Love, Death + Robots: Volume 4 Series Review—Vibrant, imaginative, and thematically focused

Words point to a meaning. Music points to a feeling. Films take you on a journey. But what is the point of animation? What is the point of Love, Death + Robots? An unrestrained expression of our imagination is how we can describe the medium of animation. The fourth season of the animated anthology series uses the free rein that animation provides to build complicated worlds that demonstrate simple themes. With ten shorts that focus on themes like vengeance, faith, and justice, the new season provides yet another peek into the experimental side of animation and storytelling.

Creator: Tim Miller

Directors: David Fincher, Jennifer Yuh Nelson, and Tim Miller

Genre: Science Fiction

Streamer: Netflix

In the new season, the series stretches the bounds of imagination with wacky ideas, like giant babies as post-apocalyptic monsters, humans fighting dinosaurs on the moons of Jupiter, and a dolphin messiah. But what connects the episodes is a deeply human element. In the first episode, David Fincher revisits his roots of directing music videos, in which the 2003 performance of Red Hot Chilli Peppers at Slane Castle, Ireland, is depicted in a world where the humans are marionettes. Devoid of dialogue, the episode highlights the euphoric joy of being connected to other human beings through music. In another episode, we see a mockumentary narrative that illustrates the woes of anthropomorphised household appliances. Their woes act as a sublime commentary on how humans treat each other, perpetuating a ripple effect of suffering. Love, Death + Robots: Volume Four takes a focused approach by structuring the stories on simple thematic elements. However, even with thematic richness, the series suffers from underwritten characters. The impressive depth and layers in the stories are severely lacking in the characters, which makes it hard for us to connect with them on an emotional level. Though the technical efforts ensure an immersive experience, this season breaks away from its predecessors with its underutilised characters.

The innovative use of the endless possibilities of animation is one of the greatest strengths of the series. Love, Death + Robots pushes the boundaries of visual storytelling and rewrites the grammar for what can be achieved through this medium. From tilt-shift techniques, claymation models, marionettes, classic animation, and 18th-century etching, the series uses every possible technique to create unique and imaginative worlds. The new season also includes an episode that blends CGI with live imagery. In the end, the fourth season of Love, Death + Robots can be described as a mashup of different types of art. It conveys themes like literature, evokes feelings like music, and takes you on a journey to new worlds like cinema. As the opening line of ‘Can’t Stop’ by Red Hot Chilli Peppers goes, “Can't stop, addicted to the shindig”, is how it feels to watch the series.