Howdy, fellow humans who are definitely not robots who just think you’re humans, and welcome to our review of HBO’s science fiction series, Westworld. This is the first episode that follows the point of view of Akecheta of Ghost Nation. Through him, we finally learn the extent of Dr. Ford’s influence in the park, we learn how humanity is its own worst enemy, and we learn how true love expands the heart. Aww! There will be heavy plot spoilers for season two episode eight only. So find the door, and wait a few decades to walk through it for dramatic effect, here are five thoughts on Westworld season two, episode eight: “Kiksuya.”
1. Dehumanized
This is the first time we follow the point of view of Akecheta of Ghost Nation. His first Westworld loop is idyllic, living the simple life with his wife Kohona. Later, he is remade into a violent warrior, for a more exciting narrative. Specifically, he is made to speak less, to be somewhat dehumanized, “so the guests don’t feel bad when they kick his ass.” It’s interesting that, though Westworld is sold to guests as a hyper-realistic immersive simulation, behind the scenes we see this confession that “bad guy” robots are made to be less realistic for a more enjoyable guest experience. Westworld is supposed to show guests who they truly are, but that aim isn’t served by presenting guests with one dimensional characters.
The active dehumanization of Akecheta echoes the way Native Americans have often been portrayed in American media, particularly in Western cinema, from which Westworld draws a great deal of inspiration. In Western cinema, Native Americans are often relegated to the polarized roles of “noble savage” or unfeeling enemy. Akecheta has lived both of these lives, and his awakening (which, by the way, is the only robot awakening that occurs without any influence from Dr. Ford), represents the rejection of that binary.
2. Dr. Ford’s Limited Influence
Surprise! It turns out Dr. Ford is not controlling Ghost Nation. Akecheta’s journey to self-discovery begins when he stumbles upon the aftermath of Dolores’ / Wyatt’s original murder spree, and finds Arnold’s son’s toy maze. At this point, Dr. Ford is against robot sentience and self-determination, so he definitely has no hand in this. Dr. Ford only discovers Akecheta is on this journey much later, after he has changed his mind about the kind of life robots should have. Akecheta discovers The Door without any help from Dr. Ford. Dr. Ford only tells him to gather everyone and head for The Door once Deathbringer aka Dolores has murdered him, and so that is what Akecheta is now doing.
The revelation that Akecheta is truly sentient on his own terms supports the idea that Maeve and Dolores are both truly sentient at this point too. Though Dr. Ford heavily influenced their respective awakenings by making them more perceptive and paranoid, and though Dr. Ford outright scripted Maeve’s first escape from the Westworld laboratories, he is no longer controlling them so literally. Bernarford is now the only main character being directly controlled by Dr. Ford, having his digitized consciousness living in his brain. Since the cradle was destroyed, it’s unclear if Dr. Ford is still able to control the other less awakened robots, like, for example, Lawrence’s daughter, whom he was able to speak through directly to William.
3. Congratulations, You Played Yourself
Akecheta finds Logan naked in the desert, mumbling madly to himself, as he had been abandoned there by William. Logan says “This is the wrong world” and Akecheta interprets this (in a way, correctly), as a prophecy. William’s mistreatment of Logan, in a roundabout way, has aided Akecheta’s awakening. Decades later, William is Akecheta’s prisoner. Additionally, though William has spent decades obsessing over Westworld, he never learned the Lakota language spoken by Ghost Nation. In these ways, William is now reaping the misery he sowed himself. Logan too represents the power structure behind Westworld, and has a hand in its undoing. He also literally destroys himself when he dies from a drug overdose.
The Westworld employees who find out Akecheta has mistakenly gone without an update for a whole decade also have a role in their own undoing when they keep it hidden, fearing they will be blamed. Their bosses hold the real responsibility though, because they should have fostered a more supportive work environment where employees feel comfortable pointing out errors in order to better the system. Ultimately, the robots are not humanity’s undoing; humanity is its own undoing.
Continued below4. Akecheta’s Love Vs. William’s Obsession
William falls in love with Dolores very quickly after meeting her. He sees “something real” in her, and he believes she brings out “something real” in him. When William finally accepts that Dolores is a robot, he can’t believe he ever loved her. He calls her a thing, to be used. When Akecheta finds Kohana in cold storage (wow, she was literally fridged), he has the opposite reaction. Recognizing her robotity does not make her less “real” to him, but it makes all the other robots more real to him. He realizes they are all missed by someone, even if their memories have been erased. Before, his goal was to escape Westworld with Kohana, but afterwards, he sees his duty to rescue as many robots as he can. William the human is less capable of true love than Akecheta the robot. William’s false “love” that is actually objectification and obsession shuts him off emotionally; Akecheta’s real love opens up his heart, and expands his emotional bandwidth.
5. “Take My Heart When You Go”
In Akecheta’s former idyllic life with Kohna, when he’d leave, she’d say “Take my heart when you go” to which he’d reply “Take mine in its place.” It was a sweet, touching exchange of love in the cold loveless place that is Westworld. When Maeve speaks to Akecheta through her daughter, she repeats this phrase to him, and it takes on a couple of meanings. First, it is an earnest expression of empathy. Maeve wants Akecheta to be free and happy, living life on his own terms. Second, her “heart” is a metaphor for her daughter, whom she loves. Her daughter is her heart, and Maeve gives Akecheta her blessing to take care of her heart. Once again, instead of shutting down, Maeve’s love for her daughter allows her love to expand. She is no longer only concerned with rescuing her daughter and living a life together. Now she is invested in happiness and freedom for all robots, and she’s invested in freedom and happiness for her daughter even if it means they’ll have to be apart.
The title of this episode, “Kiksuya,” means, “remember.” Memory is foundational to self-determination and personal growth, because we (real life humans and robots alike) learn from our past mistakes and successes. Nowhere is this more evident than in the story of Akecheta. He is the only robot to have found the center of his maze without assistance from Dr. Ford. This is in large part due to his luck of not getting killed for a decade. Robots are only updated when they die, so he was uniquely able to keep his memories longer than any other robot in the park. It’s profound that Akecheta in particular has this opportunity because he represents victims of genocide. One aim of genocide is to erase cultural memory. Akecheta’s ability to remember his own personal life is a metaphor for keeping cultural memory alive despite evil attempts to erase it. Until next time, the center of your maze may yet await.
