‘Bates Motel’ season 1 finale review: What did Norman Bates do to his teacher?

“Bates Motel” can be considered a horror show, and for a good chunk of Monday night’s season finale, the scariest thing we experienced were memories of high school. Norman had a chance to experience something that was pretty normal in a school dance, but it did not exactly end up going according to plan (does it ever?)

First of all, Norman did not exactly have his heart in the right place when he brought Emma to the dance, and she was quick to notice, so she left him. From there, he was punched in the face by Bradley’s boyfriend leaving him bleeding in the rain. This led to him needing some “medical attention,” and which began a very interesting story when it came to his inner demons and being seduced by his teacher Ms. Watson.

For Norma, the question here was about survival more so than trying to just survive a high school dance and an older woman who was being completely out of line with a teenaged boy. Somehow, she made it out of the pretty impossible money pickle alive, and she held her son in the closing seconds while proclaiming that “everything is good.”

But is everything really as good as it seems? This was the weird thing about Norma feeling as though there was a happy ending: You know that it’s not going to last, and some bad things are going to come up very soon. So just when it seemed as though Norman and Norma were walking off to the sunset, we saw on Ms. Watson dead in a pool of her own blood in her bedroom. Did Norman kill her? That’s not confirmed, but it is certainly not looking very good for the guy.

All in all, it was a strong way to end a thrilling season, and we only hope that Freddie Highmore and Vera Farmiga get some attention from the awards shows for the work they are doing.

What was your take on the “Bates Motel” season 1 finale, and are you pumped to see where the show goes next? While we don’t have any specific scoop yet on season 2, you can get a basic understanding of where the story is going to go over at the link here.

Photo: A&E