Bates Motel’s sophomore year is much stronger than its first, and I am so glad that I stuck with the show. This season was about the difficulty of breaking the cycle of abuse with mixed and heartbreaking results. Norma spends the season trying to interact with others instead of her codependent relationship (with a dash of necessary overprotective) with her son. She tries to create healthy relationships, but the script skillfully kept pulling her back into her family drama, but not because of anything that she did yet she is still undeterred and is like a force of nature as she barrels forward with focused determination. Norman tries to act like a normal teenager and engage in normal teen behavior, but it becomes increasingly obvious to all those around him that he isn’t, yet no one can believe the overwhelming evidence. Norman becomes Norma as a reaction to abuse of others or himself because his broken psyche sees her as a successful survivor. Dylan, Norma’s other son, gets a pretty thorough storyline. Despite his shady career choice, which he executes successfully, in so many ways, he is like Norma’s complementary foil. Unlike his mother, he is effective and seems normal, but the actor’s eyes belie his youthful uncertainty at the twists and turns of every situation. He moves forward, but just wants things to be calm and find a place to rest-much more of a lost boy than any of his clearly damaged family members. I love every interaction between Vera Farmiga and Nestor Carbonell. They are thankfully not love interests. They have a tenuous business relationship. They are not friends and yet they are totally naked with each other in every scene. It is a successful depiction of a relationship borne by stress, time and proximity. I just love their dynamic. I’ll definitely stick around if there is another season.