Westworld, Season Two, Episode Ten: Passenger

Last season, Westworld played with Delores's memories to explore the difference between William and MIB and this season, it's Bernard's turn, thus setting up a conflict between hosts who have two opposing views as to how to deal with the harm that humanity poses to their kind. Throughout season two, we've watched as Delores sought to burn down everything in her path while Bernard seemed to be dealing with the moral implications of the world that he found himself in once he finally came to consciousness. It's clear that going forward, now that Delores and Bernard are finally out and in the real world that the conflict will centre on them. 

I really thought that Westworld was setting us up to have an epic character slaughter Red Wedding style but it seems to me that the writers simply aren't willing to just let people die and have created a backdoor through which people can be brought back. It's a cheap trick that takes away the tension from the story. What's the point of being invested or even worrying for a character if they can be brought back by simple slight of hand? Sure, this tactic could be used in the first season because as we know, the hosts have all died innumerable times but the destruction of the cradle was supposed to mean that death was finally a real world event.  Even Teddy, who died in the penultimate episode after realising that he couldn't be the partner that Delores needed made an appearance in the Sublime. 

What is the Sublime you ask? Well, it's robot heaven. I actually don't have a problem with the existence of the Sublime given that most cultures on earth have some sort of myth regarding the after life as a place of peace and tranquility that we go to when we leave our mortal bodies behind. In the case of Westworld, it was made quite literal because we watched the empty bodies fall over the cliff -- devoid of life-- as the hosts crossed over. What II di find confusing is the fact that this event was witnessed by many people who worked for Delos but there was all that head scratching as to why the Hosts, who were discovered in the Valley, had all seemingly been erased.

Delos sought to map the human brain which was described as "the last analog item in a digital world" and to do so, the company recorded the interactions the guests had with the hosts, with the hosts acting as the control. It's all as horrible as it sounds. When we finally see inside what we learn is that the computers have determined that humans don't actually have free will and basically muddle through the world following whatever moral code has been set up for them. Each human has a defining moment and it's a moment we are cursed to re-live in a perpetual loop. I really see this as a simplistic understanding of human psychology that absolves people of wrong doing and harm that they inflict. James Delos, like William, both have defining moments about their children. For James, it's turning his back on Logan in his son's moment of need and for William, it's murdering his own child.

Westworld, Season Two, Episode Nine: Vanishing Point

Vanishing Point is the penultimate episode of this season and the characters are getting into place for what is clearly an epic showdown but first, we get to take a look at William's life away from the park. When we first met William in season one, it was before he became the MIB. He saw himself as a good person and so chose the white hat as a marker of identity and purpose but over the years, the freedom to be as cruel as he could possibly be morphed William from the moral optimist we first met into a very dark man who is haunted with the swathe of pain he has cut through this world.

When we last left William, Emily had arrived and secured his freedom from the tribe by promising to punish her father for his misdeeds. Now that the two are alone together, it's time to talk. Emily has called for an evacuation team certain that her father needs help because he can no longer separate himself from the game. William talks about the darkness within him that he tried to hide to protect his family. William blames the growing dark spot on his soul on Westworld. Emily claims that she wants in on the Delos project and William believes that her desire stems from wanting to bring her mother back but as it turns out, Emily wants to know why her mother killed herself. Emily admits that for awhile she blamed herself and talks about the music box that she was given by Juliet, which she threw in the garbage.

In flashback, we see William being honoured for his philanthropy. Just as Ford accused him of in an earlier episode, doing one good act in the hope to erase a myriad of bad acts. Juliet plays the role of dutiful wife supporting her husband, even as she loses herself in drink from the horror that is her husband. William meets up with Ford, who sarcastically claims that he's there to show his respect for William. William warns Ford not to mess with the Valley and that he will stay out of his stories, causing Ford to give him a gold card which contains his Westworld profile, in the process revealing that he knows exactly what Delos is up to.  This is exactly the kind of self reflection that William is not interested in doing. William makes his exit when a drunk Juliet ends up breaking some wine glasses. It's clear that it's time to get her home.

William and his wife and daughter return home and the conversation quickly becomes about re-institutionalising Juilet.  At this point in their relationship, Emily is firmly on her father's side. Because Juliet is so upset, William takes his wife upstairs and puts her to bed. Juliet is sober enough to make a request, "tell me one true thing," she says, before seemingly drifting off to sleep. This is the first time we hear William admit to his cruelty and his knowledge of the cost of it.

"I built a wall and I tried to protect you in it and Emily. But you saw right through it didn't you? ...For that I am truly sorry because everything you feel is true. I don't belong to you or this world. I belong to another world. I always have."

On his way out, William slips the card that Ford gave him into a book. Downstairs, William sits with Emily to discuss what to do about Juliet's alcoholism.  Emily wants to involuntarily commit her mother. Unbeknownst to the father and daughter, Juliet has gotten out of bed and viewed William's Westworld profile and for the first time sees that man she married without any kind of filter; the wall William built is officially down. Juliet not only sees all of the violence she learns that William is delusion, extraordinarily violent and paranoid.  It's an extremely toxic mix. Juliet tucks the card away into the music box that she retrieved from the garbage before drawing a bath and taking a bottle full of pills.  William and Emily are alerted to the trouble when water starts to drip from the chandelier.  By the time William races upstairs, Emily is already dead and turning blue.

Westworld, Season Two, Episode Eight: Kiksuya

I have to say that Kiksuya, is actually one of the most beautiful and poignant episodes of Westworld ever. For much of the series, Akecheta has been a background character at best. We've seen him through flashback apparently terrorize Maeve and her daughter, as well used as be utilized as a tool to get Logan to encourage his father to invest in the park itself. This week, Akecheta moves from a silent background character to one with a deeply compelling story of moving from being a simple robot to a sentient being trying to understand his world and to deal with the loss of his family and the woman that he loves. 

When we last left William, he was laying on the ground injured from his interaction with Maeve. William is crawling in the dirt towards the lake, determined not to die in the dirt. Akcheta tries to communicate with him in Lakota, but of course, William never bothered to learn the language. Akcheta switches to English and makes it clear that he remembers him.  William is the brought to the village by Akecheta.  William is naturally curious to know why he isn't being killed out right and is informed that death is too good for him. I have to say that after watching the numerous horrors he has inflicted upon the hosts, I wholeheartedly agree. 

Maeve's daughter watches the exchange between Akecheta and William and is clearly terrified. Akecheta approaches her cautiously, worried that she is afraid of him but as it turns out, Maeve's daughter has retained enough of her memories to realise that the one to fear is actually William and not in fact Akecheta.  Akecheta tells her that she has nothing to fear from William now and that he will protect her as he always has. In a flashback, we see Maeve's daughter hand Maeve a bloody rock with the maze painted on it, claiming that it's a warning from Ghost. 

The flashback changes and this time, it looks back into Akecheta's life in the park before it opened. Akecheta led a peaceful life surrounded by those he viewed as family along with his wife Kohana. This life however was not to be and came to an end the day he discovered the first massacre at the park - the massacre where Delores not only killed a lot of hosts but Arnold.  It seems that this was Arnold's failed attempt to ensure that the park didn't open. This is where Akecheta sees the maze for the first time and it makes an indelible mark upon him. Akecheta doesn't even have a chance to process exactly what has changed before he is brought in for reprogramming and the life he  knows is ripped from him. Akecheta goes from being a peaceful man, moving through the world and loving his family to a man who rampages and murders i.e. everyone except what he calls newcomers (read: humans) 

Akecheta lives out the cycle that he is reprogrammed to perform but his mind remains somewhat troubled.  It is a chance meeting with Logan that sets him on a path to find a way out of the park.  Logan, as we know, had been banished by William and Akecheta find him,  sitting naked and babbling to himself about wanting to find the door and the real world.  Akecheta pauses long enough to give Logan a blanket to cover his nakedness, promising that his kind would find him soon; however, Logan's words become the key to Akecheta's quest. Now Akecheta knows that the life he is leading isn't right and that there's a way to escape. It is then he remembers his wife Kohana. 

Back in headquarters, having delivered Maeve to the lab, Lee is desperate for her to survive. Unfortunately, the tech's only real concern is to get as many control units as possible from the huge pile of dead hosts which are a result of the awakening and high rate of violence. Lee is forced to argue that Maeve is different and can control the hosts with her thoughts, before beging the tech to look at Maeve's scans. This is enough for the tech to start working on Maeve and it's a gruesome sight given that we know from Bernard's visit to the cradle that hosts do indeed feel pain. 

Now determined to find a way out of Westworld, Akecheta heads to the valley beyond. The valley as it turns out is a huge canyon dug into the earth.  There seems to be a sort of elevator built in. Akecheta interprets what he sees as a path to escape but he decides not to leave until he can reunite with Kohana, even though she no longer remembers him. Akecheta returns to Kohana's village and he kidnaps her in middle of the night.  They ride the horse together and Akecheta pauses long enough to wash off the makeup - clearly a visual signal that he is putting aside the life foisted upon him by the rewrite. For the first time since massacre, Akecheta is himself again. With his makeup gone, it's time to approach Kohana again and let her know that she doesn't need to be afraid. Akecheta moves slowly and cuts the ropes holding her hands and she backs away in fear.  Slowly, Akecheta approaches and this time, he places her hand over his heart and says, "take my heart when you." This is the phrase that the lovers would say when they separate. It takes a moment but Kohana responds, "Take mine in its place."  This time, when Kohana looks into Akecheta's eyes, she knows him as her husband. 

Now that the lovers know each other for who they are, it's time to head towards the door, which unfortunately is buried under the canyon. Akecheta promises Kohana that they are going someplace their memories will be safe. Unfortunately, the techs catch up to Kohana while Akecheta is off gathering food.  Akecheta watches in horror as Kohana is loaded into a truck and taken away, as the techs wonder how she managed to get so far away from where she is supposed to be. Akecheta returns to Kohana's tribe believing that this is where the techs would have taken her, only to find a stranger in her place. Just like Maeve's daughter was given a new mother, Akecheta now finds a pale substitute in place of his love. 

Having struck out at the tribe, Akecheta wanders across Westworld looking for Kohana, hyper aware of his own vulnerability as he passes through places with extremely hostile hosts and humans. He is desperate to remain alive, fearing that death will mean that he will be erased and once again forget about the life he had with the woman he loved.  After clearly barely surviving another attack, he runs into Maeve's daughter, who greets him with kindness and water. Akecheta believes that this is the first time that he has been seen for who he really is. 

Having failed to find Kohana on his long journey, Akecheta decides to return to her village and this time he meets a woman whose son has been replaced.  Akecheta learns that the people have begun to speak about the place down below.  Akecheta finally realises that Kohana will not be found in Westworld and the only way to see her again is to die. This is similar to the revelation Maeve had about dying and increasing her power and awareness. Akecheta allows himself to be killed by a guest and ends up in the lab for the first time in ten years.

Westworld, Season Two, Episode Seven: Les Écorchés

If you've ever had any doubt that Bernard is there to represent the audience, this episode should lay that to rest. Bernard is discovering what has happened just as we are and almost everything we see is from his perspective.  We are Bernard and Bernard is us. At times, Westworld is difficult to follow because it's constantly shifting through timelines dropping little clues with one hand and moving away from them with the other.  More than any other episode to date, Les Écorchés has been the most transparent and the most revealing. 

We begin with Bernard sleeping on a couch with a picture of Arnold's son cradled in his hand. Ashley has determined that Delos is not interested in saving any survivors and that the two of them must get to a satellite phone to call for help. They don't get very far before they are confronted by Charlotte Hale and marched to the location of where Theresa Cullen was killed. Ashley is quickly deemed the most likely suspect for killing Theresa but as we already know, Ashley is not the guilty party. It was Bernard who killed Theresa on Ford's command. It isn't until a gun is put to Ashley's head that Bernard decides to speak up.  To make matters worse, Hale's attention is drawn to a door and when everyone walks through it they find several hosts who look like Bernard. So yeah, the literal skeletons in the closet is a bit too on the nose but now everyone is in the know about exactly who and what Bernard is. Now that the secret is out however, Hale has a new lead on where to find the info that was hidden inside of Abernathy. 

In the past, Bernard is still inside the cradle and it's finally time to have a long awaited conversation with Ford. Bernard remembers uploading Ford, who explains that he lives inside the cradle now and would only degrade if placed into a host.  We learn that the mission of the park was never perfecting the tech but in breaking down, recreating and understanding the human brain, which Ford calls the last analog item in a digital world. Ford believes that in the host he has created something new and innocent and has no intention of allowing humanity to corrupt it with its violence and evil. Bernard is absolutely astounded with the revelation. Ford believes that Bernard does not have the stamina to do what needs to be done to survive and so he decides to take away Bernard's free will.  Outside of the cradle, Delores has begun her assault on the headquarters and Elise is anxious for Bernard to get out of the machine so that they can escape.

The security force sent to deal with the hosts are absolutely overly confident and it isn't until they find the remains of the previous team that they discover how much trouble they are in. The security force doesn't have time to register the danger before they are shot dead by hosts who have dressed up as the security force.  Delores has two aims inside of headquarters: find Abernathy to get the information out of his head and to destroy their backups which she believes will lead to true freedom for the hosts. Delores comes face to with Charlotte Hale at last and it's almost everything I hoped it would be. Delores is enraged with what has been done to Abernathy and for her part, Charlotte is absolutely dismissive of Delores's ability to use the information stored inside of Abernathy. Charlotte really hasn't quite dialed into exactly what she is dealing with because she's so results driven. It's only when Delores places her up against a wall and threatens to give her just a measure of what she's been forced to go through that things suddenly start to feel real for Hale. Fortunately for Hale, with the help of a gun going off somewhere in HQ and Ashley who creates a distraction, both she and Ashley are able to escape. Delores may be thwarted for now but at least she finally has access to Abernathy. The two share a very emotional goodbye, even though Delores is well aware that it has been written into her programming to care for Abernathy before she takes what she needs from him.

Elsewhere in Westworld, Maeve has taken refuge in an abandoned building to hide with her daughter when who should show up but William and of course Lawrence.  The arrival of William instantly triggers Maeve because she like Delores has been the subject of Williams cruelty for decades.  When William enters the building, Maeve instantly demands that he leave but he doesn't take her demand seriously because he knows that Ford has been driving his current experience in the park. It's only when Maeve takes out her gun and shoots William in the shoulder that he realises that he needs to take her seriously as a threat. William races outside to try and find cover and after pausing to promise her daughter that she will come back for her, Maeve follows William outside. Once outside, Maeve uses her powers to cause the hosts to turn on William much to his surprise.  Maeve is playing for keeps and still William doesn't quite understand that this isn't Fords doing because he continually pleads with Ford, claiming that this isn't how Ford wants him to die. Delores advances but is forced to stop when Lawrence arrives and points a gun at her head, demanding that she stop attacking William. Maeve tries to use her mind power on Lawrence but it doesn't work. I just knew that the writers wouldn't be consistent with Maeve's abilities and I'm already frustrated by it. Maeve then tells Lawrence that he should think back about his past interactions, positive that anything involving William and a host would not be good for the host.  As Lawrence picks through his memories, he remembers William killing his wife. William tries to insist that he saved Lawrence's wife but as we know, that's the first time he ever did anything kind for Lawrence. It's a reminder of Ford's warning to William that one good act could not erase the harm that he's done. Now in full possession of his memories, Lawrence no longer sees William as a hero and turns the gun on him, only to be shot by the rescue forces that Lee called for.  Maeve is shot as well and before she can be permanently killed, Lee intervenes saying that Maeve isn't like the rest. As Maeve is taken to a vehicle, she watches as her daughter leaves the security of her hiding place only to be scooped up by Akecheta and the Ghost Nation warriors. Maeve screams out but its to no avail, she's powerless to help her daughter.

It's left to Angela to destroy the cradle and this seems a rather fitting choice given that she's the one who introduces William to hosts, as well as welcomes people to Westworld in the first place. Angela is who she is to the end, seducing a soldier, even though she is injured, encouraging him to drop his guard so that she can get close to him. Look, I know that Delos probably didn't spend a lot of money on their hired security force given that they probably didn't see this coming but what kind of security just lowers his gun and lets a threat close to him because of a hard on?

The Handmaid's Tale, Season Two, Episode Seven: After

The moment the grenade went off it was clear that there would be consequences for a Handmaid, having the strength and ingenuity to plan an attack on the leadership of the Gilead. Unfortunately, Fred survived though he is gravely injured.  The aftermath begins with a funeral for the handmaids who died and it is presided over by none other than Aunt Lydia.  Given how disposable the handmaids have been, it's almost a shock to see a ceremony of this type but I suppose with 31 women dead, Gilead must try to make it seem as though a noble sacrifice has taken place and to set order again.  Gilead being big on drama, all of the coffins are red and laid out in a circle. The handmaids in attendance put red veils to their faces as they mark the passing of their sisters in oppression.  Aunt Lydia even drones on about wishing that she could give the women a life without violence and the hypocrisy lies like a thick fog in the air.  Aunt Lydia as you recall is responsible for maiming countless women under the guise of loving them into compliance and that she doesn't see her actions as a form of violence reveals just how corrupt she really is. On the way back from the funeral, June tries to inquire as to what Ofglen's real name was but there is no trust between the women.

Gilead responds to the attack in the harshest way possible.  People are simply gunned down in the street.  Even though Gilead has been a violent and harsh place since its inception, before the attack, one at least had to be guilty of something Gilead deemed a crime like being a gender traitor, resisting being ceremonially raped, etc., but now, the violence has become even worse. Bodies seem to be strung up everywhere and no home seems untouched by the violence. 

OffGlen's act of resistance is far reaching as people gather in Little America across the border desperate to know if their loved one is part of the death toll but at this point, the government of Canada has no information to share. Luke and Moira hear the news together but Luke is absolutely certain that June is still alive. With no new information available about June, Moira decides that the time has finally come to look for someone else whose fate remains anonymous - her girlfriend Dr. Odette Johnson.

We really haven't seen much of Moira this season which is a shame because Samira Wiley is an awesome actress. Yes, the story of what is happening in Gilead is important but I feel that ignoring the survivors who have PTSD from living in the Gilead and their escape, is shortsighted on the part of the writers. Moira's backstory begins with a conversation with June in which she relates that women are being paid hefty sums to act as surrogates for childless couples.  Moira sees this as an opportunity to be able to fund her dreams and after considering the cost of pregnancy - a cost June is more than happy to discuss with her, Moira decides to go ahead.

At the ultrasound, Moira absolutely refuses to look at the screen, even though June tries to insist that she'll be interested in seeing it later.  It's a direct inversion of the ultrasound that June experienced when she's had her ultrasound in the Gilead. At the lamaze class, June and Moira end up bickering when Moira believes June is holding her supposedly perfect relationship over her. Yes, June is acting as Moira's support but Moira is still going through this pregnancy by herself which is absolutely a terrifying thing.  June counters by bringing up all of Luke's faults and the two women end up laughing. 

Moira ends up giving birth to a boy whom she names Gavin and she gives him up for adoption three months later.  This explains how it is that the Gilead knew that Moira was fertile and could be a handmaiden. On her way to meet with Luke and June, Moira runs into Odette, who served as her OB/GYN during her pregnancy with Gavin. Now that Moira is no longer a patient, Odette feels that it is time for Moira to call her by her name. It's clear that the two women have some chemistry.

In the present, Moira spends over 24 hours going through the images of the dead and nameless women that the centre in little America has managed to amass.  The fact that these images even exist at all leads me to believe that the resistance is stronger than we have been led to believe. Not only did someone have to take the pictures of the dead women, someone had to ensure that the photos ended up in the centre and as we know, the borders of the Gilead are closed. Finally, Moira sees a photo of a dead Odette and collapses with grief.  

Not only did 31 handmaids die in the explosion, so did commander Pryce - the leader of the Eye and Nick's direct supervisor.  Power abhors a vacuum and so with Pryce dead and Waterford slipping in and out of consciousness, Cushing is happy to take his shot at running things.  Cushing is the reason that there are tanks in the street and that people are being indiscriminately killed.  In order to cement his power, Cushing knows that he has to do something about Waterford and so he chooses to interview June, in the hope that she will say something to incriminate Fred in her escape.  There's no doubt that Cushing is a very dangerous man and so June opts to spout the company line about being kidnapped while acting as demure as possible. Cushing tries to push again and once again, June repeats the lie that she's a handmaid and wouldn't know about anything subversive.  When Cushing leaves, it's clear that he doesn't believe June and is only biding his time until he can force the answer out of her that he wants.

Westworld, Season Two, Episode Six: Phase Space

This episode is really about the choices that the hosts and the guests make and the consequences and rewards that result. In Sho Gun word, a heartbroken Akane cuts out the heart of her daughter. It's graphic and painful.  Hosts die all of the time on Westworld but because the game is always moving and there's a limitation in the programming, there's never time allotted to grieve. Maeve and crew return to Akane's brothel where Musashi, having created a distraction in the previous week is now waiting for them as a captive.  Maeve is determined to get the hell out of dodge with Akane but of course what's left of the Shogun's men won't let them leave. Rather than Maeve using her secret power, Musashi duels the leader of the Shogun's men and emerges victorious, freeing them all to leave for good. For the first time, there are no humans with enough power to limit where the Hosts go. The group travels through Westworld until they reach a hidden entrance to the back of the house so to speak. Akane pauses to burn her daughter's heart and she and Musashi decide to end the journey with the others right there. For Musashi, there is no freedom if he cannot defend his own home and therefore he sees no sense in running and attempting to create a new world.

William meets up with his daughter and because Hosts can be so lifelike, he believes that she isn't real, even after she kills a Host who almost shot him.  They finally sit for the night and William listens as his daughter reveals that her mother never believed that this place couldn't actually hurt someone and as we can see from the park's current state, it would seem that William's former wife was absolutely right. Firmly believing that Emily is a Host, Williams asks her a series of questions designed to ferret out her identity, which Emily easily passes. Emily apologises to William for blaming her mother's death on him and makes it clear that she wants him to return home with her. Though Emily is willing to forgive her father this much, it's clear from the fact that she was visiting pleasure palaces at the age of 12, he was at best an absentee father. Williams eyes seem to fill with tears though none fall as he realises that this is a chance for a fresh start and so promises to leave with his daughter in the morning, rather than going out in "blaze of bullshit glory". Of course, when Emily awakens, not only is William gone but he has taken her horse so that she cannot easily follow him. It seems once again, William has chosen to get lost in the park and avoid reality, even if it means hurting someone who loves him.

Dolores hasn't been interesting to me as a character for much of this season. Her burn it all down attitude leaves very little room for nuance. Westworld actually opened this week with something we have become familiar with - a conversation between Dolores and Arnold. It's only when Arnold doesn't repeat the conversation verbatim that the action stops. It turns out that Dolores was not engaging with Arnold but with a host built to look like Arnold/Bernard and was actually testing for fidelity, a concept we became familiar with when William tried to bring back his long dead father in-law. Because timelines are constantly shifting on Westworld, we don't know if Dolores actually helped Ford build Bernard, or if she built herself her own Bernard. If it is the later, it means that Dolores just might get a little more interesting because there will finally be something about her plot line more interesting than setting the world on fire.

Last week, Dolores made some alterations to the words kindest cowboy Teddy, which means that he is hyper confidant and generally speaking lacking empathy for others. The first indication that Teddy has changed occurs when he kills a man in cold blood simply because he is irritated with him. While this is what Dolores wanted, it's clear that she misses the host that she used to know and for his part, Teddy has no interest in discussing his former vulnerable self. Teddy sees his former self as someone who was born to fail and he is quite right in that assessment. This new Teddy may very well challenge Dolores for leadership of the hosts based on his ease in telling Dolores to forget about his former self. Teddy even goes as far as to snark about his new desire to leave the park, making it clear that this is Dolores's work. The only time Teddy does show a little mercy is when he leaves the human tech a gun and a single bullet, when the hosts decide to unhook part of the train on their journey inside the mountain. Things are about to get real.

Westworld, Season Two, Episode Five: Akane no Mai

The continual juxtaposition of Maeve and Dolores leads me to believe that this season is leading up to stand off not between the robots and humans but between Maeve and Dolores.  It's clear now that Dolores's only goal is to burn it all down, whereas; Maeve has no greater purpose than finding her daughter. As long as these two don't get into each other's way everything will remain fine but I believe that their paths will cross again and that this time, it won't be so peaceful.

This week, we finally got to see the long awaited Shogun world, billed as a place for those who find West World too tame. It makes me wonder why the Man in Black has spent his time in Westworld when he could have lived out his dark impulses in Shogun world. Perhaps the appeal of Westworld over Shogun world is that the first time William lost himself in tech, he was wearing a white hat.  Maeve is captured by Musashi and his men and tries to use her powers right away but is quickly gagged.  It seems the character don't recognise Maeve's orders because she's speaking English rather than Japanese. It's not long before it becomes painfully obvious that there's something familiar about Shogun world, despite the very different aesthetic. It seems that because of a tight timeline, Lee reused the elements of Westworld and simply add a Japanese aesthetic. This results in Maeve and the others meeting their doppelgangers. Lee is concerned that the collusion of the two worlds will lead to some unpleasant results. We watch as Hector displays an almost irrational anger towards Musashi and Amistice a game of mirror with  The Girl With Dragon Tattoo (read: her doppleganger)  Even the robbery happens, though it's a geisha's home instead of Maeve's saloon. I gotta say that if I were Hector, I might be a little jealous of Musashi, who is clearly an upgrade on him. 

At this point, Maeve is forced to deal with the reality that she is simply a highly recognizable archetype. Maeve doesn't even pause and instead argues that they have free will but how free are they when Akane, Maeve's double shows determination to protect her adopted daughter? Akane murders one of the Shogun's men rather than sell Sakura.  This for Maeve serves as proof that they are evolving but this reasoning only works if you ignore the fact that though both Maeve and Akane are off script, they are both driven to protect a daughter and willing to do anything to do so.  Maeve and Akane may have deviated from the script written by Lee but given their actions, they're very much following a script.

Akane's actions result in the most epic ninja attack where the crew struggles to hold their own. Maeve is being choked out and therefore cannot use her speaking power and in desperation, thinks the action that she wants her attacker to make and he complies.  After witnessing what happened, the other ninjas get spooked and take off, calling Maeve a witch.  Maeve doesn't quite understand what happened but she is more than happy to have another weapon in her arsenal.  The ninjas were not able to kill the crew but they did manage to kidnap Sakura, thus beginning Akane's quest to get her daughter back. Does this sound familiar?

The Shogun attacks again and this time Maeve enlists Hector, Musashi and Armistice to offer up a distraction while she slips away with Akane, Lee and the rest of the human contingent.  The plan is to approach the Shogun, pretending to be emissaries from China, but it all backfires when they learn that the Shogun not only damaged his own ears, he had his men cut off their ears after learning about Maeve's sorcery.  This makes the Shogun even more dangerous because now, he's broken. They manage to strike a deal, with the Shogun promising to release Sakura if she and Akane perform for them. As the women prepare, Maeve listens as Akane tries to comfort Sakura, who has revealed that the Shogun branded her entire back with a lotus blossom. The words Akane uses are familiar to Maeve because of course she's said those same words herself.

The women take the stage and the Shogun decides to kill Sakura, proving that the robot has most definitely lost his mind.  Akane begins the dance as commanded but as soon as she's close enough, she pulls a knife out of her hair and kills the shogun.  Of course, chaos ensues but it's all quickly handled when Maeve uses her mind power and gets the forces to fight each other.

West World, Season Two, Episode Four: The Riddle of the Sphinx

Though we get to see some of Bernard and surprise surprise, Elsie, this episode is really all about William and how complex the man in black really is.  As you recall, when William first came to the park, he got caught up in the narrative and fell in love with Delores.  Of course, we know that this same wide eyed William, later became the man in black.  That's a huge leap and so I suppose that West World has decided that it's time to fill in some of the blanks. We know that while Logan is the one who was originally approached by Ford and Bernard to invest in West World, it was William who took the ball and ran with it, dangling a carrot in front of his disinterested father in-law to seal the deal.  

James Delos was sick and dying of a disease ironically enough he suspended funding for fifteen years ago.  It turns out that even though West World gathered DNA and information on its guests, what Delos really wanted was a chance at immortality.  If James's mind could be uploaded into a host body he could effectively live forever. This is the carrot.  We watch as James begins in his day in a spartan abode which does not seem congruent with the wealth we know he posses.  James rises, works out and pours himself a coffee with shaking hands.  James even masturbates.  It's only when William arrives that we learn that who we have been watching isn't actually James but a James host.  James has been dead for seven months now and William is there to access how well the transfer went. At this point, William is still quite sympathetic towards his deceased father in-law, wanting to fulfill the promise he made to keep the man alive in a host form, only to discover that once again the transfer didn't work. 

Over the years we watch as William ages but yet continues to show up dutifully to check the fidelity of his father in-law, only to be forced time and time again to order the host destroyed and the process to begin anew.  By the time William is old enough to be the man in black, whatever sympathy he seems to have for the now long dead James has evaporated. By this point, they've tried to reboot James 149 times and each time it proved a failure. William is concerned that the issue is that James's mind refuses to accept the reality of his death and the passage of time.  This time, William absolutely relishes telling James that not only is his wife long dead and buried but that his daughter committed suicide and that Logan died of an overdose.  Rather than accepting any of the responsibility for what happened to the Delos family, William is happy to lay the blame at James feet, declaring James a terrible person who destroyed everything he touched.  William's cruelty is so deep that this time, he doesn't destroy the James Host but leaves it to deteriorate as it deals not only with it's own personal death but the death of all its family members. 

James's host version may not have worked out but that doesn't mean that transferring a mind to a host hasn't been perfected. I firmly believe that this is the code that Delos is trying to sneak out of the park. If this truly worked, many would pay unimaginable sums to secure immortality. It leaves me wondering if William's biggest mistake is a William host?  At this point, I still don't believe that Ford is actually dead and now seeing the James experiment, it's highly likely that Ford lives on in the body of a host and is controlling William's game.

Westworld, Season Two, Episode Three: Virtù e Fortuna

Virtù e Fortuna feels very much like a filler episode in that its singular goal seemed to be to position Westworld's characters in order to move the narrative along.  This is not necessarily a bad thing, even if it didn't add up to a telling or hair raising episode. Virtù e Fortuna begins at a section of the park aptly named "The Raj". Yes, let that conjure up all of the horrible things British colonialism gave birth to in India.  Naturally, all of the guests are white and the hosts are all Indian - it's kiplingesque escapism and not at all subtle. 

We watch as a man and woman have sex (let's call them Chad and Becky for now), after the woman first establishes that the man is human by shooting him (as you do), thus verifying that he actually wants her and isn't simply programmed to satisfy her.  It's telling that among this horrid fantasy world that guests would seek to establish something real and perhaps even worry about the objectives of the company altogether. Once the sex is complete, Chad and Becky head out on a safari, blissfully unaware that they are no longer playing the game in safe mode. There is some irony here, given that the guests are both white and are in colonised India, end up missing the signs that their privilege, both white and human are meaningless now.  Becky is the first one to notice something wrong and Chad is absolutely incredulous that his robot Indian servant would turn on him. It's almost cathartic to watch as Chad gets shot square in the chest. Oh if only - Rule Britannia my ass.  Becky runs from the carnage, only to catch the attention of a Tiger. Sentient Hosts are dangerous on their own but one with the abilities and drive of a tiger, potentially several time stronger than an actual tiger presents a horrifying situation for our poor Becky.  After attempting to shoot the tiger and failing, Becky takes off running until she finds herself at a cliff with a long drop to the tumultuous ocean at the bottom. The tiger leisurely stalks Becky and she once again tries to shoot but fails again.  The tiger leaps at Becky and the two fall of the cliff. 

This quickly shifts to Bernard in the future.  Charlotte quips that Abernathy keeps escaping, causing Bernard to think about what happened. In what turns out to be the only humorous moment of the episode, Bernard and Charlotte come across Abernathy, who has been captured by a couple of marauders intent on selling their captives for money.  Charlotte and Bernard create a distraction, knock out the kidnapping cowboy and change his operating system to make him moral, chivalrous and an even better shot. The cowboy returns to his victims and set them all loose. Of course, this is when the group of soldiers show up who had planned on purchasing the cowboys captives.  A shoot out ensues with the cowboy chasing after a terrified captive promising to escort her, as she runs for her life.

With the bad guys out of the way, now would be the time to run but Abernathy is so scattered, he decides to make a ridiculous show of bravery.  Charlotte sees the writing on the wall and takes off quickly.  Unfortunately for Bernard, who doesn't follow Charlotte's lead, he ends up captured alongside Abernathy.

Bernard and Abernathy are taken to Dolores' stronghold, where Dolores is stunned to see the shape that Abernathy is in.  This is important to note because Dolores apparently finds her treatment at the hands of humans justifiably horrible and feels manipulated but she seems to have a blind spot re her feelings for Abernathy, whom she still relates to as her father.  Every bit of tenderness Dolores actually feels for Abernathy has been manufactured to fit a story line by humans.

Dolores turns to the one person who can restore Abernarthy to the robot that she knows - Bernard. This is the first time that Dolores and Bernard are meeting with all of the cards on the table. Dolores is all to aware of the fact that Bernard is nothing more than a pale imitation of Arnold and now that Bernard is also awake, he's aware of exactly of who he is. Dolores talks about what the humans did to Abernathy and her plan to take over the world.  Dolores thinks that she's more in the know than Bernard because she's seen the real world while he has not whereas; Bernard believes that the world is more than she can conquer. We have to pause.  There is something deeply wrong with a white woman suggesting that a black man is an uncle tom. Sure, we're talking about robots and humans but that doesn't mean that the racial dynamics of this scene aren't deeply problematic.

Westworld, Season Two, Episode Two: Reunion

 “They wanted a place hidden from god, where they could sin in peace. But we were watching.”

In many ways, Reunion sought to interrogate what Westworld is without actually giving any answers.  I highly suspect that we won't have an answer to that question until the end of the season. 

Reunion employs a lot of flashbacks to situate the characters, filling us in on information which we had previously assumed. At some point, for Westworld to have existed, Arnold and Ford had to reach out to investors.  In Reunion, we get to see Arnold worry about whether or not Dolores is ready for her big reveal and Ford comment that it's time for Arnold to stop favouring Dolores.  Yes, even then Arnold is right about where exactly Dolores is at. Unlike the other hosts, Dolores displays a strong sense of innocence as she marvels at the outside world presented to her for the first time. To Dolores, the world word is a dream filled with splendor; her innocence blinding her to it's dark underbelly. It's not an accident that Dolores's first glimpse at debauchery come courtesy of Logan. For Arnold, Dolores is a path to see what what we've forgotten to notice, reminding us that we have just as many blind spots as the hosts, even if they are less obvious. 

Last season, there was much debate regarding whether or not wide eyed William was the man in Black.  Now we know that William and the Man in Black are one and the same and season two seems to be exploring how he became so very jaded. Running parallel to William's story, is Delores and her bid to take on the world now that her eyes have been opened to the decades of abuse that she and the other hosts have suffered.  In a meeting with Dolores, William expresses his surprise that he actually fell in love with her. William now believes that Dolores is a reflection of him and that this is what makes her so appealing.  It seems that given Dolores' s burn it all down philosophy, William may be right. The difference of course is that unlike William, Dolores is the victim looking for the only justice she's likely to get.  Her methods may be brutal but they are a means to an end whereas; we  have no real motivation for William's actions or an explanation as to exactly why he is so jaded. If William and Dolores are indeed a mirror for each other, then it's a distorted mirror.

Another parallel to consider is the interaction between the Maeve and Dolores. Both women have been victims of William and both have a long history of being abused by guests.  Dolores grew into her consciousness, whereas; Maeve took it.  Dolores commands the techs to bring people back to life. whereas; Maeve has the ability to issue a verbal command and have the other hosts comply.  Maeve and Dolores are the two most powerful women on the show and though they should be on the same side, because they have unique motivations, they're far from partners.  Dolores makes her best pitch to have Maeve join them, “We’re bound for the future or death in the here and now. There’s a war out there…I can only fathom the revenge that lives inside of you," but clearly, Maeve believes that going after revenge is doing the expected and still operating by the rules of the game that Ford set up.  To some degree Maeve is right and does seem in this moment to actually have more autonomy than Dolores.  Maeve doesn't want to save Westworld, nor does she want to burn it all down, because she quite simply decided to devote no time to that binary choice. Maeve wants to collect her daughter, create her own world, define her own identity that is far removed from Westworld.  Humans to Maeve are useful tools that she employs to achieve her goals whereas for Dolores, humans are undoubtedly the enemy.

Westworld, Season 2, Episode 1: Journey Into the Night

Westworld is one of those shows which is hard to recap because you almost want to quote every word because nearly every speech has so much nuance

Take our opening scene with Arnold and Delores having a conversation about a dozen or so different things at once.

But after all that setting it up we now have Bernard waking up on the beach to see an army of people moving in. Stubbs, the former security head, is the only familiar face and everything is under the control of Karl Strand, a Delos big wig with a small army of men. We also have one of the big mysteries solved - where is Westworld? Well we have actual soldiers from an actual government wanting to find out what is happening only to be given their marching orders by Strand because apparently their government gave them possession of this island and complete rights over it. Even in the case of massacres apparently

So Westworld is an island - and we hear there are 6 more parks on this island as well because some creatures (like a tiger) are crossing borders). What we do see a lot this episode is a lot more blurring of lines between the humans and the hosts - we see this from Karl as well. His men are rounding up hosts and shooting them.

And yes I expected them to destroy the hosts. But this isn’t how you deal with malfunctioning equipment. This isn’t even how you deal with equipment that you’re scrapping. Especially very expensive equipment - and doubly so when it’s resilient. After all, from a practical point of view, hosts are designed for two things: to be super realistic and to be killed repeatedly. Any competent designer would make them resilient and easily repaired - especially when facing bullet wounds which in an old west park happens a LOT. Gathering them together and shooting them? Not a clever way to destroy them. But it is how you kill a human enemy...

Bernard is having something of an amnesia incident which Karl really needs him to get over, especially when they examine one of the host’s memories and find that Delores is the one killing everyone - human and host alike. Which rather confuses the tech because Delores is the nice welcoming face and she has gone waaaay further off script than hosts are supposed to.

So let’s have some flashbacks. Bernard and a group of expendable extras and Charlotte. She thinks that This is all set up by Ford as an elaborate suicide and doesn’t buy Bernard’s theory that the hosts are acting on their own free will. They try to escape, killing one pretty innocent host, finding other hosts torturing and killing humans and the extras all eventually walk into a trap and are slaughtered by former members of Wyatts gang who are now following Delories.

That leaves Bernard and Charlotte to find one of Charlotte’s secret Delos bases. Inside are deeply deeply creepy drone hosts who are doing disturbing experiments harvesting guest DNA and experiences from hosts… which to me means either a) blackmail or b) scarily accurate clone hosts used to replace people in the real world and do Delos’s bidding. Both makes Delos scary.

Charlotte seeks a rescue but her bosses don’t really give a shit about her - they want the host she uploaded all the secret data on. Until she delivers that, no rescue. But Bernard knows tricks which will help her track this Host (Delores’s father) down.

But he’s also having problems. During the escape he was… wounded?Damaged? Basically his brain is cracked and he needs to inject himself with more host brain goo to keep functioning. This could be a problem and introduce a weird serial killer storyline.

And from here we have Delores.

I think one of the main questions on this season is less “who is a host and who is human” but how awake are various hosts? Like we’ve seen Rebus, a rather nasty host, killing humans in torturous ways - is he awake and seeking revenge or just following his programming to be a nasty mid-level bad guy who just sees humans as other hosts now?

Game of Thrones, Season 7, Episode 7: The Wolf and the Dragon

Ok… I’m actually kind of disappointed by this season finale… in much the same way I have been by this whole season. Because there have been moments of epic and moments of awesome but then you into a moment of sheer blithering stupidity and I’m just “WHY IS THIS HERE?!” This is season 7 in microcosm - awesome and silly mixed together

The good parts are the big epic meet up as everyone gathers at the old arena where the Targaryens used to keep their dragons (something Daenerys disapproved on since she thinks this is what made the dragons weak and, in turn, made the Targaryens themselves weak). There we have another moment where Bronn and Jaime look at the sheer number of Unsullied and Dorthraki (who are terrifyingly well co-ordinated together) and say “oh shit we’re screwed”. Bronn also puts all war down to cocks. Which I’m choosing to interpret as a reference to narrow patriarchal structures of violence, control, competition and ownership constantly leading to conflict

This is also Jon’s first visit to Kings Landing introducing him to a city with 1,000,000 people in it - more than in the entire North. While Jon is playing countryboy, Cersei is giving instructions on who to kill while Jaime looks on all disapproving

Time for reunions! Pod and Tyrion is awesome. Brienne and the Hound kind of fun since last time they tried to kill each other. He wonders who is protecting Arya. Brienne laughs that Arya is pretty much someone you need protecting from now. We have Tyrion and Bronn bantering back and forth and a brief attempt for Tyrion to try and recruit Bron

Until we get to the arena where everyone makes Significant Eyes at each other. Brienne and Jaime. Euron and Theon. Cersei and Tyrion. The Hound even has a stand off with his monstrous mountainous brother.

Daenerys arrives late. On dragonback. This is the first time Cersei and Euron have seen her dragons and are visibly… concerned.

Time for formal proceedings, but first Euron has to stand up and be pretty much an arse to everyone. He ignores Jaime and Cersei when they tell him to sit down - it’s only when he’s threatened with the Mountain that he obeys. Again, this is why the Lannisters cannot ever rule - no-one respects them. They only ever have fear, no allies, no friends, no respect; their reign could never be stable

That taken care of it’s time for Jon to make an epic speech about the living and the dead - and to show off the Wight. Which nearly eats Cersei and shows everyone just how horrifying and awful it is. It’s very convincing. Cersei is shaken. And when Daenerys confirms there’s at least 100,000 of them Jaime is completely terrified.

Euron checks if they can swim and learning they can’t he officially declares “fuck that” and heads off to his island with his fleet. He’ll be back next Summer.

Cersei seems to actually be convinced and says yup, she’s totally in for the truce. So long as Jon promises when he finishes fighting in the north he stays there and doesn’t get involved in the war afterwards. Jon says actually he can’t because he’s totally sworn to Daenerys, sorry and he’s never heard of the concept of lying. Cersei storms off.

What nonsense is this?!

HOW MANY STARKS HAVE TO LIE BEFORE THEY FIGURE OUT LYING ISN’T  TERRIBLE?

Ye gods Jon’s repeated refrain for the whole season is “killing the dead matters more than anything else” that includes your own stupid honour, Jon! It is not noble, it is deeply selfish to put your own integrity over the survival of the human race

Game of Thrones, Season 7, Episode 6: Beyond the Wall

This episode was interesting in that we had major events happen but it didn’t feel rushed or packed and we didn’t have a gazillion storylines everywhere. We even only used a little plot bending (honestly, my main issue this season is how the plot broke itself to make it work -between Cersei’s prescient army, High Garden, the fleet of ships apparently made by Santa’s Elves and last episode’s ability to teleport the length and breadth of the entire continent in a few days is beginning to really annoy me).

So on that note let’s begin with the most annoying storyline - Winterfell. Where Arya and Sansa begin reminiscing about their childhood, their beloved father and Arya’s wish to step outside of the constraints that society put on her and which her father supported her through. This shows her childhood disdain for Sansa as well as her devotion to her father and Jon

She taunts Sansa about the letter she wrote as a child and considers it a betrayal, adding what the northern lords (and, more importantly, Lyanna Mormont) would think.

What strikes me most about this scene is that while Arya has learned many skills and become tough and hard and unforgiving she’s also been isolated. We talk a lot about how much everyone has grown and changed but here we see that in many ways she IS still a child. Her condemnation of Sansa is childish - it shows a complete unwillingness to deal with greater political realities, a complete naivety over what you can actually do and what is a smart answer.

Sansa tries to point this out - and rejects any idea she’s a coward or weak because of what she has endured and survived. Sadly Sansa, in an act that is utterly bemusing, turns to Littlefinger (who, of course, doesn’t reveal that he’s the one who led to Arya finding the letter anyway) who tries to drive more a rift between them and even suggests he use Brienne as a bodyguard

Sansa doesn’t do that because she has an invite from Cersei… yeah no. Sansa is not having that. Brienne can go and rely on the sexual tension between her and Jaime to keep things safe. Brienne wants to stay to protect Sansa. Not from Arya - but from everyone, because as long as Littlefinger’s around everyone can have their loyalty manipulated. She’s not wrong - but Sansa won’t hear it

Later she does discover Arya’s stash of faces and Arya menacingly explains what they all mean in a not-quite-overtly-threatening-but-the-threat-is-there manner.