Review: 'Westworld' Season 2 Achieves Consciousness, Lives Up to the Hype

The first season of Westworld is certainly a tough act to follow. The stories of android hosts finding themselves intertwined with the twists and turns of the corruptible employees of a devilish theme park gave HBO one of the best single seasons of television in recent memory.

After screening the first five episodes of Season Two, it's easy for me to say that this sophomore effort lives up to the hype built by its predecessor, and does a masterful job of building on an already-stellar story.

Season Two begins after the bloodbath that Dolores orchestrated in Sweetwater in the first season's finale. Robert Ford is dead, along with hundreds of other high-profile guests, and the hosts are running rampant throughout the park. An uprising has officially begun, and it doesn't seem like there is any end in sight.

That's about where I'll leave the story, as pretty much anything else about what's next could be considered a spoiler.

What this new season does so well is play off the the frame of mind that viewers were put into throughout Season One. The initial 10-episode run toyed with the minds of everyone watching, pulling the rug out from under us multiple times in its final episodes. The reveal of multiple timelines was the culmination of the Season One mysteries. We knew there was something to figure out, but we had no idea what it was.

Season Two is precisely the opposite. It's made very clear in the early episodes that there are multiple timelines, and the series doesn't try to hide that. It's easy to know which timeline you're in at pretty much every moment. This time around, the mystery is much more concrete, which makes it all the more agonizing. We know how the story begins, we know how a lot of it will end, and we know what many of the characters are trying to accomplish. The mystery lies in the "how" of it all, making for a tantalizing viewing experience.

The other major difference in this season is the deep dive it takes into the history of the Delos corporation, and its founder James Delos, played by Scottish actor Peter Mullin. Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy do a fantastic job exploring the business aspect of Westworld, making it equally as interesting as the action-packed present. A lot of the credit here also goes to Mullin, who is one of the standout performers of the season so far. His big scene in episode four (beautifully directed by Lisa Joy) brought me to my knees, and reminded me just how truly human this show about robots can be.

It goes without saying that just about every actor on Westworld turns out phenomenal performances in nearly every scene, though there are a few that really take things to a different level.

Jeffrey Wright's second outing as Bernard is truly mesmerizing. Like Evan Rachel Wood did with Dolores in Season One, Wright navigates the duality of Bernard's existence with such care, and such devotion, that he becomes one of the more human characters of the series. Ed Harris and Thandie Newton also blew me away with their continued excellence as the Man in Black and Maeve, respectively.

Westworld's second season is bolder, and much, much bigger than its first, taking the characters to places you never thought possible on this show. Fortunately, we get to along for the ride. There are plenty of twists, turns, and surprises on Westworld this year, so I'd suggest you buckle up. It's going to be one hell of a ride.

The second season of Westworld premieres on Sunday, April 22nd at 9pm ET on HBO.