What happened?
A flashback to 1994 details how
Tate stalked his school, shooting classmates. Many asked why he did it,
including the armed police officer that was forced to shoot him dead at his
home when he reached for his gun. Violet learns about this incident, and is
then confronted by Constance who explains that Tate is a spirit that does not
know he is dead and she hoped his counselling sessions would help him arrive at
that truth himself.
Constance and Moira are also both
involved in feeding Vivien various meats, to the extent of her eating raw
brains. Vivien does go to see the nurse that saw her baby scan, and the nurse
is terrified and warns she is pregnant with an evil beast. Meanwhile Vivien and
Ben have split, but Ben is working at the house and still holding on for a
reconciliation.
Violet struggles to handle being
around Tate now she knows what he is. But he tells her he loves her and,
eventually, she seems to relent after he saves her from a suicide attempt and
they lie down together.
Thoughts
By this show’s regular standards,
this was a more sedate episode in terms of pacing and frantic editing, but
probably the most out there in terms of concept. I mean six episodes in and I am
perfectly accepting of ghosts and living people interacting normally, and even
how the leading lady can sit down and tuck into a bowl of raw brain!
There’s definitely a Rosemary’s
Baby vibe being channelled with Vivien’s pregnancy, and whatever it is she is
giving birth to, Constance and Moira are both aware of what it is and very keen
on it to go ahead. Evidently they are feeding the thing raw meat because that’s
what the beast wants – Mrs. Comet watching with me was very explicitly
informing me that this kind of food was absolutely not what pregnant women are
advised to eat. The nurse remarked that she had seen a cloven hoof in the
pregnancy scan, but until the ‘baby’ emerges it’s impossible to know what it
will be.
I actually expect it to come out looking
normal. Vivien did have another scan after all, and that one appeared to occur
without alarm, so in that respect it’ll probably be like The Omen. I
anticipate references to that to be forthcoming!
Ben and his treatment of the man
with a fear of Piggyman was a relative sideline this episode. Indeed, I was
surprised to see that he had moved out already given how adamantly he was
willing to fight for his family at the end of the last episode. There was that
moment where Vivien held his hand during the pregnancy scan, however, so all
isn’t lost for those two. Vivien has definitely turned her attentions to the
hunky security man, of course. The way Ben was viewing him, too, made me think
he might be next in line when the killing happens! Indeed, if Ben is demanded
by the house (or whatever) to father the baby then security man might be
considered a threat to that needing to removed.
The big story here was about
Tate. The opening scene, showing the frightened students getting picked off one
by one, was a standout and terrifyingly all-too-real moment. The lack of music
and coldness to it all made it so tense and stark it showed that American
Horror Story has the capacity to deliver pure horror free of frills and
gimmicks and weirdness.
I liked that Constance
had the conversation with Violet early in the episode to clarify that Tate was
a ghost that didn’t know he was dead, and that it was the fact he died in the
house that was the important element that kept him around. As Addy, from
beyond, would apparently state she was pleased her mother had failed to get her
onto the grounds of the house when she was dying so she could avoid the same
fate. Constance also showed more dimensions to
her very complicated character in her heartfelt declaration of love and
affection for Addy. It’s good that she had a little more humanising, though I
wouldn’t want her to lose the vicious edge and sharp tongue we first saw in the
Pilot episode.
Whilst neither Ben nor Vivien
have yet to be convinced there are really ghosts in the world, Violet saw all
the phantoms in the basement and, of course, has the all-too-vivid spirit of
Tate madly in love with her. Emphasis on the ‘madly’. His arc, it seems, is to
come to terms with what he is. I suspect he’s not going to take that well, and
his unpredictable quality makes him impossible to gauge. Indeed, the central
question about why he went on a killing spree remains a huge question mark. As
the teacher said, maybe he just wasn’t a good person and that’s all the reason
there is.
Violet had her strongest
performance here. I didn’t really buy that she would attempt suicide as she did
– that seemed to come out of nowhere. But then the nature of a suicidal
disposition is perhaps best summed up as an out of the blue psychological
break. And the scars on her arm show she is prone to self-harming. I guess it’s
just the act didn’t seem like something that was being built to – it just
suddenly started happening.
Where do the two of them go from
here? Well, Violet will either fall for Tate and then have to deal with the
fact that he’s unpredictable, never going to age and not able to leave the
house (apart from on Halloween). More likely she’ll be on hand to help him
figure out what he is, but even when that happens I don’t think that necessarily
means he will vanish and move on. Like Moira and the other ghosts, he might
just be a part of the fixtures and fittings now!
What was the best part?
Without doubt the opening
flashback showing the kids in the library getting picked off one by one by
Tate. There was a stillness about the scene in terms of the lack of music, and
how we never saw Tate’s face until the end. And the differing reactions of the
kids before they all met their fate just kept the whole thing feeling shocking.
In light of actual incidents of this kind of killing spree being true to life
that made it all the more harrowing. Definitely American Horror Story’s most
intense scene so far.
What do I think will happen
next?
I expect this season is going to have a lot of
focus on just what exactly is gestating inside Vivien. It’s surely going to be
some form of devil-child, though maybe it will take the form of a
regular-looking baby. Obviously they should call it Damien. Otherwise the weird
romance between Tate and Violet will develop. Either she’ll help him discover
what he is so he can ‘move on’ (if that’s possible), or their feelings for each
other will grow stronger and the pair of them will actually be in love with
each other. The latter seems more likely as it’s the one with more plot
mileage.
