5 questions we need answered in the Westworld season 2 finale

What’s really going on with Bernard?

From the moment he awoke on the beach in the season 2 premiere, Bernard has been acting strangely. In season 1 we found out Bernard was actually a host created in the image of Dr. Ford’s partner, Arnold. When Bernard began to question Ford’s orders to hurt and kill others, Ford commanded him to shoot himself in the head.

The head wound would have been fatal if not for Maeve happening upon his body in Cold Storage. Lab tech Felix cauterized the head wound, but during the night of the host uprising Bernard suffered a second head injury and he began to leak cortical fluid, causing him to go into critical failure. Bernard’s been through the ringer, y’all.

Later, Bernard was able to inject some fluid into his head, but it wasn’t enough. Throughout this season, he constantly flashed back and forth through several timelines, eventually causing him to question the nature of his reality. “Is this now?”

One of the big reveals from this season was that Elsie Hughes (Shannon Woodward) was still alive and stashed in a cave. Apparently, Bernard rejected Ford’s command to kill her in season 1. However, there has been something off about Bernard and Elsie’s relationship. Elsie has had no contact with any other character in the park, with the exception being Bernard. When Bernard has big moments like delivering Ford to Maeve, Elsie always goes off on her own. And, in last Sunday’s episode, Bernard left Elsie to fend for herself in the woods, while he continued on to the Forge by himself.

Why is this all so odd? Because the perfect Westworld surprise reveal would be that Elsie is actually dead and Bernard, in his grief, has been manifesting a version of her so that he can atone for killing her in season 1. Remember, Elsie constantly reminds Bernard that he promised he’d never hurt her again.

Let’s hope we get a definitive answer to this mystery, during the season 2 finale.