S04.E01: Monsters Among Us

[Brattinella]

Oh, my.  I now remember "Sisters", a nightmare-inducing scene involving a man, a knife, and crawling on the floor.  Very bad nightmare, indeed!

[Doxer]

I loved it!!! Soooo different from anything out there. but Kathy bates accent does remind me of Mira sorvino in Romy and michelle high school reunion.

[MrHufflepuff]

This.  Also, please get out of my head.  

 

I can't!  We're twins, like Sarah Paulson's character.

 

Are you me?!?! 

 

Uh-oh!  We're triplets!

[Parachutes]

If I can make time, I may watch the episode, again, but at 92 mins (with commercials), there were times when it really dragged for me, and I'm not sure I want to sit through it again without a FF function. Weirdly, Twisty the Clown is one of the more appealing aspects of the show, so far, and I'm enjoying Paulson's twins. 

 

With that said, I think a lot of bases have already been covered with episode, but I was left wondering two things:

 

1) If Twisty's kidnapping of the young woman and the boy was his sick, demented way of starting a family?

 

and 

 

2) If Twisty suffers from Borderline Personality Disorder or if he's just prone to suddenly turning at the drop of dime into raging, murderous lunatic? Because in the scene where he's trying to making balloon animals for his captives and doing "clown-y" things, there's a distinct moment where you literally see the shift from 0 to 60 on the crazy scale. 

[SpaghettiTuesdays]

Can I just say, wow. Wowee. I am in love with this season already. I love this show, all seasons of it, but this one is different and edgey in a way I don't think we've seen so far. I am in awe of the characters. They are absolutely perfect. And Kathy Bates' character? Absolute favorite. She's gonna rock this role.

 

The clown is going to be quite interesting. He's so creepy and terrifying I had to pull the curtains back on the shower before I could go further into the bathroom.

 

They absolutely nailed this. I have high expectations for the rest and will certainly be hanging in for the long haul (as usual).

[SpaghettiTuesdays]

What the hell accent was Kathy Bates doing? I couldn't figure it out. At times, some words almost sounded Canadian. I was just waiting for her to say aboot.

She sounds just like 50s-era Baltimore. My stepdad grew up in Baltimore in that time and that's how he talks.

[lion10]

I'm back in.  I thought I was done after Season 3 but the clown brought me back.  Jessica Lange is perfection in every single way.  It's weird but I feel in some ways American Horror Story is a comedy.  

[JayKay]

I was left wondering two things:

1) If Twisty's kidnapping of the young woman and the boy was his sick, demented way of starting a family?

and

2) If Twisty suffers from Borderline Personality Disorder or if he's just prone to suddenly turning at the drop of dime into raging, murderous lunatic? Because in the scene where he's trying to making balloon animals for his captives and doing "clown-y" things, there's a distinct moment where you literally see the shift from 0 to 60 on the crazy scale.

The odd thing about Twisty is that I believe that he genuinely wants to entertain people when he's not, you know, murdering them or blankly riding empty carousels. He's sort of in the same sinking boat as Elsa's troupe only instead of living in desperate denial like her or seeing the end and wanting to move on like Lobster boy, Twisty's all "Let me entertain you? No, no, you don't get a choice."

He didn't start flipping out on the cages until he noticed that his captive audience was expressing terror over amusement, and he didn't attack the picnickers until the guy started shooing him away.

But if Twisty truly wants to be a filthy clown who isn't scary and who people enjoy watching run around, he ought to join a rodeo.

[Minerette]

And by the way, Violet and Daisy Hilton, whom Dot and Bette are clearly based on, are in FREAKS. Very cool!)

By being in the freak show, they reminded me of the Hiltons, but in physiology, they reminded me of the Hensel twins.

[DangerousMinds]

--So the candystriper wanton is Meryl Streep's daughter?  LOL

 

--I liked Ma Petit and was not happy to see what was happening to her in "this season" previews.

 

--That song might have been a lot of fun if you caught the David Bowie origin, but on its own. . .mmm, not so great.

 

--Soiled clown costumes are inherently creepy, even without the extra toothy topper.

 

 

 

.

That whole scene was an homage to Bowie's brilliant Life on Mars, complete with the blue suit and vivid blue eye makeup. Ryan Murphy, despite his other flaws, has always been pitch perfect in his music choices, way back to Nip Tuck, IMO.

[OpieTaylor]

I was only half watching, but I thought I saw Jessica Lange in a different outfit watching Jessica Lange singing on stage?  Did anyone else see that?  It seemed they were showing a montage of people and JL #2 was in black.  So I thought maybe Elsa is a twin herself?  I'm probably way off, because like I said, I was only half watching.

[Dewey Decimate]

Oh yeah - I enjoyed this first episode more than all of Coven combined. (AHS version 1.0 was my previous favorite but this one may top it.) It's like most of my hour-long horror/sci-fi favorites are on a spectrum: Walking Dead (quality, frightening, character-driven horror) >> The Strain (plot holes so big you can walk through but entertaining if unintentionally hilarious at times) >> AHS Freakshow (call the fire brigade 'cuz this muthafuckin' train is OFF THE TRACKS!!!) I love that it's going to be utterly crazy and beautifully un-PC. I had no problem with snotty candy striper having some kooky opium-driven group sex, and I love all the Tod Browning similarities. I've watched Freaks many a time, and I find myself so heartily rooting for the so-called freaks to get their revenge on the norms that tears well up in my eyes. There's something so inherently appealing about the rise of the tightly-knit outcasts. And I love the tall lady (don't recall her name) - she's not as shockingly noticeable as the others in the troupe, but you can tell from her jutted hip that she's got moxie, baby! I love her. Now just bring on Angela Bassett and I'll be swooning!

 

And I think I want to be flippered by Evan Peters. Commit me now.

[DangerousMinds]

Yes, the other maybe-Jessica reminded me of Bowie's "Ashes to Ashes."

[Snookums]

The contortionist was one of the "freaks."  Penny the Candy Striper (Grace Gummer) was stoned on the chaise lounge.  Also, as soon as she insulted Dot/Bette then said, "My Mom said I either do this or go to Reform School," I thought, here comes the lurid sexual violsence.

 

 

This pissed me off royal. Ryan Murphy always makes the RAPE SCENARIO his opening salvo rather than his big gun, and it cheapens everything. Not only was this young woman a victim of drugging and gang rape and then told "you liked it," it was clearly established that she "deserved it" for being an almost reform-school girl/being insensitive towards freaks ("If I gave birth to something that looked like that I'd drown it in the bathtub.")

 

I get that Murphy wants to do mise en scene but it robs his protagonists. Elsa doing that to Peppermint should make a kind of sense, no matter how twisted or horrific (Since Peppermint is the only one who saw Elsa, naturally Elsa has to make sure she doesn't rat her out) but instead it just drops in from nowhere and the lurid aspect caters to every appetite that the show professes to deplore--rape, the commodified sexuality of the performers, the icy pragmatism/delusion of the den mother trying to keep her "family" from destitution or the asylum. Murphy, you've had four years to fix this.

 

Onwards: cool as the "Bette inhales and Dot exhales" was, the scene with the doctor and the X rays clearly established two sets of lungs, so they shouldn't have been able to do that. Otherwise the twins are great so far as characters.

 

Jimmy Darling and his pimping ma continue the grand Murphy Traditions of I Have Real Problems With Mothers; Specifically, Disturbingly Sexualized Relations Between Them And Their Sons. Ick.

 

Twisty--terrifying. Straight up. But how long has he lived around there? That trailer was massively overgrown but apparently he's just started killing and kidnapping?

 

I think Dandy and his mom are going to be the characters I love to hate.

 

I love Lange but she can do the throaty murmur or the accent, but not both. I could only pick up every third word.

Edited October 10, 2014 by Snookums

[A Boston Gal]

Since Kathy Bates' accent reminded me so much of John Travolta's in "Hairspray", the fact that her character's supposedly from Baltimore made sense. As much as anything makes sense in this show.  But I love the actors, and Jessica Lange just slayed me with her Dietrich channelling. I'll be around for a few more episodes at least.

 

Also agree that the sound mixing is tragically bad, and better be adjusted pronto. How amateurish!

 

As an aside, this is my first outing with AHS, and from what you all have said so far, I take it that this premiere could signal a promising season.  Would I be right in surmising that the majority opinion is "Asylum" is the best one so far?

Edited October 10, 2014 by A Boston Gal

[Neurochick]

I just wanted to say, I adored the guy with the lobster hands.  I did not expect him to to THAT with them.  Quite useful.  

 

Would a nurse have vomited just by seeing the conjoined twins?  

[HerLadyship]

All in.

 

Like most of you, I was sorely disappointed by Coven, but I fell for this season the minute all those SISTERS references started up. The split screen and the camera work was all so De Palma-esque! (If you haven't seen SISTERS, OMG. This is a movie that actually approaches AHS levels of weirdness, 70s style. I would even say that this AHS episode, at least, is a crazy mash up of FREAKS and SISTERS. And by the way, Violet and Daisy Hilton, whom Dot and Bette are clearly based on, are in FREAKS. Very cool!)

 

Candall, THE GIFT OF FEAR is one of the most influential books of my lifetime. Good call.

 

FYI, I found Sisters on YouTube--the full movie.  I watched it last night.  It just gets weirder as it goes!

[jnymph]

OK I got to finally watch this episode in its entirety.  All in all, can’t say I’m head over heels about this show, but I did like it a lot.
 
IMO, best to worst aspects:
 
Twisty:
My favorite storyline.   Truly makes my hair stand on end, creepy, psycho bizarre to the point I’m laughing (nervous laughter) !   LOVE. IT. 
I loved the shot of him riding alone on the carousel.  Just delicious scenery with the right amount of creepy.   And I’m old enough to remember those particular carousels;  I noticed he was sitting in the “Swan” booth type seat.   Seems to me that those were usually used by older/disabled or people with babies, rather than hoisting them up on the horses that go up and down.  (not sure that’s significant, just an observation. )    As for the caged trailer people (that most certainly is the picnic girl),  while watching  Twisty freakishly doing ‘clown’ type things, I broke out into nervous laughter again, and then to watch him start throwing things at them in the cage…. EEEEEKKKK!    For some reason, Twisty attacking the picnic couple in broad daylight was even more terrifying than in the dead of night.   John Carroll Lynch (? right?) is ROCKING it. 
 
Elsa Mars:
Agree with the weird accent;  but I can’t help but love the hell out of ANYTHING Jessica Lange does.  She is a goddess.

 

Bette/Dot:
2 souls in the same body.  Interesting concept…. where is this going to lead has me intrigued.

 

Not sure if this is the right word  - > but the cinematography- the entire FEEL of the carnival in Jupiter, Florida
The aerial shots of the carnival, the attention to detail of the old time freak show banners , the gothic weird devil head leading into the carnival,  the strung light bulbs with one flickering, the costumes, the tents, Elsa’s 50s sunglasses,  etc etc  All of this really lends to transporting me to a to a weird ass carnival show in 1952 Jupiter, Florida.

 

The Tupperware/sex party thing:
Kinda, maybe, sorta cool.  But 1950s housewives getting their groove on with a sideshow freak ?   I find that one tough to swallow.   I did like that it was under the guise of a Tupperware party, that was funny.   Seems to me in the 60s anyways (if I remember right) Tupperware parties were HUGE with my Mom and her friends.  I don’t think she had any lobster boys attend though.  Heh.:)

The music & sound quality:
Horrid.  I can’t believe I have to watch this with the closed captioning on.   It steals away from the experience.
The Elsa/Dietrich/Bowie song- unpopular opinion alert:  I didn’t like it much at all.   Cheesy and overdone and I couldn’t shake the fact that it was a 70s song being sung in the 50s.  Didn’t work for me.

3 more issues: 

Elsa certainly drugged “Peppermint angel” (what she called her)  to gain access to Bette/Dot.  And then Peppermint came to the carnival on her own, did some opium and got her freak on.    Abused?  Yeah … but it was a fine line.   Elsa tricked her.

And

Peppers’ boyfriend was named “Salty”. That’s fun.

And

Poster SpaghettiTuesdays claim about Kathy Bates accent

She sounds just like 50s-era Baltimore. My stepdad grew up in Baltimore in that time and that's how he talks.

 

Works for me.  I’m gonna go with that.

Edited October 10, 2014 by jnymph

[ItsHelloPattiagain]

 

Since Kathy Bates' accent reminded me so much of John Travolta's in "Hairspray", the fact that her character's supposedly from Baltimore made sense.

When I was listening to her, I kept thinking "what does she sound like?" and I managed to pull Edna Turnblad from Hairspray (the musical) up into my brain. Kathy Bates is really brave letting her slap that beard on her and flattening out her hair - she looks quite manly. 

 

Thank you all for the suggestion to put on close captioning. I had a devil of a time figuring out what Elsa said in the diner and I just thought it was the weird music in the background. 

 

Killer clowns are creepy but overdone IMHO. However clowns who are alternately creepy and friendly are worse. 

 

When Jessica Lange was prepping for the show, I kept thinking of her role in "All That Jazz" as the angel. And when she sang it was so weird and cool and horrible all at the same time. 

 

And I could have done without the ongoing orgy movie with Peppermint Nurse girl. A little goes a long way but a lot made me feel sick to my stomach. '

BTW Lobster Boy is real - I remember reading a book about a murder that the real Lobster Boy was supposed to have committed years ago. 

Edited October 10, 2014 by ItsHelloPattiagain

[Frisco]

After waiting for this season, I'm a bit disappointed and a bit bored.  Way too disgusting (lobster hands, gang rape, that clown, etc.) for me.  Nor sure I'll be able to watch another episode.

[Avaleigh]

Twisty--terrifying. Straight up. But how long has he lived around there? That trailer was massively overgrown but apparently he's just started killing and kidnapping?

For all we know the two who are currently in the cages aren't the first people to have been there. 

 

I was only half watching, but I thought I saw Jessica Lange in a different outfit watching Jessica Lange singing on stage?  Did anyone else see that?  It seemed they were showing a montage of people and JL #2 was in black.  So I thought maybe Elsa is a twin herself?  I'm probably way off, because like I said, I was only half watching.

I don't think Elsa has a twin but I did wonder about this. 

 

What's the deal with the Frances Conroy character and her son? Is he supposed to be mentally challenged or something? 

[Dirtybubble]

Would a nurse have vomited just by seeing the conjoined twins?

I did find that to be a bit over done.  I guess they were trying to sell it as a small town in the 50s wouldn't have been exposed to much in the medical field but come on!  Anyone who went thru medical school should be prepared for such.  And it wasn't like Dot & Bette were gruesomely deformed, she simply had 2 heads.

 

What's the deal with the Frances Conroy character and her son? Is he supposed to be mentally challenged or something?

From what I got it--this is an overly protective mother and a spoiled child who hasn't been exposed to life.  No don't think he was mentally challenged just overly sheltered.  I LOVE me some Frances Conroy so I look forward to see where this story goes. 

[Princess Sparkle]

Did Candy Striper get roofied, or did Elsa just hand her the card to her curiosity tent, and the girl went their willingly, and got in over her head?

Elsa gave her opium laced cigarettes when she was at the hospital.  When Elsa showed the video, all I could think was "OF COURSE!  OF COURSE everyone is also a sex freak/rapist too."  Because it just wouldn't be AHS if someone wasn't getting sexually assaulted within the first two episodes.  Can't one season go by without someone getting raped?

 

And there's part of me that can appreciate the thought of "just because these people are looked down upon in society doesn't necessarily make them good people", but geez - maybe hold something back for episode two?  Though, Kathy Bates seemed to be a good person (which probably means she'll be a serial killer within two episodes), and maybe I can hold out hope that Michael Chiklas and Angela Bassett's characters aren't terrible people either.

 

After watching in the daylight, I am still a big baby about the clown.  I had to turn my head away when it rode around on the carousal.      

 

I LOVE me some Frances Conroy so I look forward to see where this story goes. 

 

I laughed pretty hard when she said the only thing freakish was Elsa's singing.

Edited October 10, 2014 by Princess Sparkle

[LoneHaranguer]

 

And I could have done without the ongoing orgy movie with Peppermint Nurse girl. A little goes a long way but a lot made me feel sick to my stomach.

It was a bit incoherent, like old anti-drug ads used to portray how you'd see the world if you were high, so it needed time to get across what happened (but still didn't quite make it). Did Elsa do some editing, or was the person with the camera drugged too? The show must have a darkroom to get the film developed so quickly.

 

 

I didn't get that the Lucky Strikes were filled with opium. Lucky Strikes is a real brand (or was, anyway), and back in the early 50s plenty of people actually did believe smoking was good for your health.

Smoking actually does have some health benefits, but the potential harm wasn't known at the time because that relationship wasn't as obvious.

[Neurochick]

I didn't get that the cigarettes Elsa gave Candy Striper were laced with opium.  Why wasn't Elsa tripping, or was she?

 

The sound wasn't off to me, but I watched on my computer and I always watch every show with the captions on.  

[Mattipoo]

This was a fun premiere episode. It was more comedic than scary for me. Love Pepper and her boyfriend and am curious how she ends up at Briarcliff in season 2. Jessica Lange in the Bowie musical number was everything! Pure perfection right down to her makeup, suit and hairstyle. Scary clown was not scary at all for me, as they seem to be channeling Leatherface, Freddy Kruger, Jason, and every slasher villain from 80s horror movies. I think he would have been scarier if he were to look like a normal happy face clown that happens to murder people. The tiny Indian lady was so adorable, but like many others, I did not understand a single word that was coming out of her mouth. Hope she survives until the end of the season and that her "fate" in the preview is just a red herring. Looking forward to the appearances of Angela Bassett, Michael Chiklis and Dennis O'Hare, although I hope they don't clamp too many subplots together and end up resolving none, like the awful season that was "Coven".

Edited October 10, 2014 by Mattipoo

[Avaleigh]

I didn't get that the cigarettes Elsa gave Candy Striper were laced with opium.  Why wasn't Elsa tripping, or was she?

I'm confused about how we know for sure that the cigarette had opium in it. Did the candy striper give some indication that she didn't think it was a normal cigarette?

 

I thought she went to the tent area on her own because Elsa gave her the card with the info. 

 

ETA:

 

Were the twins then also smoking opium laced cigarettes?

Edited October 10, 2014 by Avaleigh

[islandgal140]

When the show started and black screen stated Jupiter Florida, Mr. Islandgal said "Florida,of course!" LOL!!

 

Also regarding Carnivale, I was sort of hoping that one or two of the performers there might end up here but I guess not.

 

 

One has. Twisty the clown is being played by John Carroll Lynch who played Varlyn Stroud on Carnivale. Stroud was the murderous convict working for Brother Justin. It was driving me nuts during the show trying to figure out who the clown was but I finally figured it out during the bus scene that it was him. Did it all on my own too without the aid of google {pats self on back}.

 

I have a complete immunity to clowns. Don't find them either funny or scary so Twisty was a big fat meh to me with the exception of his intro scene. The scene with the woman and her boyfriend at the lake was effective because of the juxtaposition between such a glorious idyllic day, doing one of the most romantic of things: a picnic; 2 perfect people, perfect place; not a cloud in the sky and here comes this monster out of nowhere and murders one of them in the cold light of day in the most brutal manner possible.

 

I can't say that I am riveted by Jessica's character so far but I am open. The fact that she is German, seems to have some kind of obsession of Marlena Dietrich, has an affinity for 'freaks' and lost both her legs has me intrigued. I just hope it isn't Nazi related. If it turns out she was Josef Mengele's mistress/girlfriend/relative or whatever I will roll my eyes.

 

Will say that Evans is a vast improvement. Couldn't stand what they did to him in Coven. The tupperware party was a laugh riot. Completely unbelievable but interesting. A bunch of mid-century Florida housewives letting some lobster clawed dude take diddle them in the master bedroom. Really? Strangers things have happened I guess.

 

The conjoined twins. The CGI got really weird and cheap looking around the time of the stabbing otherwise they were the most intriguing characters. I thought for a moment when they heard the reports of the murders in the area that they were going to pin it on the mystery murderous rampagers.

 

I am adopting a wait and see philosophy right now but I was a bit underwhelmed. Or maybe it should be the opposite - overwhelmed. Doesn't Ryan usually present with a portrait of the real world and turn it upside down with some surreal shit. This time around episode one he is bombarding us, or at least me with all the crazy and fringe society shit ep 1, hour 1 out of the gate. I will continue to watch and see where this goes.

Edited October 10, 2014 by islandgal140

[jnymph]

 

He didn't start flipping out on the cages until he noticed that his captive audience was expressing terror over amusement, and he didn't attack the picnickers until the guy started shooing him away.

 

Great observation, Jaykay!

 

I'm confused about how we know for sure that the cigarette had opium in it.

 

 

I'm a bit confused too on that... but I'm just assuming it had drugs in it, otherwise how would Elsa get the candy striper uniform AND access to Bette/Dot?

 

I laughed pretty hard when she said the only thing freakish was Elsa's singing

 

Hee. That was really funny, I almost forgot about that.

[Dandesun]

The whole orgy business is fuzzy to me. I think the premise is that the candy striper is a bad girl who is not at all impressed with the backwater town she lives in and thinks she's much tougher than she is. She gets sucked into Elsa's weirdness and the idea of stepping outside the bounds of same backwater town and goes willingly to the Cabinet of Curios but finds herself in way over her head. I mean, the way she was yelling at Elsa about going back to her home and her church was what tipped me off to 'someone bit off way more than she could chew and is now hugely ashamed of her actions.'

 

But the drugs really make it all hazy especially for us in this day and age where consent continues to be such a significant issue. She looked all drug addled on the film (by the way, that film seemed to be on a loop. It looked to me to be a lot of the same shots over and over... especially the lingering ones on her face) and her "I liked it" response to watching it made me go 'Of course you liked it! You were riddled with opium!' (Come on, look at all the trouble opium caused in Tombstone!)

 

I guess if they're having her say that she liked it, we're meant to take that at face value... in that she did enjoy the orgy but is horrified by her own depravity which kind of goes hand in hand with that whole vibe of all the rot that exists underneath this 'wholesome' surface that I feel is a major theme. Perhaps it's a juxtaposition of Jimmy being the lone 'freak' amid the housewives at the Tupperware Party; the candy striper was the lone 'normal' in the orgy but everyone was participating. Just as the housewives are likely not to admit what they were doing among 'wholesome company' despite their willingness; the candy striper has her own mixed emotions.

 

I don't know, I think I see what they're going for... but maybe it's meant to be a bit harrowingly ambiguous...  being a horror story and all.

[Dobian]

I really liked the opening episode.  Opening credits are great, very creepy, and I was rewinding to catch little things in the animations I missed.  The killer clown was genuinely scary. The CGI of the twins was well done.  I enjoyed Jessica Lange's singing number, even though the presentation was a bit Circus de Soleil for a 1950s carnival show, lol.  The first time I saw Kathy Bates, the first thought in my head was, Chaz Bono!  The world's smallest woman, who is for real the world's smallest woman, is incredible to look at, like a living doll.  I got a kick out of the previews with Frances Conroy giving her stupid son the killer clown as a gift.  Can't wait to see how that turns out, lol.

 

Really looking forward to the rest of this season.

Edited October 10, 2014 by Dobian

[Snookums]

Though, Kathy Bates seemed to be a good person (which probably means she'll be a serial killer within two episodes),

 

 

Well, she was pimping out her son to lonely housewives, so she might be good in the sense that she didn't participate in the cop dismemberment, but...

[iMonrey]

 

I will admit that I miss Lily Rabe and I was extremely disappointed when I found out weeks ago that she wouldn't be in this series.

 

Whaaaaaaaaaaat??????????????? Booooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I actually thought the CGI with Sarah Paulson was pretty damn good. That's got to be a pretty tough thing to pull off and there were only a couple of shots where I thought it looked fake. That said, I think the two-headed character is going to be the toughest sell of this show for people who aren't automatically inclined to watch because of the previous seasons. They spoiled the whole thing in the promo spots  before the revelation in the pilot so they really ruined it, and I'm sure a lot of people who saw those promo spots sort of snickered and made their decision not to watch based on that.

 

Also, I don't know what kind of accent anyone is trying to do and I don't really care. Maybe it's jingoism on my part but the only time a fake accent really bugs me is when a foreigner is trying to do an "American" accent and doesn't do it well. I'm not all that familiar with other accents so I don't get nit-picky over whether a German, Spanish, French, British, whatever accent doesn't sound genuine to me. Hell, for all I know, Dick Van Dyke was doing a genuine Cockney accent in Mary Poppins.

Edited October 10, 2014 by iMonrey

[Princess Sparkle]

Well, she was pimping out her son to lonely housewives, so she might be good in the sense that she didn't participate in the cop dismemberment, but...

 

 

Oh yeah, I forgot she was encouraging that.  Which....gross.  And, I know we're talking 1950s money here, and he said didn't charge one fully because she came so quickly (again, gross thing to say to your mother), but how cheaply was she pimping him out for?  There were at least 10 people in that house and he only made $18?

 

The whole orgy business is fuzzy to me. I think the premise is that the candy striper is a bad girl who is not at all impressed with the backwater town she lives in and thinks she's much tougher than she is. She gets sucked into Elsa's weirdness and the idea of stepping outside the bounds of same backwater town and goes willingly to the Cabinet of Curios but finds herself in way over her head. I mean, the way she was yelling at Elsa about going back to her home and her church was what tipped me off to 'someone bit off way more than she could chew and is now hugely ashamed of her actions.'

But the drugs really make it all hazy especially for us in this day and age where consent continues to be such a significant issue. She looked all drug addled on the film (by the way, that film seemed to be on a loop. It looked to me to be a lot of the same shots over and over... especially the lingering ones on her face) and her "I liked it" response to watching it made me go 'Of course you liked it! You were riddled with opium!' (Come on, look at all the trouble opium caused in Tombstone!)

I guess if they're having her say that she liked it, we're meant to take that at face value... in that she did enjoy the orgy but is horrified by her own depravity which kind of goes hand in hand with that whole vibe of all the rot that exists underneath this 'wholesome' surface that I feel is a major theme. Perhaps it's a juxtaposition of Jimmy being the lone 'freak' amid the housewives at the Tupperware Party; the candy striper was the lone 'normal' in the orgy but everyone was participating. Just as the housewives are likely not to admit what they were doing among 'wholesome company' despite their willingness; the candy striper has her own mixed emotions.

I don't know, I think I see what they're going for... but maybe it's meant to be a bit harrowingly ambiguous...  being a horror story and all.

 

I agree with you, and you articulated it in a way that I was having difficulty with.  I think if they had left the opium part out, or made the video a little clearer, it probably would've made more sense on what they were going for.  I feel like it would've been a stronger storyline too for her to have willingly participated (drug-free), and then been ashamed by what she did and threaten to shut them down - that would've made complete sense to me.  It's the opium part that muddles it up, which, to your point, may be on purpose. 

[scarletregina]

The dude with the weird hands is ugh I wouldn't even let him touch me let along do what those women were letting him do like wow!!!!

 

 

Can you clarify that for me? Is he "ugh" because of his hands or his personality?

[Dandesun]

The X-Men nerd in me (which takes up a lot of space, let me tell you) kind of got a kick out of the fact that Evan Peters, who played the mutant Quicksilver in X-Men: Days of Future Past, is now playing a 'freak' with hands like Nightcrawler. (And let me tell you, anyone who wrote Nightcrawler fanfic that had any kind of sexual situation in it knew what to do with those hands.) What's more, Kurt (Nightcrawler) grew up in a circus... just one of those things that tickles me.

 

(Sidenote: Kurt's just the best ever.)

[Addlepated]

I definitely noticed a second Jessica Lange in the audience watching "Life on Mars."  She was dressed as a clown.  Hmmmmm.  http://youtu.be/VG_BVE2VjJw?t=1m21s

 

And John Carroll's work is incredible - how expressive he is with just his eyes.  Amaze.

[DangerousMinds]

Since Kathy Bates' accent reminded me so much of John Travolta's in "Hairspray", the fact that her character's supposedly from Baltimore made sense. As much as anything makes sense in this show.  But I love the actors, and Jessica Lange just slayed me with her Dietrich channelling. I'll be around for a few more episodes at least.

 

Also agree that the sound mixing is tragically bad, and better be adjusted pronto. How amateurish!

 

As an aside, this is my first outing with AHS, and from what you all have said so far, I take it that this premiere could signal a promising season.  Would I be right in surmising that the majority opinion is "Asylum" is the best one so far?

Absolutely not for me - Murder House was the best by far.

[Brattinella]

I don't know, the scene between Lobster Boy and Hausfrau seemed to be pleasurable to the woman, AND the man too.  He looked like it made him supremely happy!

[DangerousMinds]

I definitely noticed a second Jessica Lange in the audience watching "Life on Mars."  She was dressed as a clown.  Hmmmmm.  http://youtu.be/VG_BVE2VjJw?t=1m21s

 

And John Carroll's work is incredible - how expressive he is with just his eyes.  Amaze.

Like Bowie in Ashes to Ashes.

I don't know, the scene between Lobster Boy and Hausfrau seemed to be pleasurable to the woman, AND the man too.  He looked like it made him supremely happy!

Yeah, they all looked happy. I fully support it.

[Addlepated]

Like Bowie in Ashes to Ashes.

 

Same basic color scheme as Twisty, though.  He's grey (or maybe it was once white) with red, she was black/white/red.  Maybe he has mommy issues? 

 

ETA: Twisty's face is black and white.

 

Also, my husband thought that the brief scene of Lange as a clown was a flashback, and as she was singing, she was remembering that time. 

Edited October 10, 2014 by Addlepated

[hardy har]

I was stuck in traffic this morning and some radio station peeps were talking about the show, but they were being vague because one of the hosts hadn't watched yet and didn't want to be spoiled. Anyway, when they got to Lobster Boy's special talent the women on the panel went in to a hilarious mini-freak out/rant that basically boiled down to "Why does that make him special?!?!? You can do that with a regular hand!" They got so worked up while the poor other host was like WTF are you talking about? Anyway, I was laughing hysterically in my car and I'm sure other drivers thought I was nuts.

 

I'm a bit confused too on that... but I'm just assuming it had drugs in it, otherwise how would Elsa get the candy striper uniform AND access to Bette/Dot?

 

I still think Candystriper was drugged and raped at the Freak Show, I don't know where anyone is getting that the Lucky Strikes were laced with Opium. Though.....if that turned out to be true it wouldn't surprise me. And.......how did Candy Striper even find the place???? The card just had a name and no address. Did Elsa coldcock her, take her uniform, toss her in the trunk of the car, do some rounds, drive back to the freak show and let her out?

 

Like you I am mystified about how Elsa got the uniform and how no one noticed the (No offense to the amazing JL) old lady candy stripper who seemed to constantly be visiting the super secret patients.

 

The whole orgy business is fuzzy to me. I think the premise is that the candy striper is a bad girl who is not at all impressed with the backwater town she lives in and thinks she's much tougher than she is. She gets sucked into Elsa's weirdness and the idea of stepping outside the bounds of same backwater town and goes willingly to the Cabinet of Curios but finds herself in way over her head. I mean, the way she was yelling at Elsa about going back to her home and her church was what tipped me off to 'someone bit off way more than she could chew and is now hugely ashamed of her actions.'

 

But the drugs really make it all hazy especially for us in this day and age where consent continues to be such a significant issue. She looked all drug addled on the film (by the way, that film seemed to be on a loop. It looked to me to be a lot of the same shots over and over... especially the lingering ones on her face) and her "I liked it" response to watching it made me go 'Of course you liked it! You were riddled with opium!' (Come on, look at all the trouble opium caused in Tombstone!)

Eh, I don't know. My issue with it was she was was obviously upset and she didn't come to any realization that she "liked it" until Elsa told her she did and played the film clip. Like, she herself didn't have a memory on liking it, if anything she most definitely did not, but she's shown a film where she's smiling and then convinces herself she did like it. Which . . . is super awful. Oh, god is Ryan Murphy gonna do a thing where the "freaks" treat a "normal" person like shit as some sort of payback? All that being said, I do think the "backwater girl bitting off more than she can chew" is probably what RM was going for, it's just coming across and ......rapey to me so far.

 

Well, she was pimping out her son to lonely housewives, so she might be good in the sense that she didn't participate in the cop dismemberment, but...

 

American Horror Story: Where a mother pimping out her son with physical deformities is the most sympathetic character. Wednesdays on FX!

Edited October 10, 2014 by hardy har

[Helena Dax]

Is the clown really wearing a mask? Because I think that's his face and that's his real mouth and his real teeth, meaning he's literally a monster. (In fact, didn't we see him opening his mouth in one of the  previews? Am I remembering it wrong?. I'm confused. But my point: I think there's no mask).

[Wickedeve]

Yay for watching SISTERS! LOL. If I can encourage any kind of DePalma renaissance, I will consider my time on earth complete. <G>

 

<<By being in the freak show, they reminded me of the Hiltons, but in physiology, they reminded me of the Hensel twins.>>

I actually wondered if they chose to use the two heads instead of "joined at the hip" because it was easier to accomplish with special effects. And also because it goes along with the whole telepathy thing, with their heads being closer together.

 

Another note: if any of you are close to New York, I think that the revival of Side Show will be on Broadway soon.

[Deanie87]

When the show started and black screen stated Jupiter Florida, Mr. Islandgal said "Florida,of course!" LOL!!

Ha! My husband saw that and asked if it was a documentary!

As soon as I heard Kathy Bates say "Hon," I knew for sure she was from Baltimore.

I think I am going to have the same problem here that I did with Asylum. People with mental issues and physical deformities have historically been treated horribly and I am not entirely comfortable with Murphy's treatment of them. I appreciate that he attempts to make them fully fleshed out individuals and can write them sympathetically. And yet it's Ryan Murphy and things always seem to go waaay over the top.

[Zanne]

I definitely noticed a second Jessica Lange in the audience watching "Life on Mars."  She was dressed as a clown.

 

 

I agree with the poster who said it was a flashback. I took it as Elsa watching a film of her singing/performing from sometime in her youth because they also showed the other freaks in another tent staring at something (probably the dead cop's body when they were figuring out what to do with it). It's what everyone got up to after the actual show.

[RazzleberryPie]

As soon as I heard Kathy Bates say "Hon," I knew for sure she was from Baltimore.

The way she said "Hon" and "Home" (hyohm or hyume) - and she said some thing like "aren't" (ornt) that were straight up, overexaggerated Baldmerese. Maybe the accent was thicker in the 50s when people were just getting TV and a more homogenized American accent vs. regional. That, or she's channeling John Travolta in Hairspray. 

 

I also agree with the poster who said she looked like Chaz Bono with the beard and slicked back side-parted hair.

 

Back to Peppermint girl - talking about this show with some relatives at Friday family dinner, and of course the older generation (65+) is horrified we watched it, but then two older uncles (Italian born, 80+) snickered, and said that of COURSE Peppermint Girl was taken advantage of. That's what makes carnivales and carnies so scary, the freaks/geeks are pitiful, but the dregs and criminals that attached themselves to carnivals are to be expected. People steal the men's money and the women's virtue. Carnivals always had some kind perversion - strippers or women who did perverse things, prostitutes of both genders, etc. Tons of horror stories of gypsies who kidnapped young girls, forced them into drugs and prostitution, and then returned them home when they were pregnant, thus bringing shame upon their families, etc.

 

To them, all that was much scarier than a clown who stabs people. 

[rho]

I actually thought the CGI with Sarah Paulson was pretty damn good. That's got to be a pretty tough thing to pull off and there were only a couple of shots where I thought it looked fake. That said, I think the two-headed character is going to be the toughest sell of this show for people who aren't automatically inclined to watch because of the previous seasons. They spoiled the whole thing in the promo spots  before the revelation in the pilot so they really ruined it, and I'm sure a lot of people who saw those promo spots sort of snickered and made their decision not to watch based on that.

 

I work in TV/film so spoilers don't bother me but I'm also not the type to seek them out. I caught the trailer for the show while watching The League on FXX so I knew all about Sarah Paulson's character. It made the ten minute buildup totally useless from a storytelling perspective because the reveal was spoiled by even a casual watcher.

I thought the CGI was good but there is a tiny aspect that irks me. Anytime she turns her head there are tiny wrinkles on both Bette's and Dot's neck. The wrinkles are always on the same side, usually the right. If they were realisticalyl capturing the folds of the skin, their necks would be mirrored. If Bette is stretching her head away from Dot, the wrinkles would be on her right side and on the left side of Dot's neck. The skin between their necks would be too taut for the skin to fold that way. It's such a tiny oversight but it bothered me the whole time I watched the show.

[RazzleberryPie]

If they have four separate lungs, how can one inhale smoke and the other exhale?

[Madding crowd]

I thought the clown was scary but the rest of show was kind of dull. I already somehow knew about both Sarah and Evan's characters so no surprises. The strongest scene for me was the clown throwing things at the cage, and the terror on the faces of his captives. I'm glad I'm not the only one who felt the music drowned out the conversation.

 

The movie was very grainy but I had the feeling peppermint girl was kidnapped, drugged and raped. She was drugged so Jessica could get at the Siamese twins (their wording), and then raped for fun. I'm guessing we are not supposed to like anyone yet (except for perhaps some of the freaks who we don't know much about), and it might be a problem for me.  I also don't believe for a minute these 50's suburban housewives would have anything to do with Lobster boy. Maybe an underground sex club, but not at a faux Tupperware party. I also don't see how he could do anything a normal person couldn't do, but I admit I'm not up on my perversions like I should be (joke).