Bates Motel: Season Two [Blu-ray]

I rarely (if ever) read Tumbler blogs or other online fandom cites. Their comments about plot, acting, and the "shipping" of characters (in the case of Bates Motel, I can only imagine and respond with a resounding "Eww") offer only to skew my opinion of a show before I even watch it.Some of the most brilliantly executed shows are derived from films (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, for instance or La Femme Nikita). Bates Motel falls into this category of smoothly orchestrated spinoffs as the show that continues to craft a profile of Norman Bates during his teenage years.The psychological profile that Bates Motel offers of the eccentric town of White Pines is brilliantly executed and mirrors personality complexities of both Norman (Freddie Highmore) and his mother Norma (Vera Farmiga). The town thrives on an illegal cash crop, and ordinary (well, mostly unordinary) citizens are often caught in the middle of firefights among other dangerous situations. The town has its own unspoken rules, and Sherriff Romero (Bat Manuel in the live action version of The Tick) enforces the understood laws of the town to the letter.Where does Norma end and Norman begin? The show continues to delve deeper into that mystery weekly.In the Alfred Hitchcock film Psycho, Norman Bates conveys a clean cut, helpful boy-next-door image who, underneath it all, has an alter ego that is (to understate it) aggressive, murderous, and influenced by Norman's own perception of his mother, Norma Louise Bates. Bates Motel invites the viewer to debate just how much of Norman's condition is a genetic predilection (schizophrenia possibly) and an environmental one (unnatural closeness to a controlling Mom, experiences from living in a sick and twisted town, etc.) The knowledge regarding Norman's character continues to deepen just when you think it's impossible for the show to unveil anything "creepier" than what the audience has already learned.Other interesting characters include love interests for Norma, Dylan (Norman's half brother), two warring drug families, and Norman's friends (which includes a school teacher with daddy issues).I could write a four-page review, but I might include spoilers and wind up hating myself. Watch at least the first season; you will thirst for more!

I love Bates Motel. The show is a bit slow going (not boring, just slowly paced) at times; however, this season is obviously the major linchpin in the personal backstory of Norman Bates.(Warning: sort-of kind-of spoiler-ish info ahead)Season 2, at only 10 episodes, manages to show not only how MESSED UP his family actually is (and no, there is no mother/son physical intimacy as implied by the preview. Thankfully.) total enmeshed mother with codependent/borderline tendancies. Norman is still a "good kid" in this season, but we see how far in the dark he is about his own problems. (I won't say that we see that Norman is mentally ill, as his symptoms seem more neurological - like an absence seizure combined with a super controlling and maladjusted mother who keeps him wrapped up in lies (perhaps for his own good)...combined with SOMETHING sinister.FYI: As an advocate for the mentally ill, I want to highlight that the writers and directors do an amazing job (in my personal opinion) of avoiding the stereotypical [terrible] portrayals of mental illness. There is no "Norman Bates is a psycho." and no "Norman Bates is suffering from a mental disease/defect/illness and is therefore a horrible person/can never be helped/should be locked away/straight up going to murder you and wear your skin."What we do see is great concern for Norman, and a misguided attempt from Norma to "protect him" from the truth of his blackouts.In honesty, I feel that in retrospect, the viewer is given an opportunity to understand how damaging a lack of medical care for a patient can be.In contrast, Norma's other son (Norman's half-brother Dylan) receives a terrible truth about his own life, and copes remarkably well. (PERSONALLY, if someone told me the same thing my head would explode.)It is amazing to research the season with this thought in mind: Norma let's Dylan live his life and Dylan is allowed to hear a truth about himself. = Dylan stays Dylan.vs.Norma doesn't let Norman make any decisions for himself and has no healthy boundaries in her relationship with Norman. Norma ensures that Norman never learns the truth about "his episodes" EVEN THOUGH NORMAN SENSES SOMETHING IS TERRIBLY WRONG. = Norman Bates becomes NORMAN BATES.

Bates Motel is the next take on the Alfred Hitchcock famous classic film Psycho. What set this apart from the bad countless movies except the groundbreaking original is that it focuses on Norman and his Mother relationship as he is going down that path that makes him into the adult Norman Bates in 1st Psycho movie (played so well by Anthony Perkins).... Freddie Highmore (August Rush, Toast) is the teen Norman Bates who is showing sighs of mental breakdown because he having blackouts that he has no memories of his actions. His Mother is aware of his blackouts,and what he capable of when having one. She sets out to shield him and protect him. Unfortunately she is a women who is unstable with a long history of abuse and traumatic occurrences in her own life. She also a magnet for the wrong people and wrong things. Which just causes Norman abnormal behaviors to get worse. The series is solid in story telling it's cohesive with Alfred Hitchcock vision and is extremely well acted by Vera Famgia and Freddie Highmore The first season was one of the best debut of a Television series in tv history. With both star Freddie and Vera getting praise and Vera a Emmy Nomination for best actress in a Television series. The second season had a hard act to follow. It manages to be even better going deeper into the life of this tragic mother and son...introducing new plot twists . The second season we see Norman trying to make sense of his actions and trying to exert his will more often while pulling apart from his controlling mother with deadly results. If you like dysfunctional family shows (or movies like Donnie Darko, Carrie, Breaking Bad, Nurse Jackie) you will like this series

After watching and thoroughly enjoying Season 1, it was great to revisit the folks at White Pine Bay. Once again, I found myself getting totally absorbed in the eventful lives of Norma and her son Norman. With the first series under their belt, both of these actors have now really established and immersed themselves in their roles and display terrific performances. I particularly like the way the drama moved along at a cracking pace and the way the story and characters developed. As a viewer, I really didn't know what was around the corner and what was going to happen next - and this is part of the appeal of Bates Motel. Another point worth mentioning is that although this is often a chilling and shocking show, it also has its moments of dark humour - and its Vera Farmiga (as Norma) who often steals the scenes at such times. It's an absorbing drama, full of twists and turns - a must-see for all you lovers of atmospheric and creepy dramas.

Season 2 of the "contemporary prequel" delves further into the complicated Bates mother-son relationship. Convincingly evolving towards the Norman of Hitchcock's film, Freddie Highmore is excellent - a mixture of charm, vulnerability and frenzied outbursts. Vera Farmiga impresses as smother-mother Norma, determined to conceal he could be mentally ill.The Bates family here face several threats. A by-pass could destroy the Motel's livelihood. Arrival of Norma's long estranged brother signals trouble. Older son Dylan is caught in a feud between rival drug gangs, a high body count seemingly guaranteed. Meanwhile the dogged unsmiling sheriff suspects Norman may be involved in his teacher's murder....Pace too slow for some? The creators deliberately aim not to have too much happening too soon. The film means virtually everybody knows how the story ends, so there is no point in arriving there too swiftly. (By the way, a fact that may surprise, there is very little violence in Hitchcock's film - mainly the two notorious sequences. There is far more violence in this television series.)The modern setting works well, especially with the iconic Bates home on the hill faithfully recreated outside and in: still there is the Victorian feel (give or take a laptop and mobile phone). Tongue-in-cheek references will please the film's devotees: Norma glimpsed in a (the?) rocking chair; in the basement evidence of Norman's skills at taxidermy.Ten episodes. Bonuses vary. "Origins of a Psycho" is interesting. Some of the "After Hours" sessions could be better handled, the first presenter perhaps too intrusive for some tastes. Better by far is the batch following the finale (complete with a blooper reel).The series takes a risk, the film held by devotees as sacrosanct. It does a good job and shows Hitchcock's masterpiece no disrespect.

Not as good as Season 1 but still very watchable in my opinion.To be fair this season included a couple of romances between Norman and a Goth girl, and his friend Emma (she who walks with an attached Dyson continuously) and a cannabis seller which may have been included to attract a younger audience and certainly gave us some divergence.These pairings seemed very oddly matched and could only have been included to try to spice up the plot, and it probably works for some but not everyone.Thankfully the main story rolled along very well with Norman discovering more about himself and Norma learning even more about manipulating others to better their position in this turbulent community.What more is to come ? Season 3 beckons.

Watched this on TV enjoyed it that much so I bought the whole set.

Looks good not watched it yet