S04.E13: Curtain Call

[Avaleigh]

I didn't like it but at this point I expect to not like AHS finales--I've found every single one of them to be disappointing and this was no exception.

 

That being said--I actually thought Dandy's death was appropriate. Sure, it would have been nice to see blood, but he was obviously terrified and it wasn't quick so I liked that aspect of it. He was stripped, nearly naked, vulnerable, terrified and I thought it was wonderful. He kept thinking that something would save him or that he could buy his way out of the predicament. And then the childish, "I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!" I definitely enjoyed watching this scene and wouldn't have been as satisfied with seeing him get sawn in half because we already had that happen to a character. 

 

I don't mind Jimmy, Desiree, and the twins getting happy endings even though they're all technically murderers. I am curious though how Jimmy and the twins will make a living and I wish that had been addressed because they're making it seem like they have this happy suburban existence and I'm wondering how they're able to afford it.

 

I feel the same way about Elsa. I personally never got worked up over Elsa killing Ethel because Elsa was in a kill or be killed situation. Ethel was seconds away from shooting her so Elsa threw the knife but only after she tried to talk and reason with Ethel. Should Elsa seriously have just stood there and let Ethel shoot her? To me that just goes against human nature.

 

Still, I thought there'd be some sort of twist to Elsa's afterlife like maybe she wouldn't be the star of the afterlife show or maybe she'd get boos as opposed to applause. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop and nothing happened so that was a little bit of a letdown. 

 

What I really found hard to swallow was the whole Hollywood success storyline. To me they made it seem way too easy for her. Then I'm supposed to believe that Hedda Hopper was responsible for Elsa's downfall because Elsa and her studio couldn't simply deny that she's the woman on the film that should be illegal to circulate anyway? I didn't think any of this made any sense. And then to have the Danny Huston character come back for no reason--she's successful and she hasn't seen him in all this time and now her heart is breaking because her last friend in the world is dying? Why hadn't they seen each other at all in the time in between?  

 

The massacre of the freaks was sad but I felt like some of them could have tried a bit harder to run/hide/live. Penny just kneeling there and not even attempting to fight or run for it? I kept thinking that if they banded together they could tackle him to the ground and get the gun away from him. There were a lot of people there. What happened to Desiree's gun as another poster asked? 

 

I was most bummed about the death of Amazon Eve. I cheered when she punched Dandy in the nose. I too was puzzled as to why she abandoned the axe. 

 

A small thing but it annoyed me--How did Dandy get the fat woman (I can't remember her name, I apologize) into the show room with the others? Even if she'd fallen into a wagon after he'd shot her that shit would be impossible. 

 

I liked Paul but how stupid was it of him to ask for the last month's wages from a guy who is so obviously unhinged and had just been assaulted by the freaks? It's like guys, it's time to go, you're free to leave, why are you still there?

[ShadowHunter]

I agree the finale was more then half of a goodbye to Jessica Lange which is funny because I found all the scene's with her in Hollywood to be boring. She is a good actress but I always found Ryan got lost in his favoritism of her. I liked it better in the first season when she was more of a great supporting character. 

 

I also felt this season didn't need Maggie. Stanley would have been enough. Considering how happy all the people on Twitter and Tumblr who shipped Jimmy and Dot all season were that they ended up together I am not alone in thinking that.

 

Ryan has Scream Queens, American Crime Story, and Season 5 to now work on. Something is going to suffer lol. I guess Sarah could work on both shows but she may have less to do in S5.. Evan has a bigger role in the next X-Men movie so depending on when that films that also might impact the next season for him.

 

I agree I do not know what the hell Jimmy and the twins were doing to earn money. Maybe they stole it from Dandy lol.  I also wonder if Desiree keeps in touch with Jimmy and the twins. Its not important but considering all they went through I hope they are all friends still.

[ThatGreyCat]

I wasn't crazy about the finale but didn't hate it.  I would have liked to see more of Edward Mondrake and Twisty.  But this is driving me crazy - what exactly did they do to Stanley??  It looked like they cut off his arms and/or legs, but he also was making clucking chicken noises, right?  Did they turn him into a chicken/human hybrid?  How?  I need to know, lol!

 

I hope Finn Wittrock is back next season in some capacity.  IMO, he really stole the show this year, loved watching him even when his character was at his most heinous.

[ShadowHunter]

If Finn is back next season he has to be a really different character. He would have to be the good guy. I do not want to see Dandy 2.0.

[JellyFishQueen]

So Flipper boy and Lizard girl are just adorable together.

 

Did they make a connection to Murder house in the finale here? Because Jessica Lange played an actress in hollywood who never got much fame. So I wonder if Freak Show was actually her backstory of that character? Sort of prequel to her character to murder house or am I just being far fetch?

 

Also I hope the character of Flipper boy (Awful with character names and actor names) gets voice over work. Him telling Danny off was AMAZING! Seriously I want him to narrate a video game or read a audio book or just something. His voice is amazing to my ears can you imange how bad ass he would be doing a Batman character?

 

Also with the new season? I'm not sure if I'm going to watch... Depends on what will happen and based on the trailer. Because I really don't want to see Sarah Paulson. I don't get the love for her; or Jessica Lange, her characters tend to be a rehash of previous seasons and the only season that didn't follow a formula was murder house.

Edited January 22, 2015 by JellyFishQueen

[basil]

Watching Dandy mow down the freaks five minutes in with the super magical gun he never had to reload was atrocious.

 

 

That didn't bother as much as why he did it. (I just figured he had more than one gun).

 

My question is - if Mordrake didn't take Elsa, who did he take? 

[gesundheit]

I really wasn't bothered by the gun -- it wasn't a real-time continuous scene, there were dozens of reloading opportunities, I would have been bored watching them and also distracted by always knowing how many bullets were left.

 

I do think they rushed the finale while dragging out some earlier plots; I wish this material could have been stretched over two episodes.

 

I hope some of the newbies cast just for their physicality for the freakshow will continue on to do more acting in the regular AHS ensemble. Especially Mat Fraser and Erika Ervin. I'd love room to be made for them on the payroll by jettisoning Roberts and Sidibe for good.

[Avaleigh]

Maybe they stole it from Dandy lol

 

 

I just remembered that Dandy and Bette were married so I'm guessing they have Dandy's money now. Nice.

[LoneHaranguer]

 

All the freaks get shot by a stinking little pea shooter that in no way has enough bullets for the body count. Dandy only drowns. Really? REALLY! Why couldn’t they have sawn him in half? Dandy had too easy of a death.

Movie heroes of the time had magic guns that never needed reloading and were uncanny at killing someone with a single shot, no matter how far away they were (as long as they weren't hiding behind something wooden).  Dandy must have had one of those. I agree that the style of Dandy's death could have been chosen a lot better, but I think the writers were focused on having the group sitting eating popcorn while he died. If they had given Maggie anywhere near a plausible death, they could have saved the saw for Dandy, with newcomer Penny wielding it while the others watched, and applauded when she was done.

[CPP83]

That didn't bother as much as why he did it. (I just figured he had more than one gun).

 

 

 

The "atrocious" was in regards to why he did it. The gun part was annoying but just watching him kill them all the way he did was-revolting. And just the way that he hunted them down like scared lambs didn't fit at all with how, imo, they would have responded to such a threat.

 

The sounds of gunshots ringing through the camp and yet everyone either went into hiding or merely kept wandering around casually until Dandy fired a bullet into their skulls. It just seemed like such a cheap way to wrap up loose ends.

[islandgal140]

Worst. Season. Ever.  Da fuck did I just watch? 

 

I found the twins marry Dandy scenes really confusing at first because there was no transition between how it went from twins tied up to them walking down the aisle and Dot declaring her love that it felt like a dream or fantasy sequence. Didn't help that the scene itself was saturated with color and seemed a bit hazy. I was half expecting it to morph into what was really happening - like Dandy torturing them somehow in an utterly horrific fashion.  

 

I thought the only effective scene was the freak show massacre, magic bullets notwithstanding. I literally gasped when he shot his first victim. Also Dandy going after the woman with no legs in the cafeteria tent was an American (and Parisian) Horror Story given recent gun violence in the world. That was truly harrowing.

 

I always get a kick out of Finn's pigeon-toed stride. 

 

I feel bad that Elsa was the character that Jessica went out on. What a mess from the accent, to the story to those terrible Bowie renditions. I won't even go into the spiel about how could a 50+ nobody roll into Hollywood in the '60's and not only be given a starring vehicle on primetime TV but become a huge star worthy of a Walk of Fame. Everyone here said it better.

 

Now that Jessica is gone, I really hope Murphy decides to pass the crown to Frances Conroy. She may not seem as glamorous as Lange but Frances is always flawless on this series. This may seem like blasphemy but I always think she would have made a far more believable and effective Sister Jude.

[JellyFishQueen]

I think the only reason why Elsa didn't go to hell in this season because she went to hell last season in coven and I wonder if the writers thought we couldn't repeat that.

 

How come the first murder clown (Forgot his name) didn't go to heaven as well though? He seem more of a victim; I wish he was part of the new heaven circus with Elsa troupe instead of being in Hell.

[Snookums]

The problem with the season is the same I had with Coven. No main or major story arc to follow. With Murder house you had everything circling around the Harmons with Asylum it was Kit and Lana but with Coven and Freak Show there was no coherent storyline. Every time something got interesting (Dandy and Twisty, Freaks vs The Town. Etc). The show veered off in another direction often to something far less interesting.

AHS is a fun show but it does need a story at its core to keep it solid.

 

 

So true. If you're going to have a tornado for a show it's got to be a tornado on a leash--there has to be a point where all the crazed pigeons of plot come back to roost. Otherwise it's just a series of disconnected vignettes and you can't even track how the characters know each other, let alone why they're doing all the crazy shit they're doing.

 

I too thought maybe the twins (or Bette, specifically) got Dandy's money but again--real world just ignored. They were "wed" less then six hours, I sincerely doubt any official papers like a marriage certificate were filed anywhere, and Dandy's body would clearly show both death by drowning and restraint marks. Add cojoined twins who are already suspects in their mother's murder and NOPE. The authorities are not just going to go oh, sure, help yourself to the piles of assets from your very suspiciously dead husband. Even if they ransacked the mansion for cash that wouldn't last forever. 

[xander874]

 

I don't mind Jimmy, Desiree, and the twins getting happy endings even though they're all technically murderers. I am curious though how Jimmy and the twins will make a living and I wish that had been addressed because they're making it seem like they have this happy suburban existence and I'm wondering how they're able to afford it.

I assume they got Dandy's money. Although it is weird to see them living the suburban life but I'm glad for them.

 

I hope that next season, after the theme is decided, someone locks the writers/creators in a room and won't let them out until they come up with a 13-episode arc for the show. I feel like every season they have this great opening and some idea of the end but then just plan along the way and end up with a convoluted mess. I almost think Ryan Murphy would really excel at a show with stand alone episodes and no serialization. All his shows tend to be this way.

 

I really liked the beginning and was totally digging the Glee ripoff (I will never not love JL doing Elsa Mars doing David Bowie) but then it got stupid and pointless. So much potential. Oh well, I guess I only have myself to blame. It's not like the other 3 AHS were any more continuously coherent.

[Primetimer]

The Freak Show finale accomplishes the impressive feat of being the most arbitrary, frustrating conclusion to a season of American Horror Story yet.

Read the story

[JenE4]

JellyFishQueen, on 22 Jan 2015 - 11:49 AM, said:

Also I hope the character of Flipper boy (Awful with character names and actor names) gets voice over work. Him telling Danny off was AMAZING!

 

Paul's line reading was good. But I was really taken out of the scene by his change in character as the scene was written. It made no sense to me whatsoever how he put up with Elsa for however many years and even was willing to stick it through with Chester after he sawed Maggie in half! And was earlier saying how they have no place else to go but to live in this freak show. And then suddenly because Dandy was saying the townsfolk have seen you all already, we might need to make you look a bit freakier to draw in the crowds, suddenly Paul was threatening Dandy, standing on him and spitting in his face, and all of them circling as if ready to attack? It just made no sense to me. Then, after doing all of this to Dandy and quitting, they think that they can just go about living on the grounds and in the trailers, etc., that Dandy paid for?! If you physically threaten your boss and quit, you don't get to stick around in your cubicle with your feet up on your desk, stealing your boss's lunch out of the office fridge! So, I didn't feel sorry for the freaks when Dandy shot them. What did you expect? I actually think he let them off pretty easy considering what we've seen him do to other bodies. So, yeah, the first half of the show didn't work for me because I found myself more on Dandy's "side" because of how the freaks quit, but also because I just looooooove the Dandy character.

Ok, so now most of the freaks are dead and we still have half the show to go?!? I kept dozing off during Elsa's half--but the parts that I were awake for were just excruciating--the singing (ugh!) and it was just all together terrible. I think that I pieced together what I missed based on the posts here. So her snuff film was exposed and her career was going to be over, but they let her have one last show? I woke up for her old boyfriend/prosthesis woodworker telling her that he was dying. Was she saying that she didn't want to be married to her husband and that she only did it for her career? I was unfortunately fully awake from her singing w/ Mordrake, on through the rest of the show. Like many of you, I also hated Elsa's ending. And I also thought that it was a third-rate Lost rip-off.

I was glad to see Malcolm Jamal Warner actually had a purpose on this show. And, ok, Jimmy and Dot are married/having a child. I guess that's nice (shrug). This was better than Coven because that season was just dreadful, but it just doesn't rank anywhere near Asylum (#1) or Murder House (#2). Granted, I'll tune in next season, because I always think there's hope starting from scratch. If Finn is back in a big role, then I will definitely watch.

[BrokenRemote]

I find I have mixed feelings, because I was screaming at the screen like most of you, things like 'how many bullets do you HAVE, Dandy??!?!' (I get he probably reloaded, but geez), 'where's the axe?',  'why can't Eve just break Dandy in two?', 'why would Elsa having her legs cut off against her will defeat the studio's morals clause and make America hate her?' and 'how did Jimmy and the twins get that nice house and why aren't the neighbors wondering who the hell they are?' But I still found myself smiling at the end.  Maybe it was just seeing all the freaks 'happy' in some way.  Man, I'm going to miss those actors.

 

And Jessica Lange is so darned beautiful, even at her age, that I find myself transfixed watching her. 

 

Earlier in the season I spent some time reading up on the lives and the careers of the actors playing the freaks.  Mat Fraser, especially, is amazing and has done so much great stuff; they've all done so much with their careers, really.  I hope this exposure gets them all more work in whatever type of projects they want.

Edited January 22, 2015 by BrokenRemote

[uoflfan]

The best thing about the finale was the return of Kathy Bates. Give that woman another Emmy. She steals every scene she's in.

[TVFan17]

I think that Coven was a worse season overall than Freak Show  -- although, admittedly, that could be because I had high hopes for a season about witches, and it got to be way too gory and over the top for my taste, whereas I had low expectations for a season about freaks and I ended up enjoying it more than I thought I would.

 

I didn't think this finale was great, in any way -- and I thought the Coven ending was worse.  However, I don't think the Freak Show finale bothered me as much as it seems to have bothered other people.  At this point, I just expect this show to be a mish-mash of nonsensical-but-interesting visuals, imagery and characters.   I kind of assume that everything but the kitchen sink is going to be thrown into each season, and that most of the time I will be asking myself, "Okay... why was that person even there?"  

 

So, on that level, this season and this finale delivered and met my expectations.  I still can't figure out if American Horror Story is a great show or a terrible show, but it is a beautiful hot mess that I will probably be watching again, come October (or whenever Season 5 debuts). 

 

AHS kind of reminds me of the old Twin Peaks phenomenon -- that show was a weird, nonsensical mess too.  No one I knew understood what was going on most of the time, and it was often not very satisfying (the whole Laura Palmer thing was dragged out too long).   But it was full of interesting visuals and bizarre, quirky scenes, and it was a big hit for a while.

Edited January 22, 2015 by Sherry67

[uoflfan]

Sherry67, you do know that Twin Peaks is coming back in 2016 on Showtime?

[basil]

If you physically threaten your boss and quit, you don't get to stick around in your cubicle with your feet up on your desk, stealing your boss's lunch out of the office fridge! So, I didn't feel sorry for the freaks when Dandy shot them. What did you expect?

 

 

Seriously? You didn't feel sorry for the lizard girl who cowered on her knees, waiting to be killed? You didn't feel sorry for the legless woman as she hopelessly tried to escape? Finally having enough, snapping, shoving your boss to the ground and spitting in his face might warrant jail time, but not a calculated mass murder.

 

The "atrocious" was in regards to why he did it. The gun part was annoying but just watching him kill them all the way he did was-revolting.

 

 

Sorry, I know what you meant and I agree. I'd written more but the post got eaten and I didn't rewrite the entire thing so I wasn't completely clear. Sorry about that. I'm appalled that anyone could think they got "off pretty easy" by simply being shot to death instead of some other gruesome manner for the crime of disrespecting one's (former) boss, who has already killed around a dozen other people for no reason at all before he started killing the freaks.

Edited January 22, 2015 by basil

[WordFreak]

I haven't posted anything lately, but I just had to, in response to this episode. For me, this finale was an overwhelming "meh," mixed with a large dose of "WTF."  What was the point of all of that?

 

The season started off with so much promise, especially due to Twisty. Seriously, that clown was the only scary thing this season, and they killed him off 4 episodes in.  Total downward spiral since then.

 

I enjoyed many of the characters, including Dandy (though I don't think his death was satisfying enough), Ethel, Amazon Eve, Paul and the other freaks, but it seemed like RM had no idea what to do with any of these characters.  What was the point of just murdering all of the characters? My hopes went up when NPH showed up, but his character kind of fizzled out too.  Meh.

 

This finale was just kind of there, and I'm not happy that Elsa got a happy ending. What had she done during the season to deserve that? She did so many awful things to so many people in this season, that I call bullshit on the ending. Also, the appearance of Twisty at the end just reminded me of how much better the show was when he was on.

 

Overall, a miss for me; at least we had the episode with Pepper's backstory, which was in my view, the best episode of the season.

[QueerGirrl]

The season started off with so much promise, especially due to Twisty. Seriously, that clown was the only scary thing this season, and they killed him off 4 episodes in.  Total downward spiral since then. 

 

Also, the appearance of Twisty at the end just reminded me of how much better the show was when he was on.

 

 

Agree 100% WordFreak.  Twisty was the best (and scariest) part of the whole season.  Finn Wittrock did a great job with Dandy, but him being the big bad for the rest of the season didn't pull me in.

[BrokenRemote]

I don't get the sentiment that characters in a story should get what they deserve.  Especially in a horror story.  Usually in horror stories perfectly innocent people get killed.  A lot.  Usually none of them deserve it, although we're often relieved of feeling that sentiment by the character making a stupid mistake or acting foolishly, which is enough for us to decide they did deserve it.  And the thing/person that killed them doesn't always get justice.  If every story ever written was resolved to karmic perfection then they wouldn't be as interesting in my opinion.  (And I say this after hearing a similar chain of sentiments on the boards for other shows I watch.)  Sure, it's satisfying when someone gets what's coming to them, but I would never go into a story expecting that to happen.  I'm not knocking anyone, I'm just really coming from such a different head space on the whole thing that I'm surprised.

[Chaos Theory]

I am not going to say anything more about this episode or this season because honestly i didn't love it or hate it. It just was. The heaven Ethel speech made me think of something I heard once though not sure where: "what a wonderful and terrible world we would live in if we all got what we deserved."

I am not sure I liked it more or less then Coven. There were things I liked about Coven and things I did not. Misty Days death was unfair but whoever said life was fair? Two different answers to the same question. What would life be like if it was fair?

Edited January 22, 2015 by Chaos Theory

[JenE4]

Seriously? You didn't feel sorry for the lizard girl who cowered on her knees, waiting to be killed? You didn't feel sorry for the legless woman as she hopelessly tried to escape? Finally having enough, snapping, shoving your boss to the ground and spitting in his face might warrant jail time, but not a calculated mass murder.

 

 

Sorry, I know what you meant and I agree. I'd written more but the post got eaten and I didn't rewrite the entire thing so I wasn't completely clear. Sorry about that. I'm appalled that anyone could think they got "off pretty easy" by simply being shot to death instead of some other gruesome manner for the crime of disrespecting one's (former) boss, who has already killed around a dozen other people for no reason at all before he started killing the freaks.

 

I was joking around with the office worker analogy. Obviously, they didn't "deserve" to be shot. My point was that Dandy was a psychopathic murderer who bathed in his mother's blood! Who slaughtered an entire tupperware party full of women! Who turned his mother and an Avon lady into a creepy two-headed puppet! (and so on) So I think "only" getting shot when they actually DID something to stoke Dandy's ire when these other "innocent" (in comparison) people were multilated post-mortum by him, was "getting off pretty easy" as to what I would have expected Dandy to do based on the build-up of the entire season. I think the show runners made a mistake by giving equal run-time to the folks back at Dandy's Cabinet of Curiosities and Elsa's storyline. The freaks should have been given more time to have had better deaths. Maybe they also "deserved" to suffer a more horrific fate not because of the spitting/quitting but because they were important enough to the show and Dandy should have been a progressively more horrific killer, so they should have each had a unique murder not just pow-pow-pow, everyone's dead now. Do you know what I mean?

[Broderbits]

It would have been so much more satisfying if they had gone all Tod Browning on Dandy's ass instead of doing it last week to Denis O'Hare's character. To make someone so physically beautiful "one of us" and leave him alive to star in the Freak Show he bought would have been a more fitting ending for him than mere death.

[Blakeston]

There have been some questions about why it would end Elsa's career that Hedda Hopper found that film of her being mutilated against her will.

 

I just rewatched the scene where that Henry Gable guy tells Elsa about Hedda Hopper. He says that she found "some 8 millimeter films."

 

So it doesn't sound like she just found the film where Elsa's legs were cut off. She also found at least one of the hardcore dominatrix films that Elsa made when she still had her legs.

 

I wasn't crazy about the finale but didn't hate it.  I would have liked to see more of Edward Mondrake and Twisty.  But this is driving me crazy - what exactly did they do to Stanley??  It looked like they cut off his arms and/or legs, but he also was making clucking chicken noises, right?  Did they turn him into a chicken/human hybrid?  How?  I need to know, lol!

 

Sadly, there is no explanation.

 

In the movie Freaks, we see a shot of the villain as a "chicken lady," who not only has had her limbs cut off, but makes "bwock bwock" noises like a chicken for some reason. It looked like she had some sort of feathers, too. I guess it's supposed to be scarier if we don't know how the freaks could have done it to her.

 

The makers of AHS did basically the same thing with Stanley.

[peacheslatour]

There have been some questions about why it would end Elsa's career that Hedda Hopper found that film of her being mutilated against her will.

 

I just rewatched the scene where that Henry Gable guy tells Elsa about Hedda Hopper. He says that she found "some 8 millimeter films."

 

So it doesn't sound like she just found the film where Elsa's legs were cut off. She also found at least one of the hardcore dominatrix films that Elsa made when she still had her legs.

 

 

Sadly, there is no explanation.

 

In the movie Freaks, we see a shot of the villain as a "chicken lady," who not only has had her limbs cut off, but makes "bwock bwock" noises like a chicken for some reason. It looked like she had some sort of feathers, too. I guess it's supposed to be scarier if we don't know how the freaks could have done it to her.

 

The makers of AHS did basically the same thing with Stanley.

The freaks tarred and feathered her and I guess it never came off.  Remember Lizard Girl's dad?

[RedheadZombie]

I liked this season and I liked the finale.  I am glad everyone ended up happy even in the afterlife, except for Maggie, Stanley and Dandy.

 

And, presumably, Dell.

 

I was also bored by this episode. Didn't like any of it. Dandy goes from being capable of killing a roomful of people to being sent to the ground in one punch?  I know that the two are not mutually exclusive but it was just an odd direction to go in. Hated everything from that point on. There were many more interesting directions that they could have gone in.

 

You see, being sent to the ground in one punch was the real Dandy.  He never killed anyone in a fair fight.  He caught people off guard and used weapons.  That's why I thought it was ridiculous that he got the best of Eve with his fists.  No chance.

 

Totally agree that Matt Fraser and Amazon Eve need their own shows. Is there a petition somewhere we can sign?

 

I loved Mat Fraser (that voice, that face), but Amazon Eve - while a likable character-  was not a great actor.  Very flat line delivery.

[morgankobi]

I inferred that the films Elsa was worried about were sex-related, although I thought in her back-story films weren't mentioned until the maiming, but the problem was that I had to infer because of clunky writing. The head honcho generally mentions films, and David Burka's character chimes in that he is mad because she said she lost her legs in an accident with a train ---what the what?!?

[LoneHaranguer]

 

From the recap:

The newsreel, which also lets us know that Elsa is the platinum-selling recording artist behind such German-language hits as "Ich Bin Elsa Mars," is so ridiculous and hyperbolic, I assumed it had to be a fantasy. Alas, this is Elsa's actual fate.

The platinum designation wouldn't have existed yet, so even as a fantasy it's questionable.

[RazzleberryPie]

Also, so many "mistakes" in this episode. When Bette was shown blindfolded in the tent Dot's head looked ridiculous. I'm talking Sarah Paulson sitting there with a mannequin head on her shoulder! And I never notice this kind of stuff, but this particular shot looked absurd. Perhaps this is a testament to how boring this episode really was.

Ok I'm glad another person thought the head on the right looked faker than fake. I was sure Dandy had somehow killed Dot and she was just sitting there - thus the fake looking head and Bette in hysterics. I guess he could've snapped her neck or smothered her (the never were clear if they shared lungs or not - Dr. said no, but then one inhaled smoke and the other exhaled?), and the other one was going to survive for a few minutes.

[Nutjob]

 

I was sure Dandy had somehow killed Dot and she was just sitting there - thus the fake looking head and Bette in hysterics.

That's what I thought, too. It was really the first time the Bette/Dot effects weren't done at least semi-believably.

 

Of course, I guess that just fits in with the rest of this mess of a finale. I think I'm out after this, to be honest. In fact, after watching the seasons of this show get progressively worse, I'm not sure why networks keep allowing Ryan Murphy to make new shows. I stopped watching Nip/Tuck around season 3 for the same reason... it was a hot mess. I think RM is very creative, but he can't tell a cohesive story to save his life.

[Blakeston]

I inferred that the films Elsa was worried about were sex-related, although I thought in her back-story films weren't mentioned until the maiming, but the problem was that I had to infer because of clunky writing. The head honcho generally mentions films, and David Burka's character chimes in that he is mad because she said she lost her legs in an accident with a train ---what the what?!?

 

Back when she was telling Edward Mordrake about her past, she described how she was something of a star in Germany because of her S&M videos. And then some creepy people hired her to make a very special video, and it turned out to be the one where her legs were sawed off.

[Starchild]

In the movie Freaks, we see a shot of the villain as a "chicken lady," who not only has had her limbs cut off, but makes "bwock bwock" noises like a chicken for some reason. It looked like she had some sort of feathers, too. I guess it's supposed to be scarier if we don't know how the freaks could have done it to her.

 

The makers of AHS did basically the same thing with Stanley.

It's my understanding that Cleo's tongue was cut out so she couldn't talk. Presumably the same happened to Stanley.

[Avaleigh]

How come the first murder clown (Forgot his name) didn't go to heaven as well though? He seem more of a victim; I wish he was part of the new heaven circus with Elsa troupe instead of being in Hell.

I thought Twisty was a much more horrible person than Elsa. He viciously killed a lot of people. Elsa killed Ethel in self defense. 

 

I don't get the sentiment that characters in a story should get what they deserve.  Especially in a horror story.  Usually in horror stories perfectly innocent people get killed.  A lot.  Usually none of them deserve it, although we're often relieved of feeling that sentiment by the character making a stupid mistake or acting foolishly, which is enough for us to decide they did deserve it.  And the thing/person that killed them doesn't always get justice.  If every story ever written was resolved to karmic perfection then they wouldn't be as interesting in my opinion.  (And I say this after hearing a similar chain of sentiments on the boards for other shows I watch.)  Sure, it's satisfying when someone gets what's coming to them, but I would never go into a story expecting that to happen.  I'm not knocking anyone, I'm just really coming from such a different head space on the whole thing that I'm surprised.

 

This. Thank you, I totally agree.

 

If you physically threaten your boss and quit, you don't get to stick around in your cubicle with your feet up on your desk, stealing your boss's lunch out of the office fridge!

Yeah, I didn't really understand this either. Obviously the freaks didn't deserve to die but hanging around and asking that obviously unhinged guy about back wages just seemed exceptionally stupid. It's like, you guys are breaking your contracts and this new owner seems crazy so maybe just, you know, leave.

 

Looking back at the season I'd say the strongest episode was the one with the psychiatrist where Dandy kills his mother. That was some chilling shit especially when we find out about Dandy's first "playmate". 

Edited January 23, 2015 by Avaleigh

[basil]

Do you know what I mean?

 

 

Not really. I guess I take your point that the freaks should have had "better deaths", but I don't see why they had to die at all. In any case, Dandy was a total fail when it came to killing. Where you lost me was:

 

So, I didn't feel sorry for the freaks when Dandy shot them.

 

 

Joke or not, that sentiment creeped me out more than anything on the show.

[English Teacher]

OK...Driving to work I had a rethink of the Elsa storyline and I've moved a little beyond my WTF reading of it.   

 

The first time EM showed up (and please don't judge but with his style and accent at least the front side of him makes me swoon -- or maybe I've just taught Jekyll and Hyde too many times) the first time, he was prepared to take Elsa for her black heart -- until he heard Dandy and Twisty having their little sociopaths-unite party up the road...and he took Twisty.  Which made absolute sense.

....so now with both Dandy and Twisty dead (along with almost every other "freak"), why wasn't Elsa bad enough for him.

I think her last luncheon with her true love explained it.  She finally achieved what she thought she wanted (and this part, I still have no idea how that could happen since she was past-her-prime and a non-talent) and realized it wasn't what she needed.  The one place she felt at home and loved was with her "monsters."  But she didn't appreciate them until they were gone -- and that is the difference between EM Halloween appearance #1 and #2.  He granted her wish of suicide by demon, but she was no longer the unrepentant, heart-hearted monster she was before.  She changed -- and her afterlife was the closest thing she was getting to Heaven.  She was given what she most desired - a family with those who loved her in her Cabinet of Curiosities and those who adored her (again, still shaking my head on this part) in the audience.  But in a way, it's stagnant  like Groundhog's Day. She's never going to do more - it's the same show, same thing throughout eternity. I think Hades or Dante could have actually thought this one up.

....or maybe it was just being on 3 hours sleep without coffee as I was commuting to work today.

 

In any case, it's all over.  I am glad that Bette/Dot & Jimmy had their happy endings as did Desiree.  I'm still devastated over Amazon Eve, Paul, and some of the others but they are back with Ethel and Ma Petit (<3 <3) and even Meep so not bad.  I love horror so I don't expect the happy endings; however, I've viewed AHS as an extended version of the stories of the likes of Tales from the Crypt where there is some poetic justice in what happens to true villains, so I did hope and expect that Dandy would be dispatched horribly -- this wasn't horrible enough for me.  And did he shoot Stanley?  I don't remember seeing that body.

[JenE4]

Not really. I guess I take your point that the freaks should have had "better deaths", but I don't see why they had to die at all. In any case, Dandy was a total fail when it came to killing. Where you lost me was:

Joke or not, that sentiment creeped me out more than anything on the show.

This is a fictional horror show. Obviously I don't think anyone deserves to die. (I'm anti-death penalty in case that matters.) We've seen the freaks circling around to mutilate or kill people on this show. The way they circled in on Dandy was reminiscent of when they circled in on Stanley and the police officer and the dad--even cutting off a woman's head--these aren't "innocent" people either. By threatening Dandy, they created a situation in which someone was going to be killed--him or them. Again, this isn't a commentary on REAL LIFE. This is in context of this FICTIONAL HORROR show and everything all of these killers have done throughout the entire series. Of course more people are going to die in American Horror Story. It's not American Remorse Story. Edited January 23, 2015 by JenE4

[jnymph]

Highly underwhelming finale.

This show had a few moments after the demise of Twisty........ But honestly it never fully recovered.

Twisty was a GREAT horrifying character & so what does RM do ? Kills him off ! STUPID!

I don't ever recall a TV series with such promising, unique premises ..... And then failing to deliver the way AHS has. ( although I did enjoy Asylum - minus the aliens)

Ugh! I'm just left annoyed & pissed off right now.

ETA : Twistys so called "triumphant return" (RM's words) was a letdown of epic proportions.

I won't even bother mentioning all the other let downs & gaping plot holes.

Edited January 23, 2015 by jnymph

[Shibori]

I find I have mixed feelings, because I was screaming at the screen like most of you, things like 'how many bullets do you HAVE, Dandy??!?!' (I get he probably reloaded, but geez), 'where's the axe?', 'why can't Eve just break Dandy in two?', 'why would Elsa having her legs cut off against her will defeat the studio's morals clause and make America hate her?' and 'how did Jimmy and the twins get that nice house and why aren't the neighbors wondering who the hell they are?'

Can I also add Elsa and Massimo talking to each other in mangled, badly accented English and not in German? I realize it's probably a directorial choice to avoid subtitles, but these two native German speakers would be conversing in German.

I wanted more Meep 2.0

But it's ok. I'm imagining an afterlife hanging out with NPH and Matt Bomer and I'll sleep easy tonight!

Edited January 23, 2015 by Shibori

[Mattipoo]

I thought this was the weakest season and also season finale overall, and that is saying a lot, considering I really disliked "Coven". At least "Coven" had the Minotaur, crazy New Orleans landscape, some awesome fashions courtesy of Myrtle and Balenciaga, Kathy Bates and Gabourey Sidibe doing late night fast food runs together, and Angela Bassett's crazy voodoo magic hair salon. "Freak Show" lost its focus after Twisty died and never recovered. Most ridiculous was Elsa Mars getting her Hollywood fame. Agree with previous posters about how unbelievable it is for an untalented German woman in her 50s singing Bowie songs badly to become such a big star. I read somewhere that Jessica Lange came up with the freak show idea, and wanted this to be her last season, so it is definitely Ryan Murphy's farewell gift to her and a vanity project of sorts. Disappointing season overall. Hope next season will be better. From the clues given this episode, e.g. during Elsa's last meeting with the Axeman, it might be about nuclear testing in Nevada. Love Jessica Lange but glad this is her last season. Ryan Murphy gets one last chance to wow me, but he will have to come up with something radically different, compelling and interesting in season 5 to keep me entertained. That is all.

[basil]

By threatening Dandy, they created a situation in which someone was going to be killed--him or them.

 

 

Not necessarily. The freaks were quitting and leaving. Dandy chose to kill them.

 

Again, this isn't a commentary on REAL LIFE. This is in context of this FICTIONAL HORROR show and everything all of these killers have done throughout the entire series. Of course more people are going to die in American Horror Story. It's not American Remorse Story.

I am fully aware of all of the above, and there's no need to shout - but when I read words like "I didn't feel sorry for the freaks when Dandy shot them", it creeps me out. Lizard girl didn't hurt or threaten anyone. Neither did the legless lady. Why did Dandy kill them? Dandy would have killed them all if he could, and not out of fear for his life, but insult to his vanity.

[Starchild]

Can I also add Elsa and Massimo talking to each other in mangled, badly accented English and not in German? I realize it's probably a directorial choice to avoid subtitles, but these two native German speakers would be conversing in German.

Massimo was Italian, not German. Maybe they spoke English because it was their only common language.

[BrokenRemote]

And, presumably, Dell.

Elsa shot Dell after he confessed to Desiree that he killed Ma Petite.

[Madding crowd]

I liked the ending, and even though I didn't want the freaks to be killed, they got to be together as a family in the after life. I thought all along that Dandy would be turned into a freak, but he already was one so he didn't need to be. i actually thought this installment had a message about how we are all freaks in some way and I enjoyed the family the freaks made together. However, they were all murderers too, so not many innocents in the series at all.

 

I didn't think Elsa was all that bad, she provided a home and a life for the freaks for many years and she had genuine love for them. All in all, carny folks live rough and tumble lives and there are usually no saints among them.

 

And it might be corny, but I thought using the song "Heroes" was a nice way to remind all the people who think they are freaks out there that they can be heroes in their own lives.

 

I agree a lot was unrealistic and the only scary part all season was Twisty (Marjorie was kind of scary too), but I liked this season much better than Coven.

[Betweenyouandme]

I loved it.

Interesting. Great or interesting cinematography.

I like seeing characters/people in a place they belong rather than being punished. I'm just not one for revenge. The ending was great. I loved the lines about "you were just playing a part. We all play the roles we were given." Yeah, it's an excuse and doesn't mean everyone in a bad situation should go kill everyone else. But, to me, Dandy was the only one who truly had no side to be empathic toward. Elsa came around and had trauma, as did the clown and other characters. I don't know...I just think they all had a certain faith and hope to them even if it was small or their actions didn't always show it. I wish Dandy had a different ending or we knew more, but I think he's supposed to be almost "soulless"

[Gemma Violet]

Remember Lizard Girl's dad?

 

 

Speaking of the dad, why did we never hear whether he survived his tarring & feathering?  And why didn't we ever hear more about the policeman to whom Dandy promised money for shooting Gabourey Sidibe's character?  Seems like he and Dandy would have teamed up for more chaos, but he was never heard from again.  So many loose ends that were never tied up.

[LittleIggy]

Never a good idea to humiliate a psychopath then just leave him to plot and execute his revenge. They should have tied Dandy up, taken whatever valuables he had on him, and left.

I would love for Danny Huston to be one of the stars next season. I love him!