AMERICAN HORROR STORY 3- Page 15

[Wynbish]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 12:25pm

Plus, it's the only thing from last night's episode that I thought was arresting and interesting.

I loved the opening and even watched it twice. I did think they could have used different music (Danse Macabre, perhaps?), but it was well done. It reminded me of the first silent movie I watched, which was about witchcraft and witch trials.

I still don't know how the girls even learn how to do any of that, but whatever.

The make-up job they did on Sarah Paulson. Gross.

I honestly think this is my least favorite season of the two. I think I'd rather have the aliens back.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 12:29pm

Maybe we'll get AHS: OUTER SPACE soon.

[Wynbish]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 12:33pm

With Jessica as the Borg Queen, Sarah as the voice of the computer, and Lily as a Ripley-esque badass!

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 12:40pm

Yeah there's now way they'll keep Lange, not to mention Bates and Bassett, off for the last few episodes.

As everyone has said, the stakes are simply too low for me to even bother caring about how confusing everything is. I can't even remember half the characters names. Blind girl always had the sight inside her she just needed it bumped back with family baubbles? Why did she even go to psycho killer Axe Man with the news anyway? (And aside from him being corporeal making no sense, I know he was meant to be sorta an urban legend but did they even give a warped Murphy reason for why he kills people who dislike jazz?) I wanted to see nice girl and Franken-guy frolicking in EPCOT, dammit. But I could care less about them (when she entered the school did she cut all ties with her parents? Who cares.) However, I know he has violent impulses, but when did he become a super strong, efficient killer? And why did they even go all the way to Florida, and then gaining one new power (when these witches gain like 2 new random powers a week anyway) make them immediately go back? The explanation for LaLaurie's tears being that she is truly evil and was crying about black people gaining equality is just stupid (but I can see the writers thinking it was an insanely clever twist.) But I should have known -- Murphy has a habit of feeling NOBODY can truly redeem themselves -- except on Glee of course where it never makes sense anyway (not that LaLaurie should be redeemed, but then why have her palling around with Queenie?) Are LaLaurie's actual daughters really in Hell too then -- if so that seems pretty mean. And it also seems unnecessarily cruel then that Nan is in Hell too (I am just sorry we didn't get to see some clever scene of what her Hell would be like.) The silent movie annoyed me because it made no sense why it would be done as a silent movie except they that they wanted to make one, but as these things go on this show, I can go with that. Madison (that's Roberts, right?) seems to want to kill everyone but because she's part of the Coven nobody cares? WHat again is the point of even having this school for witches? Was the butler just upstairs dressing up Black Baby (tm) the whole episode while everything went on? I know Bassett was knocked out (ok are witches THAT easy to knock out?) but how one of the most powerful witches of all time not manage to escape torture by a powerless, not in the best shape, older woman, who carted her around town and to the attic?

So many more things to be said. And the fact that Murphy wants to have a fun campy season after how dark much of last year got is fair enough -- but then why use this season to explore race issues in such uncomfortable ways? That's fun I guess -- hey, black power showing black characters delighting in wanting to do nothing more than torture those who tortured them.

When they brought in the witch hunters, while hardly original, it felt like it was giving shape to the season--but that was a bust (is the whole company just gone then? And why didn't Fiona and crew kill them AGES ago if it was so easy to just use an axe?)I thought niceWitch was upset about Nan being killed, but I guess she forgot. Fiona's new best friend disappears--and is tortured and chopped up basically under her nose but I guess this weird cancer distracted her. And she has been shown to kill people with no issue, but couldn't do anything about an (expected) axe to the back?

Bla bla bla. I also agree with Namo that what momentum they were actually getting was killed by the break, regardless of my issues.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 12:55pm

Namo, believe it or not, they've actually mentioned the 7 Wonders all season. I want to say as far back as the first episode, but I'm not sure. They were definitely mentioned in the episode where young Jessica Lange killed Christine Ebersole.

I'm about done with this season, though. It started out so fun and has just fizzled into typical incomprehensible nonsense.

[SonofRobbieJ]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 1:18pm

Luckily, we're all almost done with this season. One episode left and we can all try to move on. I feel like we deserve the gay version of a Purple Heart for this.

Mauve Hearts?

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 1:24pm

Ryan Murphy is way ahead of you on that one, Robbie. It's called The Normal Heart.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 1:29pm

Ha!

And I thought we had two episodes left, but you're right--only one. Well there's little chance of these loose story threads that seemed just to be there to mark time (again, nothing new for a Murphy project) will all tie together, then.

I'm amazed that many critics seem to love this season.

As forthe Seven Wonders--yeah they were mentioned before, but we never were told what all seven were (I loved how in the stupid film they obviously knew which ones every audience member would recognize and which needed explaining--and then conveniently used these newly mentioned ones in the episode...)

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 1:32pm

Huh, I guess it never registered until Stevie was standing right there.

I want the Farmigia girl to have sex with every character, which kills them, and then we see them in a band in the afterlife. For some characters it's their hell, for others (MISTY!), it's their heaven. Dressed like witchy versions of Josie & The Pussycats, they perform an extended version of "Seven Wonders." Fade to black.

[ClydeBarrow]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 1:42pm

Wow. I totally forgot about her killer sex power. Guess that was only needed for the beginning of the season and then forgotten forever.

[SonofRobbieJ]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 1:47pm

I'm on board with that, Namo. It's like the time I was watching CLOVERFIELD with the dead husband and I was so angry at how aggressively unlikable and stupid the entire cast was that I turned to him and said 'The only way I will like this movie is if they kill every last one of these terrible people.'

SPOLIER

And then they did! And I was all, 'OK. I'll take it.'

[Wynbish]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 1:48pm

I thought that one girl was able to get away in the helicopter

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 1:52pm

" I know [The Axe Man] was meant to be sorta an urban legend but did they even give a warped Murphy reason for why he kills people who dislike jazz?"

Not that it matters in this mishmosh, but The Axe Man was a real serial killer, never caught. The voice-over in the episode that Axe Man first appears in was an letter to newspapers, purported to be from the Axe Man. In it, he says:

"I am very fond of jazz music, and I swear by all the devils in the nether regions that every person shall be spared in whose home a jazz band is in full swing at the time I have just mentioned. If everyone has a jazz band going, well, then, so much the better for you people. One thing is certain and that is that some of your people who do not jazz it on Tuesday night (if there be any) will get the axe."

No one was killed that night, though two more were viciously attacked and one murdered before the Axeman stopped killing.
The Axe Man

[ClydeBarrow]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 2:00pm

Are you saying The Axe Man wasn't a ghost? He definitely was because there was some scene with Fiona as a teen and he pushed some sh!t over to save her from something. It happened like 3 months ago so I don't remember the exact details but the implication was that he had been protected her all her life.

[SonofRobbieJ]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 2:03pm

'I thought that one girl was able to get away in the helicopter'

The helicopter didn't crash? Can we pretend it did?

[Wynbish]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 2:09pm

I'll do you one better. It blew up in the nuclear attack or whatever that ending was.

[SonofRobbieJ]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 2:16pm

Perfect. Thank you for making the world right again.

[Wynbish]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 2:25pm

Ooh! The helicopter fell on the bridge that collapsed and got the other two!

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 2:36pm

"The explanation for LaLaurie's tears being that she is truly evil and was crying about black people gaining equality is just stupid "

If I recall correctly, it was even stupider than that. I think she said she was crying because it wasn't fair to make a black man think he could be equal to a white man.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 1/23/14 at 9:11pm

You are right.

And thanks to the poster about the Axe Man history -- I knew some of the facts behind Lalaurie and the real voodoo witches (I have to wonder if any of the relatives of LaLaurie's victims, or even her family, if there are any known, were upset by this season? They probably didn't care...)

As usual this season, the AV Club's review is spot on. http://www.avclub.com/review/go-to-hell-107108 I particularly liked this note:

o illustrate the problems with the season, let’s take on LaLaurie’s character arc: Historical serial killer. Made immortal and buried beneath the Earth for centuries. Dug up by Fiona. Made a maid for some reason. Daughter resurrected as a zombie. (Actually, up until this point, it sort of works.) Becomes sympathetic to Queenie. Sold out by Queenie. Becomes an animated head. Goes back to being a serial killer after being reassembled. Takes over her former home. Made mortal again and killed. There’s nothing even approaching a coherent throughline there, and you can extend that to everybody else on the show.
At least Kathy Bates seems to be having fun, right? Lance Reddick, too. He’s having the time of his life, and who can blame him? And Lily Rabe is really good at stage combat, so that’s something!

(And I know, why I am I even still discussing this show... I felt as ridiculous complaining about the last few seasons of Nip/Tuck. I hate the term hate watching, but Murphy, more often than not, seems to bring that out in me.)

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 1/24/14 at 1:58am

"And thanks to the poster about the Axe Man history -- I knew some of the facts behind Lalaurie and the real voodoo witches (I have to wonder if any of the relatives of LaLaurie's victims, or even her family, if there are any known, were upset by this season? They probably didn't care...) "

You're welcome - that was me as well. According to author Carolyn Morrow Long, there is one living direct descendant of LaLaurie's, through her eldest daughter. Ms Long does not name this person or even specify their sex. Very few facts are known about LaLaurie. It is likely that many if not all of the atrocities attributed to her never even occurred.

Ironically, one of the things we know for sure is that she freed at least three of her slaves. She was also said to have been quite beautiful.

This season of AHS is the only work of Ryan Murphy's that I have ever seen. I was watching it for the New Orleans setting, and for Bates and Lange. The cinematography is atrocious and the writing is worse . After the final show, I doubt I'll watch anything of Murohy's again.




known facts about Madame LaLaurie Updated On: 1/24/14 at 01:58 AM

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 1/24/14 at 2:06am

Wha??? you don't love how they open most of the scenes after each ad block with a sideways camera that spins????

[ghostlight2]

Posted: 1/24/14 at 2:14am

Nope. Hated the fish-eye lens too - and I could have gone my entire lifetime without watching Queenie pleasure herself in order to entice the minotaur, who gored? her for her troubles.

Seriously, wtf was that about?

Don't answer that.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 1/24/14 at 10:44am

This thread is hilarious! Murphy should check it out as a lesson in writing for an audience.

I loathe when too many liberties are taken with history and folklore, and Ryan seems to adore doing it in his story lines. This season has been a mess! I was so looking forward to the ride, but the roadmap has been lost completely and we are just wandering aimlessly at this point. It's sad when you go from "what happened" to "who cares, because it isnt going to make sense anyway". Still in for the delicous performances, especially from Bates and Lange.

I AM satisfied that Emma Roberts got the crap kicked out of her.

And PLEASE stop with the Papa Ge character! Ugh!

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 1/24/14 at 3:27pm

Very few facts are known about LaLaurie. It is likely that many if not all of the atrocities attributed to her never even occurred.

I've been wanting to bring this up, because even her wikipedia article says that the more outrageous stories came about much later, with no contemporary evidence to back them up. I just couldn't figure out how to get across that while she was still a slave owner who more than likely abused her slaves (which makes you a pretty bad person), she wasn't THAT straight up evil. It all felt too much like splitting hairs.