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"Midnight" is the tenth and final episode of the first season of Bates Motel. It aired on May 20, 2013.

Synopsis[]

Romero decides to take action; Norman brings Emma to the dance; Norman gets a ride from Miss Watson.

Summary[]

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Norma tells Romero about Abernathy's threat and the plan to bring the money to the dock. Romero says he'll take care of it but Norma is skeptical. Norman finds Emma looking at a banner for the winter formal and offers to go with her.

Norma asks Dylan for the gun

Norma serves Dylan some French toast and then asks him to get her a gun and teach her how to use it. He says no and asks why she needs it. She tells him about Abernathy and Romero. He says to her that a gun is a bad idea. Romero goes to a garage and pulls a bag out of a trunk. It is full of the $150,000 Abernathy is looking for.

Norma goes to see Dr. Kurata alone. She asks for advice on how to handle stress. He asks why she's feeling stress. She says just normal life stuff. He asks after Norman. She says it's fine, saying he's such a good boy. The doctor notes he's not really a boy anymore and asks if it's going to be hard when he leaves to go to college. Norma figures he'll go locally. He asks if she thought this is what parenting would be like when she was a little girl. She mulls it over and says she doesn't remember. He asks if she remembers anything about being little. She says yes, the usual stuff. He asks about her parents. She says her dad was very kind and her mom worked in a bakery and always smelled like cookies. They are both dead and she was an only child. She gets sick to her stomach in the doctor's office and leaves.

Norman overhears Blaire Watson screaming at someone on her cell phone not to call her again. He enters the classroom and says he didn't hear anything. He says he doesn't want to publish his story. She says she understands and asks him not to tell anyone about her phone call. She touches his face and says they have a secret now before hugging him.

Sheriff meets Maggie

Romero goes to see Keith Summers' sister, Maggie, who has a bruised face. He asks about it. She says she doesn't remember. He confronts her about the bookkeeping for the Shelby/Summers human trafficking organization. He asks if Jake Abernathy hurt her. She claims not to know him, and calls him Joe Fioretti. He did come see her looking for the money but she didn't have it. She has no way to reach him but knows he's running the same type of operation up and down the coast. She asks what happens to her now. He says nothing if she keeps her mouth shut.

Emma arrives at the motel and shows Norma the pretty dress she got for the dance. She asks Norma to hold it up her so she can see it with heels. Norma does and then Emma notices a scar on her leg. Norma dismisses it as a childhood scar from spilling hot chocolate on her leg.

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Dylan arrives with a gun saying he's changed his mind and they go to a field to learn to shoot. Norma is of course very enthusiastic, squeezing off a shot before Dylan says to. He tells her about guarding the pot fields. They bicker but nicely and he calls her Mom, which she notes he hasn't done in years. He notes she has a loaded gun in her hand.

Maggie Summers goes to see Norma and tells her to give Abernathy the money if she has it because Abernathy will kill her.

Bradley comes to the house but it's to see Dylan. Dylan has gotten the stuff out of her dad's office. Norman eavesdrops as she thanks him for all his help and says she'll stop bothering him now. He says she can keep bothering him. Later, Norma is handling the gun when Norman storms in angry that he has no black socks. Dylan offers him a pair of his own. Dylan gives him the socks and asks if he's mad about Bradley. Norman says he's 100 percent completely over it. He tells Dylan to go out with her if he wants to.

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While waiting for Emma to arrive to pick him up for the dance, Norma makes a stunning confession, saying she wants someone to know the truth about her. She grew up in Akron, OH and her older brother repeatedly raped her from when she was 13 until he moved out, many years. Her mother was mentally checked out, they were poor, and her father was so terrible she was worried that if she told him that he would kill her brother. One day, when he was doing things to her she heard her father come home and she jumped up so quickly that she hit an iron and it fell on her leg, which is where that scar comes from. He cries and says he's sorry and they hug. She says it doesn't matter since it was a long time ago but she wanted someone to know it about her in case anything happened.

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Emma arrives. She looks lovely. She and Norman head to the dance, where he can't stop looking at Bradley. Emma gets annoyed and then angry saying she can't believe that she thought getting all dressed up would make him realize he had feelings for her. She tells him to get a ride home with someone else.

Richard calls Norman aside and they go outside into the rain where Richard promptly decks him for "taking advantage" of Bradley after her dad died. He stumbles home in the rain with a bloody face when Blaire Watson drives by. She sees his face and takes him to her house to clean him up before she takes him home.

Abernathy calls Norma and reminds her of their deal. She grabs her gun and gets ready. She heads down to the dock and sees Romero arrive with a bag in hand. She watches as Romero negotiates a deal with Abernathy, saying he gets 50 percent of his cut. Abernathy agrees, but when he bends over to take the bag Romero kills him. Abernathy falls in the water. Romero tosses the satchel, that supposedly contains the cash, into the harbor saying under his breath, "Not in my town you piece of shit."

He then says out loud, "You can go home now Norma." She pops up from her hiding place and says she almost shot him. He tells her when he says to trust him she should trust him.

Miss Watson clears Norman's face

Blaire Watson cleans up Norman's face and tells him that he shouldn't tell anyone that he came there. She says she got most of the dirt out and goes to change to take him home. She leaves her door just ajar enough that he can see her disrobe in the mirror. Suddenly a vision of Norma appears to him on the couch taunting him, saying that Blaire Watson's trying to seduce him. Norma tells him that he knows what he has to do.

As Norman runs home in the rain he is literally almost run over by Norma in the motel parking lot. She sees his face and asks what happened but he says he doesn't know: the last thing he remembers is that Blaire Watson was going to drive him home but then he was just running along the road. She says that everything is okay now as he's home safe. We then see Blaire Watson's lifeless body on her bedroom floor with her throat slit. Around her neck is a pendant with the letter 'B', revealing her to be Jerry Martin's mistress.

Cast[]

Main Cast[]

Guest Stars[]

Also Starring[]

Notes[]

  • This episode was watched by 2.70 million viewers.

Episode Guide[]

Underwater ep guide 1

Norma tells Sheriff Romero about Abernathy and the $150K he's expecting her to bring to the pier at midnight. Romero tells Norma that he'll take care of it, but refuses to elaborate, leaving Norma just as nervous as she was before they talked.

At school, Norman finds Emma staring longingly at a banner for the upcoming Winter Formal. He encourages her to go, but Emma replies that no one has asked her. Norman offers to be her date. Emma plays it down, but she's clearly excited to go with him, even if only as friends.

Norma surprises Dr. Kurata at his office after canceling Norman's previous session. She asks him for tips about dealing with stress, and he smoothly transitions the conversation to talk of her childhood. Norma tells him about her parents, but he seems to think she's not being entirely truthful. As the questions become more personal, Norma develops an upset stomach and rushes out of his office.

Norman arrives at Miss Watson's classroom in time to overhear her arguing passionately with someone on the phone. She begs him not to tell anyone what he heard. He promises to keep quiet, and tells her that he's decided not to publish his story. Miss Watson understands. She hugs Norman as she tells him, "I guess this means we have a secret now, huh?"

After fishing a duffel bag full of cash out of a garage in a run-down part of town, Romero stops by the home of Keith Summers' sister, Maggie. Romero tells her that he knows she was the bookkeeper for her brother's business, and asks her about Abernathy, who she knows as Joe Fioretti. She doesn't know how to get ahold of him, but she says he runs similar businesses in four other towns. Romero lets her know that, if she keeps her mouth shut, nothing will happen to her.

Emma stops by the motel to show Norma her dress for the dance. Norma loves it, and holds it up so Emma can see what it looks like. Emma notices the scar on Norma's leg, but Norma brushes it off as a childhood accident before rushing out of the office.

Dylan arrives with a gift for Norma; a handgun. He's reconsidered his early decision and decided to teach her how to shoot. As they do a little target practice, Norma finally gets Dylan to tell her what he does for a living. She isn't happy with his response. She tells him that she's scared, and he tries to comfort her, telling her to trust Romero before getting back to target practice.

Norma is cleaning the motel rooms when she is surprised by a visit from Maggie. She tells Norma that Abernathy/Fioretti is not someone to mess with. If she has the money, she needs to turn it over. Maggie leaves Norma shaken on the porch.

Norman answers the door and and is excited to see Bradley until he realizes she's only there to see Dylan. Dylan gives her the contents of her dad's office, and they bond over the experience of breaking into the docks and getting shot at. Norman listens in from the other room, clearly unhappy at this turn of events.

That night, Norman is getting ready for the dance when he realizes he doesn't have any dress socks. He pitches a fit and starts a fight with Norma until Dylan offers him a pair. Norman tells Dylan that he's completely over Bradley, and that Dylan should ask her out. Dylan denies any attraction to her.

Norma sits with Norman as he waits for Emma to arrive to take him to the dance. She watches the clock approach midnight, and decides to open up to Norman, in case she doesn't get another chance. She tells him that she grew up in Akron, Ohio, and that her brother used to make her have sex with him when they were young. She says that her mother was "checked-out of her body," and that her dad was insane and violent.

One day, her father came home early and nearly caught her and her brother having sex. She panicked and knocked a hot iron onto her leg, leaving the scar. She apologizes for telling him, but Norman understands that she just wanted someone to know, and he's the person she's closest to.

At the dance, Norman can't take his eyes off of Bradley. Emma notices, and gets angry at him, and at herself for thinking Norman might come around and realize he has feelings for her. She storms out, leaving Norman without a ride home. Bradley's boyfriend, Richard, asks Norman to step outside. He tells Norman to leave Bradley alone, and when Norman tries to defend himself, Richard lays him out with a blow to the face.

As Norman walks home in the rain, Miss Watson pulls up next to him. She notices his bloody face, and offers to take him to her place to clean him up before sending him home.

Norma heads to the pier to meet Abernathy, and is surprised to see Romero arriving at the same time. She hides behind some crates as Romero offers Abernathy the money from the duffel bag, and proposes that they work together. As Abernathy reaches for the money, Romero shoots him four times and watches as he falls into the bay. Romero tells Norma to stop hiding and go home.

At Miss Watson's home, Norman gets patched up and warmed up with some tea. Miss Watson goes to change to take him home, but leaves the door to her bedroom open as she disrobes. Norman tries not to watch, but he can't help it. Norma appears to him and tells him that Miss Watson knows exactly what she's doing, and Norman knows what he needs to do.

Suddenly, Norman is running through the dark. He arrives home just as Norma does, and frantically tells her that he doesn't know what happened. All he remembers is running home. Norma assures him that everything is going to be good, and they head inside to get a fire going.

Back at Miss Watson's home, things are not good. Her body lies in a pool of blood on the floor. Her throat has been slit, and the blood runs across her necklace, from which a charm in the shape of the letter "B" hangs.

Production Notes[]

Olivia Cooke, who plays Emma, decorated her ever-present oxygen herself. The props department thought it would be more personal if the person who knew the character best was allowed to add her own touches to the tank. Not only that, for the season finale, the oxygen tank got an adorable makeover for the Winter Formal.

Underwater production notes 1

Left: Emma's tank in casual mode. Right: Emma's tank in formal mode.

Jake Abernathy/Joe Fioretti was a real creep, and Romero seemed to delight in getting rid of him. Abernathy's fall from the pier into the bay was huge, and it wasn't as easy as it looked.

Stunt Coordinator Marny Eng had the stunt double outfitted in a wetsuit (under the Abernathy costume) to protect against the freezing cold water, but that wasn't the only obstacle they were up against. There was also a strong current at the time of the shoot. Additionally, the water was dirty, which was an issue as the stuntman needed to stay underwater for a few seconds after the fall to make sure it looked like Abernathy was done for, and the dirty water made it hard for the safety crew to keep an eye on him.

Underwater production notes 2

Follow the falling human-trafficking scumbag.

Since the double needed to stay underwater for a few seconds after the fall, the team watched carefully to make sure he didn't hit his head on the way down. If the double accidentally knocked himself out, it would be several seconds before the safety team would be able to get to him. The other tricky part was a wood barrier down the side of the dock. When the double fell backward, he also had to make sure he got enough trajectory to it in order to ensure he didn't hit the barrier, but he also had to do it while still looking like it was a natural fall.

As with any successful stunt, it was the importance of thinking through and anticipating all the possibilities that made Abernathy's plunge to a watery grave a success. Unless, you know, he isn't actually dead...

Music[]

Song Title Performer(s)
Kill For Love Chromatics
The Lady In Red Chris De Burgh
Sunburnt Love Bangups

Videos[]

Gallery[]

Promotional Pictures[]

Behind the Scenes[]

Episode Stills[]


Season 1
#101 "First You Dream, Then You Die" #106 "The Truth"
#102 "Nice Town You Picked, Norma..." #107 "The Man in Number 9"
#103 "What's Wrong With Norman" #108 "A Boy and His Dog"
#104 "Trust Me" #109 "Underwater"
#105 "Ocean View" #110 "Midnight"
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