TV Review: American Horror Story (2011-)

Posted on 03/29/2021 by Pisaries Creator

I recently finished all of the seasons, so far, in American Horror Story. Thanks for the viewers, the show will continue to the 13th season. The 10th season includes a new cast member of Macaulay Culkin (I can’t wait to see him) and Kaia Gerber (I’ll have to see how she does). The creators are bringing back Kathy Bates and Sarah Paulson as they were missing from season nine. The 10th season also has Leslie Grossman, Billie Lourd, Evan Peters, Adina Porter, Lily Rabe, Angelica Ross, and Finn Wittrock. What is the 10th season about? It deals with the environment dealing with the sea and sand. It’s aptly called “Double Feature.”

I preferred certain seasons over others although I noticed in later seasons a kind of throw everything in the mix including the kitchen sink with leaky pipes and foul-smelling garbage disposal. I think the flashbacks are necessary in some of the episodes, but it appears the writers and creators have used it a little too liberally. You don’t need to give me a reason for everything that happened. Leaving pockets of mystery is a good thing. In addition to a short synopsis of each season, I will also put the seasons in order of best to least liked.

Season 1 Murder House takes place in present time of 2011. The plot centers around the Harmon family making a new start in Los Angeles. Ben and Vivien and their daughter make acquaintances with peculiar neighbors and roaming ghosts, all while trying to reunite their family after tragedy.

Season 2 Asylum takes place in 1964 and filmed in 2012-2013. The plot centers around Briarcliff Manor in Massachusetts. This place houses the criminally insane where religious beliefs and scientific experiments are therapeutic treatments.

Season 3 Coven takes place in present time of 2013. The plot centers around the descendants of the Salem witch trials. When a new member arrives at an all-girls boarding school in New Orleans, the headmistress finds keeping the young witches and her mother all on one page difficult.

Season 4 Freak Show takes place in 1952 and was filmed in 2014-2015. The plot centers around a freak show in Jupiter, Florida. The leader tries to have a revival of sorts. She wants the fame and recognition she once had back in the day, but the townspeople have negative views of the freaks and only want to destroy them.

Season 5 Hotel takes place in present time of 2015. The plot centers around Hotel Cortez in Los Angeles. Those who take residence there are at odds with those who check in and unfortunately never check back out. It doesn’t help that a serial killer is leaving victims for everyone to see.

Season 6 Roanake takes place in the present time of 2016. The plot centers around a reenactment of a crime in the Roanoke Colony in North Carolina and then a reality show involving the actors and real-life counterparts.

Season 7 Cult takes place in the present time of 2017. The plot centers around citizens living in the small town of Brookfield, Michigan after the results of the 2017 election is announced. There is a clear distinction among the Trump, Clinton, and Stein followers. Reality becomes a twisted knot and distrust
becomes synonymous to survival.

Season 8 Apocalypse takes place in the present time of 2018. The plot centers around a group of people living in a fallout shelter. It is one shelter among many for those rich enough to afford it. The purpose of living there is uncovered one flashback at a time where the power struggle becomes all too real between good and evil.

Season 9 1984 takes place in 1984 and filmed in 2019. The plot centers around Camp Redwood reopening after years of remaining closed. The head counselor demands strict adherence do the rules. Everything is going well until one-by-one, the newly signed on counselors realize their lives are in danger and everyone has something to hide.

The order of best to least liked seasons and the reasons why.

1. Freak Show because I have a fascination with circus life and it’s a time where there was so much contradiction. Circus owners made money on the display of human oddities and animal tricks. Families that went to watch them perform had no idea or ignored the mistreatment of performance artists and animals. I really liked the Twisty character for some reason.

2. Cult because the season was nothing what I thought it would be. It turned out to the one of the more cohesive storylines that didn’t stray too much. It wasn’t over the top and while it had flashbacks, they didn’t go out of their way to overstate information. There were more twists and turns in the main story compared to the rest.

3. Hotel because there’s been a reawakening of sorts with serial killers. There’s going to be another Jeffrey Dahmer focused show/movie. The play between alive and dead is done well, and the flashbacks were definitely necessary in this season. It also appealed to me as vampires always brings any story alive if done the right way.

4. Asylum because any sanitarium is not only creepy, but the level of cruelty powerful people dispenses on those with lesser resources. It’s all in the name of religion and is about as corrupt as it gets.

5. 1984 because even though I was a child at the time, I still remember the terrible fashion and hairstyles of the 1980s. This season only solidified the overall bad culture and gave me insight into the true horror young adults went through. The story would have been even better had it not strayed in the end. The first half was great, but the second half was less cohesive in its story.

6. Apocalypse because of the historical elements and representations of good and evil. As with season 5, this one started out with great promise. I was willing to finish it until the end, but it took such an abrupt turn around the corner, that it lost its momentum. The devil with horns can take many forms. There was too much explanation and too many flashbacks. I thought the end was weak. I hope the writers’ refrain from incorporating the witches in season 10.

7. Coven because while it kept my attention, there were parts that were disjointed. It’s been a while since I’ve watched this season. From what I remember, it was a little too high schoolish for me. Nothing really stood out enough to call it one of my top five seasons.

8. Roanoke because it took me two tries to finish the season. I liked parts of it but others I didn’t like. I wasn’t too keen on the whole reality show part of it until it picked up steam. It was an overall okay viewing experience.

9. Murder House because it’s also been a long time since I’ve watched this season. I guess from a realistic standpoint of family squabbles after a tragedy was achieved. I remember the Rubber Man running around at night. I’m wanting to re-watch this season because I’ve forgotten some vital parts. I do like how it ties into season 6.