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There have been some ups and downs in the latest season of FX's “American Horror Stories,” with some episodes being cringeworthy — oozing bumps and sores. And then other episodes made you just wonder why and question how you could devote 45 minutes of your life to the show. But there’s good news. Some episodes you should definitely watch on Hulu.
Here’s a rundown.
The season started with a bang — “Dollhouse.” With the AHS track record, who wouldn’t be creeped out? And this episode is by far one of the best of the whole series. A woman, Coby, lands an interview with a popular toy brand in Mississippi. What seems to be a normal interview turns into a horrible ordeal as we watch the toy maker kidnap Coby. Ultimately, Coby learns that she, along with several other women, is being held captive in a human-sized doll house where they have to compete to become a mother to a young boy named Otis. At the end of the episode, we find out that Coby is a witch and she is rescued along with Otis by two witches who take the two to New Orleans. The plot twist of this episode reveals that Otis is Spalding, the quiet butler from season three of “American Horror Story.”
After finishing the first episode, I was thrilled about the next episode and was not disappointed. “Aura” stars AHS alum Gabourey Sidibe as Jaslyn. In this episode, Jaslyn along with her husband, Bryce, move into a gated community and install a security camera. Jaslyn was looking for some extra security because of her violent attack and now struggles with PTSD. She soon starts to receive strange security notifications on her phone. When she checks the app connected to the bell, she sees a man at her door begging to be let in.
After some back and forth with her husband (who doesn’t believe her), the man finally appears again for Bryce to see. When they go to the door, the man disappears.
Jaslyn decides to get to the bottom of the problem and discovers that the man is a former employee from her high school who was obsessed with her. She also finds out that he recently passed away. When he shows up to the home again, Jaslyn lets him in and he apologizes to her and disappears. A short time later the woman starts to show up and again Bryce does not want to hear it. Jaslyn then asks her husband if he knows the woman. Why is she asking for Bryce? We learn that there’s more to Bryce’s past and Jaslyn didn’t even know.
“Bloody Mary” took a twist on the popular urban legend of the same name. This episode showcased an all-Black cast and it was magical. Four teenagers, who did not believe that anything could happen, play the popular game Bloody Mary. To their surprise, Bloody Mary was real. All four girls told Bloody Mary what they wanted and she gave them instructions. Each girl struggled to complete their task. These task included crippling a fellow school mate, exposing another student by leaking their nude pictures and accusing a guidience a counselor of sexual assult. The girls struggle to complete these tasks and are afraid. When the task isn't completed, death is the punishment.. After two of the girls are murdered, the last two, who are sisters, must find Bloody Mary and defeat her. The girls learn of Bloody Mary’s past and find the cabin she disappeared in. When they see Bloody Mary, it is revealed that Bloody Mary hasn’t actually killed anyone. This soon turns into the Biblical tale of siblings fighting with one of the sisters being tricked into freeing Bloody Mary.
While many enjoyed this episode, I saw one person call it unrealistic. Even though the tweet was hilarious, I feel that many children, especially Black children played Bloody Mary. I know I did when I was younger. Fans seemed to really like this episode and some have said it is the best in the whole season.
Seeing familiar faces but in new settings and storylines is fun. There are references to the mother series often. Some of the same themes present in AHS are present in the spin-off too. While there are obvious differences, you still get the same feeling watching the spin-off. “American Horror Story” is just as scary and graphic as AHS.
Rotten Tomatoes gives the show 62% and most of the reviews are cynical. Many of the reviewers feel that the show is only going to get worse. It will be hard to tell if this will be a great season but I will keep an open mind.