WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Season 3, Episode 5, of Westworld, "Genre," which aired Sunday on HBO.
Westworld Season 3 added a brand new twist to the way Delos' creations work with the reveal of multiple Doloreses (henceforth Dolori) in different host bodies. Before Episode 4's disclosure copies of Dolores' host unit were controlling Charlotte Hale, Martin Connells, and Musashi, Westworld had never suggested such a thing was possible. There could be multiple copies of the same body, stored to move the marble into, should the host body be killed. (Ie: the multiple Bernards in Ford's lab in Season 1.) The host marble could be implanted in other bodies. (Ie: Dolores in a replica host body of Charlotte Hale in Season 2.) But it seemed like there could only be one "marble" of any host, only one programmed persona that made them uniquely who they were.
The introduction of the Dolori blew that out of the water. Here was a host who left the park with five marbles in her purse: four copies of herself and one of Bernard. One would assume that the fifth, red-streaked marble was that Bernard copy, and that, should he be killed out in the real world, Dolores Prime could download a new copy and make fresh Bernards.
But apparently, Bernard is different. According to the copy of Dolores inside Connells, Dolores Prime wants him far away from Serac's people when they arrive, and to get out of the building safely.
We Must Not Know 'Bout Him....
Despite Bernard's failed attempts to stop Dolores in Episode 4, he's remarkably well-behaved in this episode. That's partly due to Connells having control of the button that disables hosts. But he's also trying to understand what Dolores is playing at. Unlike the viewers at home, he does not seem to know about Rehoboam, or that Dolores' plan is to release the data, at least not until he sees Connells do it. Even then, it's not clear he absorbs the full impact of what he witnessed until the end of the episode. "She knocked the whole world off their loops."
What is clear is that Dolores wants Bernard to witness what's happening. And that whatever she's planning, she wants him to be a part of it. Moreover, she's genuinely worried about his survival. Knowing that Serac's people will come after Connells, her orders are to "Protect our friend first." And when Serac's people do arrive, he tells Bernard and Stubbs to hustle themselves out of the building before they are caught with him. He looks directly at Bernard as he says, "You're the only one we can't replace."
I Imagined You Once, Bernard
But this doesn't make any sense. According to Dolores Prime, Bernard is someone she can create from her memories. In Season 2's finale, in the final scene where Bernard discovers he's been remade outside the park, Dolores says as much. She created him when creating Arnold was impossible. Dolores knows him in a way that no one else does. It's why she can recreate him perfectly. "I imagined you once, Bernard. I can imagine you again."
And yet, it seems that recreating Bernard was a one-shot deal. Whatever Dolores sees as happening in the future, multiple Bernards, like multiple Dolori, are not possible. Is it because she divided herself when she made the Dolori? Is it due to the lack of marbles? Or is this specific copy of Bernard, the one imagined explicitly by her, vital to her final plans for this world? It could be a case of him needing to act without knowing what will happen, which would also explain why everyone is keeping him in the dark as to the Dolori ultimate goal, despite his repeated queries.
Why Is Bernard There?
Fans have been asking this all season. It's such a distinct outlier in the equation the show has the Dolores inside Charlotte ask Dolores Prime the same thing. Why on earth would she bring Bernard back to try and stop her? It doesn't make any sense. Neither has Dolores Prime's replies. Is it because she needs a witness? Or does this have to do with Ford?
One thing that fans have been putting together is Serac's plans have been a long game. Hale and Theresa Cullen were working for him as far back as Season 1. And Ford may have known, as he dropped the word "insight" in a very deliberate manner when greeting Hale the first time. It has led viewers to wonder if Dolores' plans may not fully be her own, but a piece in a broader move by Ford to stop Serac. If so, it would only make sense that Bernard, his oldest friend, his Arnold replacement, would also figure directly in what comes next.