Norman is struggling to see Norma as someone separate from himself.
Contains spoilers.
This powerful episode was written by Freddie Highmore (Norman Bates) and is the strongest episode in the series so far. Kudos to Highmore for bringing Norman to the very edge of reason.
At first Norman works on the premise that Norma has been manipulated by Alex and needs him to save her. An echo of the relationship with his father and the harrowing rape scene we witnessed in therapy. Norman confronts Alex and tells him that he will arrange his own insurance so they can get divorced. Alex is careful not to reveal the true nature of the relationship but tells Norma that she needs to come clean with Norman or they cannot continue. As seems to be his nature he doesn't give her an ultimatum, even so she feels as if he does. She leaves Alex's house furious. And Norman wants to know why she is so moody.
Norma, Dylan, Emma and Norman go out to buy a tree for the house. Emma and Norman talk and to her relief Norman says he is very happy for her and Dylan. Norman follows Norma around the trees until she is forced to admit that she likes Alex, at which point he throws up.
Meanwhile Rebecca tries to board a plane to Indianapolis, when she is picked up by the DEA who want her to testify against Alex.
The heating is broken in the old house and when the man fixes it Norman overhears him tell Norma how dangerous it would be to try and use the old boiler. It has a crack in the firebox. Either this information will be stored by Norman for later use, or it's revealed here that Norman broke the heating for the opportunity to sleep in his mother's bed. A way of returning to the old relationship when everything seems so different.
Norma invites Alex to dinner. Norman tells Alex that there is no room for him, that Norma and Norman have a special bond and that he has given up everything to maintain it. “Now there’s room for someone else?” He's right of course. She has kept him close and potential girlfriends at a distance, although we can't know for sure whether that was actually Norma or Norma/n's doing. Norma gets angry and tells him that she loves Alex and Alex loves her and he'll have to get used to it. “There’s room in the human heart for more than one person.” Norman storms out to chop wood and when Alex approaches him to talk he threatens the sheriff with an axe. He realises Alex won't back down and instead smashes the outside of the house before fleeing to his room.
Norma asks Alex what happened. He doesn't understand what's happened himself, not clearly, but knows Norma cannot be alone in the house with her son.
We are reaching breaking point. Will Alex be arrested before he can be murdered? How will it look when Norma and Norman are left alone together? This isn't the final season, however murderous Norman seems. But it's hard to see how this story line can plateau at this point.
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