Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers for Silo Season 3, Episode 4.Things are heating up in Silo Season 3. We learned about Camille’s (Alexandria Riley) plans to put the vitamin compound into the water supply to make everyone forget their memories, even her own son (and presumably her as well). Juliette (Rebecca Ferguson) was near death, and Lukas (Avi Nash) was revealed to be alive. Plus, a lot of strange things happened in the flashback scenes showing the events leading up to the creation of these silos. But Season 3, Episode 4, “Whatever You Do, Don’t Go Home” delivered what is perhaps the season’s most shocking plot twist yet.
Admittedly, I had a feeling this might happen. But as the season progressed, the return of this core character seemed more unlikely. However, Silo Season 3 did the right thing by introducing this massive twist almost halfway through the season when viewers probably least expected it.
Bernard is Still Alive in ‘Silo’ Season 3
At the end of Silo Season 2, Bernard (Tim Robbins) and Jules were stuck in the airlock as a fire burned. We learned in Season 3 that Jules was saved in the nick of time, although she suffered burns and took some time to heal. She recovered, but lost her memories (although we know the reason for that has nothing to do with injuries she sustained).
Meanwhile, we were told that Bernard didn’t survive. The poison seeped into holes in his suit, which wasn’t as airtight as Jules’, and his body was burned in the incinerator. That seemed pretty final. However, in the most recent episode of the true masterpiece Apple TV show, it was revealed that Bernard is still alive. As Jules regains her memories of George (Ferdinand Kingsley), she finds a hidden passageway into the tunnels. She remembers flashes of her time there. But her thoughts are interrupted by a faint cough behind a curtain. It’s Bernard, clearly not in great health, but very much alive.
This begs the question: how and why did he survive? This will likely be answered in the next episode, but Episode 4 offered a few hints. When Jules’ nurse saves her, she reveals she has been replacing Jules’ memory-erasing drugs with a placebo for a long time. Someone instructed her to do so — but who? When Jules enters the room that she’s told to go to by the nurse, who says it’s safe, Robert Sims (Common) is there. But Jules rightfully runs in fear and is saved by Shirley (Remmie Milner) before she has the chance to give him the benefit of the doubt.
What Will Happen Next to Bernard and Sims in ‘Silo’ Season 3?
It wouldn’t be hard to believe that Sims has switched sides now after seeing what his wife is doing and believing that she has taken things too far. Both Bernard and Sims were in the dark about many of the worst aspects of the silo. He did awful things at Bernard’s direction. But he, like Bernard, was simply following orders. They both believed that some higher power was advising them to do this for the greater good.
It’s possible that, after seeing Bernard’s reaction to the information from Lukas in Silo Season 2 and his abrupt resignation as Head of IT, Sims realized something darker was at play. If anyone could have saved Bernard, it would have been him. Maybe he recognizes that Bernard isn’t one of the bad guys or that he feels Bernard has more information they need to know. With Jules incapacitated and Lukas missing, Bernard is his only potential information source.
Whatever happened, it’s a delight to see Robbins back in the role of the tyrannical, villainous, but also complex former Head of IT. As a primary antagonist of the first two seasons, something was missing without Bernard in Silo Season 3. The story has moved slowly, but his return suggests things are about to ramp up.
The character is in no physical or mental state to make any waves. He has already been used as a scapegoat and blamed for everything that happened. He would be ostracized by the residents of the silo if they knew he was alive. Still, Bernard’s presence as another person who knows about the safeguard procedure is important. Even more crucially, he’s familiar with the inner workings of the silo and the AI voice that directs orders. This adds an exciting element to the plot going forward. Bernard is likely going to play an even more significant role now.
