Are Dolores and Teddy the Cersei and Jaime Lannister of Westworld?
Westworld and Game of Thrones are two of HBO’s most popular shows, but their parallels go far beyond surface violence.
Warning: Major spoilers for both Westworld and Game of Thrones will follow.
From their very first episodes, both Westworld and Game of Thrones each established one of the most important relationships that would drive their shows forward. For Westworld, it was Dolores and Teddy, the rancher’s daughter and chivalrous cowboy hosts programmed to love one another.
They’re coded to be inherently likable characters, which makes it all the more painful to see them constantly suffering in order to cater to the barbaric desires of the guests. As such, audiences found themselves inevitably rooting for Dolores and Teddy, especially as Dolores transcended her programming.
Instead of a couple to root for, Game of Thrones opened with the twisted and incestuous relationship of Cersei and Jaime Lannister. Their relationship is portrayed as toxic on many levels–and rightly so–yet as individuals, Cersei and Jaime became far more than just individuals fans love to hate.
In season 2 of Westworld, Dolores and Teddy have evolved in their relationship and as individuals to the point that they have arguably become the show’s equivalent of Cersei and Jaime. Let’s take a look at how that happened and what it means for Westworld‘s future.
Raised by abuse
All four characters were raised by individuals and environments that abused them. The concept of being raised is more straightforward in Game of Thrones where Tywin Lannister brought up his children in constant fear that they would tarnish the mighty Lannister legacy. Jaime was to become a proper lord and heir to Tywin, and Cersei was to become a proper lady and marry into a wealthy, powerful family, all in the name of bettering House Lannister’s legacy.
Tywin berated and threatened his children if they defied this path in any way. This continued even into adulthood where Tywin never tired of belittling his children and highlighting their failures. His treatment of them was almost warm and fuzzy compared to how he treated his other son Tyrion, though, as both a child and as an adult.
Tywin’s abuse is not the sole cause of the cruelty that defines Cersei and Jaime or the multi-layered toxicity of their relationship, but it’s certainly a major factor. His ways surely brought Cersei and Jaime closer together as they unified in their common understanding and defiance of their father’s ways.
Next: Neurology and individuality in Westworld: A discussion
That unity could’ve become positive, but not when considering that Tywin almost always got what he wanted through clever manipulation and cruelty. Brought up with the idea that those are the ingredients to power and getting what you want, Cersei and Jaime came to embody those traits. Cersei, in particular, maintained this embodiment and sought to control all aspects of her life, even Jaime himself.
Of course, the hosts of Westworld were raised in a much less conventional sense. Thinking of the uprising that began at the end of season 1 as adulthood, the hosts’ creation and endless loops are their version of “growing up.” The hosts were also raised by abuse in this context.
They were created to meet the desires of the guests and constantly brutalized by them. Dolores was “raised” to see beauty and potential in a world that always took advantage of her optimism. Teddy was “raised” to live by a moral code, even though none of the guests shared that code and would shoot him if they felt like it.
The guests weren’t the only humans to “raise” Dolores this way. Even when Dolores showed she was far more than her programming to Arnold, he still manipulated her into making a choice that wasn’t hers. He had her follow the Wyatt narrative in which she killed all the other hosts and then Arnold himself.
Arnold was the closest thing she had to a real friend, and even if he did it with the intent of trying to free the hosts, his final actions were manipulative and showed her that violence was the answer.
The cruelty, manipulation, and brutality of season 2 Dolores has been a shock for some, but it shouldn’t be considering that Dolores grew up seeing that the only people who had control and got what they wanted did so through such means.
How Dolores, Cersei, and Jaime continued the cycle of abuse
Dolores has largely used her newfound freedom to mirror the actions of her oppressors. She’s already tortured and killed many humans, often throwing back at them the very words they once spoke to her. Even her fellow hosts aren’t safe from her ruthlessness. The Confederados certainly paid a steep price for trusting her.
Her worst transgression is channeling this abuse against Teddy, though. With the exception of letting Major Craddock and the handful of other Confederado survivors go free, Teddy has been steadfastly loyal to her in season 2. He didn’t free them to spite Dolores, but out of his own moral conflict, a desire to rise above the cycle of abuse and oppression that has plagued his entire existence.
When they returned to Sweetwater, Dolores and Teddy showed tenderness and affection towards one another. They expressed their appreciation and passion, and for being the one positive constants throughout each other’s existences. It was genuine for Teddy.
For Dolores, her newfound attitude was all buildup to reprogramming Teddy into becoming a merciless individual completely loyal to her. Dolores denies Teddy a choice, the same thing she and the hosts were denied all those years. Just like she learned from her human oppressors, she manipulates his emotions and even changes his whole identity because her abusers showed her that was real control.
While Dolores has continued the cycle of abuse and Teddy has risen against it, both Cersei and Jaime continued the cycle for a while. In addition to incest, they went on to perform countless evil deeds including the likes of rape and mass murder. Largely thanks to Brienne of Tarth and his little brother Tyrion, Jaime eventually adopted more of a moral code and started to live by it.
More from Westworld
- After ChatGPT, Westworld creator thinks her show looks “like a documentary”
- HBO boss explains why they removed Westworld from HBO Max
- The Last of Us boss uses Westworld to explain Kathleen’s arc
- James Marsden still hopes they can finish Westworld
- Westworld and other HBO shows headed to Roku and Tubi
He sent Brienne on a quest to find and protect the Stark daughters, freed Tyrion before he could be executed, and admitted to Myrcella that he was her father. These actions and much more came out of his newfound moral code, doing what he believed was right. Despite this change, he still remained loyal to Cersei, consistently putting his life at risk for her, even if it meant charging straight at a fire-breathing dragon.
This is where the most important intersection between the Dolores-Teddy and Cersei-Jaime relationship occurs. Cersei and Jaime’s relationship was always toxic, but at a certain point Jaime developed a moral code and worked to be a better person. Cersei, on the other hand, arguably only became more malevolent. By staying in the relationship with Cersei, Jaime’s growth could only go so far as he remained trapped by Cersei and his need to please her.
Teddy is trying to find his way and be a better person in this world where the rules have changed. Dolores is embodying the traits of the people that made their lives a living hell in the first place. They could’ve redefined their lives and their relationship with authentic free will.
Instead, Dolores has sought to assert total control over Teddy, even if this means altering his whole identity. Jaime and Teddy tried to be better people but found themselves trapped by love for women who didn’t genuinely love them back as they placed more value on controlling their partners and furthering the cycle of abuse.
What this means for Westworld‘s future
Eventually, in both the books and television show, Jaime turns his back on Cersei and forsakes their relationship. In the books, this occurs when she sends him a letter pleading for him to come back and defend her in a trial by combat. Jaime does not respond and orders the letter to be burned.
In the show, Jaime refuses to continue standing by Cersei’s side after she reveals that she’s going to go back on her promise to unite forces with their enemies to fight the Night King and his army. He walks out on her and begins riding north to warn Tyrion and the others of Cersei’s betrayal and likely to join the fight as well.
It took 4 lengthy novels and 7 seasons of expensive episodes, but on the page and on the screen Jaime finally retaliated against Cersei and severed himself from their toxic relationship.
Nowhere near as much time has passed with Teddy enduring Dolores’ abuse, but eventually, he too will snap and follow in Jaime’s footsteps. Teddy’s corpse has already been glimpsed in the future timeline with Bernard, so his retaliation is already foreshadowed to fail.
Given that Dolores only recently altered his personality, it’s possible that he will remain merciless and loyal for the rest of this season, even to the point of death. If not in season 2, then somewhere else down the line he is bound to strike against Dolores, though.
She manipulated his trust and love for her and used it to assert her control over him in a manner almost identical to their human oppressors.
Do you think Dolores and Teddy are the Cersei and Jaime of Westworld? What do you think will happen between Dolores and Teddy as season 2 continues? Let us know in the comments!
Follow Beyond Westworld’s Twitter and Facebook for more updates on this season!
Westworld airs new episodes every Sunday at 9 P.M. EST!