American Horror Stories

The whole concept ends up being a bit of a contradiction. I understand that not every idea from Ryan Murphy's gang has the potential for a standalone season in the American Horror Story universe, but I expected a dose of clever plots and instead only occasionally got a few good ones (Feral) that made it to a solid conclusion or payoff. As far as the rest of the standalone stories are concerned, the conclusion is actually the weakest part. An above-average rating jumps out at me after the first season because of how inventive and effective the first, second, and last episodes are, unexpected links to the seemingly fully resolved and maximally utilized Murder House. Returning to the house where everything started a decade ago felt like a capitulation on the promised premise, but the combination of Sierra McCormick and Kaia Gerber or even the captivating Matt Bomer are pleasures I won't find elsewhere. I enjoyed the anticipation of what incredible plot twist each new episode would bring, but next time I'd like the viewer's reward to be more balanced. (30/05/2023)

The latest set of eight stories makes better use of what it has and, with one exception, does not go back to the original series. And yet this does not add to its quality; quite the contrary – and quite significantly. Most of the ideas end too soon, stumble towards the end, or spit out a key twist at the last moment. Sometimes we end up with an image we have seen a hundred times before; in one case, the lack of judgment is obvious. The episode Milkmaids is so bizarre, disgusting, self-absorbed, and insane that I gave it only one merciful star for the sake of all the writers whose contributions didn't make the cut and will end up with shocked stares at seeing this on the screen. On the other hand, Necro was the clear winner for me: its daring concept overturns clichés (and not just horror ones) and expresses a fondness for tales of romance while slyly mocking them. (30/05/2023)