30 April 2018

The Big Reveal

There was a big reveal last night on WestWorld (Season 2, Episode 2, "Reunion") Well, not really: It was implicit from the very first episode of the first season, obvious after the third episode, and inevitable after the sixth.

<SPOILER ALERT> Delos — the "corporation" that owns WestWorld, although it's as much a true "corporation" in apparent operation as is Harriman Enterprises, whose namesake is also "Delos" — is the result of merging FaceBook, Cambridge Analytica, and Apple… with a little bit less self-deception/disingenuousness regarding "nobility of purpose" (or even "sociopathy"). In one of the flashback scenes, William the Younger admitted that WestWorld would involve pervasive monitoring of Guests, taking advantage of the fact that the Guests think nobody will be watching. He implied that it would be for marketing and advertising… but Logan's escapades during the episode demonstrate that obtaining material for blackmail is at least as important, especially considering the scope of the purported "market" for WestWorld (the 0.1%ers).

I'm shocked. Shocked, I say.