The Netflix science-fiction animated anthology series is back for round two, with a smaller episode count, and somewhat toned down content, but gorgeous eye candy. I feel the level of quality is about on par with the first batch of shorts overall, but the quality varies considerably. Below, find my rankings, from best to worst.
Very mild spoilers ahead.
"The Drowned Giant" - Based on a J.G. Ballard short story, written and directed by Tim Miller, this is the weirdest, most contemplative short, which works very well as an allegory for man's tendency to abuse and commodify all of nature's most awesome creations. I especially like the tone of this one, the poignant, scholarly narration over these fantastical images. Even the final punchline with the circus attraction is strangely compelling.
"Ice" - This year's Robert Valley directed short looks absolutely fantastic. It's easily got the best animation, character designs, and production designs, creating an alien environment that shifts between hostile and gorgeous. There's not much of a story, but the chase and action sequences are really well done, and there's just enough conflict and character growth to make it feel satisfying. This is easily the best executed one of the batch.
"All Through the House" - It's one joke that goes for five minutes, and stops exactly when it should. This version of Santa Claus is certainly one of the most original takes I've seen in a long while, and the CGI animation and certain sound effects are well executed. The contrast between the Christmasy settings and the, uh, less traditional elements has a lot of impact. The kids' reaction shots are what really sell it, and that last line is perfect.
"Automated Customer Service" - No surprise that the most humorous short is another adaptation of a John Scalzi story. This one has a lot of appeal, with its heavily caricatured geriatric heroes, and an increasingly malevolent automatic voice messaging system that is at least as much of a threat as the killer robot on the loose. I enjoy the way this one escalates, and you've got to love a short with a stupid looking dog.
"Snow in the Desert" - This is my favorite of the shorts with photorealistic animation, and I like the way that it ends. However, everything else about it isn't very memorable - the characters, the dialogue, the worldbuilding, and the themes. It feels like a promising start to something that could have been much more striking, if the creators had put in more work on the characters. It gets points for some good moments, though.
"The Tall Grass" - I really like the designs and the animation style here, which is CGI done to look less smooth and polished than the norm. However, there's just not much to the story. It's a spooky little monster tale with a sinister ending, but it's too brief to feel like anything substantive. I don't think it's a bad short, but it's the one I think could have seen the most improvement from being a few minutes longer.
"Life Hutch" - This one is frustrating. It's got Michael B. Jordan as the lead. It's based on a Harlan Ellison short story. The animation is so good, I'm not sure which shots are live action and which ones aren't. However, it's so generic and so unimaginative in the way everything plays out, the short ends up being very underwhelming. This one came across as more of an effects demo or test than a proper narrative piece.
"Pop Squad" - Most of my objections to this one are due to the bland, generic visuals - which look way too much like outdated video game cutscenes - and the awful soap opera dialogue. The antinatalist premise could have been more interesting if handled differently, but the choices here are so obvious and so preachy that they left me unmoved. The opening shot looks great, but I'm afraid it's all downhill from there.
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