S04.E05: Pink Cupcakes

[Avaleigh]

Still think Dandy is sexy after Dora stated that he leaves stains in that underwear? lol It's the first thing I thought about when he was stripped down to his briefs doing pushups and whatnot.

 

 

Lol, and we know it's true because Dandy was way too offended. 

[Helena Dax]

 

Have we met one positive gay male character in this show?

Matt Bomer?

[Dirtybubble]

Other than Precious and AHS, I haven't seen Sidibe in anything to judge if she's always terrible. I didn't think she was that bad in her scene during this episode, but of course, it was very limited screen time and just reading lines over the phone.

I thought Sidibe was WONDERFUL in Coven.  As far as her few mins on last episode...enh I blame it on writing.  It seemed a bit odd for her to say "I'm having a wonderful time at such-n-such school in NY."  If you were speaking naturally you wouldn't say all that stuff on a casual phone call.  I get the writers put it in as an exposition for her character (I guess) but it just seemed odd.  But I don't blame the actress for that.  I say give her another chance next week.

[RazzleberryPie]

Matt Bomer?

Well technically he was a prostitute who was also having an affair with a married man, so I don't think he could be considered a positive gay character.

[LoneHaranguer]

 

It seemed a bit odd for her to say "I'm having a wonderful time at such-n-such school in NY."  If you were speaking naturally you wouldn't say all that stuff on a casual phone call.

I couldn't believe such clunky writing made it on screen. It should have at least been split, perhaps saying just "I'm having a wonderful time at <name of school>", and the response being to ask what/where that was or saying something like "oh yes, your mother said were going to school in NY".

[luvgoldens]

Ha!  So Frances Conroy, the mom from Six Feet Under, is supervising the digging of Dora's grave to be Twelve Feet Under!

[DrSparkles]

I couldn't believe such clunky writing made it on screen. It should have at least been split, perhaps saying just "I'm having a wonderful time at <name of school>", and the response being to ask what/where that was or saying something like "oh yes, your mother said were going to school in NY".

Yeah, but wasn't that THE place for young ladies? Prestigious?

[Zima]

Still think Dandy is sexy after Dora stated that he leaves stains in that underwear? lol It's the first thing I thought about when he was stripped down to his briefs doing pushups and whatnot.

Yes....and I am ashamed. 

[Gemma Violet]

My understanding is that Dot and Bette are loosely based on the real-life conjoined twins Daisy and Violet Hilton. 

 

I think they're really based on Abby and Brittany Hensel, but I don't think Ryan Murphy would say that publicly since Abby and Brittany are still living.  The Hilton Sisters each had their own separate body, whereas Abby and Brittany share one body outwardly like Dot and Bette.  

 

Edited November 8, 2014 by Gemma Violet

[bunnywithanaxe]

 

 

Other than Precious and AHS, I haven't seen Sidibe in anything to judge if she's always terrible. I didn't think she was that bad in her scene during this episode, but of course, it was very limited screen time and just reading lines over the phone.

 

 

She was in The Big C, and IMO she nearly stole the show.

I think the scene was clodhoppingly written, as suggested above, and perhaps she hasn't yet learned the knack of making horrible dialogue sound authentic. I have faith that  she will impress us as things progress.

Edited November 8, 2014 by bunnywithanaxe

[Snookums]

The townspeople quickly forgot they came to the show to make amends, didn't they?

 

 

I got the distinct impression Stanley paid them off to boo her. He tried the whole "I'll make ya a TV Star!" routine with Elsa but she's too snobby, so he makes sure she sees what she really is--a wannabe/never was performing in hick towns in a tent. He broke her delusion of starhood inside her own mind so she had to turn to him to repair/replace it. 

 

Unfortunately, Stanley's plans all tend to blow up in his face. Not only did he not get the twins to eat the cupcakes, but Elsa saw them--her rivals! MIEN GOTT!--in his car and that led to her selling them off so they can't take her "shot." Stanley's got no use for Elsa as a freak--he doesn't even know she's using prosthetic legs--so his ploy drove away what he most wanted to keep.

 

Also, if his dream life is any indication, he sucks and preserving/understanding what a museum dedicated to human oddities would want. Yes, the heads are cool, but they'd shell out four times as much for the intact body--half the interest is in how the internal organs are configured! 

 

I hope Stanley and his third leg end up as an exhibit.

[Guest Accused Dingo]

Have we met one positive gay male character in this show?

 

 

But this isn't exactly a show where you find positive roll models.   I think the best you can hope for is people like anyone else.  No better no worse.   Honestly I would rather a character like Del then someone like Kurt.   Far more entertaining.   Hell even Season 2 Lana Winters ended up having a seriously dark turn towards the end and that made her interesting as all hell.  

[Bruinsfan]

Wow, I'm amazed by that video of the Hensel Twins. I'd read that conjoined twins with that degree of fusion had never survived more than a few hours, and assumed that Dot and Bette were an impossible exaggeration for dramatic purposes.

Have we met one positive gay male character in this show? If not, shouldn't we be a bit perturbed by this fact? Or is AHS not to be taken that seriously?

Aside from Matt Bomer's ill-fated hooker, wasn't Leslie Jordan's character from last season about the least objectionable of the witches after Stevie Nicks? Not exactly positive, but on this show such characters are pretty thin on the ground overall.

[JakeyJokes]

That was a delightful episode to watch with my parents in my room. Not. (They have DVR so I watch it at their house)

 

I hope we get a flashback with Patti LaBelle, because I don't know why they cast her and gave her such little to do. Frances Conroy is making the show for me this season. She's just as funny here as she was as Myrtle, and that's saying something. Her line about "It's 1952! You can't just kill vagrants on the street anymore. People begin to miss them" slayed me.

 

Finn Wottrock has a BANGING body and yet I resent the show because I feel that they want us, the audience, to be attracted to him and then feel sick about it.

[shelley1234]

 

The two of them are terrible and I also think Michael Chiklis is god awful.

 

I usually like him, but thought he was dreadful in the episode.  When he was talking to Bomer's character in the bar it just felt so fake and over the top.  It reminded me of people the first week in acting/drama class when they try out some dramatic scene.  Brutal.  

[Captanne]

Some of the acting has been painful.  Thus far, the character I've liked the most, by far, is Mordrake.  He fit into my childhood images of horror absolutely perfectly -- like a key in a lock.  Second, in order, is (was) Twisty.  Again, right into my closet o' horrors.

 

However, the clairvoyant, the strong man and Manbaby have all made my ears bleed for the bad acting.  Even the hermaphrodite has had her moments of Acting 101.  

 

As a museum director, I'm getting particular amusement out of the brief moments we're getting in the Gallery of Oddities in New York (New York, right?)  That docent is marvelous on a lot of levels.  (I love how she balances giving tours with gallery openings and dunning folks for money.  Welcome to my life.)

 

ETA:  Super cool about the Hensel twins.  I remember watching that whole show a long time ago.  They are fascinating and such neat midwestern girls in their portrayal.  They have to be the example for Dot and Bette.

Edited November 8, 2014 by Captanne

[A Boston Gal]

BruinsFan, this is my first season with AHS, so I defer to everyone else's opinion on the matter of what constitutes a "positive" portrayal on this program.

[cheatincheetos]

I couldn't believe such clunky writing made it on screen. It should have at least been split, perhaps saying just "I'm having a wonderful time at <name of school>", and the response being to ask what/where that was or saying something like "oh yes, your mother said were going to school in NY".

Clunky was the word for it all right. It reminded me of the stilted line reading in John Waters' older movies like 'Female Trouble'.

[bunnywithanaxe]

Ha! Good call!

People keep mentioning Waters here and there, and Waters himself said his clunky, stilted dialogue is an homage to Douglas Sirk's artificial dialogue-- think it might be a deliberate nod?

Frances Conroy definitely walked straight out of a Sirk/ Waters co- production-- maybe Sidhibe's character is Perky Gal Friday / Doris Day in the Big City or something.

Edited November 8, 2014 by bunnywithanaxe

[fliptopbox]

I dunno if anyone has mentioned it, but why did Elsa take the twins to Dandy's house? Elsa was going on and on about them being on tv....but ends up at a mansion. What?

 

Gabourey's acting was terrible. No one is that fake on the phone with someone they know. Even if they're uncomfortable. Bad dialogue + bad acting = just bad. I also agree it's probably her acting that isn't getting her many jobs, cos you see other fat actresses getting work. I tend to think Howard Stern might be right about this one.

 

Stanley and his pink cupcake delusions were interesting....but having been to places like the Mutter Museum in Philly, I'd guess a museum would be far more interested in the twins' whole body, not only their heads. You would think Stanley would know that. I suppose his presence also explains why Ma Petit is being drowned in a large specimen jar. She's probably next, now that the twins have been moved out of his reach. Not sure if this will bode well for them or not.

 

Desiree as a full on lady was surprising, but Del being gay was not. I also feel for the good ol doc, cos he certainly didn't deserve Del's attack. It'd be awesome to see him healed and back in action by the end of the season. Just to spite Del.

[Pixel]

I dunno if anyone has mentioned it, but why did Elsa take the twins to Dandy's house? Elsa was going on and on about them being on tv....but ends up at a mansion. What?

She was lying to them. She was convinced they were stealing her chance at fame, so she's trying to get rid of them so she can shine brightly again.

As far as Del being gay being a surprise: When asked what his wife having both lady and man parts made him, he responded ,"The happiest guy in the world." So no, I'm not even a little surprised he was seeking the company of men. I agree it was telegraphed.

Edited November 9, 2014 by Pixel

[sheetmoss]

And didn't Breaking Bad teach us that you can't dissolve a body in acid in a bathtub? :)

 

Probably in the minority here, but I think Gabourey is an awful actress. I was cringing all through her phone interaction with Frances Conroy. Not looking forward to seeing more of her this season.

Let's hope Dandy  doesn't  kill her, look at how long it took for skinny Matt Bomer to be taken care of... we'll have to set the DVR for add'l runtime.

[blaase]

Plus a good chance to make some money, 15,000 was a lot back then.

She was lying to them. She was convinced they were stealing her chance at fame, so she's trying to get rid of them so she can shine brightly again.

As far as Del being gay being a surprise: When asked what his wife having both lady and man parts made him, he responded ,"The happiest guy in the world." So no, I'm not even a little surprised he was seeking the company of men. I agree it was telegraphed.

[Dewey Decimate]

I think this is the first AHS ep I've saved for a second viewing. And by viewing I mean ogling.

 

As soon as Matt Bomer's name appeared as a guest, I knew he'd be a red shirt. A dark, sexy red shirt whose shirt (gratefully) did not remain on for too long.

 

The music was divine, if anachronistic. Kooky David Bowie is perfect for this funhouse mirror of a show, and "Slave to Love" made me melt like a buttery grilled cheese sandwich.

 

I want Del to be flayed alive and tortured in the worst of ways for what he did to the doctor. He was the only sweet, shining person in this show without guilt, questionable motives, or evil intent, and Del has to go and ruin it. THIS IS WHY WE CAN'T HAVE NICE THINGS!

 

Dandy's solipsistic moment in his freaky playroom was, er... yummy. Even the quick cut to his bloody murder physique during mommy's phone call got me all a-fluttery. Like many else here, I immediately thought of Patrick Bateman, another mesmerizingly hot psychopath. (What the hell is wrong with me that my lady bits feel all tingly at these horrifically insane torture-murderers?? Good grief, I even find Jeremy Renner creepily alluring as Jeffrey Dahmer. I need some deprogramming. Or at least a support group.)

[beaker73]

 

Finn Wottrock has a BANGING body and yet I resent the show because I feel that they want us, the audience, to be attracted to him and then feel sick about it.

It's working.

[Mattipoo]

The poor doctor! He clearly doesn't deserve to have his fingers broken like that by Del especially since he is the only doctor who will help the freaks.

Dandy is becoming my favorite villain of all the AHS seasons so far. I like that he puts on the Twisty mask when he kills.

Poor Matt Bomer. Much too pretty to be murdered and decapitated so quickly!

Jessica Lange's character this season is my least favorite of all her characters so far on AHS, as I feel Elas Mars has no redeeming qualities whatsoever and she is not even fun like the neighbor from Murder House, or sympathetic like the nun from Asylum, or even glamorous and bitchy like Fiona from Coven.

Gabourey Sidibe is an okay actress. I don't think she is the best but as long as she is not given anything too complicated to work with, she's fine. I find her acting similar to another Oscar nominee/winner Jennifer Hudson, who also hasn't done anything of note since her breakthrough film ("dream girls"). Hudson was also just good casting for that one film like Gabourey was for "Precious" but then I think Hollywood finds it hard to give overweight African american actresses good roles so they languish in mediocre movies after their moment of glory.

[Captanne]

I find ManBaby revolting and nearly unwatchable on all levels but whatever.  Matt Bomer was so much better in his brief (ha) moment on AHS than anything he ever did on his "art theft show".  I never got a single vibe of bromance between those two actors on that.  I got the feeling the characters and the actors had fun and liked each other but nothing else.  (And, God NO to the wife on that show.  Nothing.  Bupkiss.  Not a frisson of anything other than, "Why?  I don't get it.")

 

However, on AHS, Bomer was adorable.  I loved him in the gay bar and his astonishment at Del's protestations of love.  He totally sold the "I'm a hooker.  Johns fall in love with me every ten minutes.  You can't possibly be serious."  And then that hint of, "Are you?  Serious?  No.  No way."  That whole debate going on in his mind behind the lines.  That was neat.  I think Bomer has genuine talent.

[manbearpig]

Gabourey's acting was terrible. No one is that fake on the phone with someone they know. Even if they're uncomfortable. Bad dialogue + bad acting = just bad. I also agree it's probably her acting that isn't getting her many jobs, cos you see other fat actresses getting work. I tend to think Howard Stern might be right about this one.

 

Sidibe isn't hurting for work, though, she's worked pretty steadily since Precious. After that movie she got a recurring and then regular role on The Big C, then American Horror Story, and now she's juggling Freakshow with a recurring role on Empire, with a bunch of movies in between.

 

I thought the phonecall between Conroy and Sidibe was pretty funny. I liked how instantly uncomfortable Sidibe's character was, and I'm looking forward to seeing her pop up again this season.

[Captanne]

manbearpig, I loved the "uncomfortable" part, too, and I thought Sidibe Gabouray (sp?) was great getting the undertones across.

 

I'm no apologist -- white, black, fat, thin, Martian, Vulcan -- macht nicht to me providing the casting makes basic sense.  But, I thought she was remarkably funny in that scene.  

 

Btw, I've never seen her in anything else.  I thought Coven was pretty dull throughout so she gets a break from me for that.  LOL  (Although, for some reason, I thought the "Zombies on the Lawn" was hilarious.  Go figure.)

[Princess Sparkle]

 

Have we met one positive gay male character in this show? If not, shouldn't we be a bit perturbed by this fact? Or is AHS not to be taken that seriously?

 

I think in the grand scheme of things, Zachary Quinto's character in murder house was a pretty good guy -  a control freak, but not a bad person.

 

But yeah, one character from the first season isn't really a stellar track record.  But to be fair, as someone mentioned above, pretty much every character in every season is a shitty human being, so at least it's par for the course.

[Bruinsfan]

I'd say wanting to kill a couple's baby so you could keep it as a ghost and save your crumbling relationship in the afterlife disqualifies you from the ranks of good guys.

[Princess Sparkle]

Oh crap, I forgot about that part.  Which says so much about this show that so much insanity happens in a season, that "trying to kill a baby"  doesn't even register as a blip for me to remember.

Edited November 10, 2014 by Princess Sparkle

[iMonrey]

 

That's what I was thinking too panthergirl13, but then I thought, maybe whatever liquid was in the syringe would somehow breakdown once it's heated at a certain temperature and not be affective anymore?

 

I don't know how baking the poison would affect it, but it's likely to permeate the entire cupcake with its flavor which would give it away. If you can taste it the second you bite into it (and perhaps even smell it beforehand), you're going to spit it right back out again.

[cheatincheetos]

I was kind of hoping for some Dandy/Matt Bomer sexytime.

If Dandy feels any sexual attraction, I think it's mainly toward himself. I could be proven wrong, of course. He was pretty much fondling himself on that mattress during the workout scene. It goes along with his "I can't hear you over the sound of my own awesomeness" delusions.

[cheatincheetos]

People keep mentioning Waters here and there, and Waters himself said his clunky, stilted dialogue is an homage to Douglas Sirk's artificial dialogue-- think it might be a deliberate nod?
 

Gator Nelson (halting monotone): "I'm going to Detroit and find happiness...within the auto industry."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGgfDPEba8w

[bunnywithanaxe]

HA!

I was thinking of the phenomenal actress Lili Taylor talking like someone out of a breakfast cereal ad all through Pecker.

Edited November 11, 2014 by bunnywithanaxe

[cheatincheetos]

HA!

I was thinking of the phenomenal actress Lili Taylor talking like someone out of a breakfast cereal ad all through Pecker.

Sometimes it's almost like the robot voice that would read out the current time when you called the bank, back in the day.

[Mattipoo]

The music they used this episode (Fame by Bowie, Slave to Love by Roxy Music) was pretty anachronistic to me. I wonder if there is a "time travel" element to this season. That would actually be kind interesting, i.e. The characters are somehow living in the present time but pretending/thinking they are living in the 1950s.

[Beezel]

She got really lucky with the role that won her an Oscar, probably because it was something she sort of lived through.

 

I can't believe I'm defending her because I wasn't blown away by Precious (Monique was brilliant in it and deserved every award she won though), but no, Sidibe did not win an Oscar (I don't think anyone really though she seriously would) and she's just obese-she wasn't raped by her father, beaten by her mom and all the other stuff she went through in that movie-she was acting, she didn't live through any of it for real. If anything, being black is as much if not more of a hindrance to her getting work-Melissa McCarthy is fat, seems to have a one note shtick and isn't hurting for work.

 

It's been quite a while, but I remember being more impressed with Monique as well. However, while it does seem like Sidibe has gotten consistent work since that film ( and admittedly, McCarthy is more successful, though I agree she sticks to the same thing in every movie she's in), I do find it disconcerting that people seem to assume she wasn't acting at all as Precious. I mean, I think it's fair enough to question whether she's held up on a pedestal because of her race and weight and how it contributed to the buzz that surrounded her one real successful role. I honestly haven't seen enough of her to know with certainty how I feel about her acting these days (haven't watched Coven), but just because she's obese and black doesn't mean it's a given she's had the same experiences as Precious. Also, I don't feel it calls for people to ridicule her body  just because she's a shit actress. I get it, it's Hollywood and she's putting herself out there. Of course,  Sidibe isn't the norm by any stretch on TV, but I don't find her disgusting because she's fat AND a bad actress. The latter is the important thing, and honestly, it's hard to know on the basis of that scene because it was short, terribly written, and Conroy was KILLING it. 

 

Also, thank you show, for giving us more Dandy. In his underwear, no less.

 

I can't find the quote, but while the show might want us to feel uncomfortable with the fact that Dandy is super attractive and depraved, I'm not loosing any sleep over it myself. 

Edited November 13, 2014 by Beezel