Scheduled to debut on March 18, BATES MOTEL is now less than a month away. While it has been a while since the PSYCHO franchise has had anything worth watching, this new series shows promise. Now, I am a huge PSYCHO fan. I have seen all the movies (except for the 80's TV pilot), and have read the first book. While PSYCHO II was a solid sequel, PSYCHO III IV were less than great. The remake had some good casting, but the bad reviews spelled the end to the once great PSYCHO franchise. Now, we have a new TV show called BATES MOTEL. Intending to show the beginning of Norman Bates, I am actually hopeful about this show. The creators have stated that they are doing a new version of PSYCHO, not a remake or prequel. This is good because after the continuity errors of III and IV, added to the bad reviews of the remake, I think that the only way they could do it was to reinvent the classic story and not tie it to the previous series or remake. If they want to do well, here are some things they should do:
NORMAL BATES: Have Norman Bates be a likable, regular teenager who slowly descends into madness. THE WALKING DEAD has shown that if you take a character, and bend him and break him, and eventually he becomes a whole different person, the story is far more interesting. By the 2nd or 3rd season Norman should become the character we all know.
KILLS: There needs to be some decent kills, but don't have the show become a slasher show. Even though the original film was the inspiration for many of the early slashers, the film itself is not a slasher film by any means. However, there should be kills to keep the pace moving, but don't have an entire episode dedicated to someone being cut into pieces.
A BOY'S BEST FRIEND IS HIS MOTHER: Show the extremely strong bond between Norman and Norma. Also, show what a crazy, messed up person she is, and how that affects Norman and eventually drives him into madness. Remember, if done right, sympathy for your killer can actually work to your advantage.
What do you think about the new BATES MOTEL series? Will it be a new, long lasting series, or is it destined to be canceled after 5 episodes? Leave a comment and remember, this is only my 2nd article.