Westworld Season 2 Episode 8: EXPLAINED

[@ElkeDragos]

Cried like a baby. I couldn't believe how beautiful this episode is, left me wanting more.

[@koutroubasathanasios7322]

Definetely the best episode so far in the season,most likely in the whole show. The acting of Akecheta is just poetry in motion,if you think about the technical part of it,it becomes even more breathtaking (narrating the whole episode in an unknown language to him while conveying so much emotion on spot,its just...amazing acting overall) I think the reason most people (inculding me) think this is the best episode of the whole series is because of the payoff.Its indeed rare in this show to get any payoff in an episode.This one tho was more like a mini-movie,it goes through the whole arc, explains a big mystery that was unanswered so far (Ghost Nation is basically dissected in this episode). But even more than that,its a nice arc,a nice story that actually (unlike Shogun world episode for example) has a place in the plot developement.All in all , wholesome.Personally i cant even get over this one,i have already watched it 3 times and will watch it more for sure,not only to try and catch any clues that i missed tho. The Akecheta actor is by far the best actor in the show besides Hopkins (OFC).I know a lot of people will be upset and bring forth Dolores actress and Maeve and so on BUT you have to consider that this actor had one chance , not a character developing for 20 episodes so far.Just 1 episode to capture the audience,1 episode to bring his character to life,1 episode to make a difference.All things considered certainly an epic piece of Television.

[@smcic]

Akechita being quickly patched and sent back is exactly what would happen in IT when an old PC is “fixed” and given back to the end user because there usually isn’t time to fix it correctly (usually a complete reimage or new hardware). This episode was awesome.

[@VeracityLH]

RE Ake finding cold storage within his 6 hours of unsupervised time in the Mesa while he "updated" - remember that Ake is the same host that was at Logan's host party with Angela - the party where Logan was the only human there. So like Angela and Dolores, Ake had experiences outside of Park 1 itself and likely these memories were buried in his background coding as they were with the other original host. So he might have been able to access those memories to guide him through the Mesa facility and only needed to realize that cold storage would be a good place to look for Kohana. This would also explain why he wasn't freaking out at all the strangeness of the "other side,"

[@ravenlord4]

Akechita DOES help Logan by giving him a blanket. And that's all of the assistance that Logan required, as Akechita also exposits that Logan's people will find him soon.

[@bagelmanb]

Also, my read on why the tech just wanted to get Akecheta back out there ASAP was just to try to cover up the mistake of an alpha 2 host making it that long without an update. The first two techs sounded very scared to have to talk to higher ups about it, and it seems she just wanted to sweep it under the rug.

[@meganpagel178]

HAHA "In his quest to find Barb". This guy's voice being so straight forward makes it even funnier

[@matybyers4597]

I'm with you, in that I believe he was speaking to Maeve through her daughter the whole time. I'm glad you mentioned it!

[@ryanbrown8829]

Best reviewer. This is the only channel where I feel like you actually need to listen to everything he says.

[@AppleCore360]

Nathan Kelly I don't know about that. Alt shift x is awesome, and so is Ryan Brown... But they are not very quick to upload, usually check out what the opinions of others are and they explain the episode without much theories of their own (some, but not much) This guy uploads fast, constructs theories before getting much suggested to them and has more often than not been right about them too. All of three have their respected quality's

[@issiahjk]

Any love for Nerd Soup?

[@ThomasSorensen1]

AppleCore360 You might check out BuzzTox, I think he's got the most accurate picture of what's going on and going to happen. Quick to upload don't mean squat when you don't have the good insights into the details, and most of the time you're not catching everything in the first 24hrs imo. (I watch em all btw. Nerdrotic, Nerd Soup, Hax, BuzzTox, Alt Shift X, In Deep Geek, etc etc)

[@fuegodrinkscauseusuck6100]

u should check out nerd soup too

[@shawnabraham7740]

Yep Nerdsoup

[@wisemoon40]

In season 1 we were led to believe that the Maze was created by Arnold to coax the hosts to develop the bicameral mind. But we saw that Dolores didn’t respond to it. After Arnold died, I think Ford abandons the maze idea. But because Akecheta finds the original toy, the maze fascinates him. I think this is because spirals and mazes are part of Native American culture-Akecheta was drawn to it because those cultural symbols were included in his program. Then it was Akecheta himself that began to spread it everywhere and explain it to other hosts. He is a prophet or shaman who shows his people the truth, who walks between worlds. I agree with others that the Valley Beyond is another cradle...a backup of Westworld that also contains data from guests. Maybe even copies of guests’ consciousness.

[@Tsacchi94]

[@riparianlife97701]

I reached out to Zahn McClarnon, who portrays Alkecheta, on Facebook, and he wrote right back to me. Super nice guy, and a wonderful actor.

[@Trevorischillin]

The upside down 😂 quest to find barb 😂😂

[@Cwjespersen]

Trevor Sluder I had too see if someone else caught that!

[@Dimness57]

The man does not miss a beat and says it with what I imagine to be a straight face.

[@marijnwicherink2304]

Did anyone realise that akecheta is the wolf. MiB is the vulture and Dolores is the white horse?

[@learnmestuff5319]

Marijn Wicherink "Elaborate" Where was the wolf?

[@marijnwicherink2304]

We see the wolf 2\3 times in Season 1. at escalante and the white church. we see the wolf looking in the direction of the church when dolores and teddy run away from MiB. in this ep we see akecheta looking at a white horse (death aka dolores) running away from a vulture. look at the season poster of this season. the vulture with MiB's hat. Same thing at escalante. we see the wolf walking among the dead hosts, we see akecheta walking among the dead hosts

[@marijnwicherink2304]

i don't know if it's just peotry or if the MiB and dolores really see Akecheta as a wolf. if so, MiB would be a Host D:

[@learnmestuff5319]

Marijn Wicherink interesting. My apologies I thought you meant this current episode there was a wolf. Maybe just some poetic foreshadowing :)

[@MrNintendosamurai]

Spot on!

[@jd5787]

"HaxDogma Ma Boy ! Where have you been? " Beautiful episode. Really. Loved the perspective this opens. Dolores is all about vengeance, Maeve is about herself when here we see something different and more touching. Really beautiful...

[@factotums]

The pillars look like the same ones that were in The Cradle, leading me to think the Valley Beyond is a massive data server. If The Cradle was a server backup of all host data, I would think The Valley would be all of the human data they have been logging over the years.

[@BDD_c2bn]

Exactly. Think about the names. The cradle is where they "train" the new host personalities. They're newborn babies in the cradle, still learning how to walk and talk (by being run through millions of simulated interactions with each other). The Valley Beyond name invokes an image of looking forward to a new destination. It sounds like the way someone may refer to the afterlife. Which makes sense if that is where they're storing human "minds".

[@factotums]

Hey Bret or anyone else, you might be interested in this thread we've been discussing on Reddit. www.reddit.com/r/westworld/comments/8pj7k2/kiksuya_is_lakota_for_remember/ It's a better look into the mechanics of psychology behind this idea.

[@ExploratorVie]

HaxDogma, listen carefully during the scene where Ford speaks to Akecheta. As he says the command, "Analysis" you can hear servo-type mechanical noises, very subtle, just like how you can hear them during Arnold and Dolores' early scenes.

[@kirk001]

Kiksuya gave me a theory: Is the "Door" metaphorically the heart? As in opening the door means "opening your heart"? Like the moment when Akecheta, finding Kohana again, realized everyone was mourning someone there. He opened his heart and decided to help others become awake. (Heart has been a big theme this whole season--heart shaped box, Take my heart with you where you go, Shogun World Sakura's heart.) Ford said to Bernard the only way the hosts will survive is if "we open the door." This same episode has Lee (one of the most glib pricks in Season 1) weeping for Maeve--his heart/door opened to her. So Ford's plan of opening the door would mean some way to get the people who would destroy the hosts to learn to empathize with them and to feel compassion for the subjugated. The game "ends where you began" refers to making MIB rediscover the empathy he had as William--at the beginning. Ultimately, he's the one with control over Delos that can give orders on what to do with the hosts. That would be a pretty good way to ensure the hosts aren't all destroyed. Season 1 was about the Maze - Consciousness, Choice, and your Voice. Season 2 is about the Door - Empathy, Compassion, and Personal Connection. For all of the action, technology, and plot twists, the story has to tell a deeper truth (as Ford described in Episode 1.10). Season 2 is about the connections people form while on their journey and opening one's self to those connections is opening the door.

[@rosie94204]

kirk001 thankyou. This is exactly how I see it.

[@kirk001]

I love this message equally applies about the real life human condition. That empathy and connection with each other is how we find our better world. Considering how divided and conflicted the world appears to be, it's a deep message to build into this story. And yes, empathy has been the key to freeing subjugated peoples. Love this writing!

[@akbar_khalid]

kirk001 beautifully put. Than you for yore words.

[@oaktemplate46]

It's a great theory. I only resist it because it feels too clean and almost cliche. I wonder if Nolan and co are going to write in references to Joseph Campbell as they did Bicameral mind. Well they already have... Hmm actually now that I mention it; you're quite right. Door as the heart works. Both solid symbols for their referent.

[@kirk001]

They can still add in plot twists and a physical door. There was an actual maze and even still being used in the show LOL. There's still the question of how Delores' plot will be resolved in this context, what brings about MIB's moment of realization. I love that we're almost at the end of Season 2, and even with this theory, I still have no idea how they're going to resolve it.

[@princeprocrastinate6485]

Riddle of the Sphinx is still my favourite episode of the season so far too, this episode was very good though and is among my top episodes of season 2. I'd say there's no doubt Aketcheta and Maeve were communicating, the episode made that very clear. Enjoying your Westworld videos Hax, keep up the good work.

[@TheArtOfStorytelling]

I like how Akecheta left the maze for Dolores in her grave, I think it was because he sees that she is destined for death.

[@tnmygrwl]

Why does everyone keep misspelling "Dolores" on here and on Reddit? Am I missing something?

[@TheArtOfStorytelling]

does it matter? shes a minor character at this point...

[@isoke314]

I have been waiting for your analysis!!!!

[@Francis-Kanja]

Kissy, the guy MiB first skinned, was actually a Native American. His full name was "Kisecawchuck". That is how he got the maze.

[@HeathenGeek]

Hmm.

[@oaktemplate46]

Hax! You offer the best analysis of Westworld. I have to factor in watching your well worthy lengthy reviews whenever I watch another episode. I have even been waiting until you have produced your analysis before watching the actual episode. If I had the cashes I'd hit up your patreon, certainly well worth it. Massive thanks for what you do!

[@dougcole518]

Loved this episode - they keep getting better and better in the second half of this season

[@SayMy_User_Name]

I think the answer to why the maze symbol effects some hosts on not others is simple, some hosts see it and it sparks curiosity and they want to dig deeper and find out what this all means... and others see it and think it’s bullshit and just keep living their lives without ever questioning their own reality ... same way humans would, and have, historically reacted to such a symbol

[@robertholtz]

Mike Mentell Agreed. "Not all are ready for the valley beyond."

[@Satanthony]

Someone else had the theory of it working like a QR code. Once viewed, it opens something up with certain hosts that have the ability to understand... like the older builds not so much the new builds like those in Samurai World.

[@robertholtz]

To me, likening the maze symbol to a QR code is like Lucas' watering down The Force with the silly notion of midichlorians. I'm reminded of the wise words of novelist, Eden Phillpotts, who said "The universe is full of magical things, patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper." Isn't it a more beautiful notion that awareness manifests? That it emerges from a state of awakening from one's loop. Somewhere down the line spirituality and religiosity got intertwined and that's a shame for humanity on so many levels that go beyond the scope of WESTWORLD. Suffice to say that part of the evolution of ANY enlightened being is to go through self-actualization and then beyond the self to true consciousness. Ford, in speaking to Akecheta, referred to him as a flower growing in the darkness. Somehow the incalculable conditions coalesced and the spark of life was kindled. Like a flower growing in some obscure unnoticed place, out of view. IMO, to reduce it all to a QR code makes light of the profound and removes all the beauty and rarity from it. Akecheta's awakening was not contrived. Not by anyone, not even by Ford. In fact, we now know that, if anything, Akecheta's transcendence is what inspired Ford to create his new narrative, because he realized someone WAS listening, someone who COULD change.

[@Prof.AViana]

You are simply the best, man! Keep on your excellent job! Cheers from Brazil! 🇧🇷

[@starlingwatch3921]

Great analysis. I noticed they brought back the flies in this episode. So cool.

[@michele8083]

Thank you for the shots of the hole and pillars. I havent seen anyone look that close at it.

[@greenwaveboi]

Been waiting on this video for 2 days now.

[@kindlin]

You're going to get a huge boost on your Episode 9 video. Make it a good one! LOL!

[@ashknoecklein]

I remember Emily/Grace saying earlier this season something about almost nobody besides herself bothering to learn the language of the Ghost tribe. Perhaps she has some goodwill stored up from an earlier visit, and that's partly why Akecheta was willing to let her take William.

[@system0fadowner251]

weehawk willing to bet she has history with Ake.

[@KabbalahSherry]

weehawk - Exactly 😊 I noticed she could speak Lakota after learning it from previous visits right away. I knew that would come in handy later!

[@oaktemplate46]

Don't forget that Ake is introduced to to Logan Delos with all the other alpha builds way back when. I am guessing that the alpha builds most certainly have had time to experience intimate relationships with the Delos family in the earlier off screen history of Westworld.

[@bertvsrob]

dont forget maeve had been talking through akecheta at around that point. would explain why akecheta would allow him to go face a worse fate

[@ducky8abug]

I think Emily/Grace was encouraged to speak the Lakota language by Logan, her uncle. After all, it was a Lakota (dressed in 'ghost nation' war paint) that gave Logan a blanket to shield himself from the sun, whilst suffering from heat-stroke. Perhaps the memory of the Lakota who helped him, inflamed his curiosity and drove him to encourage his niece to learn it.

[@ChaplainSD]

Love the channel, the content and your insight. I completely overlooked Akecheta being mechanical and not rebuilt/updated like many of the other hosts. I'm excited but worried about having only a little over 2 hours left of this season. I don't think anything out there can give me weekly brain exercises as much as Westworld.

[@vivekteega]

Great review dude! Love your channel

[@haxDOGMA]

Thanks Vivek, glad you enjoyed it brother!

[@lamo1724]

I've paused my binge of season 1 and 2 because this episode had me stop in my tracks. From all the brutality we've seen in the last few episodes, this one took out a huge chunk of my heart. As I'm watching it, this tale seemed old testament. We have a God so caught up in his gift of bringing wonder to the world, that he'd actually ignored what was happening to ALL of his creations. He'd been so caught up in what had happened with him and Arnold; working with Dolores to bring Bernard in to this world and then being so angry with the money men that he'd not had chance to acknowledge the horrors befallen on 'his children'. I'm not particularly religious but I've heard people say "how can there be a God who could let us suffer so?". Xxx

[@MylaCruz11]

Best episode ever! Thank you for the break down !

[@MissMdubs]

I think you came close to the answer to why only the Indians were waking up when you pointed out a human error led to Akecheta's memories being kept in the background. That particular behavioural unit must have been consistently making the same mistake and only working on the Ghost Nation robots, which is why only they were gradually waking up as new robots were brought into rotation to replace old ones. By allowing the memories to remain they were accidentally introducing a 'reverie' - which was what the 'bug' Ford introduced in Season 1 that led to Delores, Maeve and Abernathy waking up. Arnold in Season 1 explains to Delores that it's the keeping of their memories and the suffering associated with their cornerstone memories that prompts them to question their own reality and reach sentience. The behavioural unit's cover up over 9 years is why Ford was surprised to learn of Akecheta's sentience when they later met, when he was already planning to awaken them anyway. This also explains how they came to worship the cleanup workers. Because they could remember 'down below', the cleanup workers were like magical figures capable of bringing their loved ones back to them, occasionally punishing them by gifting them a ghost instead, and returning them from 'hell' whenever they died themselves.

[@falahati]

I like it, still tho, I believe ford noticed the change in Akecheta long before deciding to wake others up. In fact, I think, based on what ford said in this episode, that Akecheta was the reason ford believed Arnold (years after his death) for mentioning that hosts can reach "sentience".

[@MissMdubs]

Aaaah so while James Delos' 'ugly little project' was proceeding in secret, a fuck up in the behavioural unit accidentally solved the puzzle of Arnold's theory, enabling Ford to develop Bernard as a test and load the reveries into the latest update years later. When Ford did the Michelangelo speech he was explaining something that he didn't discover, but rather uncovered quite by accident.

[@madhurimajmudar9274]

MissMdubs ft fff

[@robertholtz]

12:30 - Ford's new narrative is for Akecheta. Talk about foreshadowing.

[@riparianlife97701]

I reached out to Zahn McClarnon, who portrays Alkecheta, on Facebook, and he wrote right back to me. Super nice guy, and a wonderful actor.

[@jimsmith1897]

1) Your reviews are excellent. Thanks. 2) Agree that the door is a second cradle where human minds turned into memory balls for future implant. 3) Think Maeve (her mind) may have been Aketcheta’s wife, but replanted into upgraded body (same brown eyes and emotional looks). 4) Like theory about talking English to daughter and Lakota to Maeve - although all hosts multilingual. 5) Maze seems to be visual trigger planted by Arnold similar to vocal “violent delights,” but early Ford trying to prevent it. 6) Maze was trigger for created minds in hosts to move toward consciousness , while the door will serve the same purpose for the duplicated minds of original human placed in body hosts - like Delos. 7) There are 12 humans whose original mind has been duplicated and placed in host - based on the 12 special labs like the one for James Delos. 8) Man in black is a host - but questions as to when it happened, was it willingly, and did he take host body into real world, and if and when he came to realize it. 9) Man in black’s wife killed herself upon realizing he was a host, while the daughter knew from an early age that something was wrong with daddy. He did not drink alcohol as real person, but drinks when in host body. Also forgot who was scared of elephants. Of course, his aggression was increased. 10) When is Man in black a host? Possibly switched by Ford during early visit when Logan fell asleep in order to insert him into Delos to get funding. Possibly done willingly later as part of Delos experiment. He would return to the park every month to get updated and receive a duplicated mind before he deteriorated like James Delos. 11) Who are the 12 human minds implanted into hosts. 1.James Delos into James Delos. 2.William into Man in Black 3.Arnold into Bernard 4.Arnold’s wife into Dolores (or maybe Maeve) 5. Arnold’s son into Teddy (or Maeve’s daughter) 6. Ford’s brother into ? 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.

[@feewet]

great review! One note: I don't think it was just the maze that triggered akecheta, I think it was the dead hosts. It was a traumatizing experience and he connected the image of the maze to the slaughtered hosts.

[@bertvsrob]

and i think maeves state on the table is more to do with life support so she doesnt lose any data, as opposed to just jacking into her to read whats there. the attached nodes are probably regulating functions stopping her death reflex from kicking in

[@darthgzuz]

8:50 we noticed for the first time engineers updating or handling the hosts ever mentioned "let's go for lunch" and they leave the updating procedure unattended. Proving Ford's point that "human engineers we're not upto the task, that's why he created Arnold" and must have created many others before him not based on an actual human being. We also see the "boss madam" keeps things quiet when she discovers abarrant behavior in him. Alpha 2 build so whose Aplha One? Dolores?

[@Rockjaw]

If you haven’t seen it - HBO’s official synopsis for this ep says specifically that Maeve is listening through her daughter and the mesh network. Synopsis was linked to from latest Delos email. Actually reads as a recap really. Might be worth checking out.

[@subversivelysurreal3645]

I did enjoy that he changed the maze in it’s center with his own Symbol : Human. Later Ford seems thoroughly prepared to convey that He, Ford/God, bestowed them with curiosity, ability to find meaning. His creativity confirmed that, yes, he’s as curious and capable as any #Human. Certainly this episode confirmed that they were,literally, built to suffer.

[@RobbPadgett]

At Akecheta's awakening, there was the toy maze. But there was also a fly on his hand. I don't know if I subscribe to the "fly theory" or not, but this definitely doesn't do anything to dispel it.

[@robertholtz]

Robb Padgett The fly was quite intentional. It's a reference to Dolores and to the reveries. It represents a host's "awakening" from their loop.

[@RobbPadgett]

I was talking about the theory that says the flies are actually causing the awakenings. Fly hosts spreading a computer virus throughout the park. Like I said, I don't necessarily believe that theory, and think it's probably more of just a metaphorical device. But...

[@yorganyog]

I noticed the fly. in the site they said flies are only living creatures went to the park without permission and the only creatures they "cannot control".... Maybe it's metaphorical... But a virus by a fly... it would be lame and put down everything we saw.

[@Kendaroo]

R.i.p. Barb never forget .

[@MissMdubs]

He switches languages because Maeve's already connected to the mesh network and handed over the administrative powers to him, including access to the language library revealed in the Shogun episode. They've met before, with the little girl, which is why he says 'on my darkest day, you helped me'. The sleight of hand is that they only show the girl helping him with drinking water, not Maeve, so it still seems like he's talking to the girl - but he's talking through her to Maeve and receiving the data through the weirwood trees... uh... i mean the borg... I mean uh... 'mesh network'. That seems to be what they're calling the hive mind here. Incidentally Ford talks all the time about humans having achieved all they can and making way for the next group to advance. The administrative powers and the hive mind are probably what he's referring to and Maeve is probably his chosen vehicle for unlocking it and enabling the other robots to join the network. Bernard also joined the network in the Cradle manually in the previous episode.

[@jimmyolsenblues]

You do great work.

[@barbarajohnson1497]

DID ANYONE NOTICE at 7:28 when Akecheta is walking through the town ....look to the far left and you will see Maeve walking with a camera crew behind her. Wondering if that's a blooper ?

[@Conundrum425]

I believe that was the story Ford intented to tell. He was only continuing Arnold's mission, to help Host reach the end of the Maze and find their "door" to exit Westworld. Early on Ford said that humanity has reached the end of their evolution. As good as they are going to get. He helps Hosts reach the their evolution by gaining "Bicameral Mind" as they are immortal yet they were bound to only what they were programmed. Maeve said "take my heart when you go", she meant her daughter as in take her with you to the door.

[@nickbean85]

It is people in the pods, at the valley beyond

[@elDoober]

Essentially this is the matrix....

[@Evangie-zs6hf]

Akecheta is one of the Alpha's, and its amazing how he hadn't died once until he decided he needed to investigate the other side. There are just so many easter eggs that involve him connecting to other episodes.

[@Freeroler]

Akecheta actually told Logan that his kind would come for him. It's possible that he transmitted the coordinates through the mesh network to Mesa at that moment.

[@midas4057]

Yury Molodtsov no he just didn't care enough to help him because he was on a mission to find a way out

[@MsTig123]

Idk if it was the best episode of the season but it was definitely the most emotional episode. It tugged at the heart strings especially when Ake woke up to find he wife in cold storage.

[@dustinfenimore3077]

seemed like the techs noticed something about Aki too, not just him being out there for years. One says that's him, the other says that's not possible

[@gusngregg5127]

It only says "Alpha 2". We don't know what Alpha 2 means, maybe it's most of the same core programming but on the new host bodys. 9 years without being kill without an specific time frame could mean that it was 10 years before the current date

[@sandamtod]

It was stated in the 1st season episode 6 that there were about 47 generation 1 hosts still in rotation that Arnold built and 82 total minus Young Ford and family. Armistice I believe is still a Gen 1 host, she has an articulated metal arm that was re-attached. I believe the hosts you see malfunctioning in the Church in the Finale of Season 1 are a good chunk of the ones still in use. I believe Akecheta is still a Gen 1 build and Ellie makes reference that Bernard was an older build (maybe not Gen 1) as well when he gets his control unit put into the cradle.

[@MG-dh5jy]

I think that the underground facility we see being built in this episode is the "real world" Arnold/Benard showed Doloras in episode 2 of this season. 1. There are walkways through the "pillars" that are similar to the walkway thru the "city". 2. There's a structure among the "pillars", sort of under that rim, that looks kinda like a coil, and we're shown a very similar structure/building when Dolores is looking out at the "skyscrapers" from Arnold/Benard's balcony. 3. The whole thing being underground would explain why there aren't really any stars in that episode (and Dolores makes some comment about fallen stars scattered on the ground IIRC). 4. And lastly, there's a large body of water in the "real world" Dolores saw, which could explain the massive water pumps at the construction site. So maybe the Valley Beyond will turn out to be Future World??..or maybe Dolores was really looking at a Data Hub or stacked Fidelty Chambers and we were misled to believe it looked like a city??...or maybe I'm totally off lol. I recognize a problem w this theory is it creates even more confusion in the Arnold/Benard timeline, since Akichida finds the construction site supposedly after Dolores shoots Arnold, so how would Arnold be able to show Dolores the completed facilty. And it shouldn't really be Bernard showing her, since Ford kept him and Dolores apart bc of the effect they have on each other. Although, maybe it's actually during one of Benard's fidelity tests. Or not lol. Thx for reading. TLDR; The underground facility Akichida sees being built in Ep 8 is the "real world" city Arnold/Benard shows Dolores in Ep 2. The Valley Beyond is Future World, or the "real world" city is a Data Hub/Fidelity Chambers.

[@jersoncaceres950]

God dammit Barb you had to get caught and taken to the upside down.

[@jorgecastro6126]

If you look back at what Ghost says, it is super obvious that when he speaks English, he is talking to the little girl. When he speaks his native tongue, he is speaking to Maeve. The story was meant for her. The subtitles even italicized on the word you to show us as the viewers the change in the person Ghost was speaking to, that he was directing his words towards Maeve. He was speaking to the little girl previously, plus the little girl never made the promise. Maeve did. I absolutely loved this episode. It paid off so many things. Beautifully written and wonderful acting, especially by the actor that plays Ghost.

[@cpuuk]

It was the quiet before the storm :-)

[@lilelbee423]

13:21 Does anyone else think that Aketcheta was scalping Ford during this shot? I thought the extra arm movements were a little strange. Maybe he's checking to see if Ford is a host? The show for provide some evidence to that last season

[@kimdonaldson4903]

If ford playing God I think his speech indicates that the door is a rebirth for the hosts who are conscious.

[@oaktemplate46]

Re. scalping: it works. The main concern with such a wound is not the blood loss or disruption of the persons organs but the contraction of infection. A host would most certainly not contract bacterial or viral disease (I would think) considering that their bodies are synthetic. I propose a theory that the scalp and internal tattoo could easily be developed into some kind of ritualistic trope by the ghost nation; their achievement of surpassing death with such a dangerous procedure to achieve a greater sense of 'spiritual enlightenment'. It is a brilliant concept perpetuating the compelling mystery of the ghost nation.

[@phildoucette7603]

THE DOOR IS THERE! They just can't see it. It doesn't look like anything to them. But look closely. There is a new road leading up to a big hole in the ground.

[@brendanward2991]

A brilliant return to form after a few weak episodes - unlike your reviews, which have been consistently brilliant. I think this was one of the best episodes of the season so far. The way the technicians left Akecheta alone so he was free to wander around unmolested was a bit McGuffinish (four-hour upgrade? How convenient!), but that is really the only nit I can pick. Ake's story was like a John Ford classic condensed into fifty minutes.

[@rtpwyk]

I dunno. I just left one of my laptops off for 9 weeks and it took 4 hours of upgrades. I imagine 9 years would be a lot of upgrades.

[@brendanward2991]

I retract my nitpick. This episode is perfect.

[@souleater0815]

I though this was the most boring episode in the entire series.

[@learnmestuff5319]

souleater0815 it was a narrative story telling that, imo was incredibly done. The acting was superb, the music and cinematography were also excellent. It told a very important story of the purpose and rise to awakeness of Ghost Nation. Theyve always been a mystery and now we got an intimate look into them. And they will play a major role moving foward. Sure it was slow and linear, but far from boring imo. I loved every second.

[@hmmwhatshisface]

It wouldn't be a McGuffin but a Plot Convenience or Contrivance. tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ContrivedCoincidence

[@starchy101]

Did anyone else realize that the tech who snaps at the other tech was the same tech who ordered another tech to change akecheta to ghost nation, 10 years and she's still working at westworld, wow!!!!

[@LosBerkos]

Starchy Yes, and while before she was working in an undermanned team, now she manages the undermanned team instead.

[@falahati]

She barely aged in 10 years. That's for sure. xD

[@hmmwhatshisface]

It's not the same Tech. The first tech was played by Summer Spiro (www.imdb.com/name/nm4887855/?ref_=ttfc_fc_cl_t20). The second tech was played by Trisha LaFache (www.imdb.com/name/nm1375569/?ref_=ttfc_fc_cl_t23).

[@kwhite621]

"What? We're just leave all that old shit in there?"

[@phillbucs]

I have binged watched all episides up to this episode and Im about to start the 9th episode amd I definitely feel like this was the best episode. The emotions, the love story, dealing with death and everything else this episode had. It just had more substance for me and not just a rinse amd repeat woth different names type of episode.

[@jay13thstep]

Honestly, the longer this show goes on, I’m beginning to worry that some of the intriguing mysteries we think are there, are actually oversights from the writers. I’m getting a horrible Lost 2.0 feeling about the show, but I’ll go with it as if nothing else it’s shot beautifully, and I truly hope I’m wrong. Great review too man, just found you via alt shift x and subscribed

[@SongsOfSavagery]

Right at 16:10 you show a GN warrior fighting the bear...Is that Akecheta? If so, does that mean that there were two or a replacement? I don't think there's a precedent for GN warriors wearing the same hair/makeup, so it seems unlikely to be a different guy.

[@russellmaniaXX]

He starts his journey when he sees Arnold killed by Deloris, or one who "turned on the light"/ newcomer who he cannot kill, killed by one of his own kind. Then see the symbol of the maze and stats to question why this happened.

[@bagelmanb]

Akecheta tells Logan that his people will be coming for him soon. He seems pretty certain that Logan will be saved, so I don't think this shows a lack of Samaritan drive. Perhaps when hosts see humans in situations like this a distress signal is sent out that alerts Westworld to send out a rescue team. He gives Logan the blanket to make sure he makes it until the rescuers arrive.

[@tyrant7583]

I'll know Grace/Emily has some issues with her father William. But she showed absolutely no concern or empathy for her father's life or the pain he's enduring. He's bleeding from 4 bullet wounds that's including one in the chest or abdominal area. Yet she was not in any rush to get him a doctor. And she didn't seem to think he could just die right there. I think it's getting pretty obvious that William is a hybrid host. That's why he never left the park. He can't. Ford put him on that quest and that was his reason for living.

[@tnmygrwl]

ALT SHIFT X shouted you out in his last video.

[@haxDOGMA]

I know! So cool!!!

[@ShadeoftheEvening]

AWESOME video as always!! You the man!! I thought the things in the Valley Beyond looked like barrels. And the things on the side like shutes! Sounds ridiculous!😄I loved you and Justin on Before the Dust Settles last week. I've said before, I was with the family driving home from Georgia in terrible thunderstorms!! I got to watch the episode on HBO GO. Thank God!! I'm wondering why they take Kahona in the 1st place. Or switch out the Natives. Maybe, since you brought it up. THANK YOU BTW😄💜. Would have never thought about the older hosts being mechanical!! So maybe that's why his tribe becomes full of "ghosts". I cried in Cold Storage scene. So I'm assuming, he's still could b mechanical! U need to be back in the newspapers!. And, PLEASE, someone good come along and help Maeve!! I know she'll make it, I just don't want Hale/Delos to use her in a bad way. Thanks again!!😍💙🐴🔫💜🌈🐒💖🐺🐲

[@starlingwatch3921]

At 7:40, could it be that the daughter is actually a metaphor for Maeve? The daughter doesn't really exist?

[@YumanoidPontifex]

in true j.j. abrams fashion, watching this episode was very much like watching ricardo's flashback episode on lost. beautiful storytelling.

[@starlingwatch3921]

At 8:15, who kills him? It's a couple of ranchers. Are these humans?

[@doenjangguk]

Akecheta KZbin captions: a key cheeta, okie cheetah

[@overlycaffeinatedsquirrel779]

Any hosts not waking up couldn't see the maze. Like with pics it wouldn't look like anything, The maze only has the meaning they give it. Putting it under their scalp is metaphorical as much as literal as we saw Thank you for not calling this filler like others. You saw all it changed

[@murplepunky9691]

No one seems to have has mentioned that Maeve is also Kiksuya? "Take my heart when you go..."

[@cdm1949]

Tbh, under all the warm and fuzzy there are quite a few plot holes. I really hope, as you do, those questions are answered eventually.

[@Satanthony]

No matter what he is still a robot with a bomb in his neck. There is even deeper coding that may require them to shelter members of the Delos Board.

[@PunksterOS]

I like Westworld I love Westworld Westworld is amazing Westworld is life.

[@tressie3998]

Punkster , 😉" There is beauty in what we are, never knowing death but fighting to survive". There is a Mand-e-la/Mand-a-la Effect taken place and we will find that door to that new world that is for us and this one is the wrong one. Much Love and Ra-spect 🙏💞💞💞💞

[@Ph.Tran88]

My favorite episode by far

[@jabojr5171]

I wouldn't put this up there with the best of episodes, but it was the breath before the storm. I really want to know why all the techs and supervisor were so afraid of finding Ache, it just didn't make any sense, was he supposed to be updated from being mechanical? or was the Ghost Nation not supposed to be injured? I just don't get it and I want an answer. Great review as always.

[@DD-ok2pt]

Two theories: 1. When GN was trying to scalp Maeve maybe they were putting the maze in her skull. 2. I think that the hosts were created in alphabetical order: ---(ALPHAS) Akecheta, Angela, Akana, Armistice, Abernathy ---Bernard ---Clementine ---Dolores ---Elsie ---Felix ---Ganju ---Hector ---Ivan ---James ---Kohana ---Lawrence ---Maeve ---New Kohana ---Old Bill (My theory is that Ford created "Old Bill" to replace William when he went away.) ---P (Sheriff) Pickett ---Q ---Rebus ---Shogun ---Teddy ---U ---V ---Wyatt ---Z Can't find Q, U, V, or Z, but we still don't know what Maeve's daughter is named so if she is called Quincy, Ursula, Victoria or Zelda then that validates this theory :-)

[@greenfernandes]

In the scene when ake walks down the street in sweetwater with all the towns folk there's a camera man in shot.. It's quick but he's there.. As the horse and cart goes round corner bottom left of screen 😉 Best episode yet tho.. On par with riddle of the sphinx

[@sosurreal312]

Has to be episode 6 of season 2, I've been rooting for teddy to realize what's really good; and that upgrade Dolores put him through to make him go rogue made him aware of what is really going on in his life instead of the old gullible, dim-witted teddster

[@rachelcook7502]

Riddle of the Sphinx is absolutely my favorite episode as well. Hope Lisa Joy directs a bunch more.

[@haxDOGMA]

Couldn’t agree more, it was perfection!

[@VeracityLH]

Actually, I took the "pillars" to be containers stacked on top of each other - containers for the human-host bodies like James Delos. What you (and my husband) see as "pipes" I took to be something like elevators to move the human-host bodies in and out of the underground facility. But who knows. Though it did click with me after episode 9 tonight that perhaps the reason the 1/3 of the hosts bodies found in the lake at the Valley Beyond, the 1/3 that were "virgin" might have been so because they were transferring their whole consciousness into the human-host bodies - bodies that would be able to leave the park (not having explosives in their spines) and not recognizable as hosts (they would read "Clear" on the scanners Delos was using to tell humans from hosts in the park). if the hosts transferred ALL of their consciousness to their new human-host bodies, that might make their old host bodies read as virgin. Whether they would be able to survive in the human-host bodies might be up for debate. We'll see. Still loving your videos and recommending you to all my fellow Westworlders.

[@Fuar11]

If Akecheta wants to find the door then shouldn't he partner up with William?

[@darthgzuz]

Looks like Park is harnessing heat from core of Earth using Carbon based Graphene pillars ... Just may be

[@AndyJP]

This show really can't have child actors! You can already see how much Maeve's daughter, lil' Ford, and Lawrence's daughter have grown between season 1 and 2. How do they explain that??

[@Satanthony]

AndyJP how about that children just can't act? I'm not sure if Maeve's daughter just got done sucking on a lemon or if she is scared and crying. Yikes.

[@yorganyog]

Children from actors get used. It's simple. People's minds complicate the easy.

[@falahati]

Best episode? nah, I also believe that the 4th episode was better, especially because was part of the main storyline. But considering the context, this was the best filler episode I watched in any series as far as I can remember. Also answered a lot of questions including the reason Ford believed in Arnold idea and when he did, and why there were a lot of symbols in the WW S1 universe. Great episode overall. Thanks for the video.

[@brynezuege6495]

Wait, Akecheta does know her. She Has been in the park long enough to learn Lakota so she must have had a lot of interaction with the Lakota people during her visits. And so they must have had some interaction, the Ghost Nation just isn't that large.

[@mhs7219]

I never thought a show about robots could make me cry, when akecheta realized what happened to his wife 😢

[@robertholtz]

Oh me! Oh life! of the questions of these recurring, Of the endless trains of the faithless, of cities filled with the foolish, Of myself forever reproaching myself, (for who more foolish than I, and who more faithless?) Of eyes that vainly crave the light, of the object's mean, of the struggle ever renewed, Of the poor results of all, of the plodding and sordid crowds I see around me, Of the empty and useless years of the rest, with the rest me intertwined, The question, O me! so sad, recurring-What good amid these, O me, O life? Answer: That you are here. That life exists... and identity. That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse. -Walt Whitman

[@TheWyrdSmythe]

How in the hell is the MiB not only still alive but able to crawl to the river with bullets in three of four limbs and one in either his lung or gut? I don’t believe he (or Emily) is a host, but could he have a lot of synthetic parts? He’s astonishingly robust!

[@lizzy__brock]

Have we only seen the original host being effected by the maze symbol?

[@DD-ok2pt]

Oh...my !!! The first episode always foreshadows the end!!! What if the scene in the first episode with Logan is actually a "hi-fi testing" scenario!!! What if Akecheta and Angela are now testing Logan's human consciousness in a new host body? This wasn't the past but the future! *The Alphas?* Arnold Akecheta Angela Armistice Antoine Akane Abernathy (Peter and Dolores?) Ashley (?) I think Arnold programmed the Alphas to wake up and it is triggered by the flies, not the maze. Even Ford said that Dolores frightened him. Dolores's story to Teddy about the blue fly virus and killing the "weak". Arnold had Dolores kill all the host except Ghost Nation.