10/10 Western show hailed 'best series ever watched' is available on Now TV

Western fans can't stop raving about a "perfect" television series, which many are binging on repeat. The 2016 HBO Western/ sci-fi drama Westworld, created by Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, is set in a futuristic, technologically advanced amusement park where high-paying guests can fulfil their wildest fantasies by interacting with lifelike robotic androids called 'hosts'. While initially a safe, consequence-free environment for guests, the story explores the dawn of artificial consciousness as the hosts begin to remember their past lives.

Throughout the show, the hosts slowly develop sentience, and rebel against their programming, eventually expanding to the real world to uncover the true purpose of the park and struggle for control against their creators. Later on, the series' setting expands to the real world in the mid-21st century where people's lives are driven and controlled by a powerful artificial intelligence named Rehoboam.

The thought-provoking show follows several protagonists, including Evan Rachel Wood, who portrays Dolores Abernathy, and Jeffrey Wright, who embodies Bernard Lowe. Other familiar faces who star in the series include James Marsden, Tessa Thompson and Thandiwe Newton.

The HBO series, which is based on the 1973 film of the same name written and directed by Michael Crichton, received the network's highest viewership ratings for a premiere since the first episode of True Detective debuted in 2014. Westworld's first season was the most-watched first series of any HBO original series until The Last of Us debuted in 2023.

The show was shot in various locations across California, including the infamous Melody Ranch, which has been the backdrop for many Western films before it. Other famous films shot here included Django Unchained, The Magnificent Seven and Deadwood.

The cast and crew also shot in Castle Valley, in southern Utah, where the cast and crew were required to hike in and out of the desert with all their gear.

Critics have hailed the series since its launch, with the HBO series boasting an impressive 87% rating on the popular critics website Rotten Tomatoes. The show ran for four seasons before it was cancelled in November 2022 after its final series hit the airwaves.

Fans have since showered the Western with praise online, with one user gushing: "Westworld is one of the best sci-fi/Western series I've ever seen. Season 1 was just incredible. It was so good that I binged the entire thing in a little over a day. I just couldn't stop watching it."

Another agreed: "The first season on Westworld was absolutely amazing, I've never seen anything quite like it. That first series is easily among the best shows ever created!"

A third echoed: "Season 1 was one of the best seasons I've ever seen on television. Ever" as a fourth chimed in with: "This show is perfect. The story is intriguing, the visuals are beautiful, and the acting is incredible."