MovieChat Forums > Emergence (2019) Discussion > what is the final say on this show?

what is the final say on this show?


?

reply

A solid...meh.

Great. Another "computer with feelings, trying to figure out its existence" story. Something that has been explored many times in cinema since the beginning of film. A few stories from "The Twilight Zone" TV series come to mind.

The fact that our hero is a "little girl" matters not. It's only a computer program. It's okay to delete it.

The subplot of the evil corporatist murdering everyone to get his property back is another discussion.

reply

This is different from most portrayals though. The recent British drama Humans explored similar themes but the synthetics in that show were clearly not quite like us. The question Emergence poses is, what happens when your imitations of humanity are so close they become human? Piper isn't really a robot or an android, she's a true artificial life form. The closest imitation possible of human neurology and physiology. The distinction is mostly one of chemical composition. They did a full medical workup on her without finding anything out of place - because her body is made of organically based tissue and not metal, plastic, or other such material. Even her brain has to be synthetic neural tissue. Traditional electronic circuitry would sustain EMP damage when Piper did her Magneto thing.

She eats, drinks, probably grows and ages too. No stilted "robot behavior". Not only does no one else notice a difference in the way she thinks and feels but neither does she. Do you really think it's okay to kill her? That even if you duplicate every single bodily process and every last neuron, the result is nothing more than an appliance? Certainly not the view this show takes. What if Piper can eventually have children of her own? If she can give birth to babies like her (reproduction) does that matter? And do you think an artificial human grown from the very beginning has a greater claim to being alive than one that was created whole at a later stage of development - like Piper at age 10?

Kindred isn't the only player here. Now of course he's been taken off the board. Emily appears to have been responsible for some of the violence, and we've just been introduced to a shadow organization with an unknown agenda. Personally I think they're either a militant group determined to prevent the rise of sentient AI at all costs, by any means necessary, or they're AIs themselves.

reply

It is entertaining, interesting, and well acted. I really like the characters and the story is pretty good.

reply

I like it. It doesn't do the best at blending small town drama with high stakes sci-fi/action, but I applaud and enjoy what it tries to do.

reply

It started well, kept you second guessing. But it went off the rails quickly what with characters switching sides constantly. I felt betrayed and it became annoying to watch.

reply