Love Death + Robots

 THREE ROBOTS

I had watched this episode with my dad before watching it in class, but I had never seen any other episodes. It was still my favorite after watching all of the shorts, and I called my dad and told him there is a sequel episode after class.

My favorite thing about this episode is the humor. I like the decision to give the robots some human characteristics rather than making them lifeless since they are machines. In context to our class, I like that the concepts in the episode can apply to present society in addition to the future. While it humorous that the robots don't know the purpose of simple things like basketballs or gaming systems, that is a reality for many historians. For many ancient societies, their traditions were passed through people and not recorded, so it is difficult for many historians to decipher what artifacts' purposes or values were. Additionally, it is hard to fathom that historians in the future will struggle to understand present society because the internet exists. Not only is the internet permanent, it is widely accessible. Future historians will not only have access to meticulous summaries and explanations of world events, but people's personal lives. Social media accounts will be extremely detailed and intricate primary references in the future. Primary references today are rarely, if ever, as detailed as social media accounts are. This makes it laughable and unimaginable that the robots would not know what a basketball is and how to use it.

Furthermore, the issue of fatal environmental damage is extremely possible. Climate change grows visibly worse every year, yet no drastic measures are taken. Therefore, driving ourselves to extinction is not unfathomable. I grew up in a coastal area, and I definitely feel the effects of climate change more each summer, and I hope that people in power will begin treating it as the serious threat that it is. 

The animation was inspired by "Three Robots Experience Objects Left Behind from the Era of Humans for the First Time" by John Scalzi. Scalzi is well accomplished science fiction writer, and he wrote the script for the prequel episode "Three Robots: Exit Strategy". Scalzi grew up in poverty in southern California, and I think 'THREE ROBOTS" is reminiscent of his upbringing. In the sequel he touches on the difference between the wealthy and the poor as the world was ending. Additionally, California is a coastal environment and often known for being environmentally progressive, so his commentary on environmental destruction leading to the end of humanity is likely inspired by his childhood surroundings. 

Lastly, choosing robots — machines — to explore and reflect on a post-apocalyptic society is ironic, and I'm sure intentional. Realistically, technology should never become sentient, but it certainly should never be more empathetic and compassionate than humans. Yet not only are the robots sentient and humane, but the humans were incredibly cruel and monstrous. I believe this is commentary on the increasing reliability on technology and exploitation by tech billionaires. Each year, more technology is developed to replace humans in the workforce: self-check out at grocery stores, arm-like machines on factory assembly lines, sign in kiosks at doctors' offices. While all of this technology is convenient, it cannot replace human interactions. However, tech giants like Bezos and Zuckerburg keep creating new technology and algorithms to replace human jobs for good. I think this raises an issue because humans are of less value to them because they cannot make them profit like their technology can, so if an apocalyptic situation were to arise, they would chose technology over saving the human race.