnancy.

[themorikelife]

Hi! I agree with your thoughts about Pop Squad. It feels like it was written by someone who doesn't have any relationship with children, and was given an assignment to work through their thoughts on parenting. Only they didn't really work through their thoughts, they just wanted to write something for shock value and then it got heavily edited.

Each episode is an adaptation of a short story (according to the Wikipedia article). There are so many female and nonbinary authors out there who can take the same themes explored in these stories and do them so much better. One story that comes to mind is "Badass Moms of the Zombie Apocalypse" by Rae Carson, where childbirth has the potential for dire consequences even when prepared for and the main character wants a child anyway. THAT would make a fun adaptation!

I can name so many other authors with fantastic ouvres to look into, not necessarily about bodily autonomy, but about anything: Annaleigh Newitz, Charlie Jane Anders, Sarah Pinkster, Naomi Kritzner, Christine Yoachim, E. Lily Yu, Ursula Vernon. And these are just off the top of my head!