Wow is all I can say about last week’s episode of Westworld, titled “The Riddle of the Sphinx”. It was the most mind-blowing episode of Westworld yet, and answered some of this season’s biggest mysteries. But it also raised some huge new questions. Oh, and Elsie’s back!
William’s Dark Secret
We know now what William meant when he told Delores two episodes ago that Westworld holds an answer to a question no one’s ever dreamed of asking. That answer is immortality. In a series of scenes reminiscent of LOST, we learn that before he died, James Delos had his consciousness uploaded into a host brain. And ever since, he’s been living through a replicant of himself. The problem is that host-James keeps reaching a “cognitive plateau,” as if his mind is rejecting reality. Even more, from the flashbacks with a continually aging William, we learn that the current Delos is the 149th version of himself.
The experiment is still not working, and William—now in his Man in Black maturity—leaves Delos v.149 to deteriorate. But before departing, William twists the proverbial knife by informing Delos that his daughter (William’s wife) committed suicide and his son (Logan) died of an overdose. The Delos-immortality experiment has to be the”mistake” William referenced in prior episodes. Indeed, he admits as much to Delos, telling him, “No one is meant to live forever.” But I don’t think Delos v.149 is the full extent of William’s mistake.
Rather, I have to believe that whatever young William showed Delores back in episode 2 was more than the lab in which Delos was kept. As we learn, there is little left of this lab by the time the episode ends, so I doubt this is “The Valley Beyond” or Delores’ “weapon.” Delos Corp. was up to much more than trying to give James Delos eternal life, and whatever it is remains one of Season Two’s biggest mysteries.
The Mystery Woman
We guessed the answer to this one last week: The mystery woman from The Raj is William’s daughter Emily. It’s clear she knows the park inside and out, and can even converse in the native language spoken by the Ghost Nation tribe. But why is she here?
We know one thing: she doesn’t plan on leaving the park. In fact, when Stubbs (who has been captured by the Ghost Nation since last season) tells her there’s a protocol to extract the guests, she says: “Thanks, but I’m not looking to get out of here.” We know she hates her father, so she could bee seeking some form of revenge. Or is she trying to discover the truth about her grandfather? The hexagonal image on the map in her book could have been the secret lab revealed in this episode. That symbol is also featured all over the lab—almost like the Dharma Initiative symbol on LOST. In fact, everything in this episode seemed to have something to do with that lab …
Bernard
If the immortality experiment and William’s daughter were answers to two of the season’s mysteries, whatever Bernard was doing in his glitchy flashback raises the newest mystery. Earlier, a zombie-like Clementine drags Bernard to a cave with the entrance to the secret lab where Delos v.149 is being kept. There, Bernard reunites with Elsie, whom he thankfully did not kill in Season One. For those who remember, Elsie had the most colorful dialogue on the show. It’s no wonder she became a fan favorite.
Bernard remembers there’s a facility here. Though his memory keeps glitching, causing him to ask, “Is this now?” And somehow, he believes this all has to do with Ford. He even tells Elsie, “I think Ford had Clementine bring me here for a reason.”
Once inside, Bernard starts remembering events that must have taken place earlier in the timeline. He used the drone hosts to murder all the techs, and then had the drones kill themselves. Then we see the reason: he pockets what must be a control unit—a host brain.
Back in the post-uprising present, Bernard has a revelation: “I think I know why Ford sent me here. He had me print a control unit for someone else … another human.”
And herein lies the episode’s biggest new mystery: Whose brain is it?
This is where things gets tricky. The obvious answer is that it’s Ford’s, which could explain how he keeps running his new game against William. But would the writers of a clever show like Westworld make the clues so obvious? Other theories abound, like the one you can read here. But even if it isn’t Ford’s mind on the control unit, my guess is it has something to do with the game Ford is playing with the Man in Black.
The Man in Black
Speaking of the Man in Black, the scene back in Lawrence’s home town has me wondering if William hasn’t turned a page. Last time we saw him in the village, he was murdering Lawrence’s wife and daughter. This time, he chooses to save them both. But Ford is unimpressed.
Channelling himself through the voice of Lawrence’s daughter, Ford tells the Man in Black: “They might not remember, but I know who you are William. One good deed doesn’t change that.”
“Who said anything about a good deed,” the Man in Black replies. “You want me to play your game? I’m going to play it to the bone.”
Then we get another riddle from Ford: “You still don’t understand the real game we’re playing here. If you’re looking forward, you’re looking in the wrong direction.”
It’s all coming down to William’s mistake. And I believe there’s a lot more to that than a deteriorating Jame Delos.
* Images courtesy of HBO