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Japanese style paint it black westworld12/29/2023 ![]() ![]() ![]() When a narrative involving the local Shogun demanding to purchase Sakura, we see that the awakening has spread to this world, because instead of following her script, Akane kills the messenger and refuses to give up Sakura. Maeve's doppelbot is a Geisha madam named Akane (Kikuchi) who shares Maeve's physical skills, smarts and maternal instincts, this time for a young geisha named Sakura (Kiki Sukezane). After Maeve convinces everyone to chill out, we see them all interacting, and it's the funniest sequence this series has delivered, especially with Armistice and her dragon-tattooed twin, looking like they're on drugs. Sizemore admits he used similar stories and characters in both worlds, so their little band has direct "doppelbots," as Sizemore calls them, inside the Shogun version of the Mariposa. So it seems there's been some plagiarism going on in the parks, or at least, creative borrowing. And lo and behold, certain members of the warrior's crew are behaving just like Hector (Rodrigo Santoro) and Armistice's (Ingrid Bolsø Berdal) crew, robbing a house of pleasure, tying up a safe in a net of ropes and including a tattooed female sidekick as one of its members. It seems even more familiar when an orchestral version of Paint it Black starts playing, which astute fans will remember scored the shootout in the very first episode of the series. The warrior who swung at Maeve when we last saw her in Episode 3 missed her, thank goodness, but his group captures hers and brings it into a town, which seems a little familiar. It is, at the very least, more compelling than Westworld, from the moment we arrive. There, I said it.Īs Sizemore tells it, the park, based on feudal Japan, is an experience for those who think Westworld is "too tame" (which has me wondering why the Man in Black isn't there to practice more of his sadism, but that's a question for another episode). Shogun World is way better than Westworld. If Westworld wants to keep surprising us, I prefer it find new and gripping characters and exciting new worlds than "this person was actually a host all along" twists. The episode gets a big assist from Rinko Kikuchi ( Pacific Rim) as Akane, Maeve's counterpart in Shogun World and the emotional center of the episode. More: 'Westworld' recap: A return, a reveal and a twist that changes everything in Episode 4 (We also briefly check in with Bernard in the "present" and learn there was a big fire at a location called "the cradle," but I'm sure we'll revisit that later.) ![]() And Maeve's journey is so compelling that it makes Dolores's rebellion seem almost dull. The episode focused almost exclusively on Maeve (Thandie Newton) in Shogun World and Dolores (Evan Rachel Wood) back in Westworld. One of the prevailing issues with the first season of HBO's series was that Ford's (Anthony Hopkins) role-playing amusement park was all about building compelling narratives for the guests, but the park itself ended up being the least interesting part of the show.īut with a jump to Shogun World, the park was finally fascinating enough to stand on its own. I'm not talking about the writers of the series, but rather Sizemore (Simon Quarterman) and the rest of the Delos employees tasked with making their robot worlds real. The Westworld writers have finally figured out a way to get me interested in their narrative. Spoiler alert! The following contains details from Westworld Season 2, Episode 5, "Akane No Mai." Watch Video: What would 'Westworld' cast most want to mimic in their robot hosts? ![]()
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