Westworld

Well now that I've seen epi 3 I have no idea what to think.
I do believe I'm on to something about them resurrecting the dead and I think Bernard's late son is going to become part of the story.

I agree I am not really sure if I have the patience to follow this with all the jumping around with characters and their changing story lines. They certainly make the guests seem horrid How is it that the MIB is always there I am not even convinced that he isn't an android. He wants to find the maze" and then what? Become part of the program and control it ?

I think there is some symbolism in the names too. Dolores in particular.
 
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It was stated that Dolores was the oldest android at the park despite her appearance of looking so fresh and young. Given that we saw how awkward the Wild Bill Hickok android acted, it is safe to assume that she has been rebuilt and upgraded many times. I see her as walking the representative and sorrowful path of all the androids. Theirs is not a happy existence when you see what befalls most of them and it is a futile one as well.

As for Teddy: I see him as a Teddy Roosevelt character always up for the fight and wanting to do the right thing.

I am probably getting overly imaginative with all of this lol!
 
I love this show. Was just reading an article about how it almost never aired. It was supposed to start sometime in 2015 but, similar to Game of Thrones, they did a lot re-shooting. Then there was a lot of squabbling behind the scenes about budget, because Vinyl, which is what the article is about, was a costly disappointment to HBO.

I think they have a huge hit on their hands with WW

Excerpts from the article http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/hbos-100m-vinyl-disappoints-westworld-868605

Late last year, HBO stopped work on the pricey J.J. Abrams-produced Westworld, based on a 1970's sci-fi movie series. and with an enormous cast including Anthony Hopkins and Ed Harris. Initially produced with Warners' TV production arm, HBO took back control after what sources call clashes with creator Jonathan Nolan, whose TV credit is the WBTV-produced Person of Interest on CBS. (HBO usually makes its own programming but works with Warners on The Leftovers.) Nolan is said to be every bit as controlling as his filmmaker brother Chris. Sources say cuts came in slowly, scripts started running behind, and it became apparent that episodes already shot needed tweaks requiring additional filming. Since stopping production, HBO persuaded Nolan to "put aside his ego," one source says, and has brought in two additional producers and two more writers. Production is set to resume in March.

"Westworld is wildly ambitious — on the page and on set," says Nolan. "In broadcast TV, it's been routine for us to write and shoot at the same time. This is a completely different animal. As we got closer to the final episodes, we realized we needed to take a break from shooting to catch up on writing. HBO and WBTV have been incredibly supportive throughout the process. It would have been literally impossible to make this show anywhere else."
 
I think the could have a huge hit if they clear up some of the confusion and fuzziness in the story. People lose interest easily and won't continue watching if they don't sharpen it up.
 
I love this show. Was just reading an article about how it almost never aired. It was supposed to start sometime in 2015 but, similar to Game of Thrones, they did a lot re-shooting. Then there was a lot of squabbling behind the scenes about budget, because Vinyl, which is what the article is about, was a costly disappointment to HBO.

I think they have a huge hit on their hands with WW

Excerpts from the article http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/hbos-100m-vinyl-disappoints-westworld-868605

Late last year, HBO stopped work on the pricey J.J. Abrams-produced Westworld, based on a 1970's sci-fi movie series. and with an enormous cast including Anthony Hopkins and Ed Harris. Initially produced with Warners' TV production arm, HBO took back control after what sources call clashes with creator Jonathan Nolan, whose TV credit is the WBTV-produced Person of Interest on CBS. (HBO usually makes its own programming but works with Warners on The Leftovers.) Nolan is said to be every bit as controlling as his filmmaker brother Chris. Sources say cuts came in slowly, scripts started running behind, and it became apparent that episodes already shot needed tweaks requiring additional filming. Since stopping production, HBO persuaded Nolan to "put aside his ego," one source says, and has brought in two additional producers and two more writers. Production is set to resume in March.

"Westworld is wildly ambitious — on the page and on set," says Nolan. "In broadcast TV, it's been routine for us to write and shoot at the same time. This is a completely different animal. As we got closer to the final episodes, we realized we needed to take a break from shooting to catch up on writing. HBO and WBTV have been incredibly supportive throughout the process. It would have been literally impossible to make this show anywhere else."
I remember reading this story at the time it came out and as I recall at that time HBO's stock was not doing well, I think there was or was going to be a change in leadership at HBO and everyone was angling for story that predicted it's downfall. Any design or creative process is very messy but I think the overall hopes for Westworld have always been good. There were obviously some growing pains because this kind of TV show is not easy to produce but the fact that HBO allowed Nolan room to develop the story speaks to a confidence in the show.
 
No the Westworld logo.
Also the staff is all dressed in black in current time and white in William's time.
When we first see William it is immediately after you hear someone telling Dolores to remember.
William's friend says that this is where you find who you really are, then later the MIB says he was born there in a way. I think the fall of his soul is symbolized from the change from white to black. (hats as well)
Also the rogue host that was spilling milk on his victims seemed to also be linked symbolically to the tanks of white liquid they show being utilized to create the hosts.
There seems to be a greater underlying meaning of this good vs. evil battle...almost like this is a purgatory of sorts.

These are just my speculations. Can't wait for tonight.

*just rewatched the first two seasons with my husband and reanalyzed.
I'm definitely on board with the two time frames theory even if it was supposedly disproved in this week's episode (with story loops it's possible what happened has happened and will continue to happen... we also don't know at what point in which story she's stumbling into the camp). Not only are there slightly different variations in uniform, logos etc... the overall design aesthetic of the station they arrive at is simpler than in other scenes, it has a cleanness and lightness that is somewhat different in other scenes.

For example:
I was looking at some animated gifs of the show and noticed that the escalators in the arrival station look a little like the escalators on the abandoned level (these reason these levels were abandoned are possibly connected to the incident years ago)...

WW_01.jpg
WW_04.jpg WW_02.jpg



The escalators that Bernard uses are more labyrinthian and the light is slightly muddier/murkier than in the arrival station scenes...
WW_05.jpg WW_03.jpg



Of course these escalators are at the base of the park's facility so you would expect the escalators to look like that and the way they shoot the escalators could be more a comment on psychological aspects of the characters. I also assume the park was built over a long period of time and perhaps Bernard is just on a higher, level of the park's facility. Three episodes are too little to go on and it'll probably play out completely differently but there is a certain symmetry and Nolan-esque quality to the two time frames theory.

The milk/blood references are also pretty strong, milk being something that is supposed to nurture, in the park the hosts are recipients of some pretty horrible stuff... pretty much the opposite of nurture.

I was also thinking the milk is reference to A Clockwork Orange... the way is was shot reminded me of a scene in A Clockwork Orange... and it's a story where the freedom of the individual has become problematic for the society, society wants to remove certain individual freedoms and instill behaviour they deem acceptable and the milk drinking droogs are an anarchic force that destabilizes the system... the movie's dualistic theme of good and evil, destruction and creation, chaos and order, freedom and control link up pretty well with Westworld.

Also in the park the guests get to unleash the behavior that is unacceptable in ordinary society, it's a release valve for behavior society deems unacceptable. The hosts are the unwilling recipients of those darker impulses.

The black hat/white hat duality is pretty heavy in the show a little too obvious unless it links up in a more surprising way down the road. The white hat (possibly Ford although he's dodgy as hell and definitely not a clear cut white hat... he's more the unreliable narrator) that is actually the black hat and the black hat (the man in black) that is actually the white hat... this of course isn't surprising but perhaps they have an interesting way of linking it up to the story.
 
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^ Actually scratch that last idea it's a rubbish one.


One last thing about the milk... I had forgotten that the one host says "this is not for you" when he's pointing a gun at some guests which is the same thing the child says to the man in black when he comes asking about the maze. The milk might then be linked to the maze in a more significant way. The maze is probably some kind of Turing test for consciousness.

Also when the bandits come and attack Dolores and her family they complain about them only have milk in their house... aside from milk being something that is nutritious and wholesome... which links back to Dolores's character... she is one of the most optimistic white hat characters on the show (for now)... maybe there is more to it.
 
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^ Actually scratch that last idea it's a rubbish one.


One last thing about the milk... I had forgotten that the one host says "this is not for you" when he's pointing a gun at some guests which is the same thing the child says to the man in black when he comes asking about the maze. The milk might then be linked to the maze in a more significant way. The maze is probably some kind of Turing test for consciousness.

Also when the bandits come and attack Dolores and her family they complain about them only have milk in their house... aside from milk being something that is nutritious and wholesome... which links back to Dolores's character... she is one of the most optimistic white hat characters on the show (for now)... maybe there is more to it.
Keep it coming! I love hearing your speculations, this is what makes this show great.

I wonder if the MIB has realized that he is no longer mortal and believes the maze leads to resurrection?

There are more clues on the Delos Destinations website. If you read the Terms of Agreement when you sign up it is quite interesting.
 
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If this show turns out to be another LOST I don't think I can take it. That was a show filled with endless speculation and the writers could not figure out how to end it because it became so ridiculous. I look back on it and think what a waste of time it was.
 
Keep it coming! I love hearing your speculations, this is what makes this show great.

I wonder if the MIB has realized that he is no longer mortal and believes the maze leads to resurrection?

There are more clues on the Delos Destinations website. If you read the Terms of Agreement when you sign up it is quite interesting.
I just read the Terms of Agreement and so far, that proved to be more interesting and informative than the show. This is taking place on an island, within a territory, and not on a mainland. The fact that they need to "decompress" you at the Mesa Gold Resort is rather interesting too. What exactly is decompression? I think it is more than described. The fact that they have the right to keep all your bodily fluid, waste etc almost sounds to me as if they are going to clone you. Perhaps that is the sinister plot i.e. to replace a person in a position of wealth and power with a clone/android. Is this another way to live forever? Is this why the reveries are so important? People have died there as well according to this and it also sounds as if there have been human killing human deaths as well. There must have been a humdinger death in the past and what about this self-cannibalization? This was presented as part of the new narrative that Ford rejected, but it apparently has already happened.
 
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