Last week on Bates Motel, we watched as Chick stalked Norma to get information about Caleb and Norman unveiled his second identity to Dr. Edwards. This week Norman learns the painful truth about his blackouts and Norma deals with the fallout of not helping Chick.
The show opens with Norma calling Caleb’s cell phone. The number is out of service. She and Romero are both keeping secrets. He hides the key to the safety deposit box in his uniform. They kiss before he leaves for work. She says it feels like a movie. It’s wonderful to see both of their characters so happy.
Norman has a flashback to hiding under a bed while it looks like an earthquake happens around him. He tells Dr. Edwards that he doesn’t know how their last session ended. The doctor tells him about his other personality and suggests it was caused by a traumatic childhood. At this point, we know Norman well enough to see he’ll deny it and he does. He calls his life normal and ends the session.
Norma meets Chick at a diner. Chick threatens to expose her secrets about sleeping with Caleb to embarrass her new husband around town. He tries to convince her that Caleb is a bad man. It’s obvious this is the first time someone has told her that the relationship wasn’t her fault. We feel sorry for her obvious confusion.
It’s nice to see how Dylan and Norman’s relationship has grown. Dylan visits him at the asylum and tells him that he’s seeing Emma. Norman seems shaken but says it’s okay. He asks for information about his dad, Sam. Dylan says he was an unhappy man and we see remorse when he says he made a point of not being home.
Dylan fills Norma in on his visit to Norman. Like his relationship with Norman, Dylan’s connection with Norma has grown. However, it’s still in a more tenuous state. They argue about treating Norman like he’s fragile and Norma is offended when Dylan says he’s moving to Seattle in a few days. He promises he’s not going to disappear.
Things get weird when Norma asks Dylan for details on Caleb’s whereabouts. He gives her the name of a hotel Caleb worked at in Costa Rica but tells her to leave it alone. Nothing good can come of it.
In exasperation, we watch Norma call the hotel. She’s surprised when Caleb comes to the phone. He seems to genuinely regret leaving in such a hurry. He didn’t want to hurt her and Dylan with the fallout from Chick. Things get uncomfortable when he tells her that he loves her. She hurries off the phone, almost in tears.
Norman undergoes hypnosis. He begins telling a story involving a night with his drunken father. When things get ugly, he stops, crying.
Romero gives the key to Rebecca. She asks how much money he wants, but like the hero he is, he tells her none.
Dylan gets a call from his father. The disgust is palpable in Dylan’s voice. He knows better than to listen to Caleb’s promises and rushes him off the phone.
We wonder what Norma’s up to when she pulls her car onto an abandoned bridge. Chick gets out of his car on the other end. Norma pulls a gun, but she can’t pull the trigger. She’s such a strong woman, but this is too much. She screams for him to go ahead and ruin her life.
Dylan finds Norma in a terrible mood when he comes to collect his belongings. She tells him to have fun leaving her. She’s always so melodramatic with her sons.
Dylan goes upstairs to get his things. He finds the bunny and the note Emma’s mom wanted Norman to give her. Dread builds as he breaks into the office computer to find her reservation with no checkout date.
Norman’s mother persona comes forward in therapy to stop him from talking about his father. Dr. Edwards asks to talk to her. We learn the disturbing story of the night she tried to take the boys and leave Sam. He caught them and dragged her back at gunpoint. She told Norman to hide and he chose to conceal himself under her bed. Sam forces her into the room and rapes her on the bed. Norman held her hand to make her brave.
Norman’s mother persona eerily tells Dr. Edwards not to let Norman remember these things or she’ll have to do something about it.
Norma puts dinner on the table, but Romero says Chick is there with the window. She’s frightened and tells Romero that she loves him. It’s heartfelt when he returns the sentiment. It feels like we’ve been waiting forever for them to admit it. He leaves to help Chick with the stained glass.
Norma fears Chick is there to tell Romero her secret. She screams at him to do it. Instead, Chick kisses her on the cheek and tells her to enjoy her window. Romero is obviously confused about what has just transpired. He asks for an explanation.
We feel for Norma as she awkwardly tells Romero her history with her brother – how she loved him but tried to break it off; that he raped her. She says she hates him, but not enough to have him killed. That’s why she wouldn’t give into Chick’s blackmail. When she tells Romero to pack his bags and leave her, we’re all relieved when he supports her by saying, “Okay. Where are we going?” It’s a genuine cry moment.
See the promo for episode 406: