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tv_talk2014-02-23 02:12 pm
eevilalice) wrote in tv_talk2014-02-23 02:12 pm
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Bates Motel: Primer and Homebase
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
2.01 Gone But Not Forgotten
Re: 2.01 Gone But Not Forgotten
What I appreciate in this show is that the mixture of the everyday and the awful are so well done. So, you have Norma teaching Norman how to drive a car and it goes about as well as parent-children driving lessons go (seriously, you don't have to be a member of the Bates clan for this to be a bad idea), and Norman passive-aggressively returning the favour, which is about as normal as it gets, while on the other hand you have that continuing ticking time bomb that consists of Norma's awareness he's killed before and of Norman's rage black outs and unability to remember, and Miss Watson's death in the s1 finale. Now, the show left it open last season whether or not Norman killed Miss Watson, though every sign was certainly pointing towards his doing it (except for the phone call he overheard); the s2 opener with Bradley attempting suicide in the teaser (when she definitely wasn't in a suicidal state in the s1 finale where we left her) still points this way (Norman has Blair Watson's pearls), but also suggests, via Bradley's reaction, the alternate possibility Bradley might have killed her. (Also, there's the parallel of the s1 opener where you're made to assume Norma killed her husband when it actually was Norman.) (I would add Gil to the list of suspects, but I doubt they'd have killed him off in this episode if he'd done it, and also, Bradley's attempted suicide would then be coming out of nowhere.) So my current guess is that Norman might not have killed Miss Watson after all but WILL kill Bradley before this season is over. Bradley killing Gil who she assumes killed her father and asking Norman for help in the cliffhanger also supports that theory for me.
Mystery man standing over Blair Watson's grave: probably has nothing to do with her death but has something to do with the local weed industry, which is one reason why Sheriff Romero smoothly changes the subject on Norman, correctly deducing Norman feels guilty himself. Romero continues to be a man of ambiguous mystery, and I enjoyed both his scene with Norman and his conversation with Norma afterwards.
Just one scene with Dylan and Norma, but it brings on the brittleness and push-pull of that other mother-son relationship; his attempting to pay rent and not just implicitly but explicitly admitting he wants to stay and her reaction were great. Incidentally, considering the by pass is about to happen, I assume Norma will be forced to accept the weed money soon. I do wonder whether she'll tell Dylan - aka the only other person currently aware of Norman's rage blackouts - what she's just found out re: Norman and Miss Watson. On the one hand, Norma is such a determined "we'll pretend this never happened and continue with our lives" denialist, otoh, she also has moments where she desperately needs to talk, and she hardly can tell Sheriff Romero.
Re: 2.01 Gone But Not Forgotten
I assumed Bradley had killed Miss Watson after the opening, too, but by the end that appeared to me to be a red herring. She genuinely seemed not to have known that "B" was Miss Watson when she was told. It is still confusing how/why she came to be so distraught after the dance and jump off the bridge. However, I think you're right in that Norman could kill her by the end of the season; it doesn't matter if she in fact didn't kill Miss Watson, only that Norman thinks she did, and there will be plenty pointing that way (I'm thinking there could be conversations with Dylan, for instance). Also, I do think it could be Gil (or a lackey or phone guy from last season; have we met an "Eric" yet?) and all these narrative complications could still work.
Ah, Dylan. Most decent guy on the show despite working in the drug business?
I like that Emma is a bit more prickly with Norman (in her one scene) but still working at the motel. I loved her and Norma together last season.
Aaaand Norman gets more and more into taxidermy. I laughed a little at both Norma and Romero saying he needs to get out and be a normal teenager. Norma seems to have loosened the leash in that regard a little.
Re: 2.01 Gone But Not Forgotten
No, we haven't met an Eric yet, unless it's the mystery man visiting Miss Watson's grave, but I suspect we will soon.
re: Norman eventually killing Bradley, another reason for assuming this is because he now knows she's killed someone. Not that he won't sympathize with her on the Gil/my-father's-killer matter, but he won't see her on a pedestal anymore as he used to, and that could be enough for his buddying psychosis in a moment of crisis, especially if he assumes she also killed Miss Watson.
Emma and Norma: loved them together last season, too. Emma basically was the only person in that town who didn't regard Norma as crazy and/or was sexually attracted to her and/or trying to exploit her, and while Norma originally had Norman-related and cover-up reasons for being nice to Emma, I think she came to genuinely like Emma. Hooray for friendly relations between two female characters! So yes, I'm glad Emma is still working at the motel.
Ah, Dylan. Most decent guy on the show despite working in the drug business?
Well, the competition for that title isn't great in that town, but based on the little we know I think Emma's father the taxidermist from Manchester might have first dibs. :) Seriously, though, I know what you mean. I wonder, though, what Dylan will do when his bosses tell him to hurt/kill someone?
I laughed a little at both Norma and Romero saying he needs to get out and be a normal teenager. Norma seems to have loosened the leash in that regard a little.
I think Norma having been mostly happy during those three months might have something to do with that. No more people putting dead bodies in her bed and threatening her (and her sons') life plus the motel finally getting (non-crazy) guests equalling a more relaxed Norma capable of giving Norman a bit more freedom, too. And then of course with Miss Watson dead and Bradley in the hospital the two people she felt competitive re: Norman about were not an issue anymore.
Re: 2.01 Gone But Not Forgotten
When I rewatched the first season recently, that hug between Emma and Norma was one of my favorite things. Good point about Emma being an exception as far as how people in town were treating Norma.
I thought perhaps Dylan would be faced with the sort of orders and decision you mention in this episode, with Bradley. I still think that could happen, that he'll be forced to "deal with" Bradley violently. And his relationship with Norman will get tangled up in that.