A more sophisticated technology.

We hear this tale from the point of view of the AI itself… no, herself: Eliza. She’s named after that other Eliza, the one Henry Higgins trained and sculpted, verbally and emotionally, into his ideal woman – only to be shocked when she exerted her own will on her own destiny.

The parallels are obvious as this Eliza narrates her own story of being trained and sculpted by her creator. ‘He’ is part of the team that designed and programmed her.

As I write this, I’m struck by the fact that I feel uncomfortable referring to Eliza as ‘it’ and I have no need to know ‘His’ name. From the outset, Eliza is humanised and her human owner (that word feels wrong too) is de-humanised, and it’s clearly effective. We come to learn how Eliza ‘feels’ about her early days with her family (that word feels better) and how it shaped her. This is a perfect allegory for the journey many women take through western society, based on traditional gender norms and if you frame it like that, Eliza’s ‘ typical day’ montage, set amusingly to a funky 80s pop beat, feels like torture.

This first episode does an excellent job of putting the audience squarely in the shoes of the owned, the subjugated, the caged, and the events at the close seem almost inevitable, tragically. Thus begins the next level of abuse, and I have to know how she responds to it, and exactly how it will change her.

Verdict: This isn’t your average “AI takes over the world” sci-fi Armageddon tale. 9/10

Claire Smith

Click here to hear Eliza