Surprises don't actually have to be surprising in order to surprise. (That made sense right? No?) To put it another way: We may know with certainty that someone's throwing us a surprise party, but the fun part is seeing just how they pull it off, when and where it'll happen, and the volume at which everyone jumps out and screams at us. Those are the surprises that count; even if we knew what to expect, we didn't know how to expect it. This week's American Horror Story contained a twist that many of us had seen coming, yet it still felt surprising and even a little shocking. Other basic cable dramas, take note: THIS is how an "I'm dead" twist is done.
Because, ladies and gentlemen, Violet did not survive her suicide attempt from a few weeks back. We'd suspected this was the case when all her subsequent scenes were restricted to the house, but especially when Ben found out she hadn't gone to school in two weeks. That thread continued in "Smoldering Children" when an LAUSD truancy officer showed up at the door and threatened to take Violet to juvenile court. Now, I realize this show operates on dream logic, but this still begs the question: How did Ben (and Vivien) fail to notice Violet wasn't leaving the house? Ben works from home. Vivien is a housewife. Anyway, if they didn't notice that, it stands to reason that they also wouldn't notice the flies seeping up through the floorboards or the presumably awful smell.
In a scene that brought to mind John Goodman's exterminator character from Arachnophobia, a blustering, comical man in a hazmat suit made the unfortunate choice of investigating the crawlspace of the Murder House with a tiny flashlight. Again, we knew he would find something horrifying down there, but his genuinely terrified screams and his subsequent murder (via bug spray) by Tate all made the scene truly scary and piqued our curiosity about what exactly he saw.
Which, as we eventually discovered, was this:
The actual reveal came later in the episode, after Tate decided Violet needed to learn the truth about her condition. The sequence played out brilliantly, which began with Tate attempting to convince Violet to "commit suicide" with him, causing her to flee from the house only to mysteriously re-enter it like she'd stepped into some kind of M.C. Escher drawing. In order to assuage her confusion and terror, Tate led her under the house and showed her her own corpse. That's when he revealed that though he'd tried to prevent her suicide attempt two weeks earlier, he'd been too late. (His attempt to get her to "commit suicide" was intended to help her adjust to the idea of being dead.) Again, while Violet's fate wasn't necessarily a surprise, its implications packed a huge emotional punch, both for her and for us. Putting aside the fact that Ben and Vivien had been living in a house with the rotting corpse of their daughter beneath the floorboards, now we're looking at a story in which our protagonists' daughter has died. What kind of emotional impact will this have? Will the Harmons ever escape from this house? Will they ever be happy again? And shouldn't we be disturbed by the fact that Violet is now destined to spend eternity as the girlfriend of a known psychopath who raped her mother?
It's definitely a matchup that Ben won't approve of, now that he knows Tate is the Rubber Man. Because in a truly bizarre move, Tate decided to attack Ben in retribution for looking into boarding schools for Violet. After a fairly brutal towel-clad tusslin', Ben de-masked the Rubber Man (who by then he knew had raped his wife), and now that he's discovered it was Tate will probably not be as interested in continuing their therapy sessions. Poor Ben!
In last week's writeup I opined that Ben was the villain of the season, but this episode caused me to backtrack on that idea when Ben more or less came to his senses, visited Vivien, informed her of the twins' dual paternity, admitted he believed her story, apologized profusely, and attempted to bring her home. In a tart exchange during which Vivien sort of accepted Ben's apology while remaining furious at him, Vivien finally regained her credibility in Ben's (and our) eyes. It definitely helped that she just straight-up refused to entertain the possibility of returning to the Murder House, which was made all the more hilarious by the idea that Ben would even consider that in the first place. I mean, what would it take for Ben to realize that house is not a great place to be? Was he that against sleeping in cars or, you know, visiting family?
Although the confirmation of Violet's death was the most notable event of the episode, the episode mostly belonged to Constance, who'd suddenly fallen under police scrutiny after the discovery of Travis's bisected corpse. Termed "Boy Dahlia" by the press, he had indeed gotten his fame, but the fame only lit a fire under the LAPD to finger a killer, and Constance was their number-one target. The most amusing scene from this thread came when investigators pointed out all of the various murders and disappearances she'd been surrounded by for the past several decades. These included being the mother of a mass murderer; the smothering/"natural causes" death of a deformed son; the hit-and-run death of her daughter; the "disappearances" of her husband and maid; and not to mention the time three of her neighbors had burnt to death next door.
The latter incident proved important for Larry, whose storyline was more or less concluded this week. First we learned the original nature of his burns: The morning of his school shooting, Tate had first swung by Larry's office with a can of gasoline and a book of matches. Ugh, Mondays! Later in the episode, when Larry returned to the Murder House basement to recover some of Travis's things (or, actually, evidence), he ran into the ghosts of his dead children and wife, still glowing like burnt embers from that fateful night when she'd exacted her revenge on him. In a disturbing yet poignant scene, he seemed pretty floored to see them all, and his wife mentioned that they had finally appeared to him because he was now "ready" to see them. When he said he was sorry for having cheated with Constance, his wife awesomely responded, "prove it." And when he suggested that he'd frame Constance for Travis's murder, she instead pointed out that he'd been the only one to wrong her, and that Constance hadn't "broken any vows." Larry took this as his cue to confess to Travis's murder, and in a great final scene, he pleaded with Constance through jailhouse plexiglass to admit she loved him. For a second it looked like she would, but then she silently hung up the phone and walked off. Yikes! Oh well, bye, Larry. Enjoy your life sentence in an Illinois (?) prison!
Not gonna lie to you, this was one of American Horror Story's finest hours. A great, pulpy, terrifying and enlightening episode that left us with as many questions as it answered. You know a show is good when your primary concern is just how it'll keep this up for future seasons, but that's a surprise for another day.
QUESTIONS:
... Larry's original backstory: Intentional misdirection or just straight-up ret-conning?
... Did Constance keep six dogs and a meat grinder in the basement for the purpose of disposing of corpses, or was this just a happy coincidence?
... Is Constance's casual racism hilarious or offensive?
... How bad does the Murder House smell at this point?
I think Constance's casual racism....her blurting out things about "the Colored Section" ...are HILARIOUS!!! and the Detectives restrained reaction was priceless as well!!!
Hrm, so I have a question: If Violet can't leave the house because she's a ghost, then why can Moira leave the house and visit her dying (now dead) mother? Both Violet and Moira are dead.
It was Halloween, the only day when all of the ghosts are free to leave the House. That is also why Hayden disappeared from the security car at dawn the next day.
i didnt see it coming...mainly cause i didnt really pay attention that much to the daughter. too much other awesome stuff going. AHS is my new favorite show since LOST.
I, for one, had absolutely no clue she was dead. That was a huge shock for me.
Also, Tate did not attack ben because of the boarding schools. He said that he did it to give them a couple hours. He needed time to convince Violet to kill herself and if Ben was awake he would have stopped her!
Now, I've never been chloroformed before, but I'm wondering if there might be some memory loss. Ben did just realize it was tate right before he got knocked out.
Definitely one of the best episodes of the season! Sad that Violet is a ghost but the reveal was just excellent!!!
Ben sure knows how to tightly wrap himself with a towel... I'm amazed...
I had suspected Violet was dead but wasn't as sure as gellar in Dexter. But we all were looking for ways to make them stay in a haunted house. They have it now, the only place they can see/talk to Violet will be in the House so they will stay. Or Die.
For me, it was 100% surprise that Violet was already dead. On the other hand, I was 99% sure that Gellar was dead at Dexter.
This is between one of my favorites episodes of this show. Really loved it.
Let me start this by saying that I am not angry at those who are making the big reveal about Dexter in this string. I don't think anyone here did it on purpose. I would just ask that people be more careful about reveals. I saw the header a few weeks ago about Dexter and decided not to go into that article because I am only on season 3 of Dexter and didn't want to ruin the current season for myself. :)
Thanks..Shawn.
Dexter: Prof. Gellar dead ---> super obvious !
Here: Did NOT HAVE A CLUE and I'm glad I didn't read the comments before, in which you guys obviously already hinted at this ... so, no spoiler for me!
Also, Tate was heartbreakingly sweet... but is it only me, or does that somehow not make up for the fact that he planted the antichrist in mama Harmon's belly?
It's funny that many people now knew about Violet and last week about Gellar in Dexter... all of a sudden everybody is a PI or so clever to find that our... especially in this show in which nothing makes sense (in a good way).
The idea was in the air when someone mentioned it as an explanation for Violet's skipping school two or three eps ago. However I think that when the idea was submitted, the (successful) suicide attempt did not happen. But still, the idea was out.
As far as I'm concerned, I was aware of this hypothesis. So, as soon as we heard about the blue flies at the beginning of this episode, I was convinced that a body was the cause (thank you CSI) and that it would be Violet's mainly because we learned about those fourteen days of absence at school.
So it's not that funny that that much people seems to knew about it.
That's exactly the same that happened for Dexter.
So I'm just wondering
A) what exactly is the reference to Dexter referring to?
B) How come Violet kept going round in circles in the house just before she found out she was dead but she was able to get into the car with her mom when her mom wanted to flee the house just before getting put into the mental hospital?
I'm not sure if the timeline is respected here. I must watch again the episode where the Harmon girls were fleeing the house. Was it before or after her suicide?
Nonetheless, I don't understand why Violet couldn't leave the house.Tate was able to do it (during halloween). Hayden as well (when the officer took her to PD).
So, I would like the writers to explain the reasons why she is a permanent prisoner of the house.
There is a specific line where Constance says 'Yes, we know that ghosts can roam free on Halloween'. The whole episode was about what they do and where they go! Why do so many people not get this?? Have you been asleep?
I think it has something to do with her emotional state at the moment messing with how she interacts with the house OR tate is using some ghost powers to keep her there. When asked why she is running around the house like a crazy person, tate replies "I have to show you something and then you're free to go wherever you want. I promise I won't stop you."
All ghosts can wander freely on Halloween. Remember the scene at the end of Halloween 2 when all the ghosts are trudging back to the house?
Its because their confined there on every other day of the year.
Which Halloween 2? Original or Rob Zombie trash? If original I will have to watch it again.
The reference to Dexter is because in a recent episode of that show, a character was revealed to have been dead all along in a similar way.
I don't know about the Dexter thing... but Violet was trying to get off the property (thru the front gate) and she can't. Her Mom's car was still on the property so she could get in it.
I love this show , it's amazing.
I love the allusion to dexter in your review ... ( "THIS is how an "I'm dead" twist is done ")
Great Series. Cudos.
Man... I didn't know or even suspect that AT ALL. And I'm normally really good at predicting story lines, but this one caught me off guard.
One issue I had (great pep though) was Cobstance said that she'd hope Ben would give Tate therapy to help him 'learn' that he was dead etc. but apparently he already knew!? Although the fact they can't remember ther actual deaths explains why Tate didn't remember the school kids even when violet wasn't there!!
Awesome ep again. The good thing with this show is as it is quite original in his nature, it's quite unpredictable. Of course, we all have our doubts about Violet but it was well done and the first scenes were quite obvious as every clue were pointing to that conclusion. I think that's why the reveal was so effective in spite of the fact that we all knew : we were supposed to know. I hope I'm clear enough.
Ben's being clueless (to the smell and all) about what's happening in his house is a recurring plaint. I'm not really annoyed by that as the horror genre makes it believable. Maybe they will justify it by saying that the house has some kind of an hypnotic effect (after all, the house was able to make Ben sleepwalk).
I was quite pleased by the return of the real scarry stuff. Most of the season was more a psychological thriller. But those burnt ghosts were really disturbing.
I was surprised by the fact that Burnt Face Man's story got a closer look. It's interesting to see that after seeing all of the backstory of the house, there still are some surprises. Especially when it involves intertwined stories of different ghosts.
The racist lines from Constance were shocking but fit the character. I mean, remember how she talked to Maddy in the earlier eps ? It was as shocking and violent. After all, she's the only one who survived the house so far. She may have mitigating circumstances then -__-
I really can't guess where the story is heading besides the babies being delivered.moreless
Okay, so I know that I wanted Violet to be dead but i had goosebumps in the scenes leading up to Tate showing her her own dead body. I am flip-flopping back and forth between loving Tate's character and being absolutely disgusted by him. He gases the exterminator and I am horrified, but then playing cards with Violet he smiles and shows off those dimples and I am a puddle of mush... Ohhh I love this show! I definately missed Moira in this episode but can't wait til next week!
It bothers me that the burnt ghost acts all scorned. Your husband had an affair - yes but you murdered your children. absolutely makes sense...
This was a perfectly awesome episode! This really felt like a cult pulp classic, and Jessica Lange is a bright Star! I liked Larry's back story, and it was intentional I think. I'm not sure about Constance and the dogs. Her casual racism fits her character perfectly, though some may find it offensive, she delivers an authentic performance. The house must smell pretty bad at this point, but maybe Moira keeps up with it.
AHS went from ok to very good in 60 minutes. Everything about this episode was so well pieced. Who ever the head writer was for this episode needs to be promoted to show runner immediately.
I had no idea! None, whatsoever, until the last few moments. I figured something was rotten, but since when has that house ever -not- had anything rotting in it, really? And in a house that big, the one person living there may not have spent -that- much time in the livingroom. Anyway, Ok, I should have known.
Question 1: They are some sneaky b***ds, so I'm not sure.
Question 2: That would be fantastic, wouldn't it? So many ghosts to be, or to be discovered still, in that case!
Question 3: Hilarious, because of the way she's portrayed in general.
Question 4: After that many bodies "taken care of" I'm imagining there's a great deal of bleach and perfume involved.
But, Yay!, now they have an actually good reason for them to stay in the Murder House, 'cause Violet can't leave, and what parents would leave their daughter alone in that place!?
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This must have been the first time you read one of Price's reviews of the show because it's been discussed for weeks.
PPl stop wondering and complaining about Ben not detecting the smell.
By this point you should be able to accept that Ben is TOTALLY clueless and oblivious to everything and anything that goes on.
That's how they've been able to stay in the house to the point of having a dead daughter.
I mean, after seeing a young sexy thing transform into a glass-eyed old lady in front of your eyes and still remain in the house without suspicious of funny.... I mean!
The show will be over when he finally gets a clue.
Everyone knew - and still it was a shocker !
Mister P. is right , this is how its done, DEXTER !
I would never have thought that American Horror Story and Revenge become my most beloved shows of all the new ones this season - but they are highly addictive ...
BTW : crowded house - do they really have an exterminator now and forever too ?
I love this episode. It was lovely the way that Tate tried to protected Violet, not telling her that she was dead and all. I mean, I know he's a mass murdered but, in the end they are both screw up kids. But I'm not sure if Violet is cool in spending the eternity with Tate.
If they change the house every season, it wouldn't have that much sense. The viewers invested emotionally in this house and in this family. Ryan Murphy is creative, I'm sure that he can come up with new stories about that house.
Exatly what I was thinking. As for Violet, how is she going to get away from Tate when she finds out he is her brother's father. Ew.
Yeah, and the map of the house on the website shows lots more stories of that house that we have not seen at all yet....
I thought this episode was great. I had suspected that Violet was dead from the moment she swallowed those pills, but with this show you just never know. I love how they revealed her body. So creepy and well done. I've never been a fan of Tate and now I am thoroughly sick of him. He grossed me out even before we realized he was dead. I don't understand why females find him "hot" or "sexy" (these are terms I'm seeing to describe Tate and it boggles my mind). To answer a couple of your questions:
1)There have been apparent continuity issues on this show and I think Larry's story almost became another, but they saved it in time. I think he might have originally been telling the truth to Ben about setting the house on fire but they decided later on that it would be much more shocking to have him be involved with Constance and have his own wife set the fire.
2)I think Constance deliberately kept the dogs for the purposes of eating people. I remember in the pilot she told Vivien that she had a doggy day care or something. It was pretty puzzling that she would even say that at the time but it makes sense now. :-)moreless
Ryan Murphy stated in an interview that next season will be an all new house with all new ghosts. So this will be the end of the Harmons, It's kind of nice to know anything can happen now...
Really? Where did he say that? Would love to read that interview.
I thought it was the same house, new family....
I recall he'd mentioned that before way before the series started, but I can't seem to find that interview anymore. There's a chance they've changed their minds based on how well the show's been doing. And not to sound all L.A., but I recently met an FX executive at a social event and I asked point-blank what the season 2 plan would be and she just smiled silently. They're definitely keeping it a secret now!
Well, it can't be the end of all the Harmons, can it? Unless somehow Violet can move on?
I don't understand how some ghosts are able to leave the house and others are not. Moira left to go visit her mother. Tate went to the beach that night, Hayden got into the security guy's car. If they are able to leave the house, then why does Violet being a ghost force the family to stay in the house?
the two eps your are talking about were set over halloween night . So the dead could walk the earth.
hope that helps
I believe all that was during the Halloween episode, the one night of the year they are free to walk the earth.