Season 4 of American Horror Story

[neverending]

What most impressed me about the first episode was the sense of time and place. The production staff has done a marvelous job of recreating the past. It's set a mere four years before I was born, but every detail seems spot on - the look of buildings that were made to last, the clothing styles, and everything else.

Kathy Bates is already my favorite character. Her accent did throw me off, because it didn't come out till she was on stage, but I think they might be hinting at further developments to her character. There seems to be some ambiguity about the sexuality of her character and I hope they explore that further.

Jessica Lange is channeling Greta Garbo, plain and simple. I half expected to hear her say "I vant to be alone..." at some point. The double character is a great mystery to keep us all interested. Like others, even though I really loved the musical number, it did bother me that it was a David Bowie. It broke the illusion of the past they had so painstakingly built up- but I guess throwing those twists in is what this show is all about.

There was also some overly obvious writing that bothered me- the scene between Bates and Lange toward the end explained far too much about Lange's character. It didn't need to be said so blatantly.

I give it a 90 out of 100.

[Elvis_Christ]

Originally Posted by Art School Dropout

The musical scene was kind of funny despite one of my biggest pet peeves with period pieces being the use of music that doesn't belong in the time period.

Yeah I'm finding it harder and harder to ignore. There's plenty of great songs from the era they could've used instead. As neverending said it's really sloppy considering they've gone out of their way to recreate the era with the rest of the show. I don't think it's a twist it's more the producers/network playing it safe with well known contemporary songs pandering to modern/younger audiences. It's flaw that really stops the show from being a truly great piece of television like Canivale.

Aside from this I think this is a great season and I'm especially enjoying the clown storyline. The comradery between the freaks is a nice touch bringing some raw emotion (the final act of episode 2) that the show hasn't really touched on before. Perhaps taking a cue from The Walking Dead?

[abcodi]

is this tv series good? how many recommend i watch this?

[hammerfan]

Originally Posted by abcodi

is this tv series good? how many recommend i watch this?

Here's your first recommendation.

My favorite season is #2. Compared to seasons 1 and 2, 3 is pretty tame. So far, I'm enjoying season 4, they've gotten back to the scary/creepy/shocking scenes.

[ChronoGrl]

Originally Posted by neverending

There was also some overly obvious writing that bothered me- the scene between Bates and Lange toward the end explained far too much about Lange's character. It didn't need to be said so blatantly.

Yeah, that bothered me too - I thought that it was really out of place (especially since the show is typically so good at "showing" instead of "telling").


In terms of last week's episode, "Massacres and Matinees," I was very disappointed, which had me concerned - I think that the show was struggling to find a consistent tone and the plot points seemed random and scattered (but not in a good way)...

• The Strong Man and Hermaphrodite - I feel as though their entrance should have had more of an impact but it really did not for me.
• Freaks going to the diner - Not really sure what the point of that scene was - Show the audience that townies look down on them? We know that already. Create tension between Lobster Boy and the Strong Man?
• Twisty the Clown and the Man Child - I actually liked this storyline but ultimately when the Man Child captures Twisty's captive, I found that to be predictable based on what we had seen/heard earlier in the episode; that could have been done better.
• Fiona Apple - Really? I liked David Bowie but I do not like this trend. I also found that scene to be oddly and unbelievably frenetic, with the men suddenly rushing the stage...
• And then dovetailing in Mars' plot to make the girls' jealous if each other...

Oh boy. I think there was too much going on... There are too many characters and I don't think I have a handle or care about any of them yet, and that's a problem. It's the problem I had with last season and I hope it doesn't happen again.

[Rawhead Rex]

I'm not sure why people watch a show and critique the hell out of it...
Just don't watch it if it bothers you. You'll save yourself headaches.

I LOVE this show...loved every season and love this current one.
It's rolling along nicely, building a lot of plots here and there that will all come tangling together rather violently, I'm thinking.

Guesses...possible spoilers...

The Strong Man will suddenly be able to get it up again, but it won't be for his hermaphrodite, 3 breasted wife, it'll be for young, beautiful Emma Roberts...
AND THIS will cause a lot of trouble!

Dandy can't bring himself to kill his maid, but I don't think he's too far away from begging his new buddy, Twisty, to do it...and he will!

[ChronoGrl]

Originally Posted by Rawhead Rex

I'm not sure why people watch a show and critique the hell out of it...
Just don't watch it if it bothers you. You'll save yourself headaches.

I absolutely love the series, seasons 1 & 2 potentially being two of my favorite seasons of TV ever. When I love a show, I gush about what's great about it (maybe you missed my post re the first episode?) and pick apart what's not because I want every episode to blow me away, and I don't think that's a bad thing.

Don't read my critiques about the series if they bother you. You'll save yourself headaches.

[Monkey Astronaut]

Episode 3 "Edward Mordrake (Part 1)" Nice to see Wes Bentley show up. Patti LaBelle doing a Woody Woodpecker impression made me laugh. Starting to get sick of these musical numbers.

[ChronoGrl]

Originally Posted by Art School Dropout

Episode 3 "Edward Mordrake (Part 1)" Nice to see Wes Bentley show up. Patti LaBelle doing a Woody Woodpecker impression made me laugh. Starting to get sick of these musical numbers.

Succinct and pretty much how I felt about it. The musical number seemed really forced and shoehorned in, though I really loved the twins' shared dream.

Really appreciated the homage to Halloween with the clown costume and killer POV moment with Pattie LaBelle. Loved it.

[Manimal]

I like Wes Bentley and I like how he's been cast for the show. I personally love the musical numbers. It gives the "Freak Show" a stage-performance aspect, which I think is important to highlight how challenging that lifestyle must be. Dandy is still growing on me and quickly becoming one of my favourite characters. As soon as he gets up the nerve to kill someone, I think he will just go on a rampage from there and it will be glorious. Who do you think Mordrake will add to his collection?