Bates Motel – “The Immutable Truth”

The Immutable Truth – Season 2, Episode 10 – original air date 5/5/2014

So Sheriff Romero is driving down the road, and who should he see coming out of a field towards the road, but Dylan?  And what does Dylan tell him?  “Nick Ford is dead.  I killed him.  They have Norman.”  Romero quickly processes these 10 words, and all they entail, and simply says “get in.”  Just another typical day in White Pine Bay for the most badass sheriff West of the Pecos.

Of course Dylan and Romero free Norman (we knew he wasn’t going to linger in the box until season three), and then there is the aftermath to deal with.  Anytime Norman tries to talk openly and honestly with Norma about his blackouts, she immediately suppresses him.   Only Norma could respond to what is essentially a confession of murder with “Eat your pot roast before it gets cold.”

It is very nice to see Norman confide in Emma, to a point, even if it was only done to try and get her to stay at the Motel.  Norman is making a list and checking it twice;  the last entry on that list is “Mother.”  Certainly the writers don’t expect us to believe that Norman is going to take her out?

Romero and Dylan continue their partnership, to take care of the inevitable.  It was definitely wish fulfillment to see that Sheriff Romero is a “man of his word”, although it was kind of sad to see Jodi become collateral damage, even if that seemed inevitable too.

Dylan’s embrace of Norman, after Norman is pulled from the box, may be the most touching moment in this show’s 2 season run.  Although Norma telling Dylan that he is a miracle was pretty damn cool too.  Dylan is really the moral center of the family, a magnet that pulls the others in the right direction.

And the finale is the lie-detector test, which has been set up for a couple weeks, the results of which are no surprise at all.

So:  no big cliffhangers, no mind-boggling revelations, yet a very satisfying, and at times sweet, finale.  Almost a clean slate going into season three, certainly from a standpoint of character development.   Not your typical season finale episode.  Bravo for that!