Bates Motel Season 4 Episode 10: “Norman”
Directed by Tucker Gates
Written by Kerry Ehrin
Starring Vera Farmiga, Freddie Highmore, Max Thieriot, Nestor Carbonell, Olivia Cooke A&E
Air Date: Monday, May 16th, 2016, 9pm
Last week on Bates Motel, Rebecca tried to get Romero (Nestor Carbonell) to confess while wearing a wire, but he caught on. Dylan and Emma (Max Thieriot and Olivia Cooke) were leaving, and Dylan tried one more time to get Norma (Vera Farmiga) to listen about Norman’s instability, at Romero’s urging. She refused to listen, and broke up with Alex for trying to get between her and her son. Norman (Freddie Highmore) found Emma’s mom’s suitcase and realized that they could not live in this world any longer. He lit the furnace and closed all the vents except for the room in which they were sleeping. Romero finds them and starts CPR on Norma, shredded by grief.
Beware! Spoilers from tonight’s Bates Motel are below.
Bates Motel 4.10 “Norman” review: Norman dreams of his mom when they were young. Is she dead? It takes 5 minutes to know the answer. And I still had a hard time believing it to be true. I knew it was coming. We know how Norman Bates ends up. But it still feels unreal.
Norma Bates is dead.
The police are questioning Romero, and give him the note and the ring. It sure looks like she’s the one who caused the attempted murder-suicide. Such dramatic irony! He is jumping out of his skin, and shows up at the hospital while Norman is being discharged. He’s gonna prove Norman did it, “you piece of shit!” He goes and roughs up the furnace guy for info.
You almost feel bad for Norman, waiting for his mother to show up. “I’ll be patient Mother.” He realizes what he has to do to see her again, and starts throwing all the meds down the toilet.
Romero goes to the morgue, crying as he opens her drawer, kisses her, and puts the ring back on her finger.
Norman is destroying the giant TV like a crazy person, when a detective shows up, asking about Romero. He badmouths him of course. He gets a call from the funeral home, and brings a dress for burial. He asks to see his mother in one of the saddest and scariest moments of the series. Holy jump scare! She opens her eyes on the table and smiles at him. He goes home and hears music and singing. Then his stuffed dog comes running down the stairs, barking. I think the meds are wearing off.
Dylan calls and Norman doesn’t tell him that she is dead. He just pretends that it is better if the brothers don’t talk for her sake. I’m just glad Dylan is safe. Don’t come back, Dylan.
It is a perfect funeral all by himself. He did not invite anyone, giving a eulogy to no one. “She was like a miracle.” He loses it and starts cursing at the funeral, and then Romero shows up and punches Norman in the face. He does not get arrested for assault, but the DEA picks him up for perjury. “We’ll take you any way we can get you.”
This is it!!! Norman digs up his mother’s body, and brings her “home.”
“You can wake up now. It’s all over.” He superglues her eyes open. She looks like a TWD zombie or a white walker. Just then I started watching through veiled eyes.
Chick (Ryan Hurst) shows up to offer his condolences in the Chick way. Norman is trying to hide the body from view. He does not take the leaving hint, but seems genuinely concerned and wants to check on him soon. Chick saw her, I know it.
Norman cannot take it. He gets the gun and loads it, ready to end it all, when he hears the piano – “I’ll be home for Christmas.” The room is bright and decorated, and Norma is playing the piano, “Forever and ever.”
Mother has come home.
What a creepy, creepy episode. I could not even look at the screen when he was talking to his dead mother. Those eyes! This was the Norman and Romero party all the way, of which we (and the other characters) were just visiting guests. The music wove its own incredible story of fear, sadness, and even hope.
And with that Bates Motel has ended… and Psycho begins.
I’ve was wondering if they killed off Norma this season if the final season would be sort of a long-form remake of “Psycho.” Either way, I can’t help think this is the true end of the series as we know it. It won’t be the same without Norma alive and now only existing as a figment of Norman’s twisted mind.
I was genuinely crushed by the Bradley Martin murder in the season 3 finale. She seemed like such a sweet girl, who just wanted someone familiar to be by her side to help ease her loneliness.
But now the season 4 finale comes along and somehow tops that. The Norma Bates murder was upsetting on a deep level. Creepy is an understatement. The eyes glued open is still haunting me the next day. The Norma we all came to love was charming, full of life, talented, gracious, and with a sense of style and class that gave her dignity no matter what the circumstance. Her passion was intimidating, but righteous. The world had wronged her deeply, and you can’t help but empathize with her.
I will miss all of that going forward, as Norman will likely conjure her in his warped way. Norman’s hallucinations of his mother always seem to lack her warmth, her spirit. She was a gift to the world, not just for him. He took away a great person, a rare person, who gave light and beauty to those who knew her. He claims he knew her better than anybody. But when you compare his hallucinations to the real McCoy, did he really know her at all? His “mother” is a vengeful, cold hitman. How can a hallucination compare with such a complex, fascinating character? He will lose all the little surprising details that made her so wonderful, such a breath of fresh air. I can’t help but think “Mother” next season will be hollow, lifeless, and cold.
This show is one of the greatest television tragedies I’ve ever had the pleasure of being sucked into. I almost dread the final act next season.
i feel like Norman actually pulled the trigger and killed himself in the final scene, that why we can see him talking to his mother, they are finally back together.
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I’ve was wondering if they killed off Norma this season if the final season would be sort of a long-form remake of “Psycho.” Either way, I can’t help think this is the true end of the series as we know it. It won’t be the same without Norma alive and now only existing as a figment of Norman’s twisted mind.
Comment by Hugomarink — May 17, 2016 @ 10:32 am
I was genuinely crushed by the Bradley Martin murder in the season 3 finale. She seemed like such a sweet girl, who just wanted someone familiar to be by her side to help ease her loneliness.
But now the season 4 finale comes along and somehow tops that. The Norma Bates murder was upsetting on a deep level. Creepy is an understatement. The eyes glued open is still haunting me the next day. The Norma we all came to love was charming, full of life, talented, gracious, and with a sense of style and class that gave her dignity no matter what the circumstance. Her passion was intimidating, but righteous. The world had wronged her deeply, and you can’t help but empathize with her.
I will miss all of that going forward, as Norman will likely conjure her in his warped way. Norman’s hallucinations of his mother always seem to lack her warmth, her spirit. She was a gift to the world, not just for him. He took away a great person, a rare person, who gave light and beauty to those who knew her. He claims he knew her better than anybody. But when you compare his hallucinations to the real McCoy, did he really know her at all? His “mother” is a vengeful, cold hitman. How can a hallucination compare with such a complex, fascinating character? He will lose all the little surprising details that made her so wonderful, such a breath of fresh air. I can’t help but think “Mother” next season will be hollow, lifeless, and cold.
This show is one of the greatest television tragedies I’ve ever had the pleasure of being sucked into. I almost dread the final act next season.
Comment by HospitalJazz — May 17, 2016 @ 12:16 pm
i feel like Norman actually pulled the trigger and killed himself in the final scene, that why we can see him talking to his mother, they are finally back together.
Comment by Saif Osman — May 31, 2016 @ 7:21 am