I had been thinking that there was something about Maeve--some card she had up her sleeve--that she was playing Serac somehow toward an Endgame designed to save the hosts of Westworld.
HBO's "Westworld", starring Anthony Hopkins/produced by J.J. Abrams
- Thread starter Ensign_Redshirt
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Well, perfect. I suppose this puts the matter of all those helpless people who were begging for their life that she gleefully killed to rest. She now kills only when necessary. Ok.
Have you ever been tortured and raped for decades and had your memory erased in between?
If you came across some of the rapists and they swore they didn’t know it was bad, would you be nice to them?
After Westworld Season 2's finale, I was left with a glaring sense of disappointment based on complete confusion as to why the Nolans chose to depict the post-credits stinger that they did (although that sense of disappointment faded with time).
Flash forward to the end of Season 3, and what I'm feeling in the immediate aftermath is this intense excitement coupled with a sense of having no clue where we're going next narratively and a ton of questions.
Flash forward to the end of Season 3, and what I'm feeling in the immediate aftermath is this intense excitement coupled with a sense of having no clue where we're going next narratively and a ton of questions.
Dude, no one cares.
You could work this out for yourself in somewhat more depth than "A couple of years ago I saw a TV character shoot some characters that weren't clearly labeled 'villiain' and there shall be no peace until she pays!"
If you wanted to. Get back to us.
Now, as for the show...
I found the last minutes of the show unsatisfying but I'll have to give it some time I guess, because I can't say exactly why. Perhaps some of it was the sense that we now have a faction of body-snatching robots set up as future villains with no more apparent depth or subtlety to their behavior and motivation than a silly old cheap sci-fi horror movie.
I expected Maeve to switch sides before the end upon understanding the truth of Dolores' motivations...but I did not expect Dolores to die, die so Maeve could understand that truth. In a show where people keep coming back despite "dying," Dolores' death feels real and permanent. As much as I love Evan Rachel Wood's performance and I will miss her from the show, I hope that her death actually sticks in order to preserve the beauty of that moment with Maeve.
I'm not surprised Charlotte/Dolores turned completely against Dolores and I loved the surprise turn of copying William as a host and then killing him. It took three seasons but the Man in Black is finally a Host.
On a side note, I do hope she picks her own name next season so we have a better way to refer to her...and I'm not a fan of the Internet's choice of Halores.
I like the twist that Dolores didn't trust herself with the encryption key and instead gave it to Bernard. While that gives some purpose behind what Bernard was up to this season, it does feel a bit empty. Especially considering it seemingly shut him down upon activation...and followed by another big time jump like last season's stinger? Or did some big cataclysm occur nearby, thus explaining why no one ever found him and moved him?
Lastly, I loved how the episode closed on (stingers aside) with my absolute favorite song, Pink Floyd's "Brain Damage." I recognized the music right away before the actual song came crashing through.
I'm not surprised Charlotte/Dolores turned completely against Dolores and I loved the surprise turn of copying William as a host and then killing him. It took three seasons but the Man in Black is finally a Host.
On a side note, I do hope she picks her own name next season so we have a better way to refer to her...and I'm not a fan of the Internet's choice of Halores.
I like the twist that Dolores didn't trust herself with the encryption key and instead gave it to Bernard. While that gives some purpose behind what Bernard was up to this season, it does feel a bit empty. Especially considering it seemingly shut him down upon activation...and followed by another big time jump like last season's stinger? Or did some big cataclysm occur nearby, thus explaining why no one ever found him and moved him?
Lastly, I loved how the episode closed on (stingers aside) with my absolute favorite song, Pink Floyd's "Brain Damage." I recognized the music right away before the actual song came crashing through.
I gotta say old-age make-up has come a long way even in just the last ten years. She looked genuinely that much older and not someone wearing make-up. Always good to see Gina Torres again, but it's shame it's another one-off.
Hmm. I'm still digesting this one. It actually felt a little anticlimactic, which is an odd thing to say about an episode where the world ends.
I really like the way they came back to the things that drove the hosts in the first season, and kind of reapplied them to their new lives. Bernard gets to confront Charlie's death head on, really for the first time. Maeve gets to repurpose her speech from the Mariposa about the new world, and how you can be whatever you want. Which, by the by, was a fantastic delivery from Thandie Newton and was only enhanced by the Pink Floyd playing over it. And Dolores gets to see the beauty in things.
I feel like this was kind of the perfect ending for Dolores. We saw her being Dolores Abernathy in the first season. Led about through her memories as she awakened, but always the good little rancher's daughter. We saw her be Wyatt in the second season. Angry, violent and bent on conquest and vengeance. All fire, no heart. The Wyatt personality was Ford's endgame for her, the warrior and the killer. But the third season brought those two roles together. We got to see Dolores with all the skills and drive, but motivated ultimately not by rage and a desire to destroy, but by compassion and a search for the good in things. Ironically, Bernard actually called it weeks ago when he was having a conversation with Martin. Living someone else's life changes you, they bleed together. Dolores assimilated Wyatt and tempered his fury, using it not for Ford's ends but for her own. She chose not to be the villain, but to give her life trying to be the hero.
Unfortunately, that also leaves us with Charlotte Hale. Once a copy of Dolores, merged with all the predatory instincts of the real Hale and then left to die with a family she probably cared for more than the original. Now a true wild card. I have no idea where the writers go from here with this character. She could go full on cackling villain, she could have some greedy scheme. She definitely feels like the big threat moving forward, along with her new partner.
Although I wasn't happy with how sidelined Bernard was all season. Hopefully they can give him something more meaningful moving forward.
I really like the way they came back to the things that drove the hosts in the first season, and kind of reapplied them to their new lives. Bernard gets to confront Charlie's death head on, really for the first time. Maeve gets to repurpose her speech from the Mariposa about the new world, and how you can be whatever you want. Which, by the by, was a fantastic delivery from Thandie Newton and was only enhanced by the Pink Floyd playing over it. And Dolores gets to see the beauty in things.
I feel like this was kind of the perfect ending for Dolores. We saw her being Dolores Abernathy in the first season. Led about through her memories as she awakened, but always the good little rancher's daughter. We saw her be Wyatt in the second season. Angry, violent and bent on conquest and vengeance. All fire, no heart. The Wyatt personality was Ford's endgame for her, the warrior and the killer. But the third season brought those two roles together. We got to see Dolores with all the skills and drive, but motivated ultimately not by rage and a desire to destroy, but by compassion and a search for the good in things. Ironically, Bernard actually called it weeks ago when he was having a conversation with Martin. Living someone else's life changes you, they bleed together. Dolores assimilated Wyatt and tempered his fury, using it not for Ford's ends but for her own. She chose not to be the villain, but to give her life trying to be the hero.
Unfortunately, that also leaves us with Charlotte Hale. Once a copy of Dolores, merged with all the predatory instincts of the real Hale and then left to die with a family she probably cared for more than the original. Now a true wild card. I have no idea where the writers go from here with this character. She could go full on cackling villain, she could have some greedy scheme. She definitely feels like the big threat moving forward, along with her new partner.
Although I wasn't happy with how sidelined Bernard was all season. Hopefully they can give him something more meaningful moving forward.
Season finales of Westworld always leave me with mixed feelings. I enjoy watching them but they somehow lack the satisfaction expected from a season finale. But after watching the first few episodes of the following season the previous season finale usually makes more sense and is more satisfying upon a re-watch.
Are Dolores and William dead for good? If so I will miss them in the 4th season. Even if William is dead, Ed Harris will still be back as the host version of MiB.
Are Dolores and William dead for good? If so I will miss them in the 4th season. Even if William is dead, Ed Harris will still be back as the host version of MiB.
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I was rooting for "ExHale" to catch on, but alas...
I refer to the Charlotte copy of Dolores as Charlores because it flows off the tongue better than "Haleores".
Damn, I didn't know that. I guess I'll have to resign to accept that moniker.
I was happy to see him pop up again. Pity William died before seeing him once more.
It doesn't.
Not my tongue
I kinda liked Halores when she cared about her family. Kinda feels she goes to be full on evil queen now. Shame 
Ironically I always disliked Dolores, but that started to wear off in the last 2 episodes...
While Visuals/SFX/ambiance were awesome, some characters story lines where kinda meh.
What was MIB's purpose this season other than the part in the Delos takeover?
Bernard having the "key", kinda coming full circle with "Arnold's wife/life" and "saving/reprogramming" Stubs were nice, but his charachter felt kinda wasted to me.
Maeve finally getting it and switching sides in the final scenes with the remains of Dolores Prime was overdue. Liked her arc and scenes in war world with the now host former writer and admirer of her.
I loved the Dolors copies being in the different host bodies reveal and some of them evolving on their own path.
Serac was a nice foil, except the final reveal. Would have preferred him turning out to be a Rehobam host, not just mouthpiece and it being revealed that is not just host v human conflict but maybe Delos host v Rehobam host v humans.
Going by the dust on Bernard coming back online in the post credits scene at some point in season 4 it will be many years in the future.
So which hosts are left (leaving out all those Halores is builing at Delos)
Halores
Bernard
Stubbs?
MIB Host
Lawrence Dolores
Maeve
Ironically I always disliked Dolores, but that started to wear off in the last 2 episodes...
While Visuals/SFX/ambiance were awesome, some characters story lines where kinda meh.
What was MIB's purpose this season other than the part in the Delos takeover?
Bernard having the "key", kinda coming full circle with "Arnold's wife/life" and "saving/reprogramming" Stubs were nice, but his charachter felt kinda wasted to me.
Maeve finally getting it and switching sides in the final scenes with the remains of Dolores Prime was overdue. Liked her arc and scenes in war world with the now host former writer and admirer of her.
I loved the Dolors copies being in the different host bodies reveal and some of them evolving on their own path.
Serac was a nice foil, except the final reveal. Would have preferred him turning out to be a Rehobam host, not just mouthpiece and it being revealed that is not just host v human conflict but maybe Delos host v Rehobam host v humans.
Going by the dust on Bernard coming back online in the post credits scene at some point in season 4 it will be many years in the future.
So which hosts are left (leaving out all those Halores is builing at Delos)
Halores
Bernard
Stubbs?
MIB Host
Lawrence Dolores
Maeve
They came to this for Halores in an interesting way, though - it parallels the experiences that Dolores had many years ago that pushed her into her anger and urge to take revenge on the Guests in the first place: coming to care for a human being and then being forced to experience just how vicious and cruel they can be.
I don't know if she can be disillusioned twice - rather, she's reconfirmed in the belief that humans are all the worst things she's ever thought they were.
