Click Bates

 Bates Motel instantly became one of my favorite series on Netflix after watching the first episode off Season 1 despite the gore because it was so damn good. It involved a lot of violence yes but it also has an uncanny and solid plot from start to finish that's why I was drawn or should I say hooked from season 1 to 5. If you’re like me who enjoys psychological thrillers and find solving murders highly interesting then this series is for you.

Bates Motel (was based on Alfred Hitchcock’s movie Psycho) was filmed in Canada this time wherein they built a better and bigger replica of their set in Universal Studios where the original movie was filmed. The actors picked for their roles were also the best ones in Hollywood: Vera Farmiga (Norma Bates) I’ve seen her in numerous movies and one of those was The Orphan; Nestor Carbonell (Alex Romero) is known for his role on Lost which ran for roughly 6 years; Freddie Highmore (Norman Bates) from The Good Doctor wherein he played the role of a young surgeon with autism and savant syndrome, he was really brilliant there and he was equally brilliant in Bates Motel. And oh, remember him from the movie Charlie and the Chocolate Factory which co-stars Johnny Depp? Max Thieriot (Dylan Bates), I’ve seen him before in this movie Kit Kittredge: An American Girl but he was a lot younger back then although he already showed a lot of potential as a teenage actor plus he’s had tons of other famous movies thereafter; Last but not least Olivia Cooke (Emma Dacody), I’ve seen her first on Me, Earl & The Dying Girl wherein she played the role of a  young girl with Leukemia. 

Just a heads up though, this post is going to be filled with spoilers so if you haven’t seen all seasons of Bates Motel  (especially Season 5, the finale) then don’t read this. But, if you want to know how the series ended feel free to read. I will try to make my synopsis as short as possible or shrink Seasons 1 to 5 as short as possible. I'll just play by ear in summarizing the plot so if my chronology is a little off it's 'cuz it is quite challenging remembering everything.😬

Bates Motel 

(aired from 2013-2017)

Setting: White Pine Bay, Oregon; 1960s

Main Characters:

Norma Louise Calhoun-Bates - owner of Bates Motel

Norman Bates - son of Norma, diagnosed with DID (Dissociative Identity Disorder/Mutiple Personality Disorder)

Dylan Bates - Norma’s eldest son; Norman’s stepbrother

Emma Dacody - Norman’s schoolmate/friend

Alex Romero - White Pine Bay Chief of Police 

L-R: Max Theriot, Freddie Highmore, Vera Farmiga, Olivia
Cooke & Nestor Carbonell.

The beginning…

The story began with the death of Norma’s husband (Norman’s father) who happened to be a violent man who physically and verbally abuses her. The mother and son tandem used the insurance money they got to start over in a small town called White Pine Bay located in Oregon. Norma decided to venture into the motel business and named their business Bates Motel. However, bad luck seems to follow the mother and son around because one unfortunate night, the previous owner of their property which used to be called the Seafairer Motel, Keith Summers, unhappy they bought what used to be his, barged in and raped Norma (the same night where Norman sneaked out to sleep with Bradley, a girl from his new school). Norman saw what happened and came in a little late. Norma had the chance to handcuff Keith but he was able to attack her so she strucked him with a knife and killed him. Norman, panicked and all, told Norma to call the police and say it was ‘self-defense’ but the latter refused and instead decided to conceal the crime and made her son an accomplice and dumped the body. That same night, sheriffs Alex Romero and Shelby visited the property like they often do to check on the new owners and the property as well. Romero almost saw the body after Norma and Norman (yes indeed, their names sound loony enough) temporarily placed it inside one of the motel rooms’ bath tub. The mother and son drove off and dumped Keith’s body somewhere in town that same night. Days went on and the police started looking for Keith although Romero had a gut feeling the Bates have something to do with it. 

Norma & Zack Shelby

Norma started dating Shelby, one of the other police who paid them a visit the night she murdered Keith because obviously the latter seems to be attracted to Norma and found later on that he has Keith’s belt which is a good evidence against them. Long story short, Norma was accused of killing Keith Summers as expected but was freed soon after because Shelby stole the belt which was a strong evidence supposedly. One night, Norman sneaked into Shelby’s house to get the belt back so Norma would stop seeing the Shelby (Dylan, Norman’s stepbrother, saw him came out of Shelby’s basement) and found out Shelby has an Asian sex slave/hostage in his basement. Norman told Emma about Shelby’s hostage, took the hostage to their motel and hid her but Shelby found one unlucky night when he heared water gushing from the pipes after he made out with Norma, to his rage almost got Norma, Dylan and Norman killed. Dylan however, shot and killed Shelby. Romero decided to conceal what actually happened and told the Bates to make it appear that he killed Shelby because of the latter’s involvement with Summers in the white slavery trade (they kidnap Asian women then sell them as sex slaves).

Revelations…

After the crime, Dylan, Norma’s estranged son for many years, unaware, came into view after he lost his job somewhere and showed up in White Pine Bay because he was offered a job in the same town which would involve selling Marijuana, although he never told her mother about it at first because of the risks involved. Norman, on the other hand had been manifesting black outs and serious mental illness as a result of trauma he may have developed as a child. I later on found out during the later part that Norman eventually killed his father during one of his blackouts after overhearing the latter hurting Norma and hit him with a blender pitcher in the head which killed him instantly. Norma, on the other hand, scared the police will find out and take Norman away from her, decided to stage a crime to make it appear her husband died from an accident thus, being the immediate family, they both benefitted from her dead husband’s insurance money. I also found out that Dylan was Norma’s son from her brother Caleb who raped her when they were still kids thus explains her abhorance towards Dylan and favors Norman over him. Norma also came from a very dysfunctional family as a child which explains how she also behaved as an individual. Norma’s strange attachment with Norman may have been as a result of her being in an abusive relationship and Norman was the only person or should I say the ‘only’ family she had all throughout those chaotic years. Caleb did ask for Norma’s forgiveness which she gave however they did not become friends although Dylan and Caleb being a father and son did somehow. 

Norman Bates' hobby? Taxidermy

Romero later on turned into the Bates’ family protector which did not just start and end after he kept the real truth about Officer Shelby and Keith Summers’ deaths. He also protected Dylan after killing Ford, an influential drug lord because of the threat it would pose on Norma since the latter doesn’t know what she’s getting herself into after her ‘business involvement’ with Ford. Norma was only under the impression that Ford would be an influential person to fight the building of the ‘bypass road’ which would affect her motel business if it pushes through little did she know she’s already becoming an intermediary for his drug business. Romero also protected Norman after the latter’s involvement with the murder of Blaire Watson (Ford’s daughter and happened to be Norman’s weird teacher) after Romero found out that the semen sample found on Watson’s body matched that of Norman’s AND last but not least, he married Norma (she asked him as a big favor out of desperation which Romero declined at first as it was a real crazy idea) so his insurance would benefit Norman and get him into this fancy mental facility to treat his disorder. Romero marrying Norma was my favorite though because they have this inexplicably cute charisma. It was also later on revealed that the two had mutual feelings for each other which also explains why Romero has been Norma’s knight and shining armour all along being the literal damsel in distress.

Norman’s Murders…

Keeping track of Norman’s victims was quite difficult because he’s killed tons but I’ll try to count for as long as I can only remember: His first victim was his very own father as I mentioned and his second was Blair Watson with whom he killed by slashing her throat with a knife; Emma Dacody’s mother Audrey Ellis, killed by strangulation; Bradley, killed by hitting her head into a chunk of stone in the bushes; Jim Blackwell (death by stabbing, Romero hired to kill Norman), Sam Loomis, death by stabbing; his own mother Norma, gas poisoining; Caleb, killed via multiple gunshots; Last but not least, Romero by a gunshot wound on his chest.  To see the complete list please check out this http://batesmotel.wikia.com/wiki/Deaths_on_Bates_Motel. I also believe that Norman had something to do with his therapist’s disappearance, Dr. Edwards. Norman has 2 personalities inside him: Himself, being the kind and vulnerable one;  His mother, the imperative one who also commands him to kill and is also the psychotic and most dangerous one. He shifts into these personalities when he doesn’t know what to do in a very complicated situation. If you’ve seen the movie Split (which stars James McAvoy) it expounds better on Norman’s disorder. 

Norma…

Going back, Norma came to the point wherein she’s already scared to live alone with Norman because of his temper and capacity to kill anyone during his black outs decided to bring him to a mental facility with the help of Romero who I think has been secretly in love with Norma. Norma and Romero got married because an insurance is required to treat Norman’s illness at the facility. All was well after Norma and Romero’s marriage, she was very happy but her happiness was short-lived as they were only married for couple of weeks roughly because whilst inside the mental facility Norman learned that her mother married Romero. To Norman’s anger, consumed by delusion his mother is out having the time of her life with her new husband while he’s suffering inside the mental facility, he insisted on being released and this is when all hell broke loose. Norma refused to send Norman back to the facility despite his DID diagnosis/multiple personality disorder. She shrugged off Dylan and Romero’s resolve to send him back no matter how dangerous it would be on her part which in the end caused her her life after Norman (during one of his black outs) killed her own mother by carbon monoxide poisoning. 

Spoiler Alert line: do not cross (unless you're squeamish to know)

Final Season (aired last year, 2017)…

Dylan on the other hand, prior to Norma’s death, flew to Seattle after Emma’s successful lung transplant and decided he doesn’t want to intervene with Norma’s decisions nor have anything to do with her anymore (he raised the money for Emma’s lung transplant by the way) and did not know about his mother’s demise until after more than a year through Emma, her already wife then (with whom he was already blessed with a daughter) after the latter checked out Bates Motel’s website and learned from there that Norma already passed away in search for an information on her mother’s whereabouts. Emma, on the other hand, learned that her mother was also killed by Norman through Dylan because the latter went home as soon as he knew about Norma’s death. Romero, on the other hand, was incarcerated for perjury.

The thought of Norman being left alone after Norma’s death made Dylan even more worried so he went back to Oregon and talked Norman into getting help for his condition but the conversation led into Norman hitting Dylan in the head and phoning the Chief of Police and confessing his murder of Sam Loomis. I was thinking at first that Caleb would be the bearer of bad news/Norma’s death (to Dylan), but, he too was killed after Norman switched to her mother’s violent persona and shot Caleb. 

Romero… 

Norman and his aggravating mental state dug up his mother’s grave, took her corpse home, made a makeshift mausoleum in his basement and started living as if Norma is still alive and his killing spree continued. Romero, however, got away from his guard one day, got injured, went into hiding and as soon as he got better though went hunting for Norman with an intent to kill him because he thinks that Norman killed his beloved Norma which of course was true. Moving on, during one of Dylan’s visits, he had an argument with Norman and the latter impulsively confessed to the police through a phone call that he killed Sam Loomis after the guy went missing for days which he was found guilty of and his only defense was to plead insanity. However, Romero found/abducted Norman who was already detained at the headquarters to kill him. Norman led Romero to Norma’s body out in the bush covered with snow (because Romero threatened to kill him if he won’t) and the poor man broke down in tears then badly mauled Norman after seeing his wife’s corpse. Sadly, Norman got up and snatched Romero’s gun and killed him. 

Dylan’s final visit…

Dylan made another visit to Norman when the latter phoned him to have dinner and shockingly saw their mother’s corpse. Dylan and Norman went into a heated argument about getting Norman back to the mental facility which the latter did not take nicely as usual then shifted again into his violent persona and charged Dylan with a knife. Dylan, left with no choice/out of self-defense, shot Norman which eventually killed the latter. The end.

Dylan and Romero were the sanest characters in this series by the way and if Norma only believed them she might still be alive in Season 5 although I think she’s meant to die as a repercussion for her insistence/stubbornness. I mean, in the real world, a mother would do what’s best for her child yes but not to that extent I guess. Norma resorted to the most extreme measure which caused both her and Norman’s death. Dylan decided to sell the motel and possibly will be living with Emma for good, no more turning back. However, will he ever learn about his father’s (Caleb) death? I don’t know. Maybe, it's just it wasn't shown on the finale. So, did Rihanna die on Season 5? NO, she didn't. 

Overall, Bates Motel is one of the best Netflix series I’ve seen in a while and is now second on my list (from Game of Thrones). It was very exciting to watch and will leave you quite glued to it plus their awesome soundtracks will blow you away. I was creeped out when they played Mr. Sandman by The Chordettes (and I know I shouldn't be because it's supposed to be whimsical) on one of Norman's scenes because it turned out dark and sinister for some reason as if a Babadook or the Grim reaper will storm in any moment lol. There was never a boring moment watching Bates Motel because of the endless twist and turns & unexpected revelations every season if not every episode. The cliff-hangers will often leave you very squeamish to know what’s next so don't miss Bates Motel when you can.