(Spoiler warning: we’re talking Westworld, so you’d better be caught up.)
After answering all the big questions in its spectacular first season finale, Westworld has left us to invent mysteries about where the next season is headed all on our own (or with the help of the piano-playing android in the saloon next door). Dolores evolved with a bang, Maeve infiltrated Samurai World on her way out of the building, The Man in Black got his wish for real danger, and Logan rode off literally bareback into the sunset.
It’s possible that we won’t see season two until 2018 (building a futuristic theme park takes a lot of time), but we already have the title for the first episode, courtesy of showrunner Jonathan Nolan.
Continuing to toy with the Westworld fans on Reddit, Nolan has dropped an image of the first episode script that’s almost assuredly titled “Journey Into Night,” which is also the name of Dr. Ford’s new (last) in-world narrative. Here’s the image, spotted by Westworld Watchers:
Keep in mind that titles have changed before. The fourth episode went from “Six Impossible Things” to “Dissonance Theory,” so this one isn’t set in stone. Fortunately, the title also doesn’t give much of the game away. It’s the most obvious choice, really. Dr. Ford ended the first season by announcing a new, incipient world order filled with new beings who would need to figure out their place and their path.
The title (both for the episode and the game narrative) evokes Eugene O’Neill’s play Long Day’s Journey into Night, which, super appropriately, features an awful family arguing and conjuring their absolute worst characteristics out into the open. If the show is winking in that direction, we can expect a painful birthing process on the way to our new robotic offspring. But then, we could have guessed that already, right? It was always bound to be violent and delightful.
My one concern about all of this is that Nolan hasn’t learned a lesson about poking a beehive keen on guessing spoilers. He and showrunner Lisa Joy were shocked that all the twists were (for the most part) guessed by fans, but they led everyone easily to the time jump by drawing attention to the different logos. He obviously loves interacting, but I’m hoping–for the sake of some surprises–that he can restrain himself.
Mr. Nolan, please, let us get there on our own.
What do you think? Any insane theories?
Image: HBO