Westworld back on....who's in?

[Wander]

I loved it, but I’ve forgotten way too much about the show in the long wait time:

1. Why is Dolores so cartoonishly evil now?
2. Who is the blond woman that’s not Dolores?
3. Does anyone know Bernard is a robot other than Bernard?
4. The maze doesn’t actually physically exist, right? It was a metaphor for Dolores finding her consciousness, right?

It’s fun that they seem to be going in the direction of exploring the other worlds, and I’m curious how Dolores will “take our other world” from us.

[LasVegas]

What I don’t understand is the whole we need to save our IP/code storyline. I mean, did not one person think to back that crap up onto a hard drive or blast it to the cloud?!?!?

[FerryFor50]

I loved it, but I’ve forgotten way too much about the show in the long wait time:

1. Why is Dolores so cartoonishly evil now?
2. Who is the blond woman that’s not Dolores?
3. Does anyone know Bernard is a robot other than Bernard?
4. The maze doesn’t actually physically exist, right? It was a metaphor for Dolores finding her consciousness, right?

It’s fun that they seem to be going in the direction of exploring the other worlds, and I’m curious how Dolores will “take our other world” from us.

1. Delores is broken - perhaps corrupted in her system, similar to how Bernard is. She thinks her dreams are now reality. That's why she's so evil now.
2. I believe the blonde woman was one of the women in the gang in season 1 with Hector
3. Delores knows. And everyone else who knew is dead, I believe.
4. That remains to be seen.

I thought the first episode was a bit off-putting, due to the difficulty tying back to season one (maybe should have re-watched the last few episodes first) as well as the overall body count and lack of reaction from most of the living humans.

I'm sure it will warm up a bit.

[FerryFor50]

What I don’t understand is the whole we need to save our IP/code storyline. I mean, did not one person think to back that crap up onto a hard drive or blast it to the cloud?!?!?

They did - remember, they shipped off one of the robots outside of the island. That is "the package" that they're waiting on in return for extraction for Bernard and Charlotte. That's the "backup."

[JasonEvans]

What I don’t understand is the whole we need to save our IP/code storyline. I mean, did not one person think to back that crap up onto a hard drive or blast it to the cloud?!?!?

I think the idea is that Ford kept a really tight seal on the code/IP. After all, that stuff is worth many billions of dollars. He wouldn't let someone just upload it. Also, it is really sophisticated and lots of data. That is why they needed to upload all of it into the brain of a host -- essentially turning Delores' dad into the world's biggest flash drive.

[DukeDevil]

So many new questions, so much confusion as to what's happening, so much revealed too!

I was fascinated by the whole hidden bunker with the drone hosts. Why are they collecting the host memories and the DNA? Are they collecting information for blackmail? Are they collecting data to be able to generate hosts to be able to use as replacements for those people as infiltration for corporate espionage? For political espionage?

In the season 2 previews, I was convinced the drone hosts were a military application of the hosts, and that the whole hidden agenda for DELOS was to create hosts as supersoldiers.

What I don’t understand is the whole we need to save our IP/code storyline. I mean, did not one person think to back that crap up onto a hard drive or blast it to the cloud?!?!?

I think the amount of data involved made it difficult, hence the attempt to have the one host with the satellite uplink pull this off, but it also sounded in season one that even this required multiple attempts to get the data out. Additionally, they suggested that they had to be extremely careful with subterfuge as Ford threatened to destroy everything should they try to steal his IP, which one could argue he pulled off when he was killed (assuming the Ford that was killed WAS ford and not a host that be built in his secret bunker).

[JasonEvans]

assuming the Ford that was killed WAS ford and not a host that be built in his secret bunker

Odds that Ford was really killed off... 30%? Maybe less.

I guess it depends on how much Anthony Hopkins wants to come back to the show. But, as Red 2 and Transformers: The Last Knight showed us, if you dangle a check, Hopkins will come running!

[moonpie23]

wow...i really enjoyed that first episode....a bit confusing, but i think it will shake out...


delores in da house...

[elvis14]

I actually didn't expect much from the first episode. I thought it would be a 'setup' show that really just setup the future, more interesting shows. I pretty much got what I expected. Looking forward to the rest of the season. I went back and watched the last couple of episodes from last season so I wouldn't be lost.

[wilson]

...I was fascinated by the whole hidden bunker with the drone hosts. Why are they collecting the host memories and the DNA? Are they collecting information for blackmail? Are they collecting data to be able to generate hosts to be able to use as replacements for those people as infiltration for corporate espionage? For political espionage?

In the season 2 previews, I was convinced the drone hosts were a military application of the hosts, and that the whole hidden agenda for DELOS was to create hosts as supersoldiers...

This struck me too. It raises interesting questions as to the series' long game...is this all going someplace much more weighty than a fancy theme park? Also makes it highly relevant to the current zeitgeist. Facebook, Google, et al, I'm looking at you.

[A-Tex Devil]

Worth noting that Bernard and Stubbs are the only characters currently in the park who we know survive everything that is happening in storyline 2.

Did Stubbs survive? Last we saw, he was being attacked by ghost nation, right? How did he escape? Is Stubbs a host? Is Stubbs the host being built in Ford's office?

[moonpie23]

last night's episode was interesting....the convoluted timeline is a major part of what's happening....I think they are doing a good job of story telling, without too much confusion, to set up subsequent plot twists...

seems like delores really has a plan...

[A-Tex Devil]

last night's episode was interesting...the convoluted timeline is a major part of what's happening...I think they are doing a good job of story telling, without too much confusion, to set up subsequent plot twists...

seems like delores really has a plan...

So Dolores wasn't ready per young Ford, and they used the British hostto pitch Delos, Jr. instead. Then young William comes up with the plan with Delos Sr. to collect DNA of visitors, calling back to Bernard's discovery the previous week.

Am I following this correctly?

Is that Hong Kong or Shanghai? I don't know my skylines well enough.

[darthur]

This struck me too. It raises interesting questions as to the series' long game...is this all going someplace much more weighty than a fancy theme park? Also makes it highly relevant to the current zeitgeist. Facebook, Google, et al, I'm looking at you.

As a Google programmer, I solemnly swear that we are not harvesting and cataloging DNA for the purpose of making homicidal robots. Google 1 Delos 0 on the don't-be-evil scale!

[DukeDevil]

So Dolores wasn't ready per young Arnold, and they used the British hostto pitch Delos, Jr. instead. Then young William comes up with the plan with Delos Sr. to collect DNA of visitors, calling back to Bernard's discovery the previous week.

Am I following this correctly?

Is that Hong Kong or Shanghai? I don't know my skylines well enough.

Think you meant Arnold there.

I imagine the DNA collection bit came in later as the technology advanced, and initially it was just using the hosts to record and collect information on the park visitors. I'm still quite curious what the endgame is for the DNA collection.

I think that Delores seeing the huge diggers is a pretty good sign that she's the one that flooded the valley, and that all the hosts being there "drowned" is also a part of her plan, possibly as a surprise attack on the military/security guys that have come onto the island? I just imagine them assuming all those hosts are dead and then they all suddenly rise up and attack.

As a Google programmer, I solemnly swear that we are not harvesting and cataloging DNA for the purpose of making homicidal robots. Google 1 Delos 0 on the don't-be-evil scale!

That's exactly what someone who WAS harvesting and cataloging DNA would say. We're onto you -_-

[moonpie23]

well, the timeline is really convoluted....Bernard's character is becoming very curios....

[moonpie23]

Well, i'd like to say something about the show, cause i'm really into it....i just don't really know what to say...

[Wander]

So, now that they've introduced the concept of people's consciousness surviving their deaths in the robot sphere brain thing, at least one of the following must be true:

1. Bernard really is human after all, i.e. Arnold (even if his physical parts are robotic)
2. Ford is alive because Bernard/Arnold put his consciousness in a robot sphere brain and eventually in a physical body

I think both are probably true. #2 is nearly definitely true, now that they've shown they have new scenes with Anthony Hopkins

[JasonEvans]

So, now that they've introduced the concept of people's consciousness surviving their deaths in the robot sphere brain thing, at least one of the following must be true:

1. Bernard really is human after all, i.e. Arnold (even if his physical parts are robotic)
2. Ford is alive because Bernard/Arnold put his consciousness in a robot sphere brain and eventually in a physical body

I think both are probably true. #2 is nearly definitely true, now that they've shown they have new scenes with Anthony Hopkins

1. Ummm, how is he "human after all" if his parts are robotic? Do you mean that they have put Arnold's brain into Bernard's robot body? I don't think that is the case because Bernard has very different memories from Arnold and does not think of himself as Arnold.

2. Ford's consciousness (or something like that) is certainly alive inside the CR4-DL. I am sure he is controlling a ton of what is going on with the hosts in the park right now. That's why the hosts are not cooperating with The Man in Black/William. As for whether they put his consciousness back into a host body, I would be somewhat disappointed if they did that. Don't forget that the park just spent 20+ years trying to get the put-a-brain-into-a-host-body thing right for Mr. Delos and they never could perfect it. I think it would be lazy storytelling to suddenly fix whatever they have been doing wrong for such a long time so they can bring Anthony Hopkins back from the dead and put him in a host body.

Ok, we also need to talk about that mind-blowing scene at the start of the episode where Delores and Barnard have a conversation that is supposed to mimic a conversation Delores had with Arnold... but Bernard gets a couple words off and Delores starts talking about a "fidelity" test. While the rest of the episode had some interesting reveals about the CR4-DL and the image of Anthony Hopkins at the end, I think the fact that Delores was testing some version of Bernard is a huge moment that will be paid off in future episodes in a big, big way.

In many respects, Bernard is the most important character on the show at the moment. It seems like almost everything important is happening around him.

-Jason "meanwhile, Maeve and her whole crew could die right now and it would not change the larger plot one tiny bit... if that poor storytelling or will their arc become more important?" Evans

[Wander]

1. Ummm, how is he "human after all" if his parts are robotic? Do you mean that they have put Arnold's brain into Bernard's robot body? I don't think that is the case because Bernard has very different memories from Arnold and does not think of himself as Arnold.

Ok, we also need to talk about that mind-blowing scene at the start of the episode where Delores and Barnard have a conversation that is supposed to mimic a conversation Delores had with Arnold... but Bernard gets a couple words off and Delores starts talking about a "fidelity" test. While the rest of the episode had some interesting reveals about the CR4-DL and the image of Anthony Hopkins at the end, I think the fact that Delores was testing some version of Bernard is a huge moment that will be paid off in future episodes in a big, big way.

I think your paragraph here sorta supports my point. The Dolores-Bernard scene was shown to be extremely similar to the scene of William testing Delos' consciousness in a new robot body. So, to keep that analogy, Bernard is Arnold's consciousness in a new robot body (which, yes, is what I meant by Bernard being human). I think we'll see a reverse-twist of sorts, revealing that Bernard's memories of his kid and such were real after all. He's that host-human hybrid, not a pure robot.

As for whether they put his consciousness back into a host body, I would be somewhat disappointed if they did that. Don't forget that the park just spent 20+ years trying to get the put-a-brain-into-a-host-body thing right for Mr. Delos and they never could perfect it. I think it would be lazy storytelling to suddenly fix whatever they have been doing wrong for such a long time

Come on, you know this is going to happen. The infinity stones all came together, Daenerys set foot in Westeros, and someone's consciousness will survive their death and be put in a new body. Once movies and TV shows tease this sort of stuff, it always ends up happening.

And yeah, Maeve's storyline just seems like it was an elaborate excuse to show samurais. I hope she becomes more important to the central plot (at the risk of making things too simplistic, I think maybe eventually she becomes the "good guy robot" to oppose Dolores' "bad guy robot").