Metanoia
Episode 7 of Westworld begins with Bernard and Maeve arriving at the foot of that large dam we saw at the start of season 4. Bernard is quick to point out this place is not what it seems. Dolores is the one who chose the dam originally, needing the hydroelectric server farm; a place to house the infinite – at least according to Bernard anyway.
Hale was just a front, keeping a watchful eye on the servers but unable to access what’s inside. The thing is, only Bernard can. He’s the one with the key and he’s quick to open the door.
Maeve realizes that she’s just a copy of the real article, while Bernard mentions the Sublime (Valley Beyond). Bernard is convinced that they’re nearing extinction but of course, as this is just a copy of Maeve, he can’t be sure she’s actually saying what she really thinks. And just like that, the glass shatters and we’re back with Bernard where we left off last episode. His real mission here though is to take out Hale Tower.
Christina awakens to find herself with Teddy. She’s still coming to terms with her powers and is actually there to explain to her exactly what they are. According to gim, they’re “reflections of the people who made them.”
As Teddy refers to her as Dolores, Christina starts to have an existential crisis and leaves the room. She’s unsure exactly who she is anymore and ends up running a bath, attempting to drown herself.
Meanwhile, Caleb continues to be tortured by Hale and William. Trapped in this hell, Hale has decided to reverse the fortunes of the humans outside. She’s shutting down the cities but intends to put the humans into cold storage rather than the Hosts. Caleb is only there as bait to lure everyone in so she can make her move.
William is surprised by Hale’s brash move but given the number of deaths that are stacking up, this seems like (to her at least) the rational move.
And like clockwork, Stubbs and the gang show up in town, preparing to get Caleb out. Time is of the essence though, especially with Charlotte on the verge of “leaving behind” their human bodies and evolving into the species she believes they were meant to become.
A disillusioned William shows up to see his human host, who’s still alive – barely. He asks for advice but William scoffs, telling him he’s forgotten who he is. William urges his copy to do what’s needed and to act like a cockroach, given that’s the key to survival. And with that, he stabs the human William in the chest and walks away.
Meanwhile, deep in Hale City, Teddy takes Christina into her workplace, where she narrates the humans working, deciding to evacuate the building but also forcing the writers to burn and destroy their narratives.
As the place erupts into chaos, C and Stubbs walk in through the front door. They’re not the ones who find Caleb though, it’s Christina. She notices Caleb in his cage and decides to use the security there to unlock all the doors and free him. This is something Hale obviously hasn’t anticipated.
As for Stubbs and C (Frankie), they find William – the real one – dead with a trickle of blood. As they walk off, there’s a real Scooby Doo moment where they pass Christina and Teddy off-screen in a hallway moving the opposite direction to one another but somehow they don’t even catch a glimpse of the other. It’s supposed to look like a slick scene but it stands out for all the wrong reasons here.
Anyway, Frankie eventually finds her father, who’s shocked to find Caleb is exactly the same as he was, having not aged a day. Of course, we know it’s because of Hale and her experiments.
As for Bernard and Maeve, they continue their quest to the main tower, where Hale is. Maeve is still stuck on her daughter though, demanding to be brought back to her.
Eventually, Bernard admits the truth – there’s no way to save this world but they can save a tiny part of it if they work together to stop Charlotte. And Maeve catches her completely off-guard. She keeps her poker face though and monologues to Maeve about her plan, opening the Sublime and shutting down her city.
The pair eventually fight with one another, buying Bernard enough time to slip in undetected. Charlotte is too much for Maeve though, knowing she can’t win but admitting she’s there to survive.
That is, until William arrives and puts a bullet in her head. He speaks to Hale and decides they should play his game now. And that game? Survival of the fittest. And with a quick blast, he shoots Hale in the head.
Naturally, William shows up at the top of the tower and shoots Bernard in the chest. Twice. Bleeding out, William takes the tablet for himself, wanting to give this world a “meaning they’ve been asking for”. He decides to give an all-out attack signal, wanting human and host to fight to the bloody death.
With every scenario ending with Bernard dying, another bullet confirms that as he’s shot through the head.
Meanwhile, Stubbs, Caleb and Frankie try to leave but as they arrive in the subway, that ominous chime rings out and everyone fights to the death. Not even Christina can stop this. Her powers are being overwritten. And as she speaks to Teddy, he admits that she’s not real.
Our final shot of the episode sees William finally embrace his calling, donning the black hat as before and heading deep into the city, ready to play his game. The tower explodes behind him.
The Episode Review
Everything explodes into chaos as the penultimate episode of Westworld season 4 comes to a close. This series has been a definite step up from season 3 and the story this time has managed to take the best parts of seasons 1 and 2 while adding a definitive spin to proceedings.
Bernard’s storyline has always been the most trippy of the bunch and that much is especially true here, as we see him plotting a path to his own destruction but also with a sliver of hope that they may prevail and come out on top.
However, the viewing figures for this season have been pretty poor compared to last year. That, coupled with the current round of shows being axed with Warner Bros and HBO in general, could well lead to a surprise cancellation. We shall have to see.
Either way though, it’s fair to say Westworld has managed to come out swinging again this season and all roads lead to a very dramatic finale to come next week!
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You can check out our review for Westworld Season 4 here! |
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Episode Rating
Only the other robots can see Delores because they are programmed to even though she’s a hologram.
When Teddy tells Christina/Dolores that she is not real during the chaos, does this mean that after her drowning attempt, she can no longer be seen by both the humans and the hosts alike? Before this, she was able to interact with people like her boss and Peter. Does this also mean that Teddy is also invisible in the real world? So confused.