Bates Motel: Primer and Homebase

[eevilalice]

Welcome to the homebase for the A&E series, Bates Motel. Each week you'll find a thread for the newest episode, so we can discuss its twists and horrors together.

First, a primer.


Bates Motel is a modern day prequel to Hitchcock's Psycho, centering on Norman and his mother, Norma, as they move to the titular motel in a coastal Oregon town. Norma is hoping for a new start for herself and Norman after her husband's death, and buying and running the run-down motel is her plan. Of course, there are plenty of unforeseen complications, especially since the town has a touch of Twin Peaks strangeness and corruption to it.

I know what you're thinking. A Psycho prequel? Really? Two things should convince you to give the show a shot: its pedigree and its cast. Among others, the series is (executive) produced by Carlton Cuse (Lost) and Kerry Ehrin (Friday Night Lights). It both builds intrigue and mysteries while creating complex characters. And then it scares the crap out of you.

Cast/Characters (As of Season 2)

Vera Farmiga plays Norma Bates.



She's high-strung, cloying, yet honestly put-upon and sincerely caring. She's smart but vulnerable at times. You may not be able to stand her at all, and you may deeply sympathize with her, all within one episode.

Freddie Highmore plays Norman Bates.



Like Norma, you might feel sorry for Norman or be terrified or horribly creeped out by him in the space of a breath. Often he's simply a normal teenage boy by all appearances, crushing on girls, wanting his own space, sneaking out late at night. Buuut then there's the blackouts and weird stuff he keeps under his bed...

Max Thieriot plays Dylan Massett.



Dylan is Norma's other, older son, and Norman's half-brother. He's more of an outsider, and drifts into town and into their lives against Norma's wishes. He clashes with the family, especially when he urges Norman to live his own life, but he proves indispensable, too.

Olivia Cooke plays Emma Decody.



Emma is a smart, inquisitive girl in Norman's class who quickly develops an interest in him. She has cystic fibrosis and sees Norman's own strange health issues and outsider-y status as something akin to hers.

Nestor Carbonell plays Sheriff Alex Romero.



As sheriff, Romero and Norma butt heads as she struggles to accomplish what she wants with the motel and deals with, er, other complications. Given the town's penchant for ongoing shady activities, Romero is someone who is tough to read.


You can stream Season 1 episodes on Netflix, Amazon, and at the A&E site.

The second season begins Monday, March 3rd! Episodes air at 9/8c 10/9c.

Comments

Re: 2.03 Caleb

[selenak]

It never occured to me, either, before reading those reviews, so the third time I came across it I was fuming and had to vent here!

Norma's actually not a good liar, and when she's being manipulative, we can see right through it, and so does Dylan (and even Norman).

Yes. That's why Romero suspected her from the start re: the guy she killed (but also why he knew she didn't make the threat by Abernathy up). I think the most successful major lie we've seen Norma pull off was covering up what happened to her husband, and that one wasn't believed by Dylan (though he came to the wrong conclusion regarding her reason for lying at first), and Norman only half bought it. Otherwise, she's only succesfully lying when people don't know her, and even then - I doubt, for example, that the gynacalogist bought the "oh, I'm talking about my sister" excuse.

When you watch that scene in the kitchen at the end of this episode, there's nothing but honest emotion, and I think it kills Norma to have to say what she does.

Everyone is so raw in that scene. And it's so clear she never ever wanted Dylan to know.


The only alternative I can imagine others might be suggesting here, is if it was consensual incest and she's ashamed. But I still don't buy that for all the reasons we've discussed.

*nods* I could see Norma being ashamed of a backstory of consensual incest, too, but then she wouldn't have responded with such stark fear and horror when she saw her brother in the kitchen.

Incidentally, I think some people also assume that rape is only rape if you fight back and literally have to be held down all the time. Whereas especially in family situations like Norma's, the emotional force often is enough, i.e. the victim is told that this is okay, this is the right of the perpetrator, and if she/he doesn't let it happen they're being disobedient/disloyal/a traitor etc. Note that Caleb says to Dylan that Norma was "such a trusting little girl". (Ugh.)

Speaking of the rape in the pilot: Norma's absolute conviction that nobody would believe her of if they did would blame her if as Norman first suggested they'd tell the police makes me wonder whether she tried that, as a girl, and nobody did believe her then, or blamed her.

Something else, though: the one thing both Norma (in her confession to Norman) and her brother said when talking about their childhood was that their father was physically abusive to both of them, so I'm assuming that's true. What do you want to bet that one of them ended up killing him? Because there's no mention of him being alive.

Re: 2.03 Caleb

[eevilalice]

YES to your last three points in particular. Didn't Caleb also refer to her as "pretty," too, or am I misremembering? Either way, how he refers to her when they were young has creepy written all over it.

I would not be surprised if Norma and Caleb's father was killed by one of them, and my money would be on Caleb. My impression of Norma given events last season (asking Dylan for a gun so she could protect herself but clearly being very nervous about the follow-through) is that she's never killed anyone.