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It shows you who you really are.” It’s telling that William says this having just cheated on his fiancé with a robot and abandoned his soon-to-be brother-in-law to be beaten and captured.īut while most “Westworld” episodes have kept a balance between park and office, “Trompe L’Oeil” skews hard office - thanks largely to the 14 final minutes in which Bernard tells Theresa that he knows she’s smuggling information out of the park and suspects Ford has become unhinged. “I used to think this place was all about pandering to your baser instincts,” William tells Dolores. Now we’re getting hints as to just how deep - not to mention dark. So far, Jimmi Simpson’s William has read as a still-waters-run-deep sort of guy. But it did give us some insight into William. This was probably the least compelling episode for William or Dolores of any that either has played a significant role in thus far.
#Westworld season 1 recap series
When Maeve tells Felix and Sylvester that they’re going to help her escape, it’s our first hint that the series may show us the world outside Westworld before the season ends.īack in the park, William and Dolores are busy consummating their romance the way all romances should be consummated - on an armored train barreling through hostile territory. (One of the episode’s best moments is when Felix pleads with Maeve to stop getting herself killed so often and Maeve blows him off.) She arrives in Basement City just in time to watch Sylvester lobotomize Clementine. Sensing trouble for Clementine, Maeve has apparently got herself killed once again.
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But it’s obvious that she’s going to pay a price for being drafted into Hale and Theresa’s plan. Clementine flips from victim to assailant quickly. You could argue that it is further evidence of a problematic attitude toward violence against women baked into the show, but there are more compelling moments to cite for that purpose. The scene that follows is difficult to watch. The moment Clementine appears at the presentation with Hale, Theresa, Ford, Bernard, and Stubbs is that moment when your stomach likely started turning. “Westworld” does not abide tender hearts, especially robot ones. It’s clear that things are not going to go well for her in this episode after she reveals her tender heart in conversation with Maeve.
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Hale’s call for a “blood sacrifice” as part of the plan’s execution yields Clementine, whose name is now worth mentioning after an impressive performance by Angela Sarafyan. The dynamic between Sidse Babett Knudsen as Theresa and Tessa Thompson as Hale is weird and interesting enough to sustain it. Bernard doesn’t know that, but Theresa does - which makes it funny when Hale explains the plan to her in great detail. It turns out that data has been getting funneled to the Delos, the company that finances Westworld and now wants Ford out of the operation. Later, Bernard encounters Theresa, whom he knows has been smuggling data out of the park. But Bernard doesn’t have to watch her on TV, so I guess I get it. Worrying about Elsie is difficult, because she is an annoying person to watch on TV.
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Flashback dream over, Bernard goes to work, where he questions Hector and worries about Elsie, whom he hasn’t heard from since she ventured into the park and possibly got herself kidnapped by Arnold. That, of course, makes the twist ending of “Trompe L’Oeil” all the more impactful.īut let’s start at the beginning. Wright’s Bernard has, since the beginning, felt like the most authentic character in “Westworld” - due in large part to Jeffrey Wright being very good at acting. As should be any show with Jeffrey Wright in it.
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