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[TV Review] “Bates Motel” Episode 3.02: ‘The Arcanum Club’

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Bates Motel

Bates Motel” returned tonight with a much faster paced episode after last weeks slog of a premiere. As is typical with Bates, there were still some issues with plotlines that no one cares about, but it was definitely an improvement. Before I get into my critique, let’s go over everything that happened.

Recap

Norma goes to check on Annika to not-so-secretly check to make sure her bathroom window shade is working after she caught Norman spying on her last week. After going to ask Emma about her to no avail, she walks in to see Norman taxidermy-ing (I’m fully aware that this is not a real word) a small goat. Norman claims to not know anything about about her whereabouts. Meanwhile, Hunter, Caleb and Dylan are having sort of a male bonding session over by the pot farm.

Norma just can’t seem to let the Annika thing go, so she asks Emma (again) about her. After Emma tells her that Norman went on a ride with her, a light bulb clicks in her head. She knows Norman had something to do with Annika’s disappearance. After scolding Norman, she gets a kind of half-excue out of him and the (understandably) doesn’t buy it, so she makes him show her exactly what happened that night. Then, of course, Norman slips up and uses the word “was” to describe Annika. Norma catches the slip-up (yay Norma!) and Norman starts acting all creepy. Norman informs Norma that he has started dating Emma, and she seems giddy at the thought. Later, while talking with Emma, she starts to get a little handsy with him and he freaks out a bit before abruptly leaving.

Back at Dylan’s, a seemingly rabid dog attacks Hunter’s dog and Caleb shoots it. Okay.The next day, a bearded homeless looking man named Chick comes up to Dylan looking for his pet dog, and seems unusually interested in the tomatoes (tow-mah-toes) he is planting. This storyline is getting so exciting! Later, Emma suggests that her and Norma go through Annika’s room and they find an invitation for the club that gives the episode it’s title: The Arcanum Club, which Emma explains is a very exclusive hunting club. While leaving the room, Sheriff Eyeliner Romero checks out of the motel and gives Norma what I assume is a check written for an enormous sum of money. and skips town.

On Emma and Norman’s date, the TV-MA icon shows up to remind us that something crazy is about to happen, and it turns out to just be two teenagers discussing sex (because Americans are prudes). Emma is laying the sexual innuendos on thick, and the two delve into their sexual histories (probably not a good conversation to have with Norman Bates).  Then she calls Norma out for trying to keep Norman a child, which may be responsible for his guilty sexual feelings (yay Emma!).

Norma drives to the Arcanum Club meeting and is asked for the password, which she doesn’t know (really, Norma?). So she drives around the side and climbs over the fence (in her evening gown, no less) and pulls a Norman and spies on the party through a window. Inside, the gay neighbor from Desperate Housewives (Kevin Rahm) is overlooking two people have sex (there’s the TV-MA material). Romero busts her and she explains to him why she’s there. She also tells him that Norman was the last person to see Annika.

Over in the forest, Dylan and Caleb go spy on Chick, only to dins a woman nursing a baby. Chick comes out and admits that he doesn’t own a dog. He takes them into his gun warehouse and has a weird conversation with him about rules. Then he asks him about the weed he’s growing (ughhhh) and Caleb has to take it one step so far and insult Chick to his face, which means this storyline will probably drag on for the rest of the season.

On her way home, Norma sees a sign for Lee Berman’s bypass (remember that thrilling storyline from last season?) and proceeds to kick the shit out of it, only to run it over once she gets back in her car. Emma and Norman arrive home and begin making out. Norman cuts the session short, to Emma’s disappointment. After Emma leaves, Norma comes home and breaks down in Norman’s arms, while he consoles her and tells her everything is going to be alright. Cut to the lake, where a woman’s body has just floated to the surface.

Bates Motel

 Review

Like I said, this was a much faster-paced episode than last week. People actually communicated! Emma told Norma about Norman riding into town with Annika and Norma told Romero by the end of the episode! We also had Norma be smart and not just ignore Norman’s creepy behavior and excuses about his drive with Annika. She took initiative, which isn’t something we see quite often when it comes to Norman’s murderous tendencies. The show is always better when it focuses on Norma and this episode was no exception.

Special mention should also be made of Freddie Highmore, who is making Norman’s transition into full on psycho very well. He gives Norman so many looks and little moments that really show you how crazy he is becoming and his scenes with Olivia Cooke were appropriately disturbing. Their date was incredibly awkward and hard to watch, but I’m glad it finally gave Cooke some of the attention she was missing last season.

Last, and certainly least, we have Dylan’s subplot, which is growing even more ridiculous than I ever could have imagined. I didn’t actually think this was possible, but the writers seem determined to make it as “out there” as possible (that tomatoes thing was just plain weird). Chick was a creepy character and he was mildly entertaining in his final scene, so I’m withholding judgment on this until it gets developed a bit more. My expectations are very low, though.

Bates Motel is still setting things up for the rest of the season, but I found myself significantly more interested this week. Most of the plotlines that are being set up have the potential for an amazing payoff, and I hope the show follows through with them. Revelations and reveals were made much more quickly than the series is typically known for. Here’s hoping this trend continues next week!

Random Notes

  • “She doesn’t strike me as a hiker.” That is Norma’s polite was of saying Annika was a hooker. Classic Norma.
  • I loved how the camera lingered on Farmiga’s face when Emma told her Norman rode into town with Annika. You could just see the light bulb go off in her head and her facial expression was perfect.
  • “Because you can’t keep getting into cars with unquestionable women. SLUTTY.” Nice to see that Norma echoed my thoughts from last week about unhinged/older women being attracted to him.
  • Emma is apparently a connoisseur of Ramen. Good to know.
  • Really starting to worry about Emma’s safety now. Surely they won’t kill her off this season, right? RIGHT???
  • The visual of Norma running to the Arcanum Club party in her evening gown was amazing. I love it when the give Norma some physical comedy.
  • On that note, Norma yelling “I hate you, you stupid piece of shit sign!” was also quite hilarious.
  • Oh yeah, Annika is dead. In case you cared.
  • Sorry again for the lengthy recap/review! I’ve come to accept the fact that so much shit happens on this show that it’s just going to be long. But I’ll actually label the recap and review so if you watched the episode you can just jump to the review.

A journalist for Bloody Disgusting since 2015, Trace writes film reviews and editorials, as well as co-hosts Bloody Disgusting's Horror Queers podcast, which looks at horror films through a queer lens. He has since become dedicated to amplifying queer voices in the horror community, while also injecting his own personal flair into film discourse. Trace lives in Austin, TX with his husband and their two dogs. Find him on Twitter @TracedThurman

Movies

‘Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II’ Review – Sequel Defies Expectations and Surpasses the Original

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Winnie the Pooh Blood and Honey 2

Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey broke the internet when it was first announced back in 2022. Disney fans and everyone else were caught off guard by the concept of the iconic toy bear and his stuffed pals becoming feral, but enough time has passed to where this current genre practice — turning public-domain material into horror films — is less of a shock. However, that didn’t stop folks from reacting with surprise when a sequel was reported last year. And with all the financial success from last time, this continuation has more resources at its disposal. That increased budget is evident on screen and partly why Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II surpasses the original.

Returning director Rhys Frake-Waterfield is joined by Summer of ‘84 writer Matt Leslie, and their collaboration is a quasi-reset of the first Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey. The prior film is now treated as an in-universe adaptation of Christopher Robin’s horrific ordeal. The meta touch gives the sequel room to acknowledge the original film’s deficiencies as well as a chance to expand on the lore. As the “real” Christopher Robin (Scott Chambers) tries to now move on with his life while also enduring accusations from all sides, Winnie-the-Pooh (a.k.a. The Yellow Bastard) and his wicked storybook pals brew up their next violent course of action.

Beyond its opening act, the previous Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey was much too plotless and straightforward. Its only ambition was reimagining Pooh and Piglet as merciless killers. Sure, audiences mainly tuned in to see these characters carry out a massacre, but there is no denying that the execution was monotonous. That same kind of narrative redundancy is, thankfully, not in the sequel. Leslie penned a more sinuous script that doesn’t ever switch on the “autopilot” button. From probing Christopher Robin’s extensive trauma to revealing the origin of the Hundred Acre Wood villains (which now include Owl and Tigger), the second film is more structured and engaging.

On top of a better story, Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II benefits from higher production values. The detailed creature designs and suits are more convincing than before; they don’t just look like actors in masks anymore. Simple yet favorable upgrades, such as articulating mouths and thorough skin texture, make these monsters persuasive as they work toward the film’s ultimate body count. The extra funding also allows for elaborate set-pieces, including a rave-set mass murder and a brief but exciting chainsaw sequence. In addition, Andrew Scott Bell’s score work in these films continues to be a highlight.

Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II is a significant step up in certain areas, although there is the issue of tone. The sequel resumes the grave atmosphere from earlier as well as injects random, not to mention welcome spurts of humor (the intentional sort). Nevertheless, this film is generally an improvement on the first, which read like a parody due to its uncompromisingly severe delivery. Here, there are glimpses of campiness that make for a more entertaining experience.

This flawed but enjoyable sequel defies expectations — albeit low ones — and outperforms its predecessor on most levels. There is more to appreciate this time around. And if plans for the “Poohniverse” go as planned, this won’t be the last appearance of the bloodthirsty Hundred Acre Wood gang.

From Fathom Events, Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II will screen in theaters from March 26 to 28.

2.5 out of 5 skulls

Pictured: Poster for Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II.

Pictured: Poster for Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey II.

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