But the idea that Dolores has real feelings for Teddy is a tough sell, one that “Akane No Mai” tries hard to make. The only thing going for Dolores at this point is her frustration with Teddy, which is easy for the viewer to identify with. There is also Dolores, whose story feels more tedious with every passing week. Unfortunately, “Westworld” cannot just be about Maeve, for some reason. And I’m not sure that this show has ever delivered an action-oriented arc as effective as the Maeve-quest story in “Akane No Mai,” which sees Maeve test her powers, find their limits, face a challenge, overcome it by pushing past the limits of her powers, win new allies, then face and defeat an even bigger challenge by pushing past them into full wizard territory. Where Shogun World delivers most is in its introduction of a bunch of characters worth rooting for - especially Musashi and Akane. (Lee has so many good lines this week: “Shogun’s army never comes into town!” is one. “You try writing 300 stories in two weeks!” When Maeve accuses Lee of self-plagiarism, Quarterman’s whine is pitch perfect. F- me.” Turns out Musashi’s crew is the analog to Hector’s Westworld gang, which team Maeve discovers as they watch a sword-fight version of the brothel heist play out in front of them, complete with a silly, period-appropriate rendition of “Paint It Black.” One of the many joys of the Maeve-quest storyline is the rapport being developed between Simon Quarterman as Lee and Thandie Newton as Maeve. Team Maeve quickly falls into the hand of Musashi and his crew - or as Sylvester so Sylvesterly puts it, “Captured by samurai cop killers. Then I am floored by his realness.Īnyway, Shogun World. The only thing I find unbelievable about Lee is that he’s a writer, until I remember what writers are actually like. Doom, which is probably a molten cauldron of sentient white paraffin. He’s basically Smeagol in “The Lord of the Rings.” I can’t wait to watch Maeve shove him into the “Westworld” version of Mt. He will clearly betray fellow travelers at some point. He speaks at the wrong time, says the wrong thing, and is only alive because Maeve has a vague hunch that he can be useful (which he finally proves himself to be, a little). Lee remains season 2’s most fully drawn character. It pays off, mostly.īut first a word about Lee Sizemore, who continues to make his case for being the Pete Campbell of “Westworld.” When Lee describes Shogun World to Maeve in such a juvenile way, it’s irritating - in part because Lee is also effectively introducing the viewer to Shogun World, and as a viewer it’s frustrating for this cool thing you’ve waited a long time for to be introduced thusly by a tiny toolbag like Lee. As it should, it leans heavily into Maeve’s quest and the introduction of Shogun World, which had been subject of outsize fan chatter after Maeve and Felix briefly walked past a logo and a couple of guys fighting during the season 1 finale. “Akane No Mai” is by turns a fun and frustrating episode, switching back and forth between the show’s two poles, but spending little time in between.
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