Masterclass in Quality with Westworld’s Season 2 Boxset

“Warner Bros. Home Entertainment provided me with a free copy of th DVD I reviewed in this Blog Post. The opinions I share are my own.”

Westworld continues to be one of the biggest enigmas gracing television screens. Fans clamor to forums, discussion threads and fan websites to spin theory after theory. The show allows a breeding ground for speculation, and in the second season, known as The Door, we delved further into the mysterious mythos of Delos, the newly liberated hosts and the people trying to grasp what is reality.

Coming out just in time for the holidays, the 4K Ultra HD and Blu-Ray set of the season makes for a great gift to any fan who has spent time sifting through or spinning their own theories. With six discs in total, three Blu-Ray and three for viewers sporting compatible devices for 4K Ultra HD it covers the bases for both those who love the show and those who love the high artistic quality invested in the show.

While the packaged content is a pleaser, the package itself leaves much to be desired. Compared to the box set for the first season, which was packaged in a bold red metal case, the second season is downgraded to a flimsy paper stock covering. It required a lot of maneuvering and even a slight tear of the corner of the outer covering to wiggle and wrestle the disc insert out of the case.

Once you do get that task out of the way you can begin your rewatch, or delve straight into the extras. Aficionados will delight in the range of these extras, stemming from cast sitdowns and explorations into styles of Shogun World along with other behind the scenes content. The cast sitdowns were especially a delight as many of the cast members in these sessions hadn’t actually been in a scene together. It was a reminder of how large the Westworld machine is, and how complicated the timelines and worlds are. Rather than just rewatching the series which is as simply done by turning on HBO or viewing it on HBO Go, the box set invites you to become a part of the process. It takes the viewer as more than just a captive audience, but one that can speculate and be incorporated into the process. Series creators and producers Lisa Joy Nolan and Johnathan Nolan also step in a lot of the features to discuss themes, settings and intentions. They round up many of their crew to talk shop about certain areas of the show. My personal favorite of these explorations was the crew discussing the narratives between Westworld and Shogunworld. It is apparent the Shogunworld narratives are lifted from Westworld’s storylines, but it goes in further depth to discuss how the costumes, settings, make-up and other details further this connection.

As fans of series that require lengthy production times, the wait time in between seasons is difficult to weather. However, with a box set as loaded as the one for Westworld’s sophomore season, it makes it a bit easier to tread. In the meantime, fans can review what we know about Delos, the collapse of Westworld and the fine line that separates artificiality and reality.

With Christmas closing in, the box set makes for a solid addition to any superfan’s repertoire. Amazon is a good place to pick up your own in time.