Westworld: Trompe L’Oeil Recap

Synopsis of 1×07: The true history of Bernard within the company is revealed, while Dolores and William continue on their journey with Lawrence. 

This week’s Westworld proved that reality and consciousness might just be an illusion. An optical illusion. One that can be glossed over with the press of a command key. It should have been suspected for some time now that someone who had previously been considered a person would turn out to be a host. But the revelation was no less shocking and concerning.

This episode begins, perhaps as an allusion of what is to come, with Bernard (Jeffrey Wright) awakening from a dream about his son, presumably shortly before his death. However simply emotive this moment may initially seem, this particular scene will show more significance with the conclusion of the episode.

Bernard is sent to a meeting where the conflict over the company comes to a head with board member Charlotte Hale (Tessa Thompson) and head of Quality Assurance Theresa Cullen (Sidse Babett Knudsen) attempting to force Ford’s (Anthony Hopkins) retirement. 

Rewriting the code of Clementine (Angela Sarafyan), they attempt to prove that the reveries are actually causing a critical malfunction within the Hosts that leads them to violence even upon humans. Instead of suggesting that this is Ford’s shortcoming, they blame Bernard for his lack of guidance in the reprogramming of these Hosts, suggesting that his shoddy work has put visitors in danger.

With a knowing glance at Ford, he simply walks away, betrayed by Theresa who had recently been his lover. While this event was a setup, it does still cause a bit of concern as a viewer, as you await the possibility of Hosts becoming violent of their own volition.

While this entire scene was a construction, there is a moment of sadness for Clementine, as Maeve (Thandie Newton), who was conscious when Clem was removed from the park, awakens in the rebuild in the hopes of finding Clem. She walks calmly through the workshop with Felix (Leonardo Lam), arriving in time to see Clem effectively lobotomized. The Hosts are now aware of what is so easily done to them. 

Within the park, Dolores (Evan Rachel Wood) and William (Jimmi Simpson) continue on their quest with Lawrence (Clifton Collins Jr.), with Dolores perhaps beginning to realize that she is guided by more than just chance. She and Will consummate their relationship with Will believing he has finally found something that he never had before, but revealing once again that the park might just be providing you with exactly what you want. 

The two of them part ways with Lawrence after another gatling gun incident (of explosive proportions), and Dolores is left wondering where her dreams are taking her. 

Returning to the corporate world, Bernard arrives at Theresa’s and quickly leads her to the off-the-grid cabin within Westworld that houses Host replicas of Ford’s family. Bernard chillingly sows the seeds of fear in the viewer after explaining that Hosts are programmed not to see this cabin, directly followed by a response to Theresa regarding a door in the cabin: “What door?”

The two descend a staircase (into what I think might be the basement that Bernard has been meeting with Dolores in), where they uncover machinery proving that Ford has been constructing Hosts outside of the main facility. Therese looks down to find the sketches for Dolores and… Bernard, who doesn’t see anything. Because Hosts can’t see what will hurt them (except for Dolores’ malfunctioning father).

Ford arrives at this moment, to cooly explain that he will not be stopped by the company and that Theresa will not stand in his way. Bernard is then required to kill Theresa, after emotionally realizing he is not in fact a human. He refers back to his son (that dream) and one can only assume that he will feel some form of remorse for having killed a woman he thought he cared about. 

This episode answered some questions, but it definitely left room for speculation. In particular, how long has Ford been implementing reveries (since Bernard can dream) and just what is his endgame?