Westworld (TV Series) The Stray (2016) User Reviews

Someday Soon

[ThomasDrufke · 8/10 · 16 October 2016]

With every series you have to expect an episode or two each season to be exposition and background heavy. It feels like that was this episode for Westworld, and I was more than okay with that.

We've spent a good portion of this series so far on the hosts and their point of view. In fact, we have seen several sequences played over and over again in slightly different ways. Sometimes that tactic works and sometimes it doesn't. It seems like it's done so that we feel more compassion and sympathy towards the hosts' uncontrollably dull lives. I mean, they are robots after all.

But other times I feel like using this structure feels a bit too repetitive. I already care about some of the hosts, and I don't know that I need the excessive number of scenes to get me to feel sorry for them. With that said, we definitely got a boost in the backstory involved with the creators back in the laboratories. Bernard stumbled upon the coincidence that the name 'Arnold' has been referenced quite a few times with malfunctioning hosts, which I can only assume isn't a good sign. Dr. Ford played down the coincidence, but admitted that Arnold was someone who got in too deep with consciousness of the hosts.

While it does seem curious that Ford would admit such things to Bernard, I don't know how much this will factor into the larger scheme of things. But I do one thing, this story can only really end one way. It's like Michael Crichton's other work, Jurassic Park, you can't expect the creations to not rebel. And tonight seemed to further those plot points just a little bit more.

Tonight featured some heavy backstory with Bernard and Ford, but it didn't have any shortage of WTF moments. What the hell was going on in the desert with James Marsden's character? And Dolores having misleading visions and then ending up with William? I have no idea, but I'm definitely excited.

+Keeps getting stranger

+More backstory

-Slower pacing

8.3/10.

The entire truth haven't been told yet

[jeetg04 · 8/10 · 17 October 2016]

Start of the episode led to the beginning of a new day, tracing back to the staged story line of Dolores(Evan Rachel Wood) in the 1st episode and again reminding audience of how virtual yet real this world seems.

William (Jimmi Simpson) is getting involved in the adventures of Westworld indicating the need of this park in the actual world. On the other hand a new story-line has been added to the world for which Teddy Flood (James Marsden) is going to play a critical role; and it is designed by Dr. Robert Ford (Anthony Hopkins) himself.

The highlight of this episode was for sure the introduction of the idea that consciousness was indeed the part of early design of droids, this element is going to be expanded more in the future and has quite a depth. As we have witnessed in the last two episodes; the anomaly in bots is somehow related to consciousness, and only future will tell how it is related.

Complex Entwined Storylines

[claudio_carvalho · 8/10 · 9 January 2018]

"The Stray" is the third episode of "Westworld" with complex storylines and great character development. Dolores is having flashbacks from her previous lives while Tedy has a new role in the park. Many hosts are having abnormal behaviors and Bernard is investigating the cause. Theresa is worried about the safety of the guests and with Robert Ford that is changing the narratives of the hosts. Elsie is investigating the hosts and finds they have a conversation with the mysterious Arnold. There are so many entwined storylines that is difficult to comment the show with no spoiler. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "The Stray"

There's no filler in Westworld

[TheDonaldofDoom · 9 November 2016]

"The Stray" continues to build up the compelling make-believe Western world that is the main draw of this series. After being largely absent from the second episode, Dolores gets a big role in "The Stray". We already saw how she's malfunctioning, remembering previous days and slapping a fly, but this time she overcomes her code and shoots a bandit. It's a significant moment as it shows the androids are changing their behaviour in a way that shouldn't be possible due to how they are programmed. This theme also features in the intense scene in which a host almost kills Elsie before killing himself as is more subtly echoed when William, a guest, is hurt by a bullet. All these scenes show that something big is building up.

We find out about Arnold and his ideas about consciousness, which turn out to be vital to the plot. There are a lot of things that can't be understood on the first watch (unless you're a redditor). Bernard's reading of Alice in Wonderland to Dolores turns out to be a completely different scene to the one we thought. And Dolores's flashbacks during the Man in Black's attack turn out to be one of the first big hints that we are operating under more than one point in time. And Dolores's decision to shoot the Man in Black is itself a sign of the second-last stage of Arnold's pyramid: self-interest.

Westworld: The Stray

[WubsTheFadger · 9/10 · 4 January 2018]

Short and Simple Review by WubsTheFadger

I am going to keep this one extremely short because this episode is so good.

This episode is full of character backstory and insight.

The acting is great throughout the entire episode. James Marsden, Evan Rachel Wood, Jeffery Wright, Luke Hemsworth, and Anthony Hopkins all do astounding jobs.

The ending of this episode is extremely brutal and awesome.

The pacing is very fast and the tone is consistent.

Pros: Great acting, intelligent backstories, brutal ending, fast paced and a very consistent tone

Cons: Not much wrong with this episode, but there are unanswered questions though

Overall Rating: 9.5/10

Arnold's blueprint

[mgidb · 8/10 · 23 August 2019]

There is always someone who discovered something by doing something wrong, hosts are malfunctioning since Arnold time in West world.. But when you have a partner like Anthony Hopkins leading the researches he might kill you and Barry the truth with you.. Unstoppable excitement..

Complex, fluid, shifting

[Leofwine_draca · 9/10 · 9 December 2022]

Another episode that adds immeasurably to the experience. It's complex, fluid, ever-shifting, with the viewer being re-introduced to Dolores and Teddy and their own unique storylines at this point. I found the whole thing thoroughly engrossing, from the mysterious flashbacks to Anthony Hopkins and his exposition; there's nary a foot put wrong at any point. What I particularly enjoy is the mystery, the sense of foreboding, the sense of mankind reaching too far and about to get a very nasty surprise indeed. There are only hints and foreshadowing at this point, but if things play out in the way we're expecting then this is going to be awesome.

HBO knows how to make shows

[GusherPop · 10/10 · 16 March 2022]

These are famous words about the stories we tell ourselves, explaining how a culture can rewrite its history, its reality, and presumably its destiny. They were first uttered in John Ford's The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) and at the time directly reflected the romanticization of the Old West, with a newspaperman refusing to print the truth about Jimmy Stewart's decades-old lie of being the hero that plugged the titular bad man. And now in Westworld, Anthony Hopkins' Dr. Ford utters them again as an attempt to gloss over why the story of his partner-a fellow who went by the name of Arnold-was written out of the history books for this Western themed resort. For the Westworld park is a place that allows men and women to make myths of themselves, despite the facts appearing to the contrary. And such illusions are beginning to fall apart in "The Stray," Westworld's best episode yet. Of course, even before that scene, this is being all sorts of contradicted just by the simple interactions of Dolores and Teddy. In the first episode to really give James Marsden more to do other than be shot to hell, their romance is broadened to an extent that is constantly challenging the audience as to whether we're catching a voyeuristic glimpse into something that's genuine or engineered. For instance, after Teddy actually gets a few opportunities to be heroic-both taking another female tourist on one of his side stories that doesn't involve dying, and then again when he actually manages to scare off another guest from harassing Dolores (which makes the newcomer look all sorts of pathetic considering we know that Teddy has more patched up holes in him than Swiss cheese)-we are treated to two scenes between Teddy and Dolores. And like that the potential for Westworld exponentially expands again while the park itself edges ever closer to its inevitable "If the Pirates of the Caribbean breaks down, the pirates eat the tourists" phase. But in this transcendent moment for Dolores tonight, we may have final confirmation that Westworld is the best new show of 2016.

Crafting Teddy's backstory is the focus of an episode dealing with change. Especially the changes the host are still going through.

[Amari-Sali · 7/10 · 17 October 2016]

Topic 1: The Missing Woodcutter (Elsie {Shannon Woodward} and Stubbs {Luke Hemsworth})

Up into the mountains this odd pairing goes and they discover the wanderer is trapped. Well, so it seems anyway. As soon as they find him and shut him down, something happens. Stubbs seems to be sawing its head off and then it suddenly awakes, attacks him, and tries to escape on the rope Stubbs climbed to get to him. Following that it looks like it may kill Elsie but instead, kills itself.

{Commentary}

This episode foreshadows heavy and arguably the woodcutter maybe the norm more so than Dolores. For with it noted that maybe the rollback was more so treating a symptom than a cure, and with the discovery of a former employee, Arnold, trying to create a consciousness within the hosts, the writing is on the wall. Especially since part of the formula, Arnold came up with, for consciousness was having access to memories, being able to improvise, and self-preservation. Something the woodcutter seems to use for memories are likely what led him to wonder, improvisation came from him, possibly, pretending to be asleep, and with Stubbs trying to perhaps cut his head off, him attacking him to get away was self-preservation. Heck, maybe even his suicide was some form of self-preservation for who knows what this host in particular remembers. Much less if in that maze TMITBH is looking for, perhaps that is the network in which everything for hosts are stored and maybe the woodcutter tapped into another being's memories. They are all connected wirelessly so who knows if they are capable of tampering and hacking as their curiousness grows?

Topic 2: A New Narrative (Teddy)

Elsie tells Stubbs that the base of every host's narrative is a backstory. Making it strange Teddy doesn't have one but Ford fixes this. As part of his new narrative, he makes Teddy a failed lawman turned bounty hunter. One who can't be Delores until he kills Wyatt (Sorin Brouwers). But considering he is the man who has thus far died in nearly every episode, his chances of success don't seem that high.

{Commentary}

It's hard to care about Teddy for he is generic enough to be replaceable, yet unique enough to be memorable in terms of what has happened to him and who his connections are. But despite this backstory, and his cute circumstance with Dolores, I have a serious lack of investment with this character. Something I don't foresee changing even if there was a major overhaul of him.

Topic 3: The Mistake Which Caused Evolution (Bernard, Ford, and Dolores)

Bernard's son dying; Arnold, Ford's partner, in the beginning of this venture, sacrificing his personal life to work on giving the hosts a conscience; and the last upgrade which gave hosts access to fragmented memories. This combination is causing changes which, while potentially reversible, are becoming pervasive. Especially for some hosts like Dolores who have met many of Arnold's requirements for consciousness. Making you wonder, as Bernard curates, or mentors, her through the process of becoming conscious, where will she end up?

{Commentary}

Though I still have faith, I do feel sometimes the talent of the actors won't be matched by the script and story they are given. And while many are capable of compensating for that, others seem like they are flailing as the clichés continue to pop up and dominate the narrative. For whether it is Dr. Ford speaking of a dead business partner whose work got him likely killed, our lead losing nearly everything which would matter to him, but specifically a child, and now him drowning himself in work, the one beacon of hope is Dolores. Yet, even with her having the one character which isn't lukewarm, it is questionable if the character will live up to its full potential.

Things To Note

Bernard was married to Lauren (Gina Torres) and it seems the boy's death was an accident which Bernard can blame himself over.

It costs around 40-grand a day to be in the park.

Arnold believed the way to giving hosts consciences was by allowing them to have memories, be able to improvise, worry about their own self-preservation, and a 4th element he died before discovering. Expect the search for that fourth element to become important.

The hosts are programmed with weapon privileges. Meaning some can use guns, some can use axes, and others can't. Dolores breaks this rule as she kills a bandit who was in the process of trying to assault her.

Low Points

Show Needs a Game Changer

I don't know if it is because I'm watching this at the crack of dawn or because the potential we know the actors have isn't being met by the script but, either way, a shakeup is needed. Something about this show seems too much like it is following procedure and the only thing new or even possibly innovative is the special effects. Similar to a summer blockbuster, this show is beginning to feel like it has characters who are just good enough to hold your hand until there are gunshots, an explosion, or someone screaming. Then they push you into the storm hoping you'll get caught up. Problem is, this is HBO and while the sex and violence can be titillating, the internet has free porn and I can watch violent things happen to people just by turning on the news or learning about the latest hashtag. So this show has to give something more for it isn't building off these generic bases quickly or efficiently.

World building

[tenshi_ippikiookami · 7/10 · 8 December 2016]

"The Stray" is another episode where "Westworld" offers a little bit more of world building, still putting the basis to the story. We are three episodes in, so there is the feeling that things could be going a little bit faster, but for now, all is quite interesting so it is easy to keep the viewer's attention.

We get a little bit more of the park's background, and get to know better Ford and Bernard. Elsie and Stubbs go in search of a stray 'host'. Teddy gets a new past, that has repercussions in the present. And Dolores starts to get her own identity.

Even with all the story-lines, this is Dolores's show for now, and Evan Rachel Wood is doing a great job in making us care for her, and in seeing the jumps between 'human' and 'robot'. It is too obvious in some occasions, but the jumps and little quirks of the 'hosts' can be unnerving. We get a good chunk of cowboys' adventures, which makes for empty fun, but they all seem to have a deeper reason behind them, which makes the viewer keep their eyes open. Especially because all little changes in the little story-lines have bigger repercussions in the bigger yarn and its long threads. That is the strongest part of the show for now, how little things bring little changes that are part of a bigger story-line.

Secured direction, slow pace and interesting characters make for a good third episode in this early show's life.

Cowardly Episode

[Warin_West-El · 5/10 · 21 February 2023]

What have we learned in this episode? Dr. Ford is a liar and has withheld information from Bernard. Likewise, Bernard is a liar and is withholding information from Dr. Ford and the rest of the staff.

There were multiple acts of cowardice. When faced with a deadly confrontation, William waited to pull the trigger until it was too late. Then, because he's in WestWorld where all the guests are protected, William was actually rewarded as if he was a hero when he wasn't.

Delores was nearly sexually assaulted and waited until it was almost too late before she defended herself and killed her attacker.

There was the strange scene where Elsie Hughes was told to run for her life. And instead of fleeing, she stood frozen.

Meanwhile, imho, Sidse Babett Knudsen's acting chops were totally wasted in this episode.

For the second time Dr Ford and Bernard give existential expositions claiming the universe is a result of accidents. Unlike this television series, the original WestWorld movie did not repeatedly proselytize atheism or the theory of evolution.

Figuring Out How It Doesn't Work Is Half-Fun

[theminorityreporter · 8 June 2019]

Woman-on-Woman, Part Three: Recap: Episode one depicted a woman creeping on an incapacitated woman and episode two depicted a woman shyly declining the advance of an aggressive female prostitute. The third depiction of woman-on-woman is a saloon scene where a female bounty-hunter accepts the advance of a female prostitute. This is an 'apology' via an attempt to now present the women as 'empowered'. The bounty-hunter has just shot down an outlaw in a show of force and the prostitute is the woman formerly depicted as being advanced on while in an incapacitated state in episode one. It's a highly calculated escalation and justification in one, which still has the potential to please some viewers while shallowly making a claim of inclusiveness. What they do here is 'complicated'.

Speaking of pointless and insulting, the security crew finds a meaningless 'intriguing' carving in the tent of a missing host. Remember that. It's not important. They find the missing host and he gruesomely bashes his own head in with a large heavy rock. Well, that's that.

When we learn of the head of the behavior team's sad loss of his son to terminal illness I'd like to become emotionally involved, and I can see that it will be an ongoing story meant to confer a degree of depth and humanity to the narrative. But there's a pervasive, if not total, corruption in the code of all relationships in this show. I foresee a future of continual disappointment, not only with regard to character continuity, but also regarding how relationships develop, their longevity and genuineness. I sense that I am conditioned now to expect betrayal, so I cannot invest myself in this story line; I'm automatically disinclined to accept it - it looks like emotional blackmail meant to bolster the dramatic credibility of the show. Also, anything to do with kids here is likely to go south - it always does.