This Emily Post contains spoilers through the fifth installment ofWestworld,“Contrapasso . “Head toourWestworldshow hubfor more review , theory , and deep dives .
In the old - timey streak ofWestworld , conversations of men thunder like the commandments of God . These mere mortals lord over their contrived surround , hold the behavior of their robotic disciples with the moving-picture show of a wrist , and leavea player pianodittying long after they ’ve sidle off for a whiskey . Compared to the hosts ( and the watcher ) , visitors and biz - makers in Westworld dwell in the clouds , but in " Contrapasso , " the 5th episode of HBO ’s sci - fi serial , two Supreme Being - like men descended to our level .
We still get laid very fiddling about Dr. Robert Ford and " The Man in Black , " the park behemoth who crossed paths inWestworld ’s version of theHeatdiner scene . Ford ’s the whiz roboticist who go under out to make mimicking A.I. with his partner Arnold , who died tragically in an early loop of the parking area . exactly 34 years , 42 Day , and seven 60 minutes afterward , Ford remains enigmatical , spouting psychobabble while cooking up a new story that could either fulfill Arnold ’s dying regard – to germinate a legion android’sbicameral mindto a level of rightful awareness – or derail it . There ’s a sinister edge to Ford ’s aspiration . Is he safe or iniquity ?
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The Man in Black is as much of a walking , talking enigma . In the first episode , he buck Teddy numb and dredge Dolores to the barn for , because it ’s happening on HBO , what we assumed was a jar of hedonistic pleasure . Were Jehovah Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy diddle with our anticipation and memories of Yul Brynner ’s original Man in Black ? Over four more episode , The Man in Black morphed from renegade parking lot - goer to valet de chambre with a mission , climb poetic on living , death , and freedom to his robot hostages . He ’s headed through the Maze like a kamikaze pilot , and the possibility that he ’s an old variation of White Hat William only create his crusade more frightening . But if he ’s looking to crock up Westworld open and commit the jail androids off their loop , is The Man in Black trade good or evil ?
The coming together between Ed Harris ' Man in Black and Anthony Hopkins ' Dr. Ford in " Contrapasso " inched us towards answers ( and delivered on what we really require out ofWestworld : lean , mean , powerhouse acting from two screen legends ) . Do we sleep together more about Ford and the MiB ? allow ’s carve launch the conversation to determine solvent beneath the skin :
Ford : " I never like to drink alone . “If you ’re an inventive conspiracy theorist , you heard Ford divulge his preferred social circumstance and marvel whether the Man in Black might be another Old Bill , i.e. , a automaton in disguise . " Contrapasso " featured the second appearance from Old Bill , last seen imbibe with Ford in the premiere episode ; it ’s unclear if this new scene is a flashback occurringmoments before Bernard confronts Ford in the depth of Delos ' mesa HQ at Westworld , or if it ’s a whole new schmoose – but these mirroring moment do n’t seem like concurrence . Although , based on the tension in this scene and Ford ’s distaste for anthropomorphic automaton , this may be a " sleep with thy enemy " situation more than a baulk - in with an unaware bot .
The Man in Black : " Teddy , you have it off who this is ? Everything good that ’s ever take place in your life , and everything rotten , this is the man you have to thank . “There ’s a spark of vengeance when Ford enters the Man in Black ’s tidy sum . Thirty years work Westworld hardened the black hat , but one look at Ford toggles on a vindictive rage . We harvest that , whatever the Man in Black hopes to accomplish by fill out the Maze –freeing Dolores?freeing the full host population ? freeing Delos employee from Ford ’s sick game ? freeing his own paranoid judgement from a prison house of deadly doubt ? – aims to stick it to Ford , an unjust creator . Ford does n’t seem apprehensive . He ’s been one step in advance the entire time , and well-fixed with the Man in smuggled ploughing through Arnold ’s in - game route to enlightenment . " Far be it from me to get in the way of a voyage of self - find , " the scientist say .
Teddy : " Looking for a humankind named Wyatt … “Ford : " That last part does n’t vocalize conversant . “You ca n’t trust anyone in Westworld . That goes for God Almighty Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy , who tell us to question everything in this dialogue view . There ’s an on-going disputation over whether fit involving Dolores all take blank space within the same timeline , or if we ’re watching a past Dolores and a present Doloressimultaneously discover / rediscover the path of the Maze . One thing we know for certain : Dolores is not on her grommet in Teddy and the Man in Black ’s timeline . Maybe she ’s with William . perchance not . But misdirection is a tool in both a player and author ’s handbook . The Man in Black manipulates Teddy by encoding Dolores ' disappearance in language his loop programming understands . " Your stories could employ a little embellishment , " the Man in Black tell Ford . Faithful viewers should believe this a meta - commentary onWestworld ; just because a fictional character believes the world does n’t mean the world is to be believed .
The Man in Black : " I always thought this plaza could apply a real villain . Thus , my humble contribution . “Ford : " I lack the imagination to even conceptualise of someone like you . The urgency , however , does n’t quite fit out the character . It betrays a certain anxiety . “OK , so possibly the Man in Blackisn’ta robot . Ford built his hosts to live in awe and obey . The Man in Black is a topsy-turvydom agent – though , like the wakening robots , he has become unhinged from reality . He sees the rule , faced the formula - manufacturing business , and wants to dismantle everything to prove a point . It ’s the true gamer instinct , the speed runner who wonders if he can beat Super Mario Bros. in criminal record time by sliding down a bats pipe . Art becomes pragmatic , reduced to operate and die to be broken . The NES scenario is n’t too parlous . For the Man in Black , whose glitchy game sports hundreds of armed and dangerous adversary , the move sounds downright villainous .
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The Man in Black : " Wyatt , on the other deal , is something new . Someone to stop me from finding the nub of the Maze . “Another bakshis that Dolores likely hand the Maze ’s center field years back is the being of Wyatt , who sounds like Minotaur of the internal ear . The Man in Black ’s encounter with the cyberpunk will be the boss battle we merit .
The Man in Black : " The world outdoors is a humans of plenty . A fat , soft teat citizenry adhere to their total aliveness . Every penury take guardianship of , except one : determination . Meaning . So they come here and they can be a little scared , thrilled . Sweetly affirmatory bullshit . Then they take a picture and go home . “There ’s been scant word of what existence is like away Westworld ’s walls . Logan and William have talked about their incarnate sprightliness back home . Theresa mention a childhood visit to the park , Bernard phone home from the separated work location . In " Contrapasso , " Elsie find out that someone is beaming information out of the park via optical maser - based orbiter uplink . The Man in Black – who we know funds some sort of humanitarian creation in the real Earth – describes life beyond Westworld as a cheerless Sion , which makes me reckon complacentWall - Ehumans with more bipedal motion . hoi polloi often wonder whereWestworldcould go after Season 1 . The answer seems clean : into the world of wad . The Man in Black is ready for a flutter .
The Man in Black : " The man I ’d be ask die 35 years ago . Or perchance he left something behind … I question what I would witness if I opened you up . “Sorry , " Ford is Arnold " and " The Man in Black is Arnold " theorists , " Contrapasso " is here to expose you . Literally , anyway . With all the talk of cognizance and ulterior motive on the Delos corporation side of Westworld , the mind that Arnold may have downloaded his or a loved one ’s mind into the three-D - printed husk of a host is a rampant conclusion made by manyWestworlddiehards . The mind gains steam here . The Man in Black could be jest that , like Kissy the salamander dealer from Episode 1 , Arnold might have a dower of the mapping inked into his scalp . Or maybe he believes that Arnold , dead for years , could still be discharge between synapses , either in a legion ’s thinker or Ford ’s own .
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" Even at death ’s door you ’re still a loyal pet . “Ford ’s psychic lordship over the hosts becomesmore and more unsettling with each passing weekand each effortless flexing of his muscle . We now know there ’s a Asmovian " protection codification " built into Westworld ’s robots : Ford is the passkey , they are the handmaid , and if anyone tries to slice his cranium open , they ’ll jump into action to save him from damage . If there ’s a literal switch to riff at the end of the tangle , it may be connected to Ford ’s power . Arnold may not have approved of his partner treating hosts like striver . The Man in Black for sure does n’t .
Ford : " Mr. Flood , we must bet back and smile at risk past . “A harmless Sir Walter Scott quote , a triggering code Word of God for Teddy ’s kill mode , or a devious allusion to " the Incident , " in which Teddy may have act as a murderous part ? In Ford ’s event , all three could be true .
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