Westworld: Phase Space (2x06)

Poor Maeve. Poor... everybody.

Cons:

So we learn that there's this backup computer network called "the Cradle" where all the hosts exist together in a hive mind type of thing. Bernard uploads himself into it to try and gather more information. I have no problem with this idea, and it leads to some great material in the episode. But I find myself a bit annoyed that it hasn't been brought up or discussed before this point. Elsie brings it up and it feels very exposition-y and info-dump-y in a way I didn't much enjoy.

Also, I must continue to complain about the pacing of this season overall. As far as I know, there are only ten episodes, right? If that's the case, we're 60% done and I still have so many questions. I don't know what the climax is going to be, I don't even have the slightest clue where all of this is heading. This episode doesn't do anything to start pulling together the pieces. If anything, it just introduces more questions. We get scenes with William and his daughter, but learn very little of substance. We see more of the Shogun story-line with Maeve, which is interesting, but it doesn't seem to propel Maeve and her companions forward on their own path, until the end when Maeve goes in search of her daughter. I'm enjoying everything we've been getting, but I'm worried that the culmination isn't going to be as powerful as it should be.

The scene with Maeve finding her old home was pretty much perfect, with one key exception: why didn't she use her cool new Jedi mind powers to stop the hosts from hurting her and her "daughter"? She's got apparently unlimited control. We've seen her turn soldiers against each other, force people to cut their own throats, and suddenly she's totally powerless? I could see there being a hesitation, or a moment where her shock and trauma overcame her. But once Hector and the others mount an attack, wouldn't she regain her senses enough to use mind control and send the bad guys away? Come on.

Pros:

I did like the plot in the Shogun world though. It's so grim, and so intriguing, and I'm glad we got more of it this week. The whole setup leads me to ask so many questions about the nature of the hosts. From their perspective, what exactly do they think of Maeve? Where do they think she came from? Are these hosts "awake," or are they still just playing out stories that were written for them? It's hard to tell at this point, and that's what makes it interesting.

As I was watching Maeve getting closer to her old home, I realized exactly where this was going. She would find her daughter, and she would find her daughter's mother, a different host playing out the narrative that had once belonged to her. Sure enough, that's what we see. As I'll discuss in a minute, over in Dolores' story we're continuing to see the complexities of love among robots, and how much of any of it is their actual choice. And here, we see that Maeve still loves the little girl who was once programmed as her daughter. She knows the full truth - she understands, on an intellectual level, what's really going on here. But she still loves that little girl, even if that little girl has a different mommy now. That's messed up.

So... Teddy is totally amoral now. Way to go, Dolores. I find Doloers' mistake here so very interesting. She has this idea that if she makes Teddy as ruthless as she is, suddenly they will agree on everything and make all the same decisions. Obviously that does not prove to be true. Teddy is totally soulless now. This has many consequences, one of which is that he no longer requires Dolores' approval, and seems to be no more likely to get with the program now than he was before. And even worse, it seems that Dolores has just severed the last connection she had to her old life, such as it was. Learning that your every move has been controlled by another is disturbing, true. But there were aspects of Dolores' old life that I don't think she wanted to say goodbye to, and now she finds herself more alone than she has perhaps ever been.

So I mentioned that the buildup to the Cradle was not great, but the actual moment of execution was pretty intense. I kind of love how much Elsie is just rolling with the punches at this point. It makes a certain kind of sense. First, your boss strangles you and ties you up in a cavern, then that same boss shows up, you learn he's a glitching robot, and that the entire world has basically gone to hell in a matter of hours. At some point, you'd just have to soldier on in order to keep sane. She can read code and find out what the Cradle is up to, but Ford seems to have set up blocks. So... Bernard goes in. He finds himself on the train into Westworld. He walks through the bustling town, looking pretty much as it did in Season One. He walks to the tavern. And guess who's sitting at the piano? Ford.

I mean, yep. We knew this was coming, but the moment we actually see his face again was pretty darn intense. I can't wait to see what this means! I'm tired of being afraid that every time we see a little kid host, Ford's going to start talking out of it. He's just so creepy! It looks like his consciousness has been uploaded into the Cradle, but does this mean he's effectively immortal? We saw that human minds couldn't be contained in a host, what with William's father-in-law. But has Ford figured out a way? Was this his plan all along?

Although I'm frustrated at the slow pacing, I did enjoy seeing the stuff with William and his daughter. He seems convinced at first that she's a host, which was an angle I hadn't contemplated. We as the audience are fairly confident that she's real, and eventually it seems as if William accepts this too. They talk about their past. She apologizes for blaming her mother's death on her father. William seemingly agrees to come with her to be rescued from the park, so they can start repairing their relationship. As I was watching this, all I could think was: there's no way William could ever give up his quest for answers in the park! Is this a trick? Sure enough, when Grace wakes up the next morning, William and his group have left her behind. This is so cold. Does it mean that William doesn't care about his daughter at all? Or does it mean that he still thinks Grace is a host? And what were her true motivations? Can we really trust that she came to the park to try and reconcile with dear old dad? I can't trust anybody in this show!

That's all I've got. I think, despite some qualms about the pacing, that this second season of Westworld has been pretty successful!

8/10