Season 3 of Westworld Episode 1: What Happens To Bernard And His Button

Few characters in Westworld past a twist and turn than Bernard. From revealing that he was the manager and rebuilding Arnold, Dr. Ford's co-creator, to its cleansing list of frustrated memories in season 2, nothing is as real as it seems when it comes to Bernard. So it's no surprise that in Season 3, there is a new mystery to solve when it comes to everyone's favorite reincarnation.

As one of the best endings, let's take a look at Bernard's whereabouts in the first episode Westworld season 3. Because … this button.

(Vol. note: this post contains spoilers for Westworld Season 3 Episode 1.)

When we first saw Bernard in Season 3, he seemed to be hiding, a few months after Dolores had him back outside the parks of Delos. We see him reading news that something is happening across the country, and that Chinese authorities have blamed him for the Delos Parks massacre. Bernard's designated hiding place looks like a farm / animal farm and looks very unresponsive about killing animals that need to be killed. We will allow you to unlock those comparisons on your own.

Bernard's real secret to this episode came from a small button he kept beside him, which seemed to turn him between two different people and publishers each. So what does it do?

Picture: HBO

Bernard has two distinct facets to his personality and brain at this point, that much is clear. We know for a fact that you switch between those circles by pressing a button. But that leaves many details we don't know. We get a few clues to what those two sides actually are.

First of all, let's consider Bernard's personality as Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Bernard's most controlling side, the one who wants to look at the animals and live in peace, is Dr. Jekyll. The one who beats the fearsome big men off the pulpit and does anything to keep them from being found, is Mr Hyde.

To some extent this break makes a pretty good impression from last season. In Season 2, Bernard also had two personalities floating around in his guardian's head: his and Ford's. Of course, we find out by the end of the season that Ford's curiosity was the only product created by Bernard – at least in the end. This means that Bernard killed a lot of people at the end of the season when he appeared to kill the minds of the Forge people, replacing them with the authorities. Most importantly, he revived Dolores who knew for sure that he was going to try to kill everyone in the real world, so he has that blood coming in his hands. And it wasn't Ford's code that led him to the decision, it was Bernard all along.

With that in mind, it will surely be assumed that when he runs away to live alone, Bernard may want to get rid of the side of his brain thinking that most massacres are clean. And that seems to be exactly what he did. But before we continue what this means, let's talk about how he looks.

Picture: HBO

Horses already have two modes: Status Mode and Analytics. In the park, the Analytic Mode was used to ensure that their memories were erased and that things were usually going well. Of course, the first two seasons show us that things were not, in fact, going well. It looks like Bernard has gone into this idea to give himself a different – albeit somewhat different – personality.

Exhibition-colleague and editor of Westworld, Lisa Joy mentioned earlier that the Mode of Analysis is the same as the unconscious mind, and that seems to be true of Bernard as he enters Mr Hyde's world.

At the beginning of the episode, we see him using a button and arranging standard answers to memory and information management questions. This would seem to suggest that Bernard is completely unconscious when Mr Hyde takes over, because his answers have yet to be filed, he cannot simply lie because he will lose at least a certain number. He also prepares to be available as a host. While it seems his purpose is unchecked, this part of his second personality seems to be designed to allow him to get past the Trap Mode traps designed to capture the memories that make up and remember.

So if Bernard has split his brain into two separate, yet interconnected parts, what is the personality of what it really means? It looks like a version of Mr. Bernard Hyde is very committed to survival, to keep himself safe and to keep his thoughts safe. That means he may have planned for Mr. Hyde to prove his side with his most violent results. In other words his second personality, without the checks on Dr. Jekyll's side, can be a powerful and frightening force of violence. And everything is controlled by the click of a button – not the most impressive security system.

We also know that Bernard should be able to enter the Experimental Mode exam that dominates most of the Delos host, which is sure to be an important skill now as he returns to Westworld. Still, that leaves open the question of why he might not be recognized. He definitely does a good job of hiding in the box / farm, so maybe he'll succeed just like Bernard, no matter how many things he has.

One thing we will be waiting for next season to find out is how Bernard plans to stop Dolores, or what purpose his violent side would be most effective in for a heated debate between people and athletes.