The reason I initially referred to it as Disney was because many people thought that Dylan (or Romero) would sort of "take Norman down" in a dramatic Hero vs. Villain kind of way. Well that's not exactly how it went down - and I applaud the writers for their approach.

Okay Walt (or Carlton): I concede. You won! The ending was neither cheesy, nor Disney-esque. Although technically, I think Norman forced his own killing by using the knife to provoke a response from Dylan, but not really intending to hurt him. :) But either way, it was a great ending, and I loved it all the way.

C'mon Alex. Stop low-balling the show with these "B" grades. This was a solid episode - in the "A" range.

Norman hallucinated Ms. Watson. She appeared to him at school at lunch time, and he ran home to Norma's breast.

True, but I think Sam got a hint of Norman's cunning at the double date, when Norman kept getting under his skin repeatedly with these one-line quips…"What IS is that you're doing, Sam?" and "Oh you flip houses.." Just watch how Sam glares at Norman on the side, clearly trying his best to keep calm.

Norman will develop a crush on Marion - at least that's what was hinted in an interview a couple weeks ago by the writer/EP Kerry Ehrin.

Yes she did, actually. Didn't you hear her introduce herself as detective Chambers? The Sheriff in Psycho is Chambers…

Norma basically said the same thing to Romero - that she and Norman are two parts of the same person.

Norman was at Pineview for a few weeks - and during that time, Romero literally gave Norma the sun, moon and stars, and went along with whatever demands/requests she made, so of course she was happy, because she was able to escape "real life" for that short period of time. But that wasn't the real world. Even during…

This killing is wasn't done as a gimmick though, like some of the other shows. This is a prequel to the 1960 movie Psycho in which Norman Bates' mother had been dead for 10 years. And the producers/writers have been talking about Norma's eventual demise since season 1.

I hate to say this but Norma would probably choose to be killed peacefully by Norman than to go on in a world without him.

Unfortunately, he's in a blacked-out state when he kills - and he doesn't kill randomly. It's when his relationship with his mother or the well-being of someone he cares about is triggered (as in Emma's mom's case), he dissociates and commits the murder. It's not like he plans to go shoot up random people at a…

I think your anger at Norman, while understandable, is a bit misplaced. Norman is much a victim in this whole mess as is Norma. And he wanted to die too - because the truth is, if he had just killed himself, Norma would be just as distraught, and follow suit. The two of them cannot exist without the other. Norma and…

Anna C, Norma is still very much devoted to Norman - which is why she even allowed him to come home despite the Dr's and Dylan's warnings. I think Romero has allowed her to escape the realities of her life for a moment, and she interprets it as love because he literally gives her everything and behaves like the…

Norma didn't really "choose" Alex over Norman. She wants the both of them - doesn't want to give up either. The only difference is that deep down, she knows that Norman has no options (emotionally and otherwise) but to remain with her and accept it - even if he throws a tantrum. Whereas Alex might bolt the minute he…

Yes, she played the same role last season! :)

I think we've also underestimated Norma's devotion to Norman.

Ha! Then you (and the 19 other people who saw the movie) must have paid a HELLUVA lot to see it, and saw it multiple times, because it had the 5th highest opening weekend in gross earnings for any movie released in 2005, and stayed at #1 for 2 weeks. It also was the 7th in in the US, and 8th world-wide in total gross…

He's manipulative alright. But i wouldn't say full-blown sociopath. Also for much of EP 7, he was half-Mother. I think she was doing most (not all) of the driving.

"He seems a full-blown sociopath now" I don't think it's accurate to say that. Just because he manipulated his way out of Pineview doesn't mean he's a sociopath. His wanting to get out of Pineview was not just to kill/hurt someone but more out of fear of losing Norma due to her marriage (that he was not told about.)…