My Netflix Adventure: American Horror Story Seasons 1-4

While my entire state was underwater, I spent the past week binging American Horror Story!

 

A while back I had checked out American Horror Story (by watching one episode) but I promptly decided it wasn’t for me. I remember liking the style but some of the more mature themes threw me off. That was years ago. This past week I was scrolling through Netflix— looking for something to watch— and I thought, why not give it another chance? Turns out I really enjoyed the show and I’m very glad I went back to watch it!

My favorite thing about American Horror Story is that each season has its own style. I love the idea of this anthology series where each actor plays a different character each season. It is a brilliant way to be sure the show doesn’t overstay its welcome by tiring out the same characters over and over again. This is also great because, while some might not like one season, they might like another. I personally found myself more of a fan of Murder House (Season one) and Coven (Season three) than Asylum (season two) or Freak Show (season four). This isn’t to say that I didn’t enjoy Asylum or Freak Show but they simply weren’t my favorite seasons. I believe Asylum fell flat for me because I was expecting something very different than what I got. I was expecting it to follow the same pattern as Murder House (be set in the present, have ghosts) but there were no ghosts, it was set in the past, and aliens…? I believe if I rewatch Asylum in the future, I’d like it better because now I know what to expect.

With that said, I loved Murder House and Coven for different reasons. Murder House had great characters each with their own unique personality that were introduced through flashbacks explaining how they died. I really liked the ghosts in the season and, while the rules of how these ghosts worked were kind of random, it was a different view of ghosts and I liked it. The idea that these ghosts just walk around and interact with living people— some without even knowing they’re dead— is interesting. There was also a really great/ emotional twist/reveal late into the season that I’m so glad I didn’t have spoiled so I won’t spoil it here. I loved Coven because it had a life and sense of humor to it that neither prior season had. It was full of sass and fun moments. It made for a memorable season

The filming of American Horror Story is kind of a double edged sword. The cinematography itself is beautiful making for some memorable and haunting scenes. But the down side is that, in some seasons, the editing can be very sporadic and hard to follow. This is mostly a problem in Seasons two and four (Asylum and Freak Show). The editing in Murder House was slightly sporadic, but I could always follow it and, in most cases, it added to the feel or tone of the scene. In both Asylum and Freak Show, there were scenes when I wasn’t sure if a character was dreaming or when a scene took place chronologically in the story. At times, it just left me confused.

Overall, I really enjoyed American Horror Story. The anthology style kept things feeling fresh, the cinematography sucked you in, and the actors were great. I can’t wait for Netflix to update so I can watch Hotel, then I’ll be back on here to tell you my thoughts on it. I recommend American Horror Story for fans of horror, or someone just looking for something different.

Have you seen American Horror Story? What seasons have you seen? What did you think of it? Is Evan Peters your favorite person?

Keep Watching…

Elise