Whether you are new to American Horror Story or a veteran viewer, you know how screwed up the show can be. And yet- you still watch it, because along with a vast majority of the population, you couldn't stop even if you wanted to. Let's take a jump down the horrifying rabbit hole that is AHS.
As always- SPOILER WARNING!
This season was teased for a while, but unlike the previous seasons, season six's theme wasn't released until the premiere. This was both frustrating and intriguing. All the producers would release were cryptic promos with the logo "?6" at the end of each. It was even rumored that out of the several promos released, only one showed the true theme. This was a genius move for the show-runners, as it drew up a massive amount of attention and publicity. However, the true fun didn't start until the season premiered, titled "My Roanoke Nightmare".
The viewers are quickly introduced to the four main cast members (Sarah Paulson, Lily Rabe, Cuba Gooding Jr., and Andre Holland) who only really portray two characters, Shelby and Matt Miller. This season is run like a true-crime documentary, Rabe and Holland playing the "real life" versions of their characters, while the re-enactment scenes are left to Paulson and Gooding Jr. (Side note- anyone who has also seen American Crime Story: The People vs. O.J. Simpson knows how amazing this casting choice is).
The premiere opens up with Shelby and Matt living in the city. The two are strolling down the street after a perfect date-night, blissfully in love, when Matt is attacked by a group of gang-members. He is rushed to the hospital where he recovers fully, but Shelby miscarries and ends up losing their baby early on in her pregnancy.
To escape the trauma left behind by the city, the two move to a remote farm house in North Carolina. They decide to buy the house, grossly overbidding a group of "hill billies", as Shelby calls them, in the process. The group of men are visibly upset as they leave the property, unnerving Shelby a bit. It soon becomes incredibly clear that the house is haunted, which is only natural, given that it's AHS we're talking about.
Matt leaves to on a business trip and the ghosts have a hay-day with Shelby (just ONCE- I want the wife to leave for business and the ghosts to screw with the husband!). The ghosts try to drown Shelby in the out-door hot-tub. She has absolutely none of it and calls Matt home immediately. He runs to her aid and gets home just as she is speaking to the police about the incident. Naturally, the police don't find any evidence and just assume Shelby's crazy.
Matt tries to believe his wife, but even he has a hard time. He calls in his ex-cop sister to keep an eye on Shelby while he returns to work. The next couple of episodes follow suit, but eventually both Matt and Lee agree with Shelby and come to the conclusion that someone- or something- wants them out of that house.
The story behind the ghosts is that they were the original settlers of Roanoke. According to legend, the leader of the colony left to travel to England and when he returned to his colony, there was nothing to be found. The only evidence was the word "croatoan" carved into the trees.
I don't want to spoil too many important scenes, so I'll leave the rest for you to freak out over.
This season has been rumored to be the end-all-be-all of AHS seasons, tying them all together and filling in the plot holes from previous seasons. Honestly, though, I haven't seen much evidence of it. The infamous "Piggy Man" from season one has made an appearance, but other than our loyal cast members, I haven't noticed any other connections.
Speaking of the amazing cast, Gaga is back. She plays a spirit (maybe?) who rescues the butcher-lady when the colony banishes here. She was seen briefly in the first episode, but made her true debut in the third (and most recent) episode. One character is notably still missing, however.
Evan Peters.
Evan Peters has been a crucial character in every single season so far, and fans are not happy about his absence. The producers have confirmed that he is part of the cast, so I suppose we'll just have to wait and see.
While I am absolutely loving the lay-out of this season, I have SO MANY questions. Why was Shelby able to see the spirits in the first episode, but not in any of the others? Who exactly is Lady Gaga's character? Actually, scratch that- Do I want to know who Lady Gaga's character is? Why haven't they all just ditched the house and chilled at a hotel for a while? Who the hell is Priscilla? What is going on in general? And finally- does this remind anyone else of AHS Season One- Murder House? The whole "disgruntled ghost" thing seems a little too familiar.
I do know one thing, though- Wednesday nights at ten have become the horrifying highlight of my week and I cannot wait to see more!
