Bates Motel 3.09.
May. 5th, 2015 09:58 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selenakIn which the finale is set up. I think? We have ten episodes this season, right?
I'm still torn about whether or not Bradley is actually back in White Pines Bay or only existing in Norman's head, while leaning more towards "she's a hallucination". My reasons: no character other than Norman has seen or interacted with Bradley so far. Having faked her death after committing a murder, it really would not just be stupid but imprisonment risking for her to return. Bradley's experiences upon said return mirror a lot of Norman's current issues; her mother is dating again, has emotionally moved on, has changed Bradley's old room into a gym. (Norman's mother is busy cleaning out his beloved basement of the taxidermy.) Bradley tells Norman she wants him to be with her and proceeds to initiate sex, when Bradley back in s1 and early s2 really wasn't interested anymore after that one time. And that's leaving aside that Norman's dead dog led him to Bradley in the middle of the night (directly after an argument with Norma in which she said the fatal "you're killing me"), something Bradley does not seem to question. Really, the sole indication the show's given me that the Bradley who has returned actually exists outside of Norman's mind is that she picked the key to her house from a hiding place Norman wouldn't know, but then again, he might have imagined the entire visit to the house if she's an hallucination, and/or the real Bradley could have told him.
Most of all, though: there's absolutely no need to bring real Bradley back. Otoh, an imaginary Bradley that's simply a visualisation of Norman's increasingly distorted psyche, yes, not to mention that if he ends up killing imaginary Bradley the show can have its cake and eat it, i.e. it brings Norman further on the serial killer path but the lack of an actual victim makes it not illogical he doesn't get arrested years before killing Norma. It also continues the seasonal trend of Norman having lengthier and lengthier interactions with Mother, his imaginary Norma, and in the long term, all of this will lead to Mother versus Real Norma, with Norma losing fatally.
On to all the parts of the episode which we can be sure actually happened outside of Norman's head: Caleb, I don't care you're trying to reform, not killing Chick at this point was stupid. Otoh, thank you for finally telling someone about your encounter with Norman in season 2, and especially for telling Norma, for all the good it's going to do. (Not, alas, but it was still important to share.) I was half way expecting Caleb to make a comparison between Norman and both of their parents (one violent, one insane), but that would probably be overdoing it, the important point was made regardless.
Dylan and Emma: you know, I'm happy for them, but this whole plot line feels a bit like belonging into another show, to wit, a teen soap. Then again, this show has always used soap elements (including teen soap elements, see the original Bradley storyline in s1).
Bob the Creep, until Norma starts killing women and throwing them out of cars, and adds torturing people for information to her resumé, she's not "worse than you", so stop it with the high horse. A look at the internet tells me a part of the viewers agree with him, which, no. Anyway, after getting only Bob gloating, Norma goes to Alex Romero, and the three best scenes of the episode are the two Norma and Alex scenes plus the Norma and Norman scene in the basement in between. The last one, where Norman tells Norma that for all he knows she killed Sam Bates, brings up an often debated point ever since the mid s1 reveal where Norma told Dylan - who until then had assumed, and had convinced Norman of it, that Norma had killed Sam -, that it had been Norman; there've always been fans arguing we only have Norma's word for this, and she could have been lying. Thing is: a) said confession came complete with flashbacks, showing Norman doing it, and unless we're in Norman's pov, this show has yet to "lie" visually. B.) Norma's extreme worry about what Norman does during blackouts even before the fate of Blair Watson became an issue makes sense if she knows he's been violent at least once during a blackout but makes no sense if she knows he never was, and that she killed Sam, c.) she was extremely reluctant to tell Norman this and he had to threaten to commit sucide last season before she finally told him (the opposite of gaslighting, which is what the "Norma did it" viewers think she did), and d.) in this episode, when Alex Romero pressures her for a confession, "I did killed my husband" is actually what she comes up with first (after the old "it was an accident") and treated by both him and the show narrative as a lie, which is why he pressures her further until she breaks down with the truth.
Which brings me to another point, which is the show's cruel, cruel Alex/Norma teasing. Because every tiime they come close to kissing, circumstances are such that I actually have to be glad it doesn't happen just then and that way. Two eps ago, the problem was that he was completely drunk which was why she stopped herself. This time around, the problem was that it was a violent scene (both emotionally and physically), and given Norma's backstory of abuse, going from top lashing out at each other to having sex, that old bodice ripper element, woulld have made that encounter, thad it turned sexual, irrevocably tainted by this. So while I'm as eager to finally watch Norma and Alex consume their relationship as the next watcher (err, minus the part where that doooooms Alex Romero, because Psycho prequel), I was actually glad that when she said "don't touch me" he listened and let her go.
Dead body predictions for the finale:
1.) Caleb, with the only question being whether it will be due to Chick or Norman, but I'm thinking Chick.
2.) Bob the Creep, because he's petty enough that now his dirty secrets are all the open due to Alex having given the flash drive to the Feds, he's going to want Norma go down as well (and Alex for helping her); however if he told someone about Norman the prequel would be made impossible from this point onwards, and thus my guess is either Alex or Norma will kill him before that happens. (Outside possibility: before or while this happens, Bob will kill Alex, which would be a true shocker. Also, nooooo.)
3.) Bradley, whether she's imaginary or real. Otherwise they wouldn't have let her appear in the first place.
Emotional twists for the finale:
Depends on whether we get four or five seasons. Because if we're heading towards the final season, then I could see Norma being pushed to the point where she finally is ready to accept she needs to do something about Norman that's more than covering for him and being in denial. If Bradley is real and she sees him killing her, that would be a possible trigger event, though I still doubt she'd be ready to hand him over to the police, no way. She might try to keep him literally locked up in the house, though, until he poisons her and turns her into a mummy of the taxidermic kind. But like I said, that would be something reserved for when they know they do the last season. If there'll be five season, then I think the emotional twist will be her and Alex Romero finally getting together.
I'm still torn about whether or not Bradley is actually back in White Pines Bay or only existing in Norman's head, while leaning more towards "she's a hallucination". My reasons: no character other than Norman has seen or interacted with Bradley so far. Having faked her death after committing a murder, it really would not just be stupid but imprisonment risking for her to return. Bradley's experiences upon said return mirror a lot of Norman's current issues; her mother is dating again, has emotionally moved on, has changed Bradley's old room into a gym. (Norman's mother is busy cleaning out his beloved basement of the taxidermy.) Bradley tells Norman she wants him to be with her and proceeds to initiate sex, when Bradley back in s1 and early s2 really wasn't interested anymore after that one time. And that's leaving aside that Norman's dead dog led him to Bradley in the middle of the night (directly after an argument with Norma in which she said the fatal "you're killing me"), something Bradley does not seem to question. Really, the sole indication the show's given me that the Bradley who has returned actually exists outside of Norman's mind is that she picked the key to her house from a hiding place Norman wouldn't know, but then again, he might have imagined the entire visit to the house if she's an hallucination, and/or the real Bradley could have told him.
Most of all, though: there's absolutely no need to bring real Bradley back. Otoh, an imaginary Bradley that's simply a visualisation of Norman's increasingly distorted psyche, yes, not to mention that if he ends up killing imaginary Bradley the show can have its cake and eat it, i.e. it brings Norman further on the serial killer path but the lack of an actual victim makes it not illogical he doesn't get arrested years before killing Norma. It also continues the seasonal trend of Norman having lengthier and lengthier interactions with Mother, his imaginary Norma, and in the long term, all of this will lead to Mother versus Real Norma, with Norma losing fatally.
On to all the parts of the episode which we can be sure actually happened outside of Norman's head: Caleb, I don't care you're trying to reform, not killing Chick at this point was stupid. Otoh, thank you for finally telling someone about your encounter with Norman in season 2, and especially for telling Norma, for all the good it's going to do. (Not, alas, but it was still important to share.) I was half way expecting Caleb to make a comparison between Norman and both of their parents (one violent, one insane), but that would probably be overdoing it, the important point was made regardless.
Dylan and Emma: you know, I'm happy for them, but this whole plot line feels a bit like belonging into another show, to wit, a teen soap. Then again, this show has always used soap elements (including teen soap elements, see the original Bradley storyline in s1).
Bob the Creep, until Norma starts killing women and throwing them out of cars, and adds torturing people for information to her resumé, she's not "worse than you", so stop it with the high horse. A look at the internet tells me a part of the viewers agree with him, which, no. Anyway, after getting only Bob gloating, Norma goes to Alex Romero, and the three best scenes of the episode are the two Norma and Alex scenes plus the Norma and Norman scene in the basement in between. The last one, where Norman tells Norma that for all he knows she killed Sam Bates, brings up an often debated point ever since the mid s1 reveal where Norma told Dylan - who until then had assumed, and had convinced Norman of it, that Norma had killed Sam -, that it had been Norman; there've always been fans arguing we only have Norma's word for this, and she could have been lying. Thing is: a) said confession came complete with flashbacks, showing Norman doing it, and unless we're in Norman's pov, this show has yet to "lie" visually. B.) Norma's extreme worry about what Norman does during blackouts even before the fate of Blair Watson became an issue makes sense if she knows he's been violent at least once during a blackout but makes no sense if she knows he never was, and that she killed Sam, c.) she was extremely reluctant to tell Norman this and he had to threaten to commit sucide last season before she finally told him (the opposite of gaslighting, which is what the "Norma did it" viewers think she did), and d.) in this episode, when Alex Romero pressures her for a confession, "I did killed my husband" is actually what she comes up with first (after the old "it was an accident") and treated by both him and the show narrative as a lie, which is why he pressures her further until she breaks down with the truth.
Which brings me to another point, which is the show's cruel, cruel Alex/Norma teasing. Because every tiime they come close to kissing, circumstances are such that I actually have to be glad it doesn't happen just then and that way. Two eps ago, the problem was that he was completely drunk which was why she stopped herself. This time around, the problem was that it was a violent scene (both emotionally and physically), and given Norma's backstory of abuse, going from top lashing out at each other to having sex, that old bodice ripper element, woulld have made that encounter, thad it turned sexual, irrevocably tainted by this. So while I'm as eager to finally watch Norma and Alex consume their relationship as the next watcher (err, minus the part where that doooooms Alex Romero, because Psycho prequel), I was actually glad that when she said "don't touch me" he listened and let her go.
Dead body predictions for the finale:
1.) Caleb, with the only question being whether it will be due to Chick or Norman, but I'm thinking Chick.
2.) Bob the Creep, because he's petty enough that now his dirty secrets are all the open due to Alex having given the flash drive to the Feds, he's going to want Norma go down as well (and Alex for helping her); however if he told someone about Norman the prequel would be made impossible from this point onwards, and thus my guess is either Alex or Norma will kill him before that happens. (Outside possibility: before or while this happens, Bob will kill Alex, which would be a true shocker. Also, nooooo.)
3.) Bradley, whether she's imaginary or real. Otherwise they wouldn't have let her appear in the first place.
Emotional twists for the finale:
Depends on whether we get four or five seasons. Because if we're heading towards the final season, then I could see Norma being pushed to the point where she finally is ready to accept she needs to do something about Norman that's more than covering for him and being in denial. If Bradley is real and she sees him killing her, that would be a possible trigger event, though I still doubt she'd be ready to hand him over to the police, no way. She might try to keep him literally locked up in the house, though, until he poisons her and turns her into a mummy of the taxidermic kind. But like I said, that would be something reserved for when they know they do the last season. If there'll be five season, then I think the emotional twist will be her and Alex Romero finally getting together.
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Date: 2015-05-05 08:22 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2015-05-05 11:49 am (UTC)