HomeTVBates Motel season 3: 10 things we want

Bates Motel season 3: 10 things we want

Bates Motel closed the doors on its second season last night after entertaining us for the past 10 weeks.

If you havenā€™t seen the second season finale of Bates Motel we recommend you stop reading now so we donā€™t spoil anything for you. If you have seen it then keep reading for our thoughts on the next season.

Following a series of events that saw Norman Bates (Freddie Highmore) spiralling and his relationship with mother Norma (Vera Farmiga) deteriorating, the season two finale saw him pass a lie detector test and cleared of suspicion around the death of Miss Watson (Keegan Connor Tracy). The final scene paid homage to the end scene of the original Psycho movie so can we expect to see more evil seeping through from Norman in season 3?

Elsewhere in the season Dylan (Max Thieriot) found out the truth about his biological father and cut himself off from his family as he waded deeper into the drug war. The season finale seemed to suggest that Dylan was now the boss of the drug trade in White Pine Bay as sanctioned by Sheriff Romero (Nestor Carbonell) following the deaths of the drug tradeā€™s major players.

Season 2 also saw Norma ingratiating herself into the town by winning a seat on the council with the help of her new friend Christine (Rebecca Kreskoff) who she had an icy exchange with in the finale over her treatment of Christineā€™s brother George (Michael Vartan).

It may be some months away but weā€™re already thinking about what we want to see when Bates Motel returns for a third season in 2015:

1. Norman continuing to evolve as a psychopath. Up until now Normanā€™s actions have been unconscious ones and linked to his blackouts. We want to see more of his rage coming to the surface and more moments like his confrontation with Caleb (Kenny Calhoun).

2. Norma experiencing conflict in the community. The stage was set for a personal vendetta against Norma from the very influential Christine. Add to that the very nasty treatment of George and it looks like Norma will be in for a tough ride. With Norman going off the rails and the community fighting her we think we hope to see a lot less of nice Norma in season 3.

3. Dylan to be integrated into the family storylines. Dylan was mostly separate from the overall Norman and Norma storylines in season two although he did come back into the fold by the end of the season. We want to see Dylan working on his relationship with his mother and dealing with Normanā€™s mental illness. Heā€™s the only character to acknowledge that Norman may be mentally ill and he knows what his brother is capable of.

4. Darker storylines. Bates Motel is at its best when everything gets a little darker. We want the show to chill us to the bone with some creepy and unsettling storylines. The original Psycho movie had us on edge (and still does) so we want things to get much, much darker in the next season.

5. More Emma (Olivia Cooke). Poor Emma! We really felt for her in season two as she desperately tried to be included in the Bates family. Towards the end of the season Emma quit her job at the Bates Motel after telling Norma she felt excluded. Norman tried to talk her round in the season finale so weā€™re guessing sheā€™ll stay. We want her to become much more involved in the storylines in season 3 and learn more about Normanā€™s true nature as well as seeing the harsher side of Norma.

6. Nomero. Norma and Romero have built an understanding friendship it would seem over season 2. Whilst they arenā€™t the best of friends they clearly look to one another in times of need and Romero does seem to care about Norma and her family. Weā€™re not sure we want the relationship to turn into a romance, which there are signs it could well do, but we want more scenes between these two characters.

7. The drug trade to take a back seat. We feel like this story has been done to death in the first two seasons. With the bosses on each side of the war now dead and Dylan at the helm we donā€™t want this storyline to take up a lot of previous screentime. Weā€™re more interested in Norma and Norman!

8. Romeroā€™s backstory. Weā€™ve gotten to know a few bits about Romero over the first two seasons but we donā€™t know a whole lot about him yet. Heā€™s happy to turn a blind eye to what goes on in the town as long as everyone is following ā€˜the rulesā€™. Weā€™d like to see how he became the man he is today.

9. Caleb to return. The appearance of Normaā€™s brother was one of the most explosive moments in the season and last we saw Caleb he was leaving town following Normanā€™s attempt to kill him. Thereā€™s much more mileage in this storyline so we hope he comes back next season. Now that Dylan has had time to process the fact that his uncle is his father thereā€™s plenty of scope to develop that plot.

10. Norma and Norman actually running the Bates Motel. Since it opened weā€™ve barely seen either character do much in the motel have we? Poor Emma seems to be permanently stuck in the office whilst Norma and Norman sort out their hectic personal lives and issues. We can imagine a storyline echoing the events of Psycho working well where Norman obsesses over a new female guest.

Bates Motel will return in the US and the UK for a third season in 2015.

Pip Ellwood-Hughes
Pip Ellwood-Hughes
Pip is the owner and Editor of Entertainment Focus, and the Managing Director of PiƱata Media. With over 19 years of journalism experience, Pip has interviewed some of the biggest stars in the entertainment world. He is also a qualified digital marketing expert with over 20 years of experience.

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