Answering Your Biggest 'Westworld' Season 1 Questions

HBO's Westworld expanded on Michael Crichton's 1973 robot disaster movie of the same name (and the famous Simpsons parody) into a sweeping look at artificial intelligence, human empathy, and an unwieldy technological future that may already be upon us. Each of its 10 episodes were directed like mini-movies, the scripts were toiled over with a watchmaker's precision, and the acting -- from heavy-hitters like Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, Evan Rachel Wood, and Jeffrey Wright -- was masterful. 

Still, with all the mystery and clever maneuvering by co-creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, there's no doubt Westworld left many behind. Unless you were dedicating your Monday through Saturday off-hours to studying up on Reddit theories, it was damn near impossible to track every movement of every character up through every revelation. Some tried to run with it; others really did spend their waking hours studying Westworld like it would result in a Master's Degree. We fell into the latter camp.

If you were swept up in the drama, but found the violent and calculated finale to be a head-scratcher, we're here for you. This week, we took to Facebook Live to break down the entire hour-and-a-half episode by characters and plot lines. Here's what you'll find in the video above:

1:10 -- What the Man in Black really wanted
5:20 -- Ford's master plan (and could he return to the show?)
11:10 -- Arnold, Wyatt, and Dolores' big moment
17:00 -- What the hell was up with Maeve??
19:30 -- What the finale told us about Season 2

By the end, you'll be fully prepared for the second season of Westworld... when it arrives in 2018. Maybe loop the video a few times before then.

Sign up here for our daily Thrillist email, and get your fix of the best in food/drink/fun.

Follow the Thrillist Editors on Twitter @ThrillistEnt.