Raised by Wolves

Smart and crunchy rather than sleek and slick, Raised by Wolves won’t be for everyone. It’s tragic, thought-provoking sci-fi that works through its problems rather than relying on big flashy twists. But for those itching for something unabashedly weird and devoted to its own rules, the show won’t disappoint. ... It’s a world built to last and a show built for fans of Scott’s particular brand of imperfect, muscly fence-swings.

Raised by Wolves has the potential to be the first great sci-fi show of the ’20s. Visually stunning, technically marvelous, and trippy as hell, it feels like both a callback to the golden era of sci-fi and a template for what the genre could be in this century. Raised by Wolves is a must-watch for sci-fi devotees and a return to early career form for Sir Ridley Scott.

Raised by Wolves might be the year's most original series, an audaciously cerebral science-fiction concept that covers so much ground in the premiere it's hard to imagine where the show can ultimately go. Produced by "Blade Runner" and "Alien's" Ridley Scott -- who also directed the first two episodes -- it's uneven in places, but by virtue of its risk-taking joins the alpha tier of the streaming pack.

A welcome dose of high-quality science fiction. ... Even when “Raised by Wolves” gets bogged down by its frenetic plots and a frigidly brutal vision of what lies ahead, the show seems exactly right about one thing: A whole new world should totally feel like a whole new world — from the untouched grit beneath one’s boots to a complete reordering of right and wrong. That’s the point of breaking free.

“Raised by Wolves,” created by Aaron Guzikowski, is a provocation. And an utterly absorbing one. The storyline is involved, but keeps a viewer off-balance in a good way. It looks great. And Mother, the lethal android “necromancer” with the abundance of maternal instinct, is the most memorable female/female-like space entity since Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley in “Alien”—or the alien in “Aliens.”

It is a show that pulls you in with its eccentricity, holds you captive with unpredictability, but leaves you unsure of your own thoughts. After checking out the six episodes (of 10 total) that HBO Max sent in advance, I still don't know if it's a masterpiece of modern science-fiction or if it's a messy misfire that we should meme into oblivion. What I do know is that I can't wait to watch more.

Scott’s initial direction sets an elegant tone, and he conjures up some memorable visuals, especially in scenes involving Mother in a weaponized mode. Apart from whatever satisfaction you might derive from chewing on questions of reality and consciousness, religion and freedom from religion, “Raised by Wolves” is a pretty good watch, just on a these-guys-versus-those-guys basis.

Raised By Wolves may be too self-important to qualify as fun, but there's fascination in its visual wonder and mystery. [31 Aug - 13 Sep 2020, p.6]

I’ve seen six episodes, and worry that the momentum drags. This is the kind of show where two sides fight, and then spend half a season preparing to fight again. The eccentric performances are intriguing, though.

It is not the fact that there is nothing new on show. Delivered with enough panache, there will always be an appetite for traditional sci-fi tropes reassembled to bang home the usual messages. But Raised By Wolves does not have panache – and the thin, unsophisticated story it comprises stands naked, particularly cruelly so in a post-Westworld landscape.

Early episodes offer some intriguing conflicts and points of view to consider. But later in the season – HBO Max made the first six of 10 episodes available for review — the show devolves into a less interesting cat-and-mouse game between the atheistic robots and the religious invaders.

“Raised by Wolves” is at its best when it allows Scott and the directors that follow him to dig into the issues, but it lacks in departments like storytelling, mythology, and world-building. It feels like a sketch for a show, waiting to come together into something denser and more engaging.

The sheer ambition of "Raised By Wolves" and the brand-name visionary behind it may be enough to claim a portion of the audience's fascination for these 10 episodes. Certainly it was enough to draw my interest, and certainly it was a disappointment to struggle to connect with this series over the course of its first six episodes.

The series struggles to fill its time with meaningful development, and far too quickly abandons its frank nature for time-hopping twists and unfulfilling jargon. Worst of all, after the big, lavish spectacle seen in the first few episodes, “Raised by Wolves” ends up feeling small.

All of this scene setting takes place in the highly watchable first episode, which has the hushed grandiosity Scott can bring to this kind of material. Once the believers arrive and Mother starts going into battle mode, the show settles into a more conventional TV-sci-fi groove, parceling out its flashback reveals, arduous journeys and flashy interludes of violence. ... If your appetite for portentous sci-fi action is robust, “Raised by Wolves” may go down easily enough, though mine is considerable and I still found my attention wandering by the second or third episode.

The show as a whole doesn’t really start to click by episode three (the first three episodes of the series will be released on the debut date of September 3). For all of the world-building that it does, and the way it tinkers with android character-building, "Raised by Wolves" struggles to fully grab you aside from getting you acclimated to its dry, heady idea of the future.

Shreds of mythological insight remain few and far between, keeping the world of “Raised by Wolves” perpetually out of reach. Perhaps most damning is the how basic the characters themselves are. Without any particularly magnetic figures to hold onto, it’s hard to get invested in a series that either can’t find a new way into age-old stories or has no interest in doing so. Only Mother and Father make notable impressions, thanks to deft portrayals from Collin and Salim.