Photo: Joseph Lederer / A&E
Who's Really To Blame For White Pine Bay's Latest Mysterious Death?
If Emma hadn't told Norma about Norman's blackouts, Norma wouldn't have scuttled his driver's test. But If Cody hadn't told Emma, Norman wouldn't have stomped over to her house. But if Norma....
The aftermath of the apparent murder of Cody's father Jimmy in the last episode takes up so much oxygen in this episode that there's barely time to service any other storylines. First things first: Jimmy did die. Alex comes to interrupt Norma on her very first day on the council to tell her the news, and the fact that the way he phrases it is "Norman says it was self-defense" totally escapes her notice. Anyway, this kicks off the bottle portion of the episode, as Norman tells his pretty credible self-defense version of the story, and Norma paces and jitters and yells at people and spins Norman's story for George when he shows up because several friends called to tell him she was there, and either Norma doesn't think that's weird because she's distracted by what may be her son's imminent murder arrest, or she's just never going to figure out who's pulling which strings in White Pine Bay. Eventually, Norman is allowed to leave (he never does get arrested), and then the whole thing is ruled an accident anyway, so everything's fixed, right?
Well, no. Now that Cody is an orphan (thanks to Norman), she has to go live with an aunt in Indiana, but before she leaves town, she has some info she wants to relay to Norman: Norma cornered her in the can at the cop shop and urged her not to tell the cops about Norma's blackouts because they'll think there's something wrong with him, which suggests that Norma knows there is something wrong with him and is keeping it from him. Norman confronts Norma about it, tears are shed, and he seems pretty mad that she's been playing dice with his mental health. I just hope Norma can get past all this scandal and turmoil and set her mind to the pressing matters of her new job: stopping the bypass!!!!!1!!1111!!
How Bates Motel-y is this mostly single-minded episode of Bates Motel?
| Bates Motel-y Element | Present? |
|---|---|
| Norman's weirdness makes someone uncomfortable enough to react (verbally or non-verbally). | Literally everyone in town is talking about Norman's blackouts. |
| Norma has a public meltdown. | She yells at the texting receptionist at the police station (obviously). |
| So that's how it is in their family. | Norman goes from 0 to bitch in three seconds when he comes out of an interrogation room and sees Norma hugging George. |
| The weed business is boring. | "You're gonna raid Nick Ford's warehouse?" Who cares. |
| Dylan evinces resentment about his place in the family. | Emma has to track Dylan down and tell him that Norman's being held for questioning because he maybe killed a guy, but Dylan says it's none of his business and that Norma and Norman only care about each other so why should he bother? Honestly, he's not wrong. |
| Emma pines. | She clearly holds herself responsible for everything that's happened with Norman because she narced about his blackouts, so between that and no Gunner in the episode, she's right back up Norman's butt the whole episode (figuratively), giving him her best sad, soulful looks. |
| The bypass!!!!!1!!!1 | One of Norma's fellow council members has just opened the topic when Romero appears to tell her about Norman's involvement in Jimmy's death. Nice timing, Alex! |
| A Bates has sex. | No one gets any. |
| A Bates commits murder. | Technically no -- Jimmy's death is ruled an accident and happened in the last episode anyway -- but we close on the reveal that Norman's DNA has been matched to semen found on Miss Watson, so we may soon learn that he definitely did that one. |
| Winky Psycho foreshadowing. | Norma comes down for breakfast to find Norman cross-dressed in one of her floral-print aprons. |
| NEW CATEGORY! Norma is the best-dressed character in the episode. | Since she spends most of the episode in a hospital gown pink polyester number with a tiny neck bow and ornamental pocket patches, Emma and her Anthropologie looks take the prize. |
| 8 / 11 Final Score |
73% Bates Motel |
| 27% Empty Nest, I mean seriously what was that pink thing on Norma?! |