Bates Motel
Season 4 Episode 1: “A Danger to Himself and Others”
Directed by Tucker Gates
Written by Kerry Ehrin, Carlton Cuse
Starring Vera Farmiga, Freddie Highmore, Max Thieriot, Nestor Carbonell, Olivia Cooke
A&E
Air Date: Monday, March 7th, 2016, 9pm

When we last left Bates Motel way back in 2015, Norman Bates (Freddie Highmore) finally went completely off the reservation. Throughout the season, we had seen him spiral further and further, taking on his Norma (Vera Farmiga) persona publicly, and hallucinating almost every episode. His mother (the real one – not the hallucination) finally decided to check him into a posh hospital, but it was too expensive. Norman got wind of this and ran away with Bradley Martin, who obviously came back so Norman as Norma could kill her. Dylan’s dad Caleb (Kenny Johnson) left town without saying goodbye to him., just leaving his guitar. Emma (Olivia Cooke) was finally up for a lung transplant, but ran away, until Dylan (Max Thieriot) brought her back with kisses (it would work for me). Romero (Nestor Carbonell) warned Bob that the DEA were on their way, only so he could shoot Bob himself.

Warning! Spoilers below!

Bates Motel 4.1 “A Danger to Himself and Others” review: You didn’t expect this show to start tame, did you? Romero is sinking the boat with Bob’s body out at sea.

Norman is still missing. Dylan is riding around putting up missing posters.

Norman wakes up in the middle of nowhere. He is talking to his invisible mother, like the full-blown insane person he is. Someone tries to help him but he attacks them and gets knocked out. It’s about time. This skinny kid keeps attacking people (sometimes to death), but I feel like some of them could have taken him.

They get the call. He is in a psych unit. Dylan tells Norma he can’t go because he has to go to Portland. Emma is having her lung transplant today. Norma is quite understanding and guesses about him and Emma. That Emma is a lucky girl (except for the whole lung transplant thing – you know what I mean).

Norman wakes up remembering nothing and calling for his mother. Norma is there, but the hospital all but directly called her negligent for not getting him treatment before this (if the shoe fits), and won’t let her see him. She goes back to the fancy hospital, and this time she’s desperate because they might commit Norman to the dirty mean hospital. She offers up her “services” to a gay doctor, but he agrees to see Norman anyway, after she tries honesty. What a novel idea!

Norman is released and they have one of their running-through-a-field-of-flowers-in-slow-motion reunions. That doesn’t last long. She locks him in his room, but he busts out soon enough.

Emma’s mom shows up at the hospital. But is sent away by the dad. She goes to the motel (of course), and tries to get Norma to give a letter to Emma. Norma refuses. She sneaks up to the house after Norma leaves. So Norma(n) meets Emma’s mother.

Norma proposes to Romero for health insurance, “It was not like you were doing anything else.” Ah, romance! Needless to say, he says no.

Shocking end (and a tiny bit not shocking). I won’t completely spoil that part but the repercussions to follow will be crazy.

We all know she dies eventually, but I’m not confident that Norma’s going to survive this season.

It’s back, baby! I rewatched all 3 seasons to get ready for the 4th! I thoroughly enjoy these morally suspect characters (they all are), and find myself rooting for them anyway. The season premiere digs right in where we left off. The circling the drain trailer is appropriate for all of their lives. I really hope Dylan, Emma, and Romero survive Norman, but I won’t be surprised if they don’t. When they do end the series, I think they should do another remake of Psycho starring Freddie Highmore.

Bates Motel airs Monday nights at 9pm ET on A&E.

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