With the exception of Asylum (a perfect season of television, change my mind), each new installment of American Horror Story comes with an episode where things just go wrong. Freak Show flew off the rails at the halfway point, when it became clear that it had no clear story. Roanoke Nightmare, meanwhile, started to get dull in its second episode, when its one-joke premise ran out of steam. Others, like Hotel or Coven, only falter in their final acts, when the story rushes to conclude complicated plots in under an hour. But, no matter when they go wrong, one thing is true: they stay wrong.
But… Asylum throws a wrench into that narrative. After multiple consecutive weeks of borderline unwatchable television, the eighth finale, “Apocalypse Then” (a horrid title) finishes the season strong. Like… very strong. Maybe even “all time good” strong.
In it, the Coven witches finally put their plan into motion in order to avert the apocalypse, by taking Mallory and Coco, wiping their memories, and implanting them amongst the rich and famous that will flock to the bunker once Michael’s end of the world begins. After a brief prologue, we cut to where this story arc began: the final showdown between Cordelia’s army of witches and the Antichrist himself. What follows is an extended and incredibly entertaining battle between good(ish) and evil that feels like a gorier version of Death Becomes Her.
Do yourself a favor and give your sense of logic the night off while watching. Within a little more than 10 minutes, Ryan Murphy & co commit to their act and embrace camp more than ever before, turning their supernatural soap opera into an intensely violent action film with more sassy one-liners than your average Drag Race episode. All of the actors are clearly having a blast, including some surprise returns from AHS veterans whose absences have been deeply missed. Even better, all of these actresses seem to be involved in a contest to become the best new GIF for Gay Twitter. My pick: Kathy Bates’ laughably over-the-top face as Cordelia places a curse on her. Truthfully, it’s her best acted moment since joining the show five years ago.
The episode’s second act is a bit more subdued, but ties things up in a genuinely unexpected fashion that’s surprisingly fun. Billie Lourd has emerged as the season’s secret weapon, and proves in these final moments that she, like Paulson, has mastered the complicated tone of American Horror Story. It’s a campy performance, and one that’s dialed in to the show’s over-the-top wavelength. But it’s wisely underplayed at all the right moments, allowing her to play an actual character, and not a cartoon.
But perhaps the biggest surprise of the episode? Well, that would be the closing epilogue, which brings back some of the worst characters from Apocalypse and somehow rectifies their entire purpose on the show. While I’m still not convinced that the bizarre flashback structure of the season made narrative sense, it certainly made the final scene a lot of fun. The payoff was worth the clumsy execution.
Yet again, American Horror Story finds itself in a bizarre middle ground. At its worst points, this series is truly so bad that it feels like torture. But when it works, the series is compulsively watchable like nothing else on TV. It’s hard to say that Apocalypse is worst the watch, since it has some truly grating episodes over the course of the ten-part season. But it’s finale has built up enough goodwill with me — I’ll be back to experience the roller coaster ride of quality next year.
Overall rating: 8 out of 10
