Director Alfred Hitchcock was the master of the thriller. The film Psycho was one of his best known films. Taking it on, even in the small screen form, is a risky proposition due to its iconic status. It is different (a prequel, set in modern times) yet the same. A series about the events that lead to a young, mentally unstable boy becoming a serial killer in adulthood. An adult man who had the mummified corpse of his mother in his house for many years. All very interesting material in the right hands – actors, directors and writers. Some parts of this A&E series are great (creepiness of the sets, writing) while others are less so (surprisingly the acting of the usually steady Vera Farmiga and Freddie Highmore, who you can both see acting a lot). Still makes for an interesting watch.
Episode 1: First You Dream, Then You Die: Six months after her husband dies in an accident, Norma Bates (played by Vera Farmiga) and her seventeen-year-old son, Norman (played by Freddie Highmore) move to White Pine Bay, Oregon. Norma has bought the Seaside Motel and plans to reopen it as the Bates Motel.
Episode 2: Nice Town You Picked, Norma…: Norma’s son Dylan (played by Max Thieriot), older than Norman and by a different father, arrives in town. He wants to stay at the motel as he is broke and unemployed.
Episode 3: What’s Wrong With Norman: Dylan finds a new job. Deputy Shelby (played by Mike Vogel) has his own thing going on.
Episode 4: Trust Me: Norman finds a girl chained up in Deputy Shelby’s basement and only manages to get out undetected due to Dylan creating a diversion. Norma decides to check out the basement during a sleep over.
Episode 5: Ocean View: Norman spends the night with Bradley (played by Nicola Peltz). Norma is arrested for the murder of Keith Summers.
Episode 6: The Truth: Emma (played by Olivia Cooke) wants to call the police on Deputy Shelby but Norman wants to play it cool. Norma plots to get Summers’ belt from Shelby.
Episode 7: The Man in Number 9: Norma is not happy about Dylan moving into his own place. The Bates Motel is not quite open but it gets its first guest, Jake Abernathy (played by Jere Burns).
Episode 8: A Boy and His Dog: Norman gets mad at Emma after she tells a group of girls at school that he slept with Bradley. His principal and teacher (played by Keegan Connor Tracy) recommend that Norman seek some professional help.
Episode 9: Underwater: Norma believes that Abernathy is the one who put Shelby’s body in her bed. Norma wants to sell the motel and move again.
Episode 10: Midnight: Norma turns to Sheriff Romero (played by Nestor Carbonell) for help. Norman takes Emma to the dance.
Special Features: Deleted Scenes, Paley Center Panel Discussion With Cast and Creative Team
