Westworld: Did the Man in Black win Robert Ford’s game?

One of the biggest questions of Westworld of season two is whether or not the Man in Black won Ford’s game. Check out our thorough analysis!

Westworld season two spoilers ahead! 

In Westworld, The Man in Black’s obsession with Arnold’s maze came as a result of having completed all of the narratives Westworld had to offer. He was bored. There’s no fun in killing and raping across the fictional wild west when the hosts are unable to think for themselves or fight back.

The Man in Black hoped to gain from Arnold’s game a deeper meaning of self and consequently the awakening of the hosts that would hopefully grant him a real challenge.

The hosts warned the Man in Black that this game was not for him. It was for the hosts to reach consciousness and it was something that they had to do for themselves. The Man in Black, however, is stubborn and continued to try to find the Maze even though it had nothing to do with him.

Once the hosts reached a new awakening, The Man in Black found purpose in a world that now had consequences and was ecstatic when Robert Ford’s young host told him that there was a new game.

Besides not knowing what Robert’s game entailed, the end of the second season left questions on what Robert’s game was, to begin with, and the identity of the winner. Looking back at The Man in Black’s journey presents a few clues that support theories as to what Robert’s game may have been and where the Man in Black measured up.

Robert’s young host introduces the game by telling the Man in Black:

"“In this game, you must make it back out. In this game, you must find the door. Congratulations William. This game is meant for you. The game begins where you end, and ends where you began.”"

Robert’s message proposes an adventure to find a door and puzzling details about the game’s campaign that are rooted in the Man in Black.

We can take the reference “making it back out” to mean that the Man in Black can win this game if he survives or finds his way out of Westworld. Robert may have wanted the Man in Black to rediscover his humanity and return to the real world.

But if Robert intended to continue his opposition streak, he tried to lead the Man in Black through a journey whose downside would end with death or loss of sanity.

The Man in Black doesn’t intend to play without any allies, and his first step is to save his trusty sidekick, Lawrence, from three angry brothers intent on having him eaten by ants. Shortly after, at a bar, William confesses that he’s received judgment and he intends to appeal the verdict and come out the winner. This statement confirms that Robert’s game is a death sentence and the Man in Black plans on showing resilience.

Death seems to be the consequence of all of the Man in Black’s previous sins. Robert has definite opinions about the Man in Black’s cruelty toward the hosts and lack of compassion. But what pushes Robert’s buttons and turned him into a stark enemy has been The Man in Black’s authority over his personal property–his beloved park.

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The Man in Black took over the Delos Corporation, making him the man in charge at Westworld. His status gave him the power to create the Forge and gather info from guests, an arrangement that Robert never approved.

The Man in Black knows that Robert would want him to pay for his sins and intends to survive and then burn all of Westworld down, which would indeed be a slap in the face to Robert (even if he is dead.)

Lawrence leads the way to Pariah proving that the game does find the Man in Black or at least directs the way. When the Man in Black discovers that the new El Lazo and his men have taken over the town, he decides that an army of men to assist in his mission is not a bad idea.

Only, Robert takes over the hosts and lets the Man in Black know that having an army is not allowed. The entire El Lazo Mob commits suicide followed by El Lazo himself.

Emily’s entrance into Westworld in the middle of this ambiguous game isn’t coincidental to the Man in Black. This moment is when his assumptions on Robert’s strategy turn into doubt on just about everything and everybody.

The two of them have a heartwarming conversation giving the appearance that at least his last familial tie has a chance of improvement for the future, but the next morning Emily wakes up alone, her father skipped out in the night. The Man in Black thinks he has bested Robert at his own game in abandoning a host version of his daughter.

At Las Mudas, The Man in Black bumps into Major Craddock who is utterly unhinged after Dolores’ betrayal. The Man in Black can’t manhandle the situation the way he is accustomed to by blowing off heads. He has to use his mind to outwit the Major because he is outnumbered and can die at the hands of a host.

He negotiates his terms by using his knowledge of the buried guns in the cemetery. After turning a blind eye to the barkeep shot to death while balancing a shot glass of nitro, The Man in Black shows the first signs of empathy ever.

He could have left Lawrence’s family at the mercy of Major Craddock, Craddock had Lawrence’s wife unsteadily carrying a shot glass of nitro too. Somehow this family’s anguish arouses images of his wife’s suicide, and the Man in Black taps into savior bravado to save them, something that is not within his nature.

Robert speaks through Lawrence’s daughter in the next scene and points out that one good deed doesn’t erase the others. The Man in Black denies his feelings sparked his heroic efforts. A blatant lie because the images of his wife’s suicide mean that the incident stirred emotion in him. Instead, he claims that he’s playing the game to the bone.

The Man in Black sees this game as a lesson for all the bad he has done, and so he figures that the way to win is through clichéd ethical responses. The Man in Black thinks he doesn’t have to change who he is; he merely has to pretend he has.

Putting on an elaborate display signaling that he is changing who he is at his core and becoming a hero, is his idea of succeeding at playing Robert’s game.

But Lawrence’s daughter tells him that he doesn’t get the game at all. If he’s looking forward, he’s looking in the wrong direction. And so, the Man in Black will not get brownie points for turning a new leaf, even if he did want to change. So, what is it that Robert wants? Is this quest just a journey to the Man in Black’s death and nothing more?

Upon finding Maeve in Homestead, The Man in Black instantly assumes that Maeve and her daughter’s presence are a lesson in morality because he had brutally murdered them in the past. Maeve has random hosts shoot the Man in Black a billion times as he desperately calls out to Robert to stop her because he gets the point. But, no one comes forward to speak on Robert’s behalf. Did Robert drop out of the game entirely at this point?

By the time the Man in Black encounters Maeve, Robert is giving Bernard a tour of the Cradle and is later hitching a ride on his control unit. Once Robert is out of the Cradle, he no longer has his omnipotent reach through the mesh network. Furthermore, Robert’s voice is never heard again from any other host.

Afterward, Emily rescues the wounded Man in Black from the Ghost Nation, and his doubt and determination lead him to kill his only daughter. And since the Man in Black doesn’t know a thing about accountability, he theorizes that his actions are the result of him being a host, forcing him to dig into his forearm for proof.

We can assume, based on the timeline, that by the time the Man in Black is looking for a port in his arm, Bernard has already deleted Robert’s code. The Man in Black’s deterioration of the mind was utterly unaided by Robert’s manipulations.

The question is if this was the plan along. Did Robert intend to hype up a game that he would later abandon causing the Man in Black to drive himself mad? This theory would support the idea that Robert’s revenge, and the final purpose of his game, was for Westworld to have defeated the Man in Black.

Dolores would have been the last video game boss that immobilized the Man in Black, a feat that was as easy as loading his gun to blow up in his face because his betrayal is that predictable. The Man in Black survived and made it out in the end, but he’s lost too much for it to be even considered a win.

It’s also possible that the game was interrupted. Robert’s plans could have been leading down another path, but he never got to finish what he started because he ended up in Bernard’s head and was later kicked out. Although, this scenario is hard to believe because Robert was efficient and meticulously planned his every move.

Finally, there remains the prospect that Robert’s game was paused for the time being intending to pick up at a later time when the Man in Black comes across the trigger that will start the next phase of the game. If this theory is correct, then the Man in Black may find a message from Robert even though he is no longer an active member of the real or digital world.

Next: Westworld: 5 characters most improved by season 2

Next season could launch the next chapter cracking wide open the real motive behind the game and continuing the saga.

We can expect to see remnants of Robert’s legacy in season three if we haven’t seen the last of the game created for the Man in Black. On the other hand, if this is the last we hear of Robert’s game, we can be sure that the Man in Black’s mounting paranoia and faulted decisions at the end of season two were all just a part of the greatest game of revenge ever plotted.

Check back with us for more updates on all things Westworld!