Title: Westworld Season 3 Episode 7: “Passed Pawn” Review
Release Date: April 26, 2020
Network: HBO
Genre: Science Fiction
The war in Westworld has kicked off in more ways than one. While it did kick-off last week, it really went into effect this week. The two sides are starting to take each other’s pawns and blood is running in the street.
For most of season three, what was really going on, what Deloris wanted and just why the big monitoring database was such a danger have been massive questions. We finally got some clarity on that. The clarity especially arrived for just why the why an AI that monitors the entire world is so dangerous. We also got a more concrete example of how it is steering people towards their destiny.
That was a nice touch and a welcome one. I’m not even mad they waited until the season’s second to last episode to do it. Turns out we shouldn’t have known any earlier. They also tied a nice bow onto Caleb’s role in a series that was otherwise just annoying. I need to stop doubting that the writers are indeed going to have a reason for everyone and everything they show us. We knew there was more to his story but just what it was, despite hinting at it all season long, as pulled off very well.
That doesn’t mean Westworld Season 3, Episode 7 was perfect. There were some plot holes that were never really filled in. The show tends to excuse those as “technology!” As long as you go along with it, and suspend disbelief then the show goes down quite a bit easier.
The Three Amigos
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Westworld is always better when William is around. Now that he’s teamed up with Stubbs and Bernard, I just want to see the last episode turn into a kind of buddy cop movie. When they find “man in black” at his mental hospital, they bust him out and hit the road. It’s not entirely clear where they’re going or why. We’ll find out next week I suppose. It seems they’re going after “Charloris” though I’m not sure how they know where to find her. The twist at the end involving them is also a bit weird, considering the situation they find themselves. Though we know William isn’t really in his right mind.
Caleb
When I say that we finally found out the backstory of Caleb, we really found out the character’s backstory. It turns out his backstory ties in nicely with why the big bad in this story is indeed the big bad. There are still some questions as to why this particular character is so important to Delores as far as the one who, as Bernard says, is going to end the world. Of course, we’ll certainly find out why next episode in the season finale.
Caleb’s story is also instrumental in explaining just how the system is controlling this particular world. That had been a question of mine basically since the beginning of the series. I knew there was some planning and some predicting, but it simply didn’t click why the system was so sinister. This shows exactly why and how. It also shows the control Westworld kept talking about wasn’t as passive as it was first made out to be. That’s a very good thing as it makes the war that’s unfolding quite a bit more clear. It also throws some real questions into the mix including, who is the bad guy and who is the good guy in this scenario.
The World Outside
One of the biggest issues Westworld has with this season is one that continues on and that’s showing a world that is supposed to have basically collapsed. On the one hand, when Deloris released everyone’s profile, there seemed to be some very limited reactions from people on the train but then other than some nutters driving by in a car, the collapse seemed more like a few people blowing off steam.
Even as we’ve seen more evidence of the world coming to an end, things have been weirdly quiet. Some of this week’s episode took care of that by taking place out in the middle of nowhere. On the other hand, the episode opened in a night club of some kind, and the people there seemed to be just fine. And then there was the gas station that seemed to be staged in the apocalypse. Westworld writers don’t seem to know exactly how they want to depict the end of the world and that’s a problem as we face the final blows next week.
Verdict: The action and adventure that was shown off in the seventh episode of this season of Westworld was a fun romp, but there were still some questions that weren’t answered, including where did Maeve’s assassin’s come from and how were they there? There’s also the issue of why Charlotte decided to turn against Deloris and what that’s going to mean next week. The good news is as the show barrels towards the end of the season, it appears to be in very good shape.
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