Rock Candy Reviews

(Spoilers for episodes 1-7)

Plot Analysis

Murder Drones is definitely a show that knows how to keep an audience. Due to the fact that each character is searching for answers, it feels like the fans can investigate along with them. However, the mystery that should be the main hook, leads to a lot of the show’s weaknesses and flaws.

The Pilot Setup

The first episode of the show has flaws in terms of tone and pacing, but the biggest issue is how there are no hints of the upcoming mystery. Unless you count the Uzi’s split second of having yellow eyes right before the credits. Unfortunately, this only foreshadows the mystery if you are rewatching the series. With information given in the pilot, there is no way to know this is a clue to what’s going on. The pilot only goes over how the worker drones got to where they are at present, and hints at the humans having something to do with the murder drones orders. For anyone watching for the first time, there is no reason for them to think Uzi’s glitch face means anything in relation to the grander plot. It would be easy to think the show is going to be about Uzi and N trying to get off the planet to find the humans. While we don’t get anything about the solver until the second episode.

Character vs. Plot

The show also isn’t very good at balancing the characters’ development while advancing the mystery. Each episode leads to more questions, but the characters remain the same for the most part. The only character who even slightly changes is V. Even then, her arc is also shrouded in mystery, making it hard to tell when V is being genuine.

Uzi has small moments of jealousness and insecurity, but the mystery does not connect to her overcoming these things. In fact, her AI being corrupted makes her even more isolated and stagnant. Her character is only changed by her slightly opening up to N. It’s clear that they begin crushing on each other, but romance does not equal development, unless the characters actually grow from the relationship. Uzi opens up, but doesn’t change her behaviors or goals. There haven’t been any instances of her admitting faults or using her new relationship to explore her personality deeper. This is mainly because the mystery starts to become more important in the narrative. We are so busy trying to figure out what is going on, we don’t get to see the characters get to know each other beyond reacting to the mystery unfold.

The reveals

Finally, the ultimate plan of the Absolute Solver and how to stop it, has many scenes of introducing new threats and issues. However, these moments are weighed down by the fact that they happen in the middle of characters arguing or action sequences. Whether its V and Tessa being secretive or N’s memories being fried, every reveal has too much going on at once to take in. The animation is amazing, and the actors are giving great performances. Even then, these epic moments have questionable timing and the characters’ lack of depth make it less compelling. When we eventually get episode 8, we will be faced with the show choosing one path or the other; Developing the characters, or wrapping up the mystery. I would like to think the writers can accomplish both, but the episodes leading up to now do not give me a lot of confidence. This is not to say that I dislike the show or its characters. It means the exact opposite, actually. I want the series to learn from this season and give a finale that finally balances everything out.