American Horror Story Asylum- Final Thoughts

 **This post contains spoilers**

So I’ll start with the big mystery first…..aliens! Aliens played a big part in AHS Asylum’s story, and I’ve always had mixed feelings about it. There’s a lot of ambiguity surrounding the extraterrestrial presence here. We never get to actually see too much of the aliens. All we have to go on for the aliens appearances are Grace’s drawings, the brief reflection of the aliens in Kit’s eyes before they took him in the season finale, and the one quick shot of an alien during the nor’easter storm. I did appreciate the less is more approach, because it helped maintain a lot of mystique surrounding the aliens.

Still, there’s always a part of me that felt involving aliens in this season was unnecessary. At times, the aliens just feel out of place. This season had an impeccable cast, and a good story with strong social commentary. Do the aliens completely ruin AHS Asylum? Of course not, but as the story progresses, it just becomes more and more apparent that a supernatural element wasn’t need in season two.

AHS Asylum features one of the strongest casts for the entire series. Evan Peters’ Kit Walker is one of the more memorable and genuinely wholesome protagonists in the series. Lizzie Brochere brought an enigmatic and charismatic presence to Grace. Sarah Paulson suffered as Lana Winters, and Paulson absolutely nailed all the heartaches and hopeless moments of desperation. Lily Rabe and Jessica Lange flawlessly pulled off difficult tasks, with two large character shifts. Sister Jude starts off as this cold and overbearing disciplinarian, but towards the end of the season, you’re actually rooting for Jude to have a happy ending. That’s how good Jessica Lange is. 

Sister Mary Eunice was a sweet and innocent person in the beginning, but evil corrupted her to the point, where she became a vile and menacing threat. Lily Rabe was able to convey the shocking change in personality, where you couldn’t believe you were witnessing this angelic human turning into a vulgar and nasty demonic monster. 

James Cromwell, Zachary Quinto, Ian Mcshane, and Dylan McDermott all brought a terrifying presence as villains in their own unique way. Joesph Fiennes Monsignor/Cardinal Howard wasn’t outwardly evil, but he still wasn’t a good person. Howard was a pompous and phony man, who would do anything to advance his own career. He had his dirty laundry, and Howard didn’t hesitate to silence and destroy Jude, when he thought she might get in his way.

AHS Asylum doesn’t shy away from a lot of issues with a strong thread of social commentary. Kit had to keep things quiet with Alma. Interracial relationships were heavily frowned upon during that era, and to make matters worse, Kit had to keep a close eye on Billy and his gang of loser friends. 

Women fighting against sexism and the patriarchy is a big one here, especially in the 1960s and beyond. Jude lost her battle against Dr. Arden and Monsignor Howard. Mother Superior Claudia was banished to Puerto Rico after she helped Lana, and Shelley lost her life. In the end, Lana was the only true survivor and success story in the pack. Sure, you can raise a lot of questions for how she got to the mountain top. You could say she lost her way, but it doesn’t erase the fact that she made it.

Sexism and misogyny are big issues in AHS Asylum, and Lana’s struggles to live as a gay woman. She had to keep her relationship with Wendy a secret to avoid risking both of their careers. And Wendy was bullied by Sister Jude into helping keep Lana locked away at Briarcliff.

AHS Asylum is near the top of my list for one of the more darker AHS seasons. Asylum has an undeniable nightmarish feel to it, and a dreary and hopeless mood that rarely lets up. I’d have to go back and watch AHS 1984, but Asylum has always been one of my picks for the top three best AHS seasons. And who could forget Dominique, the persistent anthem for the common room? Seriously, it’s basically a guarantee Dominique will be stuck in your head after you watch the entire season of AHS Asylum.

American Horror Story Asylum- Episode 13- Madness Ends

 **This post contains spoilers**

The Story- In the present, Lana, now in a relationship with a woman named Marian (Joan Serverance), prepares for a big interview with April Mayfield (Camille Chen) before she’s set to be honored at the Kennedy Center. Unbeknownst to Lana, Johnny Morgan has infiltrated the film crew, so he can carry out his plan of murdering Lana.

Kit tries to move on after the deaths of Grace and Alma, and Jude might actually have one more chance at a peaceful life after Briarcliff.

My Thoughts- If we’re talking about enduring ups and downs, and going to hell and back during this season, you have to put Kit Walker at the top, or at least near the top of that list. So many highs and lows, including becoming a father, luckily being able to spend time with two women he loved dearly, and unfortunately losing both of them. 

So what did Kit do in attempt to find peace and move on after everything he went through? Kit bonded with Jude by visiting her at Briarcliff, but he didn’t stop there. Kit also decided to take Jude home to live with him and his kids.

Seeing Jude live a normal life was surreal. After she got through the detox phase of her recovery at Kit’s house, Jude was able to just be happy for a while. She enjoyed life, and Jude became a grandmother figure for Kit’s children, something both of them desperately needed. 

There’s a heartwarming scene where Jude has a mental breakdown, reverting back to Sister Jude, as she destroys parts of Kit’s house with a broom, while also trying to harshly discipline the children. Instead of running away in fear, Julia and Thomas go to comfort Jude, leading her into the woods for a walk. It’s a big moment, because maybe THIS is what Jude needed all along to curb all of that anger and resentment inside of her. A simple gesture of care and love, and someone who would be there to genuinely look after her.

Jude’s death scene was executed wonderfully here. This particular visit from the Angel Of Death felt bigger than the other visits. Jude said her farewells to Julia and Thomas, and before the kiss of death, the entire background fades to black. Jude was finally at peace with her decision to let go. She found a family, enjoyed herself, taught Kit and the kids how to swing dance, and she was finally ready to move on.

And what about Cardinal Howard? Well, as Lana put it, Howard’s guilty conscience finally got the best of him. Through flashbacks it’s revealed Lana pressured Cardinal Howard for answers in a parking garage before she released her report on Dr. Arden’s crimes. Howard eventually slit his wrists in a bathtub with a straight edge razor, killing himself quietly. Lana’s explanation for what type of man Howard was hit the nail on the head. He was a delusional and pompous liar, who only cared about advancing his career. 

Dying by suicide all alone, and that grisly image of Howard’s corpse sitting in a bathtub full of blood was truly something else. Still, it’s hard to feel sympathy for Howard, especially when you consider how he turned his back on Jude, the one person who was willing to go to hell and back for him.

Kit’s story was filled with so many twists and turns, and high moments of happiness and devastating lows. While other seasons of AHS gave Evan Peters a chance to really show off his acting chops, Kit Walker was still one of his best performances. Kai Anderson from AHS Cult was a more layered character. But Kit was more straightforward and a truly earnest and admirable human being. 

Think about everything Kit had to go through. Grace was brutally murdered in front of him twice, he lost Alma, he was falsely accused and imprisoned, and for a long period, he had to take the fall as Bloody Face. But Kit never once made the decision to turn to the dark side. Kit Walker stayed true to who he was until the very end. He always made sure to do the right thing, and to do right by other people, even if they didn’t necessarily deserve kindness. Out of everyone in the cast, Kit had every reason to succumb to evil temptations, but he always chose happiness instead. Kit got remarried, helped Jude, and he raised his children. Kit was dying of pancreatic cancer, and he refused Julia and Thomas’ offers to care for him, because he wanted them to live their lives.

Grace’s prediction came true, as Kit’s story ends with the aliens coming to take him away for good (presumably) this time. Kit sacrificed so much to help others. You’re lead to believe he’s awaiting bigger plans, and it was nice to see him receive a peaceful and mysterious ending. 

The big confrontation between Johnny Morgan and Lana did not disappoint. It was tense, emotional, and heartbreaking in the end. The flashback showing Lana meeting Johnny as a child and protecting him from bullies at school showed Lana actually did have feelings for him. Johnny revealing he’d always hoped for Lana to return one day to raise him and be his mother was a gut punching moment, because you could tell this is one of the many big setbacks that led him down a dark path.

The back and forth verbal sparring between Lana and Johnny was done well here. There’s a point where Lana tries to tell Johnny she had to give him up, so he could have some kind of a life, but Johnny is quick to call her out on all the lies. Johnny tells Lana she gave him up for selfish reasons, so she could chase her dreams without any problems. And to be honest, it’s hard to disagree with Johnny. As the story progresses and Lana ages, you can see her becoming more and more narcissistic and pretentious. Similar to Monsignor/Cardinal Howard, you can kind of see that relentless urge she has to do whatever it takes to advance her own career.

Did Lana finally expose and shutdown Briarcliff with her documentary? Yes she did, but it’s hard to ignore that one of her motivations to do so was just to put another notch on her belt of accolades. She didn’t solely do it out of the kindness of her heart. Also, remember Lana surprised Kit at his house with a camera crew, because she wanted to document Jude’s life after Briarcliff. But Kit would only speak to her as a friend off camera.

Johnny had Lana right where he wanted her. Alone with no one to help her, and a gun in his hand. Johnny was prepared to kill Lana, but Lana disarmed him. Without using physical force, Lana was able to get Johnny to lower his guard with a mother’s touch and a mother’s love. After all, this is what Johnny was craving for so many years. He just wanted someone, anyone to love him. Lana actually took responsibility for Johnny’s broken life before shooting him in the head and killing him. Lana told Johnny everything was her fault. 

I do believe Lana had to kill Johnny. It wasn’t just a it’s him or me scenario. Johnny definitely had Thredson’s DNA in him, and Lana couldn’t take the chance of letting him go, so he could return to finish what he started, or hurt someone close to Lana. It’s an ironic ending for Morgan, because he died the same way his father did: a gunshot to the head from Lana. Dylan McDermott was fantastic as Johnny Morgan throughout the season. McDermott’s committed performance gave you the impression that Morgan was a deeply disturbed and dangerous man, who you shouldn’t mess around with. 

AHS Asylum ends with a flashback to Lana’s first visit to Briarcliff. Sister Jude gives Lana an ominous warning, when she tells her “if you look in the face of evil, evil’s going to look right back at you.” You can look at and interpret Jude’s warning a lot of different ways. I’ve always thought Jude was simply trying to warn Lana, that she’s too ambitious for her own good. 

And as far as the staring or looking in the face of evil part of the quote goes, think about Lana’s horrible ordeal with Bloody Face/ Thredson. She desperately wanted to report on an “evil” man, because she believed Bloody Face would take her career to the next level. It did happen. Eventually, Lana reached so many high points of success, but look at what she had to go through to get there. Two big examples that stick out are Lana murdering Thredson and her own son, who Lana considered to be a dirty secret for years.

Anyway, I’ve always loved the final moments of AHS Asylum. Lana walks away, unaware of the struggles she’s about to face, and Jude looks at the Virgin Mary statue with admiration as Dominique plays in the background. The scene gives off a strong simpler times vibe, because both women have no idea what’s coming next, nor could they have possibly prepared for it.

With AHS’ anthology style, Madness Ends feels more like a series finale than a season finale, but it’s still a satisfying finale. With the exception of Kit’s mysterious whereabouts, the loose ends are tied up here, and Madness Ends delivers a strong emotional punch. Jude’s path to redemption is one of the big highlights here, and the teased confrontation with Johnny Morgan and Lana finally crossing paths delivered on every level.

Rating-10/10

American Horror Story Asylum- Episode 12- Continuum

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- Kit, Alma, and Grace struggle to adjust to life as a family under one roof, while raising their children Julia and Thomas.

Jude is still stuck at Briarcliff under the alias Betty Drake in an attempt to hide her identity. Monsignor Howard, now preparing to leave for his new position as the Cardinal of New York, promises Jude he will work towards her release. 

While promoting her book, Maniac: One Woman’s Story Of Survival, Lana runs into Kit, but the happy reunion takes an unexpected turn.

My Thoughts- It’s sad, but you can tell early on the polygamous family was never going to work. Too much tension between Grace and Alma, as Grace continues to obsess over the aliens. Grace was constantly drawing pictures from what she remembered from the abductions, and Alma was growing increasingly frustrated with Grace romanticizing what she considered to be a traumatic experience.

On top of that, the trio had to deal with racism, and an attempt to burn their house down, with Billy as the prime suspect. Kit also couldn’t count on help from the police, as the officer scolded him for an illegal polygamous relationship. I mean, the episode starts out with a traumatized Kit covered in blood, while holding an axe. 

It’s soon revealed that Alma, still suffering from PTSD from the abduction, snapped and brutally murdered Grace with the axe. Alma believed she had to protect the children from Grace, who couldn’t let go of the idea of encouraging the aliens return. Alma is sent to Briarcliff for Grace’s murder. Kit does his best to cheer Alma up with visits and stories about the kids, but Alma suddenly dies one day, when her heart stops.

It’s a dismal ending for both Grace and Alma. Alma dies alone at Briarcliff, and Grace ironically suffers the same brutal ending she carried out against her family. And to make matters worse, Kit is all alone again after experiencing a brief period of happiness and peace.

Jude’s problems continue to pile up in this episode. Considering his recent underhanded tactics, it’s no surprise Monsignor/Cardinal Howard lied to Jude about working to secure her release from Briarcliff. Howard left Jude to rot at Briarcliff, and two and a half years passed since the day of his “promise.” And Briarcliff turns into more of a hellhole than it was before, after its donated to the state to help relieve the overflow problem with local prisons.

You can see Jude’s mental state deteriorating in this episode. It’s revealed by Dr. Miranda Crump (Robin Bartlett) that Jude has been hallucinating many things. She hallucinated the majority of her friendship with Pepper, who died a long time ago. Jude also attacked five of her roommates, believing they were all the Angel Of Death, who was coming to take her life. 

Jessica Lange continues to consistently deliver great performances in this season. That scene, where she’s sitting in her old and empty office, while Dr. Crump explains everything to her was a tough one to watch. The frizzled hair, that lost and empty look on her face, and Lange did a great job of showing Jude’s deep descent into madness. 

The biggest surprise here, but not too big, because you could pick up on the little clues in the previous episode, was the change in Lana’s personality. A victim? Yes, of course. There’s no denying Lana suffered through hell, but the selfishness and her desire to become a big time celebrity takes over here. 

You can really see it, when Lana is confronted by the ghosts of Dr. Thredson and Wendy at a book signing. To put all the attention on herself, Lana lied about Thredson in her book, and she also reduced her relationship with Wendy to nothing more than the two being roommates, completely ignoring the romantic side of things.

Lana also shows a snobbish side of herself by scolding her assistant for not having ice for her soda, and instead of fulfilling her promise to shutdown Briarcliff and rescue Jude, Lana is more concerned with the actress who’ll portray her in the movie adaptation of her book. Also, Lana is way too excited to write a book about Leigh Emerson’s escape from Briarcliff, his murders, and the manhunt surrounding him. Kit scolds her for turning her back on her promises, but Lana shows little to no remorse for Jude.

It’s true that Jude wasn’t a good person for a long time. But Lana IS in a position to help, and Jude did make sure to help get Lana out of Briarcliff. Maybe this is finally it for Jude? Kit seems to be the only person, who can help her now. Kit saw Jude with his own eyes, and it’s clear Lana won’t lift a finger to help her.

We see the big jolt to end this episode, when Johnny Morgan bullies a bookstore owner into giving him her mother’s signed copy of Lana’s book. Dylan McDermott delivers a powerful and chilling performance at the end here. His speech to the bookstore owner, where he promises to murder Lana and complete his father’s work was an outstanding cliffhanger. It’s a direct and blunt warning, and we’re lead to believe Lana has no idea what’s coming.

With one episode to go, Continuum closes more chapters, specifically ending Grace and Alma’s stories. We’re now down to three with Kit, Lana, Jude, and who knows how things will end up for Cardinal Howard. Johnny Morgan confronting Lana is the big story going into the season finale. Johnny’s hatred for Lana is so strong, so you can’t rule out the possibility of Johnny doing something completely horrific to complete Thredson’s “work.”

Rating- 6/10

American Horror Asylum- Episode 11- Spilt Milk

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- Kit, Grace, and Lana try to adjust to life after Briarcliff. Kit and Grace come home to shocking a surprise, and Lana has one final confrontation with Dr. Thredson. 

Meanwhile, Johnny Morgan snaps again during an unusual session with a prostitute named Pandora (Jill Marie Jones).

My Thoughts- The execution for everything that went into pulling off Lana’s escape from Briarcliff was perfect. Keeping her word to Sister Jude, Mother Superior Claudia helped sneak Lana out of Briarcliff in a disguise. A lot of genuinely tense moments, when Lana is going down the staircase, and Kit is doing everything he can to keep Thredson’s attention on him, so he doesn’t notice Lana walking right behind him. The shot of Lana holding up the confession tape and flipping off Thredson, as she speeds away in the taxi was truly the icing on the cake.

Now a free woman, Lana has plans to release a book exposing the horrors at Briarcliff, finally saying goodbye to Wendy, moving to New York, and rescuing Jude from Briarcliff. But the first important order of business is taking care of Dr. Thredson.

With the police en route, Lana surprises Thredson at his home with a gun. Thredson is exposed and the secret of his identity as Bloody Face has gone public. But to no surprise, Thredson remains defiant, as he arrogantly drinks his last martini. Thredson reminds Lana he probably won’t receive the death penalty. On top of that, Thredson makes sure to taunt Lana with a horrifying story about engaging in necrophilia with Wendy’s corpse, and dismembering her body afterwards. Lana, fed up with Thredson’s games and not wanting to take any chances, shoots him dead before he can grab his gun.

Thredson put Lana through hell so many times. Yes, Thredson was a slimy piece of garbage, but Lana realized he was smart enough to possibly weasel his way out of the death penalty by pleading insanity. She felt she had a responsibility to be “the one” to finally stop him.

During Lana and Thredson’s showdown, we also get to see Johnny Morgan’s strange visit from Pandora in Dr. Thredson’s old apartment, as both stories weave back and forth between the future and the present. Morgan, wanting to feel what it would’ve been like to be breastfed and nurtured by his mother, goes berserk and attacks Pandora, when she mentions his obvious abandonment issues. It’s a creepy scene on Morgan’s side, especially when you consider Pandora put emphasis on the fact that she just gave birth. And if things couldn’t possibly get any stranger, Pandora also told him she refused to breastfeed her own baby, just so Morgan could receive the full experience he was paying for.

With the truth out in the open for Thredson being the real Bloody Face, Kit finally signs his release papers from Briarcliff to be a free man. But Kit has some business to handle with Monsignor Howard first. After Dr. Thredson used his position at Briarcliff to have Kit and Grace’s child taken away from them, Kit demands Howard use his influence to return the child to their rightful parents. He also wants Grace’s release, using the death certificate signed by Dr. Arden as evidence to keep things quiet. Kit’s asking price? Silence and secrecy. Kit won’t expose the wrongdoings to the press, and fearing a full blown disaster, Howard agrees to his terms.

Kit and Grace prepare to live a peaceful life together as a family, but they’re surprised by Alma waiting at home, with Kit’s second child. Alma still being alive wasn’t a huge shock for me. It was the same pattern with Grace, but there were more than enough clues to suggest Alma was still alive. And the attempted swerve with Grace supposedly seeing a dead Alma, while she was still being held captive by the aliens just wasn’t convincing.

The walls are closing in on Monsignor Howard. The newspaper headlines and Lana exposing the truth are too big to ignore. And with Arden and Mary Eunice dead, he can’t really look to anyone else to take the blame. Things get worse for Howard, when Jude confronts him for all of his lies and being a phony. Jessica Lange did a fantastic job here showing genuine anger and rage, as Jude scolded a man who she deeply believed in and loved. You could really feel Jude’s disappointment and heartbreak in this scene, and of course Howard’s response was to have Jude locked away in solitary confinement.

Lana didn’t want to bring Thredson’s baby into the world, but at the last possible second, she refuses to go through with a planned abortion. The PTSD flashbacks reminded Lana of everything she went through, and she had enough of all the killing and death in her life. Lana chooses to give the baby boy up for adoption instead after giving birth. There’s an emotionally tense scene here, where Lana is angered at seeing the baby, because she doesn’t want to acknowledge his existence. But when the baby won’t stop crying, she agrees to hold it. You can see the conflict in Sarah Paulson’s face, because on one hand, she would love to be a mother, but the child will always be a living, breathing reminder of Dr. Thredson.

Staying true to her promise, Lana goes to Detective Byers ( Matthew John Armstrong) and Detective Connors (Joel McKinnon Miller) to help rescue Jude from Briarcliff. The detectives are reluctant to help at first, but Lana pushes hard, because Jude’s list of allies are running thin. Mother Superior Claudia was forced to transfer to Puerto Rico, and she knows Monsignor Howard is not someone who can be trusted. On a side note, there’s a moment here, when Detective Byers tells Lana she’s a tough cookie, and Lana strongly responds “I’m tough, but I’m no cookie.” Paulson really did a good job of showing poise and delivering that line without flinching.

With a court order in hand, Lana and the detectives go to Briarcliff to get Jude, but Monsignor Howard insists Jude is dead after hanging herself. Lana is quick to dismiss this news as a lie from the Monsignor to cover up his secrets, and her suspicions are proven true, as a broken Jude is shown in solitary confinement in the closing shot.

Split Milk closes Dr. Thredson’s chapter, and a lot of questions still remain as the strong push towards the end of the season continues. How will Kit, Grace, and Alma coexist under the same roof with two children from different mothers? Will jealousy be a problem, or is the situation too unpredictable to sustain? Is Jude truly done for? With Mother Superior Claudia gone, Kit and Lana are the only two people who can help her. You also have to wonder how much more dirt will Monsignor Howard be able to sweep under the rug. A united front from Kit, Lana, and a coherent Jude would be the final nail in his coffin.

Rating- 7/10

American Horror Story Asylum- Episode 10- The Name Game

 

** This post contains spoilers**

The Story- After Dr. Arden lies to Kit about the aliens not showing up, Kit loses hope for his future. Unbeknownst to Kit, Grace is pregnant with his child, while Pepper, assigned to Grace as a protector by the aliens, watches over her.

Mary Eunice’s devious ways continue, as she torments and punishes Jude. Dr. Arden is about to crack, but he attempts to make one more desperate plea to bring back the real Mary Eunice.

Meanwhile, Thredson believes he’s in the clear, but Lana has other plans.

My Thoughts- Who would’ve thought Pepper would join the list of people to verbally annihilate Dr. Arden? With the aliens giving Pepper an upgrade for intelligence and a more sharp sense of confidence, Pepper wasted no time in tearing into Arden. Mocking him for his failed experiments, Pepper told Arden the aliens think he’s a fool and a complete joke. 

Pepper knocking Arden off of his own pedestal was a great way to start the episode. Arden is such a pompous and arrogant blowhard, and he didn’t take being humbled too well. Depressed and distraught, Arden decides to end his experiments by killing all the creatures. Another sign that Arden is completely defeated in this episode? He refused Mary Eunice’s request to do a lobotomy on Sister Jude. Think about that for a second, Arden hates Jude. He has a golden opportunity to make her miserable, and he refuses.

Dr. Thredson weasels his way back into Briarcliff. Not only did Mary Eunice help him escape, but she also gave him a full time position at Briarcliff. Of course, Lana and Kit are his two primary targets. As Grace gives birth to her and Kit’s son, Thredson tries to use the baby as leverage, so Kit will give up his confession tapes. 

Kit agrees to give Thredson the tapes, but a “plucky” Lana was smart enough to hide them again and keep them for herself. It’s Lana’s only insurance policy at this point, and Thredson is once again up that famous creek without a paddle. 

Sister Jude hits a rough patch here. After Mary Eunice finds a cucumber in her room, Jude dares Mary Eunice to punish her, and unfortunately she takes her up on that offer. Mary Eunice intentionally cranks the juice up way too high during Jude’s shock treatment therapy. The end result? Jude becomes a mumbling and incoherent mess. 

Jude is down, but there’s a scene in the common room, where she has a hallucination, dancing and singing the song The Name Game by Shirley Ellis on the common room’s new jukebox. Although it was just a hallucination, it was nice to see Jude happy and having fun for once after all she’s been through. This scene also genuinely felt like a happy and positive breath of fresh air, especially when you consider the constant dreary and depressing atmosphere at Briarcliff. 

Monsignor Howard is truly put to the test here. There’s a manhunt for an escaped Leigh Emerson, but he’s got bigger problems to worry about. Howard seemed ready to die, but The Angel Of Death told him his work is not done, and he has an important task to accomplish: drive the devil out of Mary Eunice. After a failed surprise exorcism, Mary Eunice rapes Monsignor Howard. 

Mary Eunice basically tries to bully Howard into being at his side, as his rises through the ranks, while also tempting him with possibility of being the next Pope. If any of this sounds familiar, it’s because Mary Eunice wants to steal the same “dream” Jude had envisioned with Howard. 

Feeling hopeless with his failed attempts to save Mary Eunice, Howard turns to a broken Jude for help and advice. Jude’s suggestion? Kill Mary Eunice. For a moment, the real Mary Eunice surfaced, pleading with Howard. She was tired of fighting the evil inside of her. Howard was able to get Mary Eunice to lower her guard, and he used this opportunity to throw her off the top of the stairs, killing her. 

A sad ending for Mary Eunice, but maybe it was the only way? You could definitely say Mary Eunice was too far gone at this point. Arden’s constant pleas were ignored and mocked by her, Jude failed (although Arden played a big part in that), and Monsignor Howard’s exorcism attempt was easily thwarted. So maybe this was the only way to defeat the devil and finally set Mary Eunice free. There’s a somber and poignant moment before the Angel Of Death kisses Mary Eunice. The real Mary Eunice is ready to go, and the Angel Of Death simply replies “I’ll take both of you.”

While preparing Mary Eunice’s body for cremation, Dr. Arden decides to get on top of her body. He willingly chooses to burn himself alive in the crematorium with Mary Eunice’s body. I guess you could say after his experiments failed and after he failed to save his precious Mary Eunice, Dr. Arden believed he had nothing left to live for. I mean, Arden was literally on his knees begging Mary Eunice to show pity for him, but that didn’t work.

Arden was such a cold, twisted, and evil person, so it’s hard to feel sympathy for him. Earlier in the season, Arden paid a prostitute to dress up like a nun. You could probably guess his twisted fantasy was to have sex with a woman who resembled Mary Eunice, because he would never actually have sex with Mary Eunice, someone who he considered to be pure and sacred. Also, seeing Mary Eunice on top of Monsignor Howard probably sent him over the edge. Still, the closing moments of this episode with Arden and Mary Eunice’s corpse going into the crematorium was a chilling and dark ending. The flames rising, and hearing Arden’s screams, as he burns to death is more than enough to make you squirm.

Jude’s guilt about imprisoning Lana prompts her to ask for a big favor from Mother Superior Claudia. She wants Claudia to help get Lana out of Briarcliff for good. This was an emotional scene. You could see the heartbreak on Claudia’s face, as she watches Jude slur her words and ramble on about her dream with Monsignor Howard, and how Mary Eunice needed to die.

The Name Game is loaded with exceptional performances from top to bottom. Lily Rabe was great this season. Starting out as the sweet, nervous, and jittery nun. But she also effortlessly transitioned into the cruel and vindictive possessed menace, who made early season Sister Jude look like a saint by comparison. This episode definitely has a big time feel to it, with two major character deaths, and you get the sense everything is building to the big finale. 

A lot of big questions to build anticipation for the next episode, including what will Dr. Thredson do now? Lana spoiled his plans again, and he doesn’t have the tapes. What’s going to happen to Kit and Grace’s baby? A baby is not fit for the horrors at Briarcliff, and the public still believes Kit is Bloody Face.

Rating- 9/10

American Horror Story Asylum- Episode 9- The Coat Hanger

 

**This post contains spoilers**

The Story- In the present, a man named Johnny Morgan (Dylan McDermott) visits a therapist to talk about his compulsive disorder. But Morgan soon reveals his true dark nature as a killer, who skins woman alive. Morgan, the son of Dr. Thredson and Lana, is the modern day Bloody Face.

Back at Briarcliff, Jude struggles to adjust to life as a patient. Lana and Kit continue to work as a team to expose Dr. Thredson, but Sister Mary Eunice has other plans.

Meanwhile, Dr. Arden has a bizarre plan that involves Kit to summon the aliens once again.

My Thoughts- Sister Jude’s downfall continues. After one last desperate plea for Monsignor Howard’s help, reality finally sets in: she’s stuck in an impossible situation with too many enemies against her. A few of the nuns at Briarcliff were happy to see Jude in shambles, because her strict reign of terror is over. Mother Superior Claudia (Barbara Tarbuck) was probably Jude’s last ally, but her statement, along with everyone else’s statements, didn’t exactly paint a flattering picture of Jude. The perception of Jude being this unhinged woman is out there, and there’s just too much evidence to dismiss it. Jude finally expresses anger at Monsignor Howard during that scene, where Monsignor Howard pulls away from Jude, as she begs for his help. It’s a big moment, because hopefully Jude finally realizes Howard is not the bright light she thought he was for so long.

With Monsignor Howard stripping Jude of all her powers, and taking the fall for Frank’s murder, there’s seemingly no way out for her. On top of all that, Jude was basically forced to listen to a phony apology from a wounded Leigh Emerson. 

We also see a truly surreal moment, when Jude enters the common room for the first time as a patient. She looks raggedy, broken, and tired. Jude hopes to make things right with Lana. Of course, Lana is hesitant to trust Jude for obvious reasons, but Jude vows to help with Lana’s freedom. There’s also a funny moment here, when Jude breaks the record with the Dominique song, which is basically the common room’s anthem. 

Lana successfully goads Thredson into a confession, while Kit records it. But Lana also discovers a bigger problem: she’s pregnant with Thredson’s child. Disgusted at the thought of giving birth to Thredson’s child, Lana believes she successfully performed an abortion on herself with a coat hanger. But Mary Eunice is quick to shoot down her hopes. The child inside her is alive, and it’s a baby boy. 

Arden has a plan to see the aliens again, and it involves bringing Kit to “the brink of death” to accomplish it. With Kit temporarily incapacitated, the aliens return with a pregnant and seemingly healthy Grace. Pepper promises to take care of Grace. A stunned Dr. Arden agrees, and he also assists in Grace’s rehabilitation and monitoring her pregnancy.

Monsignor Howard’s plan to baptize a supposedly reformed Leigh backfires, when Leigh almost drowns him and he literally nails Howard to a cross. With Howard bleeding and losing hope, he receives a visit from the Angel Of Death.

Grace still being alive was a nice and happy moment in this episode, but it wasn’t a huge surprise. They dropped too many hints that Grace wasn’t actually dead, and you can look back at the situation with Alma and the aliens to have an idea that there was still a realistic chance of hope for her.

And speaking of spoiling surprises, it wasn’t a big shock that Lana’s attempt to kill her baby failed, when the episode opened up with Johnny Morgan revealing his true identity. 

Dylan McDermott was barely in this episode, but he did a good job of establishing Morgan as the modern day Bloody Face. You get the feeling Morgan is a sadistic and deeply disturbed man, as he talks about bouncing around foster homes and skinning animals as a child. He’s a sicko. Morgan was seemingly disappointed that he wasn’t as precise and careful as his father was with killing his victims. The flashbacks to Morgan killing Theresa shows how frustrated he was with the process. Morgan is a serious threat, and with the way things were going in his session with Dr. Gardner, it’s no surprise he killed her. 

It’s kind of hard to feel any sympathy for Monsignor Howard’s fate. It’s obvious he was more concerned with advancing his own career over actually helping Leigh, and Emerson took advantage of just how gullible and arrogant he was. The cliffhanger with Shachath visiting Howard, as he bleeds out was perfect. Does Monsignor Howard want to let go, or does he still have the will to live?

The Coat Hanger features some truly gruesome images, with Lana’s bloody abortion attempt, and Monsignor Howard nailed to a cross. A couple of good cliffhangers to end this episode. More than enough intriguing questions to carry over to the next episode, and Lana and Kit’s problems may have actually gotten worse. Mary Eunice released Dr. Thredson, spoiling Lana’s plans to kill him. Zachary Quinto’s acting in this episode was superb. The irony of seeing Thredson, who’s such a horrible person, beg for mercy, when Lana tells him she’s going to kill the baby was a big highlight here. He coldly murdered women, but now Thredson was powerless and vulnerable, the best possible example of him receiving a taste of his own medicine.

Now, Thredson is free again, and who knows what his next move will be, or when he’ll strike again. And Kit managed to hide the confession tapes from Dr. Thredson under a battub before Dr. Arden spotted him, but are the tapes really safe there? Arden gave a curious look towards the tub, and by now, it’s known that he’s smart enough to uncover a scheme, when he sees one.

Rating- 6/10

American Horror Story- Murder House- Final Thoughts

**This post contains spoilers**

American Horror Story: Murder House is a bold show, that’s not afraid to take any chances. Gore, blood, sexual situations, a few “crossing the line” curse words (“sh**”) every now and then, and American Horror Story’s toes touch the line to provide an unforgettable experience for fans of the show.

Murder House features characters with real depth. Constance is a tortured soul with a troubled past, Ben is a habitual liar, and he’s running out of second chances, and Violet is a depressed and isolated teenage girl, who’s desperate for companionship and understanding.

On top of that, the cast is top notch, with Jessica Lange delivering numerous show-stealing performances. Lange is phenomenal, and Lange takes a more villainous turn in Asylum (season 2) as Sister Jude and in Coven (season 3) as Fiona to cement her status as the top mainstay on the show. Dylan McDermott is an ideal choice for the Ben character. McDermott is a natural, when it comes to portraying an anti-hero, or someone, who’s stuck in the middle of the good VS evil zone. Yes. Ben is a caring father, who loves his family, but he willingly engaged in an affair with Hayden, and the affair destroyed his family.

Taissa Farmiga emerges as a star in the making in American Horror Story’s first season, and Farmiga nails another high profiled character (Zoe) in Coven. You won’t see too much of Sarah Paulson as Billie Dean Howard here, but Paulson receives bigger roles in Asylum as Lana Winters and in Coven as Cordelia Foxx (Fiona’s daughter). Evan Peters? When you consider his performances as Kit Walker (Asylum) and Kyle Spencer (Coven),  Tate is still number one for overall quality. Tate is a disturbed kid with a broken life and a nasty mean streak, and Peters brings his A game as Tate.

Consistency is not a problem for Murder House. After each episode, I had to know the answer to this one reoccurring question: What’s next? The cliffhangers, the shocking character deaths, the reveals, the suspense, and the twists and turns. Murder House pulls you into a dark world of betrayal, violence, carnage, and gloomy dilemmas, and you’re hooked in until the very end. I never fell into a down period, where I wanted the show to end, and I can’t remember one tedious slump. Halloween Part I is a prime example, because I’ve seen all three seasons of American Horror Story, and I believe it’s the best episode from all three seasons. The look of panic and shock on Ben’s face, when he opens the door to see Hayden at the end is a great memorable moment.

Murder House sets the stage for a ghostly series with spooky atmospheric tension at the house, and for residents from the past or unfortunate victims of the house’s wrath, the Murder House is a source of pain and fear for a variety of reasons. Larry lost his family in a fire, Moira was shot to death by Constance, and we all know about the tragic end to The Harmon Family’s story. The Murder House is a living, breathing haunted house with a strong heartbeat, any unsuspecting victims are walking into a death trap, and underestimating the house’s power (i.e. Ben in the finale) is a deadly mistake.

Three yeas later, and horror themed shows have a stronger presence on TV. The Walking Dead is an unstoppable juggernaut, Salem popped up on WGN America, From Dusk Till Dawn debuted on El Rey Network, FOX has Sleepy Hollow, NBC has Hannibal, CBS stumbled across a surefire hit with Under The Dome, and Penny Dreadful premiers tonight.

Of course, American Horror Story is still around to establish a recognizable name for a horror TV series, and after three seasons, American Horror Story steps up to the plate for number four with Freak Show. I have mixed feelings for Asylum and Coven, but my hopes are still high for quality with season four. Key players from the past including, Lange, Paulson, Peters, and Denis O’Hare are returning, and the addition of reliable veterans (Kathy Bates and Angela Bassett) from Coven is a positive sign.

Also, the return of Emma Roberts should add a spark to the show, because Roberts was an amazing villainess as Madison Montgomery in Coven. Although, according to reports, it’s Jessica Lange’s last season on American Horror Story, and it‘ll be sad to see her go. Hopefully, she’ll receive a send-off worthy of remembrance, because Jessica Lange  is one of the founders for American Horror Story, and she’s in the small circle for stacking the first set of bricks for the foundation to build American Horror Story’s legacy.

Follow the links below (in chronological order) to read comprehensive reviews for all twelve episodes of American Horror Story: Murder House!

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/04/american-horror-story-murder-house.html (Episode 1- Pilot)

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/04/american-horror-story-murder-house_3.html (Episode 2- Home Invasion)

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/04/american-horror-story-murder-house_4.html (Episode 3- Murder House)

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/04/american-horror-story-murder-house_5.html (Episode 4- Halloween Part I)

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/04/american-horror-story-murder-house_11.html (Episode 5- Halloween Part II)

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/04/american-horror-story-murder-house_12.html (Episode 6- Piggy Piggy)

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/04/american-horror-story-murder-house_13.html (Episode 7- Open House)

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/04/american-horror-story-murder-house_14.html (Episode 8- Rubber Man)

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/04/american-horror-story-murder-house_18.html (Episode 9- Spooky Little Girl)

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/05/american-horror-story-murder-house.html (Episode 10- Smoldering Children)

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/05/american-horror-story-murder-house_9.html (Episode 11- Birth)

http://mitchmacready.blogspot.com/2014/05/american-horror-story-murder-house_10.html (Episode 12- Afterbirth)


My ebooks are only $0.99, and you can follow the links to learn more about both books-

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U


Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

American Horror Story- Murder House- Episode 12- Afterbirth

**This review contains spoilers**

Synopsis: The countdown for the big move begins in Boston with nine months to go, and Ben (Dylan McDermott) finds the perfect house in Los Angeles. Ben praises the Murder House as a symbol of “hope” for a new beginning, but Vivien (Connie Brittion) is still reluctant to trust Ben after the affair with Hayden (Kate Mara). Vivien has plans to move to Florida with Violet (Taissa Farmiga) before the new school year starts, and Vivien is planning a new life without Ben. Eventually, Vivien lowers her guard to accept Ben’s request to fly to Los Angeles to inspect and evaluate the Murder House.

In the present, Vivien is dead, and Ben is alone in the house. Vivien tries to adjust to the afterlife with some help and guidance from Moira (Frances Conroy). As a ghost, Vivien makes the tough choice to stay in the shadows and hide from Ben, because she wants Ben to leave the house with the baby. If Ben sees Vivien or Violet, Ben’s grief will take control, and Ben will stay in the Murder House, risking his life and the baby’s life.

One day, Ben visits Constance (Jessica Lange) to pick up the twin. Constance takes on the role of a babysitter, but Constance stalls Ben because she’s trying to protect the baby. A forceful Ben takes the baby, and before his return to the Murder House, Ben spots a picture of Tate (Evan Peters) and Addie (Jaime Brewer) on Constance’s kitchen counter. Ben puts the pieces of the puzzle together, and Ben immediately suspects Constance as an accomplice in Tate’s scheme, and Ben blames Constance and Tate for Vivien’s death. Constance warns Ben about the dangers of returning to the Murder House, but an angry Ben ignores Constance’s warnings.

At the Murder House, a lonely and depressed Ben prepares an exit strategy for the baby with paper work, and instructions for Vivien’s sister, Jo. In his mind, Ben accepts the idea of a new life for the twin in Florida with Jo, and Ben prepares to commit suicide with alcohol and cigarettes to ease the pain.

Ben  tries to pull the trigger on his handgun, but Vivien appears at the last second to stop him. Violet appears, and together, Vivien and Violet convince Ben to leave the Murder House to protect the baby from the evil forces. Ben grabs the baby, but a vindictive Hayden blocks Ben’s path to the front door on the staircase……….

Review: Why? Why would you go back into the house after EVERYTHING that happened there??? The break-in, Ben witnessed young Moria’s transformation, a group of ghost delivered his children, and his wife died in the house.

And guess what happens, when Ben runs into Hayden? At first, Ben tries to ignore Hayden, but a group of evil ghosts (under Hayden’s orders) attack Ben from behind. The evil ghosts strangle Ben with a rope, and they use the rope to hang Ben from the chandelier. Ben’s death looks like a suicide, and Hayden takes the baby.

Ben’s mind-numbingly stupid choice to return to the house brought a facepalm out of me. Constance is not an angel, but as a former resident with years of history tied to the house, she knows about the dangers and the consequences for a return.

Ben (as a ghost) reunites with Vivien and Violet, but Hayden is sitting in a rocking chair with the evil twin. Keep in mind, Ben, Vivien, and Violet don’t know about the details surrounding the prophecy, and they don’t know Tate’s child is the Antichrist.

Anyway, Constance confronts Hayden about the baby. As the only living person in the Harmon’s circle, Constance is an ideal candidate for a mother/guardian, but Hayden won’t let go without a fight. Luckily, Travis (Michael Graziadei) pops up out of nowhere to slit Hayden’s throat wide open. Travis takes advantage of an incapacitated Hayden (remember, she’s already dead, so she can’t die again), and Travis snatches the baby. Travis hands the baby to Constance, and a happy Constance leaves the Murder House with her new grandson.

Is Constance is a sneaky liar with a hidden agenda? Yep. But when you consider all the limited options, Constance is the best choice for a mother. Vivien is dead, Ben is dead, and Violet is dead. And you can’t raise a child in a house full of ghosts. Whether you like her or not, you can’t deny Constance’s dedication. She is willing to pour all of her love and care into her grandson, and Constance will do anything to protect him. Oh, and to keep the secret safe from the outside world, Constance hides the baby in a closet.

Constance’s cover story? Well, Detective Granger (Charles S. Dutton) and Detective Barrios (Malaya Rivera Drew) return to ask Constance more questions about Ben’s “suicide,” and they want to know what happened to the baby and Violet (remember, Tate hid her body in a crawlspace). Constance tells Granger and Barrios Violet ran away with the baby after Ben’s suicide to start a new life. It’s a perfect cover, because Ben staged everything at the house (papers, keys to all the doors, instructions for Vivien’s sister, etc.) for the aftermath of a suicide, so Constance’s story/lie works as a logical conclusion for Violet’s whereabouts.

So what’s next for The Harmon Family as ghosts? Together, Vivien, Ben, Violet, and Moira join forces to put a stop to the murders and never ending violence at the house. The good spirits at the house (Moira, Elizabeth, etc.) are tired of all the deaths of innocent families, who unknowingly walk into a murder trap. But the evil spirits (Hayden, Nora, etc.) are filled with rage and bitterness, and they will unleash their wrath on the new tenants.

The Harmon Family’s first test as a team? The Ramos Family. After Marcy’s (Christine Estabrook) fabricated sales pitch, Miguel Ramos (Anthony Ruivivar), his wife, Stacy (Lisa Vidal), and their son, Gabriel (Brennan Mejia) move into the Murder House. After a series of bizarre incidents and an appearance from Violet, Gabriel (or “Gabe”) suspects something fishy, but Miguel and Stacy are overjoyed at the thought of a fresh start in the new house (sounds familiar, huh?). And Miguel and Stacy are planning to have another baby to fill Gabe’s void after he graduates from high school.

One night, with some help from Elizabeth (Mena Suvari), Beau, and the exterminator from “Smoldering Children,” Vivien, Ben (as the Rubber Man), and Moira (using her old form, and her seductive, younger form) launch an all out assault to scare Stacy and Miguel out of the house. The showcase for a real life haunted house works……but there’s a problem upstairs with Gabe and Tate.

Tate is still heartbroken over losing Violet, and Tate noticed a connection between Gabe and Violet during Violet’s visit to his room. Tate’s solution to help Violet? He’s going to kill Gabe, so Violet can have another companion. Luckily, Violet shows up to say good-bye to Tate with one last kiss, and Gabe uses the distraction to escape the Murder House with his parents. After the kiss, Violet disappears again, leaving Tate alone.

Remember Nora (Lily Rabe) and the stillborn twin? Well, Charles (Matt Ross) made a mistake, because the baby took one breath before his death. But Nora can’t handle the responsibilities for being a mother. Enter Vivien. Vivien is the biological mother, but Nora uses her deal with Tate as an excuse to keep the baby.

Still, Nora can’t handle the child. She scolds Vivien (oddly enough, a delusional Nora mistook Vivien for one of her servants), and she calls the baby a “weakling.” Vivien remains calm, and Nora agrees to a deal with Vivien: Vivien will give an exhausted Nora a temporary break to take care of her child. After Vivien’s talk with Nora, Vivien asks Moira (old Moira) to be the godmother for the baby, and Moira gladly accepts.

After the fiasco with The Ramos Family, Tate approaches Ben for advice. Naturally, Ben is disgusted with Tate, and he diagnoses Tate as a psychopath. Tate apologizes for raping Vivien, murdering Chad and Patrick, hurting Violet, murdering the kids at Westfield High School, and burning Larry alive. Ben reminds Tate he’s not a priest, so Tate’s confession is worthless to him. But Ben offers a Tate a solution for his problems: Tate needs to apologize to the innocent victims directly. They need to forgive him first. Then, the healing process can begin.

The story jumps to Christmas night, and the house is empty again. Together, Vivien, Ben, Violet, Moira (old Moira), and the baby celebrate Christmas together after they decorate the tree as a team. Tate is stuck outside with Hayden. Hayden pushes Tate to forget about Violet and move on, but Tate is still in love with Violet, and he’ll wait “forever” for Violet’s forgiveness. The Harmon’s story concludes with the entire family (and Moira) standing around the Christmas tree to celebrate a peaceful and happy future at the Murder House.

The Harmon Family accepts and embraces their roles as protectors, but Ben had the PERFECT chance to escape with the baby. Although, you could say Ben’s death is a better option for him. Let’s face it, Ben was DEVASTATED and depressed without Vivien and Violet. Do you really think he’s the best choice to raise a child? Oh, and there’s the Antichrist problem, because you know, Ben is raising a child, who’s full of pure evil.

Instead, Ben is with his wife and his daughter for all eternity, and you can see the happiness in Ben’s eyes after the Christmas celebration. Also, to give an extra tidbit on Marcy’s life after Ben, Vivien, and Violet, Marcy adopted Hallie, the dog. And Marcy is stuck with the Murder House after The Ramos Family‘s sudden departure. She’s forced to sell at another reduced price, and the tour guide for famous homes in LA hurts Marcy chances with the story of Vivien and Ben’s deaths, and Violet’s “disappearance.”

Nora? Well, Moira was right, when she said Nora didn’t have one “motherly bone” in her body. It’s strange, because I wanted to feel some sympathy for Nora, as this broken woman, who made too many mistakes in her past. But Nora showed her true colors again in the basement with Vivien. The nasty, hateful, snobbish, and condescending Nora resurfaced, and it’s hard to feel any sympathy for Nora’s dark side.

And kudos to Ben for giving Tate some advice for his problems. Ben could’ve ignored Tate, and turned his back on him, but Ben offered some advice for someone, who needs A LOT of help. I said this before, but I have a hard time believing in Tate as this malicious person. He’s someone, who makes a lot of stupid mistakes, and yes, he needs to serve some form of punishment for his crimes. But Tate needs some guidance and proper direction, because his childhood was a  mess.

What happened to Constance and the baby? The timeline jumps three years into the future. Constance visits her hairdresser, Helen, and she uses another cover story for the baby. Constance accepted the role of a mother/guardian for Michael (the Antichrist), the son of distant cousins on her mother’s side. The parents died in a tragic highway accident, and Constance rescued Michael from a childhood in an orphanage.

After the tragedies (Addie’s death, Beau, Tate’s death, etc.) and all the suffering (Hugo’s affair with Moira) in her life, Constance finally understands her role in the world: Everything was a test to prepare Constance for raising the Antichrist (or Michael). Constance is a survivor, and she has what it takes to guide and take care of Michael.

But there’s a big problem at home. Constance returns to her home to find a trail of blood leading to Michael’s room. In Michael’s room, Constance finds the babysitter’s mutilated dead body. Michael has spots of blood on his face, and he’s sitting in a rocking chair with this big smile on his face. Constance kneels to Michael, and she says “now what am I gonna do with you?” Constance takes some time to comfort Michael, and the screen cuts to black to end the first season of American Horror Story.

Constance’s speech about her duties as a mother for Michael is something to admire, and Jessica Lange nailed the delivery as always. You can feel all the emotions pouring out of Constance. The sadness, the heartbreak, the happiness, and the relief. After so many years of searching, Constance found her purpose in life, and she embraced her role as Michael’s mother.

It’s hard to (or almost impossible) top Birth’s emotional roller coaster after Vivien’s death, but Afterbirth is a satisfying season finale, and they give you everything a fan could ask for in a season finale. Afterbirth provides more than enough closure, a few happy endings, and they tie up all the loose ends here. And there’s a diabolical cliffhanger with a sinister Michael smiling after the babysitter’s murder. Constance as Michael’s mother is a debatable choice for a number of reasons, but when you stop and think about it, Constance is the ideal choice to raise Michael, and she’s the only one, who can handle him.

I alluded to this earlier, but there’s a hole in logic with Michael. Again, Vivien, Ben, and Violet never heard Billie Dean’s explanation for the prophecy, so they don’t know about Michael’s future as the Antichrist. To add to that, Constance never told Vivien and Ben the truth about Michael. Is there a chance Constance was afraid of retaliation from Vivien and Ben? Vivien, Ben, and Violet working together to stop the Antichrist at all costs is not out of the realm of realistic possibilities, but I’ll look the other way for one simple reason: Constance will do ANYTHING to protect (remember, Constance offered the twin fathered by Ben to Chad and Patrick, but she gave explicit “off limits” instructions for Tate’s twin) her grandson.

The nine months intro is very eerie with hindsight. Ben wanted to believe in the Murder House as a symbol of hope, but the Murder House was a symbol of pain and misery for his family. The Murder House destroyed Ben’s family in the living world, but there’s a tricky catch 22 dilemma here. The Harmons suffered brutal deaths in the Murder House, but they have a second (or third?) chance at happiness together in the afterlife…..and it’s happening at the Murder House. When it’s all said and done, he should’ve been more careful, and Ben learned a hard lesson about buying a cheap haunted house.

Rating: 9/10

Well, that's a wrap for the first season of American Horror Story! Barring any unforeseen setbacks or hurdles, I'll post my final thoughts on the season tomorrow. The day is clear for the most part, so I'll keep my fingers crossed! lol.

My ebooks are only $0.99, and you can follow the links to learn more about both books-

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U


Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

American Horror Story- Murder House- Episode 11- Birth

**This review contains spoilers**

Synopsis: In 1984, a young Tate Langdon follows his toy truck into the basement at the Murder House. During Tate’s expedition in the basement, Tate’s mother, Constance (Jessica Lange) sleeps on the couch with a stack of past due bills on the table.

In the basement, Thaddeus (or The Infantata) scares and attacks Tate, but Nora (Lily Rabe) appears to protect him. Nora stops Thaddeus’ attack, and Nora teaches Tate a trick to fight the malevolent spirits at Murder House. If a ghost appears for an attack, Tate needs to shout “GO AWAY!”, and the ghosts will disappear. After the close call encounter with Thaddeus, Nora comforts a frightened Tate in the basement.

In the present, Tate (Evan Peters) changes his mind about the deal with Nora. Tate is trying to protect one of Violet’s brothers, because he doesn’t want to take a chance of ruining his relationship with Violet. But Nora won’t take no for an answer. A determined Nora wants to be a mother again, and she will take one of Vivien’s twins, with or without Tate’s help.

Violet (Taissa Farmiga) is running out of time and options to explain the complications and hurdles for her suicide, as Ben (Dylan McDermott) prepares for the trip to Florida. Violet is dead, and she can’t leave the house, but Ben forces Violet into the car for the trip to pick up Vivien (Connie Britton) at the hospital. Unbeknownst to Ben, Violet reappears in the house after Ben passes the stop sign on the streets.

At the hospital, the doctor explains a complicated and deadly dilemma for Vivien’s pregnancy. The dominant twin (or the “Alpha,” Tate’s twin) is draining all of the resources and nutrients from the weaker fetus. In time, the dominant twin’s needs will lead to the death of Vivien’s weaker twin. The doctor urges Ben to postpone or cancel the trip to Florida, but Vivien refuses.

Violet awaits Ben and Vivien’s arrival at the house, but Chad (Zachary Quinto) and Patrick (Teddy Sears) have other plans for the twins. After Chad and Patrick renovate the nursery with their own special touch, Chad announces his plans for the twins: Chad and Patrick will steal the twins from Vivien. After the first birthday, Chad and Patrick will smother the twins with pillows, because Chad wants “cute” babies “forever.” To add to the problem, Nora is anxious to steal Vivien’s twins, and Hayden (Kate Mara) is lurking in the shadows, waiting for the perfect chance to sabotage Vivien and Ben’s plans for a happy and peaceful second chance.

Violet turns to Constance and Billie Dean Howard (Sarah Paulson) for help. Billie Dean offers a solution to stop the evil spirits at the Murder House with an ancient Roanoke spell, but Violet needs personal possessions from the spirits to make the spell work. With Tate’s help, Violet needs to secure Patrick’s ring and Chad’s expensive watch, and to complete the spell, Violet will burn the watch and the ring, and shout “Croatoan” to banish Chad and Patrick from the house forever.

Violet tries to explain the consequences for a death at the Murder House to a confused Ben, but Ben and Violet run into a bigger problem with Vivien. In the car, Vivien experiences uncontrollable labor pains, and Constance shows up to help Vivien into the house.

Time is running out, and Vivien is stuck in a tight spot, because she can’t refuse the Murder House‘s helping hands. Charles Montgomery (Matt Ross) returns to deliver the baby with some help from Nurse Maria (Rosa Salazar) and Nurse Gladys (Celia Finklestein), and Constance gives Ben a last minute pep talk about helping Vivien. Ben and Vivien cling to a shred of hope for escaping the Murder House with the twins to start a new life in Florida, and Chad crushes Violet with a devastating secret……….

Review: Poor Vivien. She pushed and pushed, but resiliency wasn’t enough to save her here. Vivien and Ben lose the weaker twin (the twin fathered by Ben) to a stillbirth. After the death of the first twin, Charles quietly presents the deceased infant to Nora, and Nora takes the child without hesitation.

Vivien is weak and exhausted, and the arrival of the second twin (the evil twin, or the Antichrist fathered by Tate) takes a disastrous turn for the worst. The evil twin enters the world as a healthy baby, but Vivien’s body suffered too much damage during birth. Charles tries to save Vivien, but he can’t stop the bleeding. An apologetic  Ben pushes Violet to hold on and fight, but Violet appears to steer Vivien in a different direction. Violet urges Vivien to let go, but Vivien doesn’t have a choice. The birth of the evil twin caused severe hemorrhaging, and Vivien dies after Ben’s desperate pleas.

I know I’ve been hard on Vivien throughout the season (Vivien hiding an affair with a married man from her past), but Vivien’s death is an easy pick for a memorable and sorrowful moment in Birth. Think about everything Vivien endured this season. The miscarriage, catching Ben in the act during his affair with Hayden, the break-in (“Home Invasion”), Tate’s rape, Ben committed Vivien, and on top of that, she’s carrying the Antichrist. Whether you love her or hate her, you have to admit Vivien suffered until the very end.

It’s an emotional send-off for Vivien. During the birth of the first twin, there’s a sequence, where they jump back and forth between the past and the present with flashback footage of Violet’s birth. You’ll see another heartfelt moment during the “Will she stay or die?” tug of war between Ben and Violet, and it’s easy to understand both POVs. On one hand, Ben wants Vivien to stay in the living world. He wants to prove himself to Vivien. He wants to prove he can change, and Ben desperately wants a second shot at a happy life with Vivien. Violet is lonely in the afterlife at Murder House, she misses her mother, and Violet is hoping for a second chance to apologize to Vivien for all the years of rebellion and disrespect.

Connie Britton did a good of expressing Vivien’s fatigue and strong sense of defeat towards the end. Vivien was battered physically and emotionally, and she finally reached a point, where she had to let go, and Vivien joins Violet in the afterlife at Murder House. And kudos to Dylan McDermott for selling Ben’s heartbreak over Vivien’s death with an unnerving look of shock, and a few tears.

The Roanoke spell? Yeah, it’s bogus nonsense. Violet followed Billie Dean’s instructions step by step. She burned Chad’s watch in the fireplace, and Violet shouted “Croatoan!” over and again. At first, Chad flinched and convulsed…..but Chad was humoring Violet with an over the top performance.

Violet is out of options to stop Chad, Patrick, and the rest of the evil spirits at the house, and Chad rips Violet’s heart into pieces, when he reveals the truth about Vivien’s second twin and Tate’s rape. A furious and heartbroken Violet confronts Tate about the rape. Tate tries to apologize, and Violet professes her love for Tate, but she rejects the apology. Tate begs for a second chance, but Violet uses the “GO AWAY!” trick to silence Tate, and Tate disappears. Vivien shows up to ease  a sobbing Violet’s pain, she admires Violet’s bravery, and Vivien reassures Violet as a support system and a shoulder to lean on in her time of need.

Violet‘s “go away” decision with Tate was a tough one, because she found her soul mate in Tate, but Tate crossed the line and a point of no return with Vivien and the second twin. Is Tate remorseful about about his crimes? Well, Tate whimpers and his face quivers with welded tears during the confrontation, and you can feel the sadness in Tate. After all, Violet is on a short, short list of people, who took the time to bond with Tate, and Violet wanted to help him.

Still, Tate had to answer for his crimes at some point. We’re talking about a guy, who murdered a group of innoncet high school kids, he murdered an innoncet Chad and Patrick, he burned Larry Harvey, and he raped Vivien. Maybe he’s oblivious, maybe Tate has a few screws loose, or there’s a good chance Tate is a good person with a big heart, but he makes one too many catastrophic mistakes as a klutz. BUT Tate needs to serve some form of punishment for his crimes. You can only ask for so many free passes or mulligans, and Tate exhausted his supply of second chances a long time ago.

It’s all about Vivien’s birth and the fight to protect the twins from the evil forces at Murder House here. Birth packs a powerful emotional gut punch with the shock of Vivien’s death, and Violet’s decision to banish Tate from her life at the Murder House. Violet had to punish Tate, and Violet is the only person in the world, who loves Tate, so she made the tough choice to cut ties with him forever.

It’s a strong show before the finale, and you’ll see a handful of top notch performances from Taissa Farmiga, Connie Britton, Jessica Lange, Dylan McDermott, and Lily Rabe. And a big thumbs up for Zachary Quinto. It’s easy to forget about him in American Horror Story’s first season for a few reasons. Chad and Patrick are limited to sporadic appearances, this season’s cast is loaded with talent, and Jessica Lange steals the show 90% of the time.

Quinto brings a consistent A game with his performances as Chad. Chad is this vindictive and sassy nuisance with a nasty mean streak, and he’s hell bent on destroying happy lives, because Chad loves to play the role of a spoiler. Chad is the one, who told Violet the truth about Tate, and in Halloween Part 1, Chad is the one, who made the subliminal suggestion for Vivien to check Ben’s phone bill for calls from Hayden.

The tension for “who’s going to steal the twins?” throughout this episode is unreal, because EVERYONE is a suspect (including Constance). Oh, and Moira (Frances Conroy) has a brief cameo here. She sheds a few tears at the sight of the new baby, but her screen time is too short for a significant impact on this episode.

If you’re looking for lots of blood and gore in this episode, you’ll be disappointed. Birth takes a restrained approach to the extreme stuff. It’s a wistful and touching show, and the final scene is a good example for Birth’s somber tone. After Violet banishes Tate, a dead Vivien appears to console Violet with a hug. Violet is full of tears, and Violet tells Vivien she’s “sorry” Vivien lost the baby (the first twin). Vivien’s response? “But I didn’t lose my baby.”

Also, Birth takes some time to explore the relationship between Nora and Tate with the intro. Nora is the one, who taught Tate the “go away” trick, and as a child, Tate confided in Nora as his real mother. But Tate chose Violet over Nora in the end, and she eventually turned her back on him, but Tate tried to help Violet in her mission to protect Vivien.

And it doesn't last long, so if you blink, there's a good chance you'll miss it, but they show a brief glimpse of Thaddeus as The Infantata during the 1984 flashback. Thaddeus' pale and ghoulish complexion is genuinely creepy, but it's hard to feel any feelings of shock for The Infantata's debut first look, because The Infantata takes a backseat to a stack of prominent storylines (the birth of the twins, Violet working with Tate to stop Chad and others, the end of Violet and Tate's relationship, etc.) and Vivien's death.

There’s only one episode to go, and we have a lot of unanswered questions. What’s going to happen with Ben? Violet and Vivien are dead, and Hayden is determined to ruin his life, so Ben is all alone now. Will Ben raise the evil child with no help? Or will Ben leave the Murder House to start a new life by himself? What’s going to happen with the evil twin, who survived birth? Constance took the baby from Vivien and Ben to clean him off in the kitchen…but she never returned. Will Vivien confront Nora about the stillborn twin in the afterlife at Murder House? Deal or no deal,  that’s Vivien’s child, and you have to believe she’ll put up a fight for him.

Constance wants a grandchild, and you can’t forget about Hayden. She wants Vivien’s baby, but she’ll have to fight Constance for control, and Ben is the X factor, because Ben is the only reliable and logical choice for a parent. And you can’t ignore the elephant in the room with the Antichrist problem. For now, he’s a seemingly harmless baby, but what’s going to happen, when the second twin grows and develops?

Rating: 10/10


My ebooks are only $0.99, and you can follow the links to learn more about both books-

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U


Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

American Horror Story- Murder House- Episode 10- Smoldering Children

**This post contains spoilers**

I know I said I would finish off Murder House in April, but some unexpected things changed in real life. Oddly enough, the changes kicked in after that post. lol. Nothing serious, just a lot of time consuming stuff, and I don't know how it happened, but this weird foot injury threw a monkey wrench in a lot of my plans.

Finishing Murder House is a day to day thing for the time being, and I'll try to wrap things up as quickly as possible, and I'll put the finishing touches on this review series with my final overall thoughts in a separate post. Now let's get to the review!

Synopsis: In 1994, Constance (Jessica Lange) returns to the Murder House with her son, Tate (Evan Peters) and her daughter, Addie (Jaime Brewer) to start a new life with Larry Harvey (Denis O’Hare). Larry had plans to leave his wife, Lorraine (Rebecca Wisocky) and their two daughters, Margaret and Angela, but an enraged Lorraine committed suicide by locking herself in a room upstairs, and Lorraine started a fire to kill herself and the girls.

Larry refused to ignore his obsession and never-ending love for Constance. One night, Larry and Constance celebrate the return to the Murder House and their new union as a family with a grand dinner and a honey roasted ham as the centerpiece, but Tate breaks his silence before the dinner. Tate isn’t buying Larry’s nice guy act, and he’s disgusted with Larry and Constance’s relationship as lovers. Tate knows Larry murdered Beau (Sam Kinsey) under Constance’s orders, and Tate scolds his mother, because he will never be Constance’s “perfect son.”

One morning, Tate prepares for the shooting at Westfield High School with cocaine and an array of guns. But Tate surprises Larry at his job with a can of gasoline and a match before the shooting. A befuddled Larry temporarily ignores Tate to finish his work. Tate takes advantage of Larry’s defenseless position, and without hesitation, Tate dumps the can of gasoline on Larry, and Tate uses a lit match to burn Larry in his office. After the attack on Larry, Tate casually walks away to complete his mission.

In the present, Detective Granger (Charles S. Dutton) and Detective Barrios (Malaya Rivera Drew) surprise Constance with a visit at her house. Granger and Barrios show Constance the grisly pictures for Travis’ (Michael Graziadei) mangled corpse. After his death, Travis is labeled the “Boy Dahlia,” and Travis accomplishes his goals for success with posthumous fame.

But a heartbroken Constance doesn’t care about headlines and news reports. Constance immediately suspects Larry as the culprit for Travis’ murder. Constance believes Larry murdered Travis out of jealously, but Larry tells Constance the truth: Larry moved the body out of the Murder House, but he didn’t kill Travis.

Constance is stuck in a seemingly inescapable dilemma, because Granger and Barrios suspect Constance as the murderer after a talk with the local shopkeep, and Constance drops her unregistered gun in front of the detectives. They need a face for the popular Boy Dahlia case, and Constance is the perfect fit to complete an infamous story about a crime of passion and betrayal.

Meanwhile, Ben (Dylan McDermott) visits Vivien (Connie Britton) in the asylum. Ben tells a devastated Vivien the truth about her pregnancy: Ben is not the father of both twins, and the Rubber Man is the second father. Ben believes Vivien’s story about the rape, and Ben promises to fight for Vivien’s release, but Vivien refuses to take one step inside the house after her release. Ben supports a fragile Vivien, and Ben won’t stop until he uncovers the identity of the Rubber Man.

At the house, a cop visits Ben with an unsettling report about Violet (Taissa Farmiga): After sixteen consecutive absences at school, Ben is one absence away from a trip to juvenile court. Ben tries to help Violet during a self-imposed exile inside her room, but Ben runs into another problem with an unexpected infestation of flies.

Ben scouts boarding schools for Violet’s fresh start. Tate is terrified at the thought of losing Violet forever, so Tate reawakens his alter ego as the Rubber Man to stop Ben’s plans for relocating Violet………

Review:  “Let it go, Larry! She doesn’t love you!”

I almost stood up and shouted every word above during this episode. It’s obvious Larry will do ANYTHING to capture Constance’s heart, but Constance doesn’t share Larry’s feelings. Need proof? There’s a scene, where Constance surprises Larry at his apartment to confront Larry about Travis’ murder. Larry throws himself at Constance with another “I love you” speech, but Constance responds with “that’s your problem.”

It’s funny, because towards the beginning of the season, I wanted to feel some sympathy for Larry. After all, here’s another guy, who succumbed to the evil forces at the Murder House, and the evil forces forced Larry to burn his family alive. But any feelings of sympathy for Larry disappear, when the truth behind Larry’s lies are exposed. For starters, Larry wasn’t a victim of a fire. Tate set Larry on fire. On top of that, we’re talking about a guy, who willingly kicked his wife and two daughters to the curb for Constance.

The relationship between Constance and Larry? Well, there is no real relationship. A delusional Larry believes in a happy relationship with Constance, but Constance is just using Larry, and he’s a doormat for Constance to wipe her feet on. She used Larry to murder Beau, and she used him to move into the Murder House again after the fire.

Towards the end, Larry visits the Murder House to hide Travis’ belongings. At the house, Larry runs into Lorraine, Margaret, and Angela. Margaret and Angela are playing tea time with Travis, and Larry promises vengeance on Constance for ruining his family. But Lorraine isn’t buying  into Larry’s pleas for forgiveness. Lorraine reminds Larry he’s the one, who willingly turned his back on the family, and Larry made a willing choice to start an affair with Constance. Larry begs and begs for a second chance, so Lorraine issues an ultimatum. You want forgiveness? You want to show me and our daughters you’re really sorry for what you did? Okay, “prove it.”

Larry’s solution to his problems? Larry takes the blame for Constance, and he confesses to the murders for his punishment. That’s right. Larry kills two birds with one stone with his confession. Larry clears Constance’s name, because Granger and Barrios were determined to pin the murder on her no matter what. And with the jail sentence, Larry can serve his time for abandoning Lorraine and the kids.

But it’s not over yet. As a prisoner, Larry requests one last visit from Constance before a transfer to Illinois to serve the rest of his sentence. The sight of Constance isn’t enough, because Larry wants Constance to tell him he loves her. He doesn’t care if it’s the truth or a lie. Larry wants to hear the words “I love you” out of Constance’s mouth. Larry puts his hand on the window, waiting for a response from Constance. Constance touches Larry’s hand from the other side…..but she pulls away at the last second, and an ungrateful and cruel Constance walks away from the visit, leaving Larry all by himself with no comfort.

Larry was more than willing to live a lie in his own fantasy world, but Constance wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. Larry needed Constance’s lies for comfort during a lonely life sentence, but Constance flipped one more proverbial middle finger to Larry in the end. Yeah, Constance is ruthless and nasty, but I’ll say this again, it’s hard to feel any sympathy for Larry, because he’s too gullible and foolish. Fool me once? Shame on you. Fool me twice? Shame on me, and if you sucker me or stab me in the back after that, then I’m just an idiot for not learning my lesson.

So what’s going with Violet? She’s missing school, she locked herself in her room, and Ben has plans for a non-negotiable trip to a boarding school. Violet promises Ben one more shot at public school, but Tate stops Violet before her departure one day. Tate convinces Violet to agree to a suicide pact, but Violet backs out at the last second. Violet tries to run…..but she can’t leave the house, and you know what that means. Violet is dead (remember, if you die at the Murder House, you’re stuck on the property forever).

Remember Violet’s failed suicide attempt in “Piggy Piggy”? Well, Violet swallowed too many pills, and unfortunately, Violet succeeded in her attempt at suicide. After her death, Tate hid Violet’s rotting corpse in a crawlspace to spare Violet the shock and all the pain from dying , and Violet’s dead body is the magnet for the flies. Oh, and Tate murdered the exterminator after he discovered Violet’s body, because Tate was trying to guard the secret from Violet.

Violet is dead, and Ben is on a mission to catch the Rubber Man, but the Rubber Man surprises and attacks Ben after a shower. During the fight, Ben pulls off the mask to see Tate’s face, but Tate incapacitates Ben with a beating and a rag with chloroform.

For now, Violet confides in Tate as her only companion in the afterlife at the Murder House, BUT Violet doesn’t know about Tate’s alter ego as the Rubber Man, and she doesn’t know Tate is the one, who raped Vivien, and Tate is the father for one of Vivien‘s twins.  And what about Ben? Will he retaliate for Tate attacking Vivien? Or will Ben ignore Tate for the time being to focus on Vivien? For the first time in a long time, you get the feeling Ben and Vivien are on the same page. They’re focused on the twins, and moving out of the Murder House at all costs, but the evil forces (Chad, Patrick, Teddy, Hayden, Nora, etc.) are determined to sabotage Vivien’s plans for a clean escape with the twins.

It’s hard to say anything meaningful about Malaya Rivera Drew and Charles S. Dutton. They’re pursuing Constance, but in the grand scheme of things, they’re stuck in bit parts, because they’re taking a backseat to Constance, Larry, Ben, Violet, and Tate. 

Murder House closes another chapter with Constance and Larry’s story, and any man, who crosses Constance Langdon learns a hard and lasting life lesson. Remember Hugo? Constance refused to bury Hugo with his “lover” (young Moira, Alexandra Breckenridge), so Constance chopped Hugo into pieces, and Constance served the pieces of Hugo’s body to a pack of dogs as a meal, because Hugo was as worthless as “dogs***.” Also, the gruesome flashback with Constance feeding a dismembered Hugo to the dogs? Nasty stuff.

Smoldering Children is a progressive and satisfying episode, and they tie up a lot of loose ends with Travis, Constance, and Larry here. We’re only one episode away from the finale, they’re moving the pieces in a big puzzle to set up the finish, and we’re still in the pins and needles stage, because you don’t know what’s going to happen with Vivien, the twins, and Ben. Will they allow a delivery for the twins at the Murder House?  Will they have a choice? What happens if they run out of time for a safe delivery? And what’s going to happen, when Violet explains the complications attached to her death? 

Rating: 8/10

My ebooks are only $0.99, and you can follow the links to learn more about both books-

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U


Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1

American Horror Story- Murder House- Episode 9- Spooky Little Girl

**This review contains spoilers**

Synopsis: In 1947, Dr. David Curan owns the Murder House. Dr. Curan treats his patients in the Murder House to provide a more convenient location for his surrounding neighbors. One day, an aspiring actress named Elizabeth Short (Mena Suvari) visits Dr. Curan. Elizabeth is obsessed with fame and the bright lights, and she needs dental work, but she’s low on cash, so Elizabeth offers sexual favors as a form of payment. A reluctant Dr. Curan sedates Elizabeth, and Dr. Curan rapes an unconscious Elizabeth.

But Elizabeth dies after an accidental overdose of nitrous oxide. Dr. Curan tries to dispose of Elizabeth’s body, but he’s having a lot of trouble alone, so the ghost of Dr. Charles Montgomery (Matt Ross) shows up to help. Charles uses a set of demented skills to dismember Elizabeth’s corpse, and Charles carves a permanent smile on Elizabeth’s face to end the procedure. After the discovery of Elizabeth’s mutilated body, Elizabeth receives “The Black Dahlia” as a nickname, and the story of Elizabeth’s unsolved murder dominates headlines throughout the US.   

In the modern world, Constance (Jessica Lange) and her young boyfriend, Travis Wanderley (Michael Graziadei) are stuck in a miserable relationship. Constance is still grieving over Addie’s (Jaime Brewer) death, but Travis is worried about his failing acting career.

A furious Constance scolds Travis for a lack of compassion, but Travis finds solace in Hayden (Kate Mara) during a late night walk with his dog. Travis starts a secret physical relationship with Hayden, but Constance suspects something fishy. Unbeknownst to Travis, Hayden is using him as an experiment. The experiment? Hayden is dead, but Hayden wants sexual intercourse with a living man. After a few nights with Travis, Hayden’s experiment is a success.

Ben (Dylan McDermott) moves into the house again, but Moira (Alexandra Breckenridge) is determined to ruin Ben’s life. A relentless Moira seduces Ben, and Ben runs into another problem with a new patient. Elizabeth Short shows up for therapy. Ben refuses Elizabeth as a patient at first, but Ben succumbs to Elizabeth’s needs for treatment.

To add to his growing list of problems, the doctor crushes Ben’s spirit with a shocking phone call about Vivien’s pregnancy. Ben is not the father of both twins, and after a persuasive chat with Hayden, Ben immediately suspects Luke (Morris Chestnut) as the second father.

Hayden’s sister, Marla surprises Ben with a detective, because Ben is the primary suspect in Hayden’s missing persons case. Hayden appears at the Murder House to kill any suspicions, but Hayden wants a relationship with Ben. With Vivien (Connie Britton) out of the way, Hayden believes in the chances for a happy life with Ben, and Ben lowers his guard to confide in Hayden after the doctor’s phone call.

Meanwhile, Constance visits Vivien in the sanatorium with some words of encouragement, and Constance believes Vivien’s story about the Rubber Man’s rape. At the house, Constance wants a one on one confrontation with Violet (Taissa Farmiga), because Constance suspects Violet as Travis’ lover, but Moira (Frances Conroy) denies Constance’s accusations.

Constance confronts Tate (Evan Peters) about the rumors of sexual intercourse with Vivien. Tate tells Constance the truth: Tate is the father of Vivien’s second twin. Constance unleashes her anger on Tate with a quick beating, and Constance learns the shocking truth from Billie Dean Howard (Sarah Paulson) about the consequences of Tate’s actions………

Review: Travis? I’ll admit, I dismissed Travis as a one night stand after Home Invasion, but he popped up again on Halloween Part I, and Murder House takes more time to explore Constance’s relationship with Travis here. Basically, Travis is this lazy (“I work two hours a day reading scripts!”) bum, and he’s holding on to this pipe dream of being a famous actor, and it’s hard to ignore the age difference between Constance and Travis (if I’m taking a wild guess, Travis is in his early or mid twenties).

Constance and Travis have a weird love-hate relationship. One minute, Constance rips Travis’ head off, but Constance asks Travis to be a father (i.e. stealing one of Vivien’s twins) after another big argument? Of course, Travis rejects Constance’s offer, because he’s not ready yet, and Travis wants to focus on his acting career. As usual, Constance belittles Travis again, and Travis shares another intimate moment with Hayden to blow off some steam.

But Travis runs into a big problem after another quick fix session with Hayden. Hayden is upset, because Ben kicked her to the curb (more on that later). Hayden is desperately seeking companionship, but Travis’ feelings for Hayden are limited to viewing Hayden as a sex object or a sense of temporary relief. Naturally, Travis’ “Okay, I’m done. See ya later!” attitude upsets Hayden, so Hayden murders Travis.

As a ghost, Travis returns (remember, if you die at the Murder House, you‘re trapped on the property forever as a ghost) to the Murder House, and Hayden is stuck in a troubling dilemma, because she’s clinging to a slim chance of starting a life with Ben. But if the police find Travis’ body, Ben will go to jail, or he’ll move away to escape the heat. Oddly enough, Charles shows up to cut Travis’ body into pieces, and Charles uses The Black Dahlia blueprint to dismember Travis’ corpse. Still, Hayden needs to move the body, but the ghosts can’t leave the property.

Enter Larry Harvey (Denis O’Hare) to solve the problem. Remember, Larry owes Hayden a favor, because you know, Larry is the one, who murdered Hayden. So Larry dumps Travis’ corpse in an open field (again, all of this is similar to what happened with Elizabeth) next to a basketball court.

Hayden and the younger version of Moira attack Ben with a full-court press in this episode. Moira pulls out all the stops to seduce Ben, but a resilient Ben stands his ground, and Ben fights his urges to succumb to Moira’s advances. Moira uses Elizabeth to lure Ben into her world of seduction, but Ben vehemently refuses Moira’s offer. To end Moira’s attacks, Ben fires Moira, and he asks Elizabeth to leave, and Ben drops Elizabeth from his list of patients. Moira’s threats for a lawsuit, if Ben fires her? Ben doesn’t care anymore, and he’d rather take his chances in court, because he’s sick and tired of Moira bullying him.

And there’s a twist to the end of the Moira VS Ben saga. As Moira leaves the house, the young Moira transforms in to the older version of Moira (Frances Conroy).  You have to assume Ben finally passed all of Moira’s tests, so she revealed her true form. Also, Moira knew any chances of Ben cracking under the pressure flew out the window. Ben was focused on Vivien 100%, so Moira threw in the towel for her mission to seduce Ben, and the look of shock on McDermott’s face for seeing the older Moira is perfect.

There’s a sense of calming closure to the end of Ben and Moira’s relationship, because Ben endured Moira’s advances without any mishaps, and Moira appreciated Ben’s honesty. The end to the Hayden/Ben saga? That’s another story. The timing is right, and the stage is perfect for Hayden to swoop in and steal Ben. Vivien is in the hospital, Violet resents Ben, and Ben shares a few beers with Hayden, because Ben needs someone to talk to. Hayden tells Ben the relationship and the affair was “written in the stars,” but Ben refuses Hayden’s final push to capture his heart. Instead, Ben fires back, and he tells Hayden he doesn’t love her, and Ben “used” Hayden as a temporary fix during a rough setback (the miscarriage) in his marriage with Vivien.

Hayden is a psychopath. You’ll see Hayden’s dark side in full force here (i.e. murdering Travis), and Hayden is the one, who devised the “We need to trap Vivien in the asylum, so I can have Ben all to myself” plan, but I have to admit, I could feel a little bit of sympathy for Hayden here. Why? Because she’s this lonely person, who’s more than willing to pour her heart and soul into someone else, but Hayden’s partners never reciprocate her feelings. Instead, they use her (i.e. Travis), and when they’re done, the users throw Hayden in the dumpster like a piece of trash. Hell, Ben openly admitted to using Hayden. And kudos to Kate Mara for selling the moment with a believable look of devastation, and a few tears.

Hayden’s sister Marla? Eh, I can’t say too much about her. Marla makes one appearance during the scene with the missing persons detective at the house. You can tell there’s some bad blood between Hayden and Marla, because Hayden is tired of loaning Marla money, and that’s about it.

What about Vivien? Well, Ben knows the truth about the twins now, so Ben visits Vivien in the asylum, but it’s not a peaceful visit. Ben rips Vivien a new one, with accusations of hypocrisy and Ben scolds Vivien for a holier than thou attitude. I alluded to this in my review for Halloween Part 2, and Ben doesn’t know about Vivien’s affair with a married man. Anyway, Ben leaves the asylum, because he’s disgusted with Vivien, but Ben changes his tune, when he returns to the house.

Ben intentionally triggers a false alarm for a “man to man” talk with Luke, because Ben suspects (with some help from Hayden) Luke as the second father for the twins. But there’s one big problem with Ben’s theory: Luke is sterile. After the confrontation with Luke, Ben finds the Rubber Man’s mask (keep in mind, Ben doesn’t know Tate is the Rubber Man), and Ben believes in the possibility of Vivien’s rape. Ben is stuck in a state of shock, because he believes someone raped Vivien, and he knows he made a crucial mistake.

Constance visits Vivien in the asylum, and Constance offers her support as a friend. Vivien tells Constance the truth about the rape, and Constance promises secrecy after Vivien’s admission. So if Vivien is telling the truth, why is she determined to keep everything a secret with Constance? Because Vivien wants to leave the asylum, so she needs the doctors to believe Tate’s attack was nothing more than a bad dream.

Towards the end, Billie Dean Howard paints a disastrous picture for Tate’s actions. According to a prophecy reserved for The Pope’s eyes, if a baby from a living human (Vivien) and a ghost (Tate) is born into the world, the child is the Antichrist, and his arrival is the first sign of the apocalypse.

It’s an uneasy and eerie cliffhanger. After Billie Dean’s foreboding words, they pull the plug. No cut scenes, no reaction from Constance, no shots of Vivien in the asylum. Nothing. What’s the solution? Can they stop the impending reign of terror? How does Vivien feel about all of this? Keep in mind Vivien doesn’t know about the prophecy or the Antichrist. So many tantalizing unanswered questions for the next episode, and the prophecy is another monumental hurdle for Ben and Vivien.

Murder House offers another conspiracy theory for The Black Dahlia murder mystery, and Murder House mirrors the events for the real life discovery of Elizabeth‘s body. Mena Suvari brings a nostalgic presence to the Elizabeth character, and the sight of Short’s dismembered corpse is genuinely horrifying. The sub-plot for Elizabeth is low on the totem pole for prominent storylines in this episode, but Elizabeth’s story is one of the more memorable flashbacks during American Horror Story’s first season.

Spooky Little Girl is another satisfying episode, and you can feel the build towards the finale here. They closed Ben’s chapters with Hayden and Moira, because it’s all about the twins, the prophecy, and Vivien giving birth now. Will Ben and Vivien fight back against the evil forces at the house? Do they stand a chance in a seemingly unwinnable fight? Spooky Little Girl is better than a run-of-the-mill episode, and I’ll give this one an extra bump for a pair of stand out performances from Kate Mara and Dylan McDermott, and another superb cliffhanger.

Rating: 9/10

My ebooks are only $0.99, and you can follow the links to learn more about both books-

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFLI6VK

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EFMYZ0U


Remember Amazon offers free Kindle App downloads for various platforms. Follow this link to find out more- http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771

And don't forget to follow me on Twitter here- https://twitter.com/LQuigleyFan1