The long-awaited third season of Westworld has arrived, at last. The first two seasons built up into a cliffhanger which left fans on edge, endlessly speculating about what is to come next. After much anticipation, many are likely to binge any and all episodes as soon as they are released, and one can hardly blame them.
With such compacted viewing, however, it's not always easy to keep track of all that transpires. This is a mind-warping show to begin with, calling for viewers to constantly re-trace their steps even when they thought they had a hang of what's been going on. Here are 10 notable moments from the first episode, re-traced for you.
Dolores Kills Jerry
The first episode of season three opens to a temperamental ex-incite employee, Jerry, reaming out his financial assistant. Delos stocks have dropped after the uprising in Westworld, and Jerry is not pleased. Cut to later that night, and Jerry awakes to find that his smart-house seems to be acting of its own accord—of course, it's Dolores. She takes over his technology, transfers his computer information to her, and then kills him.
Humans Have Implants
When we meet Caleb, it's quickly made apparent that he struggles from mental troubles. It is suggested that his life might be easier if he turns his implant back on, as it helps "smooth out rough edges." This highlights the fact that the world outside of Westworld is not extremely different from that of Westworld-—technology pervades everything, even human minds, making them similar to the Hosts.
Dolores Activates Connells
Connells begins as the muscle of Incite; he spends his time intimidating Liam and making sure he goes along with what Incite wants. This character doesn't last very long—at least in the original form of Connells—because, not long after he kidnaps Dolores, she strikes back and kills him. No sooner is he dead than a perfect replica of Connell appears. Dolores obviously planned things this way.
Bernard Seeks Out A Theme Park
Bernard is spending his time in the meat industry, living on some farm where he switches from feeding calves to dealing with meat. It's not clear how he got here or ended up in this position, but it doesn't last long, anyway.
Bernard is soon recognized for who he is and takes this as a sign to escape. His next destination is back to the theme parks to find someone he's looking for... well, we don't know who.
Maeve Wakes In A Theme Park
Maeve, assumed dead at the end of the second season, rises again, this time in what quickly becomes apparent to be yet another theme park. We have no idea how she got there, and it seems strange that such a problematic host would be so easily re-distributed. However, it doesn't take long for Maeve to realize that her reality doesn't make much sense, either.
Liam Thinks Dolores Is Dead
When human Connells kidnaps Dolores from Liam's apartment, Liam has little control over what happens to her, and it's clear from Connell's intentions that he means to kill Dolores. This leaves Liam in a state of ignorance for the next episode; he doesn't know who Dolores is, what she is capable of, and that she remains alive.
Caleb Is In Therapy
Caleb spends a lot of the first episode answering calls to his phone from the same person, that person being Francis. We never meet Francis, but we are allowed some insight into the fact that Caleb is ex-military and that Francis is meant to have served with him.
Caleb attends therapy, where his counselor inquires about his conversation with Francis and whether they are helpful. It becomes clear that Frances is just another robot. Whether he actually exists as a human elsewhere is not yet known.
Caleb Alludes To Having Been Shot
Caleb comes off as one of the few genuinely sensitive people in the show, but, when he is faced with a high-pressure situation, he is mostly unphased. After dropping off a parcel dictated by Rico, Caleb senses that something strange is going on and lingers in the area. The man he dropped the parcel with threatens Caleb with a gun, to which he doesn't flinch, but rather expresses that this is nothing new to him.
The Rico App
Caleb uses an app called Rico in order to commit crimes. He needs to use this app to make money, as we see him struggling to make ends meet with his construction job. The Rico app lays bare the basic fact that the human society existent in the show is a corrupt one, yet one not so different from the reality of today where people in dire circumstances resort to crime.
Caleb Doesn't Like "Personals"
The one thing that Caleb won't do with the Rico app is "personals," the term used for assignments that require killing people. Caleb seems like a morally driven person, someone who reluctantly resorts to the things that he does. He doesn't want to hurt anybody, yet, by the end of the episode, he winds up attending to a "personal" by some unfortunate misunderstanding—or so it seems. This instance feels like a foreshadowing of Caleb being tricked into further roads he would prefer not to go down.