The Big Bang Theory: Bernadette's Slow Transformation In Pictures
In the third season of The Big Bang Theory, Howard finally met his match with Bernadette Rostenkowski. She was a microbiology student waitressing at The Cheesecake Factory at the time and proved to be Howard's dream girl. More than that, Bernadette was an independent woman with ambitions and values, who made a wonderful addition to the friend group.
Bernadette had her ups and downs with Howard before tying the knot and starting a family but she was her own character with a slow transformation. While physically not much changed, but a lot changed for Bernadette mentally as she navigated her relationship with Howard, a strenuous friendship with Sheldon, and a work-play relationship with Penny. By season 12, Bernadette had transformed.
10 Season 3: New To The Group
Bernadette makes her first appearance in 'The Creepy Candy Coating Corollary.' Now that Penny was dating Leonard, he begged her to set Howard up with a friend of hers because they made a deal years ago. Penny set Howard up with her friend, Bernadette, from the Cheesecake Factory because she was sweet and a microbiologist, which Howard could find interesting.
Their date started out rocky but turned successful. Surprisingly, by the end of the season, Howard gently tells the group a secret he's been keeping: he broke up with Bernadette because she wasn't the "kind" of girl he was looking for.
9 Season 4
In season 4's 'The Hot Troll Deviation,' it comes out that Bernadette ended things with Howard because he virtually cheated on her with a troll in a video game. But after realizing Bernadette was better than a fake character, he wins her back and the two begin dating again.
By 'The Cohabitation Formulation,' Bernadette was fitting in nicely with the group but had issues with Howard sneaking away from her every night to be with his mother. Their love, however, persisted and he proposed to her around the time she was overthinking their relationship.
8 Season 5
Bernadette has been mentally strong since her first episode and is confident in her convictions, which is why she was totally against Howard going off into space when he was invited in 'The Russian Rocket Reaction.' But since Howard supported her through her time getting her Ph.D., she supported him going into space.
Season 5 focused on Bernadette planning her wedding and becoming closer with both Penny and Amy as they helped her organize the big day. In the season finale, Bernadette and Howard were married after a bumpy bachelor party and a discussion about not wanting children.
7 Season 6
By season 6, Bernadette's friendship with the group was better than ever. It seemed like everyone found their place among each other. Regarding Sheldon, this was the closest he and Bernadette ever were since she helped him with his fear of birds and assisted him with an inapt situation around his graduate student. However, some things never change.
Even though Bernadette and Howard were married and he was back from space, he still wasn't ready to move in with her because he didn't want to hurt his mother. He eventually moves in, of course, and the two start inviting the friend group over to their home for dinner gatherings.
6 Season 7
Bernadette's competitive side came out in 'The Scavenger Vortex,' when she was paired with Leonard for a scavenger hunt. It was a darker, fiercer side to her that fans hadn't seen before. This angrier side continued in 'The Workplace Proximity when she found out that Howard wouldn't want to work alongside her or be with her all day.
The two eventually made up just in time for Thanksgiving where she and Raj cooked dinner for everyone at Mrs. Wolowitz's house. In this season, Bernadette and Amy appear closer as they started doing more things together without Penny because they were tired of hearing her complain about her latest acting gig.
5 Season 8
At the start of season 8, Bernadette helps Penny leave acting and get a job that she could excel at: pharmaceutical sales. Penny gets the job, but it was only because she and Bernadette's boss connected on the fact that Bernadette was a bully.
Although she was small and cute, she was also mean. Her condescending tone was noticeable in 'The Septum Deviation,' when Raj moved into their apartment and she was comparing all of the nice gestures Raj did to the lack thereof from Howard. Bernadette's snarky side relaxed by the end of the season when it was revealed that Howard's mother unexpectedly died and that Howard had a half-brother he didn't know about.
4 Season 9
Season 9 was a fun one for the friends of TBBT because they were all hanging out individually as well as together.
Bernadette spent more time with Amy after her breakup from Sheldon, she helps Sheldon with the idea of finding another roommate after Leonard and Penny got married, and she and Raj began renovating the Wolowitz family home. More importantly, Bernadette and Howard found out they were pregnant with their first baby.
3 Season 10
In season 10's 'The Birthday Synchronicity,' Bernadette finally gives birth to their daughter, Halley Wolowitz. The new parents tried to cope with being new parents while also wanting to focus on their friendships and work as well.
As heavenly as it has been with a new baby, Bernadette was excited—albeit nervous—to get back to work. However, her snarky side comes out again by the end of the series when she finds her husband too clingy and made fun of his love of magic.
2 Season 11
In the season 11 premiere, Bernadette is shocked when she finds out she's pregnant with her second baby already. She wasn't ready for a second baby because she was just getting into the routine of having one baby and focusing on work.
Nevertheless, she persisted but needed more help around the house after being put on bed rest. By 'The Neonatal Nomenclature,' Bernadette gave birth to a boy, Michael, and realized how badly she missed being at work. Her dedication to being a working mother was inspiring for viewers and sowed realism in its difficulties.
1 Season 12
In the 12th and final season of The Big Bang Theory, Bernadette proved that being a working mother of two was rewarding but tiring. She began hiding in Halley's outdoor playhouse after work just to have a moment of peace, but that didn't mean she hid from her friends. Bernadette carved time to get to know Raj's new fiance, Anu, better and did the same with Stuart's girlfriend, Denise.
At work, Bernadette was seen hanging out more with Penny after teaming up to sell a new drug that their company was working on. By the series finale, Bernadette joined her friends in supporting Amy and Sheldon's Nobel Prize award, proving that although this group bothered her sometimes, there's nothing she wouldn't do for them.