Season 2 of Westworld introduced an array of intriguing new characters. Which ones ended up being most effective?

It’s always a challenge to bring new faces to a successful show. Season 1 of Westworld introduced incredible characters like Maeve and Bernard, and season 2 naturally continued their stories. With so many rich characters already in play, it’s difficult for the newcomers to stand out and make their mark, but many of them managed to do exactly that.

Let’s count down and give some love to the 5 best new characters of season 2.

Warning: Spoilers for season 2 of Westworld will follow.

5. Major Craddock

Squaring off against Dolores and the Man in Black is no easy feat. Both characters are powerhouses and often cast their shadows over other characters. Jonathan Tucker did not back down from this challenge with his portrayal of Major Craddock, ensuring the Confederado host was able to stand toe-to-toe with both Dolores and the Man in Black.

Craddock also left his mark with his impact on Teddy. Up to the moment Dolores asked Teddy to execute Craddock and the handful of Confederado survivors, Teddy had dutifully followed Dolores in every aspect. Craddock managed to get into Teddy’s head, seizing on his doubts and inner conflict concerning Dolores. Teddy let Craddock and the other survivors go, setting in motion the season-long conflict between Dolores and Teddy and its tragic end.

Without Craddock driving that wedge between them in order to save his own skin, Dolores might not have reprogrammed Teddy, and he might never have gone on to end his suffering in such devastating fashion.

4. Akane

Despite the hype, the Shogun World episodes were received with mixed reactions. Without a doubt, though, one of the standout characters and overall elements of these episodes was Akane.

Westworld loves to demonstrate how the ones perceived to be most powerless, innocent, or delicate are often the ones most dangerous, cunning, and sophisticated. This is at the essence of much of Dolores and Maeve’s storylines in season 1. The thing is that fans immediately knew Dolores and Maeve were going to shatter others’ perceptions and prove themselves to be formidable.

Part of what made Akane’s arc so much fun to watch is that fans weren’t in on that shattering of perceptions like they were with Maeve and Dolores. As a brand new character in a brand new world, at first, Akane really did seem powerless and innocent to a certain degree. That’s what made it so satisfying to see her strike down the Shogun’s emissary that tried to take Sakura.

Even though fans saw what she was capable of from that moment, the Shogun’s hold over her and his callous killing of Sakura made it seem like she was powerless to openly defy and defeat the all-powerful Shogun. That made it all the more shocking and gratifying to see Akane’s graceful dance that seduced the Shogun and lulled him into a false sense of security, culminating in a brutal murder of the Shogun himself right in front of his massive army.

As a mirror of Maeve, Akane also helped Maeve realize some core truths about herself. She reaffirmed to Maeve the necessity of having a choice and the lengths one will go to protect and if necessary avenge the ones they love. Akane also helped Maeve find her “new voice” and take the steps to become even more autonomous.

3. Emily

Emily–initially known to audiences as Grace–had one of the coolest introductions ever. She offered fans the first glimpse into the Raj, into a majestic park outside of Westworld with a completely different aesthetic, but still governed by the same rules and appetites when it comes to the hosts and guests.

When the hosts’ uprising began, she defended herself and slayed a Bengal tiger. Other than Emily, no guest seemed as formidable and at the same time prepared for the hosts’ uprising than the Man in Black himself. Being able to fluently converse with Ghost Nation and telling Stubbs her plan wasn’t to escape the park made her even more intriguing.

The reveal that she was the Man in Black’s daughter was exciting on one level, but it was also disappointing in another. Instead of having her own story–the tiger-slaying, highly intelligent guest with a secret mission–she was sucked into her father’s story. Her character became more about testing the Man in Black’s core drives and sanity than anything else.

This did not destroy her character. She remained compelling and played a key role in creating some of the most emotional and truthful moments for William. In his scenes with Emily, Ed Harris portrayed a level of vulnerability and longing to be a different kind of person, offering a level of complexity the older William lacked in season 1.

Her tough love and capacity for forgiveness is something no one had shown William onscreen before–things he desperately needed. Instead of accepting these gifts, he allowed them to stoke his paranoia, leading to the greatest tragedy yet of his already tragic existence.

These factors made Emily an excellent addition, yet it still felt like her full potential was never tapped as her story became far more about her father than herself.

2. James Delos

Even in the early stages of season 1, the Delos company was established as this abstract force of evil and corruption. Logan mentioned his father–the face of this empire–and William’s darkness allowed him to usurp Logan’s position and become the heir and leader of the company. All of these pieces made fans wonder about the man who started it all.

Season 2 actualized this mysterious figure in the form of James Delos. Peter Mullan brought the near-mythic individual to life, making it all too clear what kind of man would invest so heavily into Westworld for immoral purposes, and give his company to a young William embracing his newfound darkness.

Not only did James Delos stand out in season 2, but he also improved on season 1, his attitude towards Logan and their shared scenes together providing deeper insight into the character fans thought they had all figured out.

Peter Mullan’s acting was also essential to season 2 as he was the entry point into the effort to immortalize humans as hosts. He conveyed the crude and despicable core fans were already acquainted with. In all his host versions, Mullan also communicated existential crisis and emptiness leading to madness. It takes a seriously talented actor to capture all of that and to make audiences reconsider everything they thought they knew about hosts and humans.

1. Akecheta

With only a few episodes left in season 2, it was a risky move to dive into an episode revolving around a character fans barely knew.

Fortunately, that risk paid off with the beautiful episode “Kiksuya” centered around Akecheta.

Zahn McClarnon played Akecheta with such grace, dignity, and raw emotion, instantly making him one of the most compelling characters on a show already littered with incredible characters. He redefined everything fans thought they knew about Ghost Nation and hosts finding autonomy.

Akecheta was driven by a thirst to learn the truth and find a greater meaning while also grounded in the search to reunite with his love Kohana. Their love story is arguably the most moving and epic romance of Westworld so far.

He was tormented by memories and suffering wiped away for all the other hosts, but at the same time tethered by a calming, inner peace. He was a warrior that managed to survive for 10 years without dying–and only allowed himself to die when it became clear it was the last pathway to Kohana–but at the same time a guardian angel to Maeve and her daughter.

Without Akecheta, the Maze likely would not have endured. He forged the path to autonomy that Dolores and Maeve and so many others would later take. In their time of need, he gathered survivors and led them to the promised land in the Valley Beyond, even risking his own chance of reuniting with Kohana there in order to ensure that Maeve’s daughter would make it.

On a show like Westworld that often has a dark and pessimistic outlook, the story of Akecheta provided rare and much-needed hope and optimism.

Who was your favorite new character of Westworld season 2? Let us know in the comments!

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