Westworld Spoilers Club season 2, episode 2: Reunion The second episode of the season drops subtle clues with big ramifications; The Verge, April 30, 2018

Bryan Bishop, The Verge; Westworld Spoilers Club season 2, episode 2: Reunion

The second episode of the season drops subtle clues with big ramifications

[SPOILERS BELOW]





"...[O]n the matter of the true agenda of the parks themselves, the episode’s revelations raise questions that the show will almost certainly have to engage. For 30 years, Delos parks have been secretly gathering data on their guests. How is that data being used? Have guests been blackmailed, extorted, or otherwise had the records of their trips used against them as futuristic, Wild West kompromat? And what would the corporate consequences be if the existence of such a project was made public? Given that Bernard was not giving proper access to the drone host lab, it seems evident that only people at the highest levels are aware of the data collection initiative, with non-networked hosts used in the facility to help cut down on the chance of leaks.

Given all that, Peter Abernathy — and the data he’s carrying in his head — becomes much more than just a moving plot device. He is quite literally the future of Delos, Inc. itself. Should he fall into the wrong hands, with the data collection initiative made public, it could take down the entire company. It’s a timely storyline, coming right at the time that online services like Facebook are facing more public scrutiny than ever. And no doubt that’s exactly what Joy and Nolan are aiming for."

Jonathan Nolan Responds To That Westworld Location Theory; Slashfilm.com, 10/17/16

Peter Sciretta, Slashfilm.com; Jonathan Nolan Responds To That Westworld Location Theory:

Minor spoilers re "Westworld" plot themes

[Kip Currier: Viewers of Season 1 of the popular new HBO series "Westworld"--a reimagined reboot of the 1973 film, based on Michael Crichton's eponymous novel--have increasingly seen the protect-at-all-costs value of Westworld's Intellectual Property, as well as privacy concerns. Showrunners Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy Nolan touch on these issues below:]

"In regards to the computer terminals where the Delos staff communicate to their loved ones back home, [Lisa Joy Nolan] says:

Regardless of where they are, the park is very, very vast, and you don’t rotate home often. You don’t have open communication where you can just pick up a phone. Even senior people have to go to the coms room – because [the park is] protecting their intellectual property. We’re hoping to paint a portrait of the culture of the corporation.

[Jonathan] Nolan (who was a showrunner on Person of Interest, a series about a computer system that could analyze all forms of public and private data to predict the future) seems to be very interested in the aspect of big brother looking in on our communications. As for how it relates to Westworld, he says the Delos corporation wants to protect its intellectual property and the privacy of the park’s guests:

In Westworld, the value of the park is all in its intellectual property, it’s all in the code. So regardless of the park’s location, they would be extremely careful with that code and making sure its virtually impossible to smuggle it out of the park. And there’s the privacy of the guests – you’re not going to have a good time in Westworld if somebody is Instagramming your activities. I’m amazed [th]at [sic] Las Vegas has survived the Instagram age. In episode 2, when the guests come in, we don’t see this, but we assume these guys have cell phones that they’re not allowed to bring in the park. We very much think this is a path where culture may be going – that we’ll get over-exposed and sick of the interconnectedness of our lives that we’ll hunger for places [that offer disconnected privacy]. We’ll hunger for a moment where we can go back toward having some privacy."