American Horror Story: What Did You Make Of That Season Finale?

It truly is the time for show finales on our screens at the moment, as the year winds down and some of our favorite shows come to a close.

Last night it was the turn of American Horror Story, the gothic supernatural series that’s been scoring sizzling ratings for FX, and has already been commissioned for a second season. But what did you think of the show’s season finale?

I’ve been a fan of American Horror Story all season long, though I’ll be honest, it isn’t my favorite show on TV. I don’t think the series is as good as The Walking Dead, as ridiculously entertaining as Revenge or as smart as Mad Men or Game Of Thrones.

What Horror Story has done well is create – and sustain – a wonderful atmosphere of dread across the series. This is one seriously twisted show and probably the scariest TV series ever. From the famous ‘rubber man’ to the dismembered babies in the basement to the vengeful Hayden, Horror Story is a truly nasty show. And those opening titles – oh boy!

But I’m also starting to feel that American Horror Story is starting to get kind of crowded now.  There are simply so many ghosts in that LA house that it’s hard to see where the show goes next. And that I think is going to be the series biggest challenge moving forward into Season 2 – and beyond. I get the feeling that the show’s producers don’t really know where the plot is heading and are kind of making it up as they go along. Hmm, sound familiar?

American Horror Story is, of course, overseen by Glee creator Ryan Murphy – and we all know what happened to the Fox high school musical in its second series. Murphy is a guy full of great ideas but sometimes his execution falls short. Plus he doesn’t have a very good filter when it comes to deciding if an idea is ambitious or just plain ridiculous. Glee’s second year went so far into craziness that the whole show just came crashing down around it. Can you imagine what Murphy could do with a haunted house full of ghosts?

Last night’s finale ended fairly well but didn’t really wrap up many loose ends or explain much about the house itself. Our three leads – Ben, Vivien and Violet – are now all dead and doomed to spend eternity trapped inside their LA home, an arrangement they seem surprisingly – and unbelievably – rather comfortable with. We saw a new family move into the home and then be chased away, Beetlejuice style, by the family of ghosts. But what will happen next season? Will we see an endless parade of new families? And where’s the jeopardy when half or our cast are already dead?

For me Horror Story’s most intriguing storyline revolves around the show’s best character, the fantastic Constance, played with Emmy-worthy verve by Jessica Lange. Constance has now taken custody of her grandson, the product of Vivien’s rape by the unhinged Tate. Season 1 ended with the little boy murdering his nanny, Damian-style. It was a nice scene – but again – it feels like a plot that’s going to be tough to sustain.

I’ll be honest – I’m kind of intrigued but also a little worried as to where American Horror Story goes next. For me, the Season 1 ending wasn’t as good as the recent Walking Dead finale, which wrapped up a slow half season with a tour de force conclusion that tied up several loose ends and pulled out an amazing shocker. The Walking Dead finale made me realize that its producers were playing the long game – and had a plan in place all along. American Horror Story? Not so much so!

But what do you think? Are you an American Horror Story fan – and what did you think of the show finale? Where does the series go next? And do you think the show’s producers know what they doing? Fire away…