We Literally Can Trust Nothing on ‘Westworld’ (TV REVIEW)

[rating=8.00] “Trompe L’Oeil”

Trifling board members, rampant corruption, and sentience, oh my! After everything we learned this week on Westworld we’ll never be able to trust what we’re watching again. While the episode title was indicative of what was to come, can we really accept anything the show gives us at face value? If the conspiracy theories weren’t already rampant, it seems the showrunners were ready to troll their viewers with plot twists to obvious and heavy it would be almost criminal not to lean into them.

I’ve died a million times…

After being given the keys to the castle Maeve has been able to keep hold of all her memories and sentience. While before she was constantly living in a dream state, now she’s not only fully aware of the fact that she’s been made, but she is embracing it. Rather than dwell on her lack of purpose in this world, she instead intends to live an actual life. It’s admirable really. She has the capability of completely destroying everything that they’ve built up in the park, and instead she simply wants to live.

Of course, this being HBO we know that’s there’s a nefarious deed or plan ahead. Perhaps she wants to go out into the world to destroy it for bringing her to being. Perhaps she intends on establishing herself at the top of any power chain that will allow her to continue learning and knowing. Whatever the case, she’s now hell bent on breaking out and there’s not a thing anyone can do to stop her.

Maeve’s sentience brings a new level of fuckery to the Westworld storyline. She’s now feeling the full weight of emotions that aren’t necessarily pertinent to her current code, but are driving her nonetheless. It isn’t until she informs her puppets on the cleanup crew that they’re going to help her escape that they finally attempt to draw the line. They make a huge mistake in warning her of her importance, the code that makes up who she is, and the lengths at which the park will go from keeping her there. She reminds them that she’s died “a million times” and that she’s really “fucking good at it”. Nothing is going to stop her from getting what she wants.

Doesn’t look like anything to me

While this has become a familiar mantra to us as the show has progressed, it’s still surprising at times to hear it invoked by certain characters. For instance, as we’ve seen Delores grow, she still reverts to her original android state when asked by staff. Even as we’ve seen the world through her eyes, she’s still able to ignore what she has been programmed to.

Now, Delores is one thing, but to hear Bernard say those six little words was jarring. As he deals with the changes in the park and the board’s disapproval of Ford’s work, Bernard’s insistence on telling Theresa everything is at first annoying. Why would he trust her with such valuable information after knowing she had been stealing and lied to Ford about it? As they search the cabin Bernard had discovered just days earlier, Theresa mentions a door to which Bernard responds “what door?” sending chills down the spines of all viewers. He doesn’t see the door; he’s not programmed to do so.

As Theresa explores this unknown area and Bernard follows, his mannerisms change. Rather than the introspective and careful man we’re used to, he jerks around his head a bit in a manner that’s just off enough to seem normal. As soon as Theresa finds the character designs it’s like we’re coming to terms with what we already knew. “Doesn’t look like anything to me.” Betrayal feels like the right word here, for Theresa, Bernard, and the audience. Of course Bernard is an android, he’s Ford’s right hand man. Did we think he would ever trust someone he couldn’t have complete control over?

I made everything here

Ford’s god complex has gone passed an interest in power, and straight to fucking with his creations just for fun. He gave Bernard a complex background including vivid memories about a son who died; that’s cruel even for an unfeeling man. As Ford confronts Theresa we see the awful truth about Bernard and what Ford is capable of. Bernard has been working at the park for an unknown amount of time, formulating the question of did anyone know who he was? And really, are any of the workers human? We saw one of the security workers come forward as an android, though the host was programmed to see him as human. What is stopping Ford from programming his whole staff into thinking so fully that they’re human, that even their code can’t convince them otherwise?

As Theresa comes to terms with her fate, Ford relays to her that he has made everything there over and over again. The way he words it, and even his choice in mirroring back to her what the visiting board member said makes one wonder whether she is also an android. If he truly made everything there, she would be a part of that. That said, she could have easily relayed the “blood sacrifice” message back to Ford without even knowing. Going deeper, Ford would then have programmed Theresa and Bernard to have been romantically involved, taking us back to the Man in Black’s sentiments regarding Delores and Teddy in episode one, wondering why they program some of them to pair up. Whatever the case may be, Theresa’s death signifies a new era for Ford. This is where he takes his stand. This is where he takes it all back. And perhaps, this is where he finally gets the chance to find Arnold, something he, like the Man in Black and Delores are trying so ardently for, wishes more than anything in the world.

Related Content

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Posts

New to Glide

Keep up-to-date with Glide

Twitter