S2E1 And S2E6 Opening

Published May 29, 2018 · Updated July 6, 2022

Hey all!

Just wanted to write in my thoughts on the BernArnold and Dolores conversation we’ve seen at the beginning of episodes 1 and 6 this season. Now knowing what we do about James Delos and the fidelity test William continuously gave him, looking back at the beginning moment of Season 2, it seems that BernArnold is being awoken by Dolores right before the scene starts. BernArnold has his glasses off and is staring off into space, and, asks what they were talking about, and then Dolores seemingly prompts the fidelity test by bringing up the dream of the hosts separated from BernArnold by an ocean. Obviously, we see things are different here from the Daddy Delos Bot test as the BernArnold bot is seen making a mistake and saying the wrong thing, prompting Dolores’s super-creepy take-over of the situation.

An interesting note: In S2E1, when BernArnold is telling Dolores that he’s afraid of what she might become (and so on) the camera is focused on his face as he speaks. However, in S2E6, during the same part of dialogue, the camera focuses on Dolores’s face instead. This is possibly so that (after knowing Dolores is testing him) we can watch as she judges his responses. The more likely reason (and simpler one) is that this is a brilliant piece of camera work. In the original scene, we are meant to focus on what BernArnold is saying (supported by the fact that the episode follows him from there). In episode 6, we are being subtly informed that Dolores is our focus (supported by the fact that it’s revealed she’s testing him). Not necessarily significant, but it’s a wonderfully artistic choice.

Just wanted to share my thoughts and analysis!
Keep up the good work!

Justin Weibel

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