S05.E05: Dreams Die First

[Stringey]

1 hour ago, ganesh said:

I still want Norman to get away with it, but I could see that too. I just want a really creepy ending. 

How about this idea. It's more sad I guess then creepy. Anyway let's say Norman gets away with it and let's say his freezer is never found by anyone that survives and definitely not the police. Anyway we flash forward twenty years or something like that. Maybe they could skip the words that say twenty years(that can come off cheesy sometimes) but we will know when we see Norman he is older. A slight grey in his hair from stress and a few lines in his face. He is on the phone apologizing to a lady that he is sorry but he just cannot see her anymore. When he hangs up  we hear a version of vera's voice that is more like an older woman but not as exaggerated as the old woman's voice in the movie. She says in a condescending cold tone "that's my boy I told you she was not good enough for you anyway. I always know what's best for you. Now bring me my tea boy"  I am not sure if vera should even physically be shown but the last image would be of Norman saying "coming mother" with a sad face and tears in his eyes.  Anyway I believe if Norman got away with it and never got help this is where he would be heading. Mother would not only get older over the years but meaner too.

[ganesh]

I could roll with a time jump. I think what I like is that Norman doesn't really know 'reality' and he's kind of trapped with Mother and doesn't know it. So, like the house is a total mess. Anyone that could have helped him is gone. 

[Virtual]

What can I say, except: WOW!! This season just continues to deliver! At this pace, Season 5 will end up being my favorite because of all the truths finally coming to light that we've been waiting for a while on.

Not surprised at Emma's reaction to Dylan telling her the truth about Norman, and his suspicion that he killed Emma's mother. I suspected she would be angry that he didn't tell her before. Must be a theme to this episode, because Madeline had a similar reaction towards Norman for not telling her about Sam sooner (except Madeline channeled Norma while Emma calmly told Dylan he had to leave/take a walk). Emma finding out all this stuff about Norman is actually what I was hoping would happen. Even better was her finding the news about Norma's death from Googling the Bates Motel. I think, like Caleb, Emma and Dylan are going to know right away that Norma wouldn't commit suicide, and they'll know it was Norman (Dylan will, at least).

Glad the show is finally crossing paths with the Psycho events. I think they already gave the Bates Motel role of the person who switches cars to Norma rather than Marion, when she ran off from the motel in Season 3 and went to Portland. And they gave the Bates Motel role of the person who sees someone at the crosswalk to Norman rather than Marion. He sees Dr. Edwards in that manner (now we know that Norman did not kill him during one of his blackouts over the past year and a half, so mine and others' theory about Norman simply fooling Dr. Edwards into thinking he was normal enough to function into society seems to be true; it seemed to me once Dr. Edwards was talking with Norman in the cafe, he realized Norman still might need therapy sessions which is why he tried to bring Norman back in; hopefully we see where this part of the story might go). Now I believe that the Pineview article in the newspaper in 5x02 was about Julian and how he breaks out from time to time.

I also expect the new Sheriff to continue being suspicious of Norman hiding something. She has been catching him in quite a number of things differing from previous things he said.

[peacheslatour]

15 hours ago, Fable said:

Lost was almost always a mess from start to finish though.  This show has been a pretty tightly run ship. 

I agree. So far this show has been a class act all the way.

[Stringey]

11 hours ago, Virtual Side said:

What can I say, except: WOW!! This season just continues to deliver! At this pace, Season 5 will end up being my favorite because of all the truths finally coming to light that we've been waiting for a while on.

Not surprised at Emma's reaction to Dylan telling her the truth about Norman, and his suspicion that he killed Emma's mother. I suspected she would be angry that he didn't tell her before. Must be a theme to this episode, because Madeline had a similar reaction towards Norman for not telling her about Sam sooner (except Madeline channeled Norma while Emma calmly told Dylan he had to leave/take a walk). Emma finding out all this stuff about Norman is actually what I was hoping would happen. Even better was her finding the news about Norma's death from Googling the Bates Motel. I think, like Caleb, Emma and Dylan are going to know right away that Norma wouldn't commit suicide, and they'll know it was Norman (Dylan will, at least).

Glad the show is finally crossing paths with the Psycho events. I think they already gave the Bates Motel role of the person who switches cars to Norma rather than Marion, when she ran off from the motel in Season 3 and went to Portland. And they gave the Bates Motel role of the person who sees someone at the crosswalk to Norman rather than Marion. He sees Dr. Edwards in that manner (now we know that Norman did not kill him during one of his blackouts over the past year and a half, so mine and others' theory about Norman simply fooling Dr. Edwards into thinking he was normal enough to function into society seems to be true; it seemed to me once Dr. Edwards was talking with Norman in the cafe, he realized Norman still might need therapy sessions which is why he tried to bring Norman back in; hopefully we see where this part of the story might go). Now I believe that the Pineview article in the newspaper in 5x02 was about Julian and how he breaks out from time to time.

I also expect the new Sheriff to continue being suspicious of Norman hiding something. She has been catching him in quite a number of things differing from previous things he said.

I think we all have observed that the norman character is a terrible liar. His emotions are always too much on the surface. You can tell he is feeling so disturbed when Edwards is talking to him about the black outs. Well that might be kind of hard to hide but he should have had his lie about the medication down a long time ago in case of a situation like this where he runs into Edwards. His lie about seeing another doctor in town and getting the meds from him was good but the delivery was not very sharp. Kind of a hesitation like he was formulating it in his mind. Also ha ha he was not a very good liar with the sheriff. I totally get though that the Norman character is expected to be a bad liar. He is psychotic but not a sociopath. Sociopaths can be great liars.

[Peanut6711]

19 hours ago, Fable said:

Lost was almost always a mess from start to finish though.  This show has been a pretty tightly run ship. 

Yes, that's true; Lost was going off the rails long before the finale.  Either Cuse learned his lesson or the other producers and writers are reeling him in for this show.  Let's hope he produces an ending that does justice to the original. 

[Mick Lady]

On ‎3‎/‎22‎/‎2017 at 8:07 PM, Ailianna said:

I also didn't get the idea it was a specifically gay bar, just an open-minded bar.  White Pine Bay doesn't seem like a place with a big gay scene, but this was the kind of place where people of all shapes, sizes and orientations can mix and mingle without anyone causing problems.  And Norma is well liked there.

We have a bar like this in town. Gays frequent there, but pretty much everyone goes there. Mostly because it's a super friendly place and the best local bands play there. We're far to small to have an exclusive gay bar, but the locals are very open minded. We're in the pacific northwest.

On ‎3‎/‎22‎/‎2017 at 1:51 PM, Rear Window said:

And will Dylan find out his dad is dead, too. I'm sure there's nothing left of the body, though. Poor Dylan!

How could I have not thought of that?!

Had to add Rear window, LOVE your screen name!

Edited March 25, 2017 by Mick Lady

[Kid]

On 3/21/2017 at 11:04 AM, Gizmo321 said:

I thought for sure the new sheriff gave Norman a real glass for his water was so she could run his prints and get some DNA as well.

I thought the same thing!

[Kid]

On 3/21/2017 at 9:22 PM, truthaboutluv said:

We're getting Marion this early in the season and in the film, it was very soon after Marion's murder that Norman is caught. So Dylan might be there to save Romero from killing Norman, while they finally all put it together, just how crazy Norman is. 

In the movie, I thought that Marian was killed very early in the movie and the entire movie was about how it was discovered that Norman did it. However, it's been a while since I've seen it.

[Kid]

On 3/23/2017 at 11:10 AM, peacheslatour said:

Um.. he killed his father.

He had a reason to kill his father.   Most people who kill a parent do so because that parent is extremely abusive. I'm not saying that's how you deal with it, I'm just saying that's the reality. I do not think  killing his father was just his pathology.   And I think killing his father is what sent him over the edge.  He went from having  problems to being disassociative. He had to disassociate because he could not cope with the fact that he killed his father. My opinion.

On 3/23/2017 at 11:24 AM, truthaboutluv said:

YMMV but I just didn't think that was how it came across. Yes, Norman killed his father during a blackout but his father was also an awful, abusive, violent man. I don't think Norma necessarily saw that as Norman being potentially very dangerous or sick. I think she just figured in a fit of rage and in a moment, he snapped and killed his father who had tormented him and Norma for years. And he blacked it out because it was too horrible to remember. 

I just don't think if at that time Norma's concern was truly about Norman's blackouts and what he could do, she would one, allow him to be complicit in her murder and cover up of a man, no matter how deserving it was and then two, she would not have spoken to Ms. Watson about her concern about Norman joining any group, since Ms. Watson was the one who suggested his joining the track team.

Of course I wasn't expecting her to tell the truth about Norman killing his father but she could have just said that Norman passes out sometimes and doesn't remember and she's concerned about him joining a sports team. Not to mention, as the county therapist pointed out, if she had so much concern, she would have tried to get him help for it years before. 

I don't think Norma truly started getting concerned about Norman until all the crazy stuff started happening around him, like Ms. Watson ending up dead and other people, like Dylan and later Caleb, telling her that something was not really right with Norman. Until that point, Norma just didn't want Norman going off and having too much of a life because she'd creepily made her son her whole life. YMMV of course. 

This is exactly what I've been saying. I don't know if it's because of how fans responded to Vera and the character, but I have always said I felt the writers did a slight shift on Norma's character from the first season to the later ones. And why like I said above, I don't buy that her denying Norman joining the track team was about his blackouts. 

Norma looked at Bradley from the second she met her, almost as competition. Let's not forget the creepy stalking she did of her around town. She heaped a whole ton of guilt and shame on Norman by blaming him for Keith's assault on her and her later getting arrested, because both times he'd sneaked off to be with Bradley.

When someone mentions how Norman's view of Mother as harsh and hard is nothing like real Norma, I always suggest watching the scene when Norman first brings up the idea of him joining the track team. Norma stares Norman down so sternly and he spends the time nervously fixing his plate and apologizing for being late for dinner. The scene is tense and uncomfortable. 

 I always thought that the relationship between Norman and his mother was incestuous. His mother was in an incestuous relationship with her brother whether her choice or not.  It would make perfect sense that she would have one with her son.

[peacheslatour]

2 hours ago, Kid said:

In the movie, I thought that Marian was killed very early in the movie and the entire movie was about how it was discovered that Norman did it. However, it's been a while since I've seen it.

You are correct. Marion's murder happens in the first part of the movie and the entire rest of the film's running time is spent trying to find out what happened to her. Remember, it was a shocking thing. Now we all know that Norman was the murderer, but when it first came out everyone thought that "mother" was alive until the very end of the movie.

[Virtual]

On 3/24/2017 at 10:44 AM, Stringey said:

I think we all have observed that the norman character is a terrible liar. His emotions are always too much on the surface. You can tell he is feeling so disturbed when Edwards is talking to him about the black outs. Well that might be kind of hard to hide but he should have had his lie about the medication down a long time ago in case of a situation like this where he runs into Edwards. His lie about seeing another doctor in town and getting the meds from him was good but the delivery was not very sharp. Kind of a hesitation like he was formulating it in his mind. Also ha ha he was not a very good liar with the sheriff.

To me, it is surprising that Norman has gotten away with killing that hitman (while in a blackout) for so long. The main reason is because "Mother" is good at covering tracks. Norman's a very crappy liar, as evidenced by his talks with the Sheriff, and even his conversation with Detective Chambers in 4x10. When Detective Chambers came to talk to him, he was violently kicking a TV, she seemed suspicious of the things he was saying, and Norman actually informed her of his stay in Pineview and having just gotten out. How she didn't investigate further into Norman's history is beyond me (though she might not have gotten far, since Norma went to great lengths to cover for past incidents Norman had been involved in).

But it does seem obvious that Norman is saying the things he does in these conversations slowly, as if the material is just coming to him as he says it.

[LocimusPrime]

130lb Norman bates can kill all these grown men: cops, hit men, ect. 

It's annoying.  Romero should just pay me.  I'll walk right into the Bates Motel Office, pull out a sawed off shotgun and blast Norman in the face twice. One slug, one buck shot. Then, I'll go into the house and set two fires one in the attic and one in the basement with the has line open. 

I'm the hero.  Show ends the right way  

[truthaboutluv]

17 minutes ago, Virtual Side said:

When Detective Chambers came to talk to him, he was violently kicking a TV, she seemed suspicious of the things he was saying, and Norman actually informed her of his stay in Pineview and having just gotten out. How she didn't investigate further into Norman's history is beyond me

In fairness, Detective Chambers met Norman after his mother had just died. And if one believed the theory that Norma was the mastermind behind what happened, then she was meeting an already damaged boy (since he'd been in a mental institution), right after his mother killed herself and tried to take him with her. Frankly, under those circumstances, Norman seemed surprisingly normal in my opinion, when Detective Chambers questioned him. That's always the fun and fascinating thing about shows like these and storylines like these. To us the audience, so much of this seems obvious but to others, not really.

I think Detective Chambers might have suspected Norman was the one who came up with the plan since again, he'd recently been institutionalized, which means he was clearly mentally unstable in some way. However, remember they questioned the guy who installed the new furnace who said he only spoke to Norma about it (because he didn't see Norman listening when he was telling Norma about throwing out the old furnace) and there was Norma's goodbye letter to Romero, which she did write.

So again, while it seems obvious to us because we have all the details, I can see how it wasn't to others. Not to mention that suspecting something is all well and good but meaningless if you can't prove it.

Edited March 25, 2017 by truthaboutluv

[tikirocker]

1 hour ago, LocimusPrime said:

 

 

 

1 hour ago, LocimusPrime said:

It's annoying.  Romero should just pay me.  I'll walk right into the Bates Motel Office, pull out a sawed off shotgun and blast Norman in the face twice. One slug, one buck shot. Then, I'll go into the house and set two fires one in the attic and one in the basement with the has line open. 

I'm the hero.  Show ends the right way  

Great idea! The producers really blew it when you weren't hired as a scriptwriter. Maybe next season....oh wait a minute...

Edited March 25, 2017 by tikirocker

[Mathoo]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4094NqVPVC0&t=948s

Can anyone tell me in which episode we can see the scene at 5:09? Please :) Thanks you

[raven]

The Marion Crane portion of the ep didn't work for me.  What is going on with Norman is so much more compelling - we know that Marion is headed for a zero rated experience at the Bates Motel after all.   There should be a fatalistic vibe to her scenes, but I didn't get that; unlike for example Dylan & Emma.  Though they're not as compelling as Norman either, at least Emma finding out now that her husband thinks his brother is mentally ill, has killed someone AS WELL AS killed her mother (seriously, WTF Dylan) and then finding out that Norma is dead - there's an inevitable "train going off the rails" feel to all of that.

When Norman is sitting with the doctor and says that he becomes Norma - you can see the pieces slowly click into place.  Then to be faced with the truth about his mental state in the bar; it's too much.  He gets back to the house, goes in and leans against the door - he is Mother again, coming forward to protect his fragile psyche.  The story of Norman Bates as told here is a tragedy, with too many dead bodies.

[truthaboutluv]

16 hours ago, Mathoo said:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4094NqVPVC0&t=948s

Can anyone tell me in which episode we can see the scene at 5:09? Please :) Thanks you

I think that's the third episode from Season 3, after the missing prostitute Anika showed up in the parking lot of the motel with a gunshot wound and gave Norma a thumb drive. After Norma called the police, they checked her out to make sure she was okay and Romero showed up a bit later. 

Edited March 26, 2017 by truthaboutluv

[Mick Lady]

8 hours ago, truthaboutluv said:

In fairness, Detective Chambers met Norman after his mother had just died. And if one believed the theory that Norma was the mastermind behind what happened, then she was meeting an already damaged boy (since he'd been in a mental institution), right after his mother killed herself and tried to take him with her. Frankly, under those circumstances, Norman seemed surprisingly normal in my opinion, when Detective Chambers questioned him. That's always the fun and fascinating thing about shows like these and storylines like these. To us the audience, so much of this seems obvious but to others, not really.

I think Detective Chambers might have suspected Norman was the one who came up with the plan since again, he'd recently been institutionalized, which means he was clearly mentally unstable in some way. However, remember they questioned the guy who installed the new furnace who said he only spoke to Norma about it (because he didn't see Norman listening when he was telling Norma about throwing out the old furnace) and there was Norma's goodbye letter to Romero, which she did write.

So again, while it seems obvious to us because we have all the details, I can see how it wasn't to others. Not to mention that suspecting something is all well and good but meaningless if you can't prove it.

Many good points here truthaboutlove. Sometimes it's hard for me to remember that we've seen much more than other characters. Detective Chambers is new, and doesn't yet know all of what's been happening in White Pines Bay. She knows about Romero, obviously, but does she know about the first "disappearance" at Bate's Motel? (The first owner) or Norman's teacher, or even Bradley? Whatever she knows, she senses something is amiss, and I don't think things will go well for her if she gets too close!

[LocimusPrime]

On March 25, 2017 at 4:58 PM, tikirocker said:

 

 

Great idea! The producers really blew it when you weren't hired as a scriptwriter. Maybe next season....oh wait a minute...

Exactly. It would be much more believable. A little scrawny kid can kill hit men and sheriffs that are much better all around combatants.  They offered me a job as scriptwriter   I'm considering it. They pay isn't good though. 

Edited March 26, 2017 by LocimusPrime

[Stringey]

2 hours ago, Ohwell said:

You're welcome! : )

Lol at this last conversation.  Also it's not Norman that kills people it is mother. Well yes she uses Norman's body but the Mother personality is more crafty and dangerous than the Norman personality. It's not Norman's strong physical body or lack there of that gets these people killed it is mothers crafty ways.

Maybe I should be even clearer. The mother personality has more confidence in her abilities and capability to kill people unlike Norman. Because Norman's body while under the influence of the Mother personality has a stronger perspective that is why she is able to do what she does.

[Mick Lady]

On ‎3‎/‎23‎/‎2017 at 5:18 PM, Stringey said:

I don't know about the book thing but I could see one thing. If Norman is indeed found out about I could see some really quick shot of chick now in a suit selling one of Norman's taxidermy animals at some comic book convention or something like that. "Ok now this here was made by the killer in Oregon you all know as the "Mother Killer" Norman Bates".  

Thanks Stringey! I won't even use LOL, because I literally did laugh out load!

Yeah, I messed that up, but damn it, thanks for the belly laugh!

[nodorothyparker]

Please remember the site rule to be civil.

A person you don't agree with is just that, a person you don't agree with.  That does not make them a troll or their opinion invalid.

[queenanne]

On 3/23/2017 at 0:24 PM, Madding crowd said:

I am enjoying this season and agree Freddie is fantastic. I think the show writers have a hard task here. They want to create the Norman Bates story without holding completely true to the book and movie. The problem is the more they include of the original story, the more the differences will stand out. I don't like Rihanna as Marion Crane; she is a beautiful woman, but doesn't have the air of a a good girl doing something wrong for the first time in her life. I do think they had to make Sam a married guy; no one would think twice these days about unmarried people sleeping together and people wouldn't think that debt would be a reason to not be together. 

I do think the show did a bit of a retcon on Norma and her motivations. In season one she was shown to be  inappropriate mother who wanted her son only for herself and possibly had sexual ideation about him. Later, she became more interested in other men romantically and became more interested in Norman's mental health while still being kind of wacky.

As a fan of the movie, I would be happy with the rest of the season somewhat following the original story. We would still have enough different elements to make it original such as Dylan and Emma, Chick, Romero etc. I would not want to see Norman just get away with it. Without treatment in a facility, Norman would just get worse and worse which would result in him killing more people or getting killed himself by picking the wrong person to go Norma on.

I think maybe the issue of Marion's flashy car when she wants a promotion, is designed simply to cram in wordlessly that Marion lives above her means and approves of flash even if she can't afford it.  I agree Rihanna's not doing a very good job of portraying someone who just up and snapped though I do think the car is intended to show that she's irresponsible.

And yes, absolutely Norma has been written softer over the series; though I suppose maybe if we assume the entire story when he's present is through Norman's eyes, maybe it's him seeing Punitive Mother in the entirety of first season.  She just seemed like a killjoy 24/7 when he's not worried about his own behavior.

Edited March 29, 2017 by queenanne

[PreBabylonia]

On 3/23/2017 at 6:22 AM, smorbie said:

I've never had a positive impression of Rhianna.  She's just another pop princess who is more known for her inability to cover up her private parts in public than she is for actual talent.  So, it's clear to see that I'm not a fan.

But, she wasn't awful.  She's clearly not as talented or polished as the regulars in the show (and they are stellar), but she kept her clothes on.  Her dialogue was believable.  Her worst scene was the police one.  She didn't seem nervous at all.  I think I would have been quite ruffled to have to been stopped when I had a wad of stolen money with me, but she just seemed mildly annoyed.

I also don't think she's that pretty.

Feel exactly the same way. I can think of many actresses that would do a far better job. It's a small but integral role. Every time I see Rhianna I just see someone desperate for attention. 

[smorbie]

On 3/23/2017 at 8:05 PM, Fable said:

Lost was almost always a mess from start to finish though.  This show has been a pretty tightly run ship. 

THANK YOU!  I have been excoriated on other sites for saying something similar.  I didn't watch Lost when it originally aired.  I caught most of it a year or so ago when a friend who had watched it wanted me to view it also so we could discuss it.

I didn't make it through.  I think I forced myself to watch to, like, the beginning of the last season, and finally gave up with disgust.  The pilot was great, and the actors were good.  But, at some point it became clear the writers didn't have a set story and were just kind of making things up as they went along.

I can't believe it's constantly held as some high-water mark of television.  YUCK!

I do think, though, to be fair, that there was some value to be had by watching it once a week as opposed to bingeing the way I did.  I can see where it could hold interest that way. 

[RedMal]

2 hours ago, smorbie said:

THANK YOU!  I have been excoriated on other sites for saying something similar.  I didn't watch Lost when it originally aired.  I caught most of it a year or so ago when a friend who had watched it wanted me to view it also so we could discuss it.

I didn't make it through.  I think I forced myself to watch to, like, the beginning of the last season, and finally gave up with disgust.  The pilot was great, and the actors were good.  But, at some point it became clear the writers didn't have a set story and were just kind of making things up as they went along.

I can't believe it's constantly held as some high-water mark of television.  YUCK!

I do think, though, to be fair, that there was some value to be had by watching it once a week as opposed to bingeing the way I did.  I can see where it could hold interest that way. 

Lost definitely was a mess. The show was great during the first two seasons, season 3 started slipping, then it got up again in 4, but 5 and 6 were just terrible. And even though season 4 was very entertaining and interesting, it was already obvious that none of it would make sense at the end. And I love how after the show was done, every hardcore fan started to say how the show was never about the mysteries but the characters, and that is why the ending was satisfying. But for me (who actually kept watching it for the characters, that's why I love season 2 the most, when the true nature of people started to come out) the ending and the last two seasons leading up to it were so awful. Writing for the characters started to be inconsistent, their behavior and motivations kept altering. And the show had just turned into a big mess where the writers are just punching as much twists and new mysteries into every episode as possible. And it's really just ridiculous to say the show was never about the mystery, since without that, nobody would've watched and it wouldn't been such a phenomenon that it was.

Sorry about the ot.

[halkatla]

I just have to say that Freddie Highmore´s acting is on a totally different level. Bates motel has seriously great actors overall but he still stands out. Norman Bates is lovable and deranged at the same time, I can´t imagine anyone doing more justice to the part.

[Lady Calypso]

I finally got around to watching the episode. I remember when I heard Rihanna was cast as Marion that I thought it was a poor decision. I just couldn't picture her as an actress, let alone one to portray one of the most iconic female horror characters of all time. Seeing her debut here, I'm still not impressed. She's not as bad as I thought she would be, and I have absolutely seen much worse actors, but she's certainly not great either. She just doesn't work as Marion. Maybe it's because there have been extremely high expectations for the character since the series started. Her and Norman are the two that everyone had been excited about and Freddie's done a phenomenal job. They really needed someone just as phenomenal for Marion, and they didn't deliver on that. All they did was hire a famous singer with minimal acting experience. Even though it's the last season, they needed to go out with a bang and just hiring a famous celebrity isn't enough. 

I did note that they used the same orchestral music from the film during Marion's driving scene. I guess I'm glad that they didn't imitate the original driving scene. That scene from the film is just as precious as the shower scene, so I didn't need Rihanna ruining it for me. That's really sad to say, but it's true.  

Very interesting to see how Norman is without Norma in his life. Having her missing for most of the episode was something that really helped explore Norman as a character. I thought his talk with his old psychiatrist was very interesting. 

Poor Emma and Dylan. I guess they're going to find out about everything soon enough. 

Very interesting to see how Norman portrays Norma, but more importantly, what he thinks that she does. Clearly, Norman as Norma goes to that bar a lot, since everyone seemed friendly with him. 

[smorbie]

On 4/8/2017 at 4:28 AM, halkatla said:

I just have to say that Freddie Highmore´s acting is on a totally different level. Bates motel has seriously great actors overall but he still stands out. Norman Bates is lovable and deranged at the same time, I can´t imagine anyone doing more justice to the part.

He is just pitch perfect, isn't he?  I don't know how true this is because I don't remember where I read it, but I read that Vera was hired first.  According to the article, Freddie was not being considered for Norman, though he had read for the part.  Vera liked him so much she told them if they didn't hire him, she was backing out.

As I said, I don't know the veracity of that; one reads so much that ends up not being true.  Mostly I doubt it, I guess, because I can NOT imagine anyone not wanting to cast him.  He's physically perfect because he looks like a much cuter version of Tony Perkins.  And honestly, no one could have played that part better.

On 4/9/2017 at 6:48 PM, Lady Calypso said:

Maybe it's because there have been extremely high expectations for the character since the series started. Her and Norman are the two that everyone had been excited about and Freddie's done a phenomenal job. They really needed someone just as phenomenal for Marion, and they didn't deliver on that.

It was really obvious in the scenes where Norman was comforting her.  Freddie was pulling her through that scene, just carrying her.  

It would have been bad enough giving her that heavy a role in anything because she's just not a good enough actress.  But that scene was actually painful to watch.  

It was a misstep in what has, otherwise, been great casting decisions.  I don't know why the show went with stunt casting for such an important part.

[spiderpig]

On 3/20/2017 at 9:27 PM, Mick Lady said:

Rhianna was horrible! Such a let down considering the rest of the cast.

Catching up now on the series.  Rhianna is awful.  We're not even talking high-school-play level acting.  Every line is delivered like she's dropping a bowling ball on the floor.