Bates Motel has found its groove. When I praised the third episode of season three as being the best episode yet, the fourth episode disappointed. However, after last week’s even better episode, I’m happy to say that this week’s seventh episode, The Last Supper, maintains the momentum without much of a letdown. It does this by taking Norman’s evolution to psycho to the next logical step. What do you do when a love one is acting insane? You seek help for him.
Granted, it takes Dylan to force Norma to admit it’s come to that. She’d prefer to shrug off his behavior, like she does when shopping to replace the mobile phone she threw away when she was “in a mood” and on the run. “You’re acting like a twit. It’s not masculine or attractive.” Dylan tells her what happened when she was gone… the blackout, wandering around the house hallucinating, wearing her robe. “He thinks he’s you, Mama. It’s all too much together to be dismissed.”
So when Professor Finnigan visits Norma, she asks if he could talk to him. In the basement, Norman tells Finnigan that he finds taxidermy very peaceful; it’s an escape from all the “buzzing” in the outside world. Then he asks him, “How was it sleeping with my mother?” A flabbergasted Finnigan then asks incredulously, “Norman, do you want to sleep with her?” What happens next sends him running from the house with some frantic advice, “Get him some help, Norma… right away.”
On another front, after being shot in the last episode, Sheriff Romero goes on the offense with Bob Paris. When he finally gets a look at the content of the flash drive and sees his mother’s name on it… the same mother who has been dead for 22 years… we meet someone whom Romero blames for her death: his prison-bound father. It seems dad is using her name to con his share of drug profits.
When Norman picks up a distraught Romero outside a bar, there’s an opportunity for him to let slip his true feelings for her, “I think you’re beautiful.” She replies, “You’re drunk. You’re not going to like that you said that to me.” It’s a perfect scene because the relationship between the two has grown into something quite special. More than lovers, I really want them to be friends. I don’t want the awkward dynamics between them to change.
There’s one relationship development I’m not too thrilled about, though. Dylan seems to be fanning the flames for Emma. I mean, I like it because there’s always been some romantic tension between them. But I don’t like it because the show now seems to be ignoring the fact that Norman and Emma are supposed to be dating. Sure, his mind is slipping, but you’d think Norman would still be possessive of Emma and news of her interest in Dylan would ignite another powder keg.
I also don’t like that Dylan seems to be willing to go on Chick’s gun run to earn enough money to pay for a lung transplant operation for Emma. This makes sense, I suppose; I don’t dislike it because it’s not logical. However, I just hate to see Dylan taking another walk on the dark side after he’s turned out to be such a good guy. It’s one of the character’s fatal flaws, I fear. His eventual disappearance from the story may ultimately be of his own doing, rather than Norman’s.
The Last Supper is another episode filled with smart, funny lines and a delicate balance between comedy and drama. Psycho fans keep your ears perked. When Norman tells his mother in an intimate moment that he misses her and how close they used to be, she replies that it’s OK, “We all go a little mad sometimes.” (If you don’t know, that’s a classic line from Hitchcock’s movie.)
The next-to-last scene is full of satisfying little moments. When a strange convergence of events brings Norma, her two sons, Emma, Sheriff Romero and Caleb together for dinner, watch the musical chairs as Norman vies for the best seat. And watch the facial expressions as toasts are made and an embarrassed Norma reminds them that the food’s going to get cold. The final shot is unsettling as it reminds of us just how ugly the story is likely to get. With only three episodes left in the season, I wonder how far it will actually go…
