Freak Show gives us a bit of a Dandy break (thank you) in this episode, and we are instead treated to Pepper's background and how she ended up at the Briarcliff Asylum from season 2. As those two worlds merge together, a phenomenal character from Asylum visits season 4, a Coven actress joins Freak Show as a character from Pepper's past, and Elsa just continues to blow my mind. Here's where we are with "Orphans."
Whatta Man
The episode opens with the death of Salty, whose name I didn't know until now...in my brain he was just the male version of Pepper, so I guess "Salty" isn't a far reach. Anyway, he has been Pepper's companion for quite some time and she's not ready to let him go. Literally. Salty's body is starting to cause an odor throughout the camp and Elsa has to step in. She tells us that most "pinheads" die before they turn 40 and Salty died in his sleep most likely from a stroke. Elsa feels terrible for Pepper and she's worried about the state of everyone left in the freak show.
Enter slimy ass Stanley to tell Elsa she shouldn't be stressing herself out. She's had it with him (haven't we all?) and asks him to leave. He whips out... a letter... from a network executive asking for a meeting in three weeks. In the meantime all Elsa has to do is rest. She buys it immediately and Stanley has bought himself more time to kidnap and kill the freaks. Groan. And in the meantime, he offers to "take care" of Salty's burial. We see him chop off Salty's head with an ax...and Salty joins Ma Petite at the morbidity museum.
None Of Your Business
Maggie/Esmeralda looks longingly at a picture of Lobster Boy when Desiree andTheo Angus show up to have their fortune read. Maggie says she sees them starting over somewhere out west in a small house with a white picket fence and so on...and then she says they will end up miserable and hating each other because that's what always happens. They get very angry and leave her tent quickly.
Later in the evening Desiree finds Maggie by the carousel and calls her on her bullshit. Maggie comes clean about who she really is. She tells Desiree that Stanley is not a talent scout - he's a con man who took her in when she was just a young thief trying to survive. When Desiree asks what kind of con they are trying to pull off at the freak show, Maggie lies and says they steal from the audience members. Desiree calls bullshit AGAIN and Maggie walks back to her tent.
Bette and Dot are waiting for her there and offer to give Maggie all of the money they've saved for their surgery to hire a lawyer for Jimmy. Maggie goes into bitch mode and pisses the girls off. Dot throws the money at her and says "you do right by Jimmy" before leaving the tent.
Maggie gets her shit together and decides she wants to do the right thing. She takes Desiree to the morbidity museum to see the display there, and to their surprise, not only are Ma Peitite and Salty featured...Jimmy's hands are there as well. Turns out Stanley visited Jimmy in jail and told him he has connections with a hot shot lawyer who would take Jimmy's case. The catch is - Jimmy would need to come up with some money to pay the retainer. Jimmy says he doesn't have anything of value but Stanley disagrees. He suggests Jimmy sell his hands.
This Dance A'int For Everybody
Desiree comforts Pepper, spending time with her and reading her bedtime stories. Dell interrupts one of the books to try to reconcile with his wife, who shuts him down pretty quickly. Desiree says they both deserve a shot at happiness and she can't make him happy. Truly happy. I'm guessing she's referring her not so ding-a-ling. Dell walks away dejected and Pepper tears up her tent when Desiree leaves.
Desiree finds herself drinking Schnapps with Elsa as Elsa explains where Pepper came from. "She's known nothing but abandonment her entire life." Oh jeez. That's never a good start to a story. Elsa had started her Cabinet of Curiosities before WWII. She was tired of being with the gypsies and circuses and came up with the idea of putting together her own freak show. The audience "would come for the freaks...but stay for the star." While trying to collect performers, Elsa found Pepper in an orphanage. Pepper never knew her father and her mother had died. Her sister could not handle the responsibility of caring for Pepper, and the orphanage took her in even though she was an adult....because she had the mind of a child. Pepper left the orphanage with Elsa and became the first member of the freak show family.
Pepper became lonely as Elsa continued to add performers to the show, but then one day a maharajah arrived with Ma Petite in his entourage. Elsa was able to snag Ma Petite for a few cases of Dr. Pepper (see what they did there?) and Ma Petite became fast friends with the lonely pinhead. Pepper still wasn't 100% happy with her home though and Elsa made it her mission to find Pepper a mate. Finally a home for wayward boys in Cincinnati contacted her and Salty came to live in The Cabinet of Curiosities. It was love at first sight! Salty, Pepper, and Ma Petite were their own little family with Elsa as their fairy godmother.
Heaven Or Hell
Desiree suggests that they find Pepper's sister. She says Pepper is not the handful she was when she was at the orphanage. Elsa agrees, saying it might be time for their little angel to return home. Really? The best thing to do for Pepper is to remove her from the place where she's been the most happy and reunite her with someone who wants nothing to do with her? Apparently. Elsa packs Pepper up and takes her to her sister Rita (played by season 3's Mare Winningham) and I have a pit in my stomach. Rita explains that she didn't want Pepper because she was worried she wouldn't be able to get married and have a family with Pepper around. She says that she did marry but was not able to have children. She's worried about how her husband will react to Pepper...but Elsa leaves her there anyway.
The next time we see Rita, she's sitting in SISTER MARY EUNICE's office at Briarcliff Asylum in 1962. Helloooo Lily Rabe! I've missed you so. This season just hasn't been the same without you. Anyway, Rita tells the nun that after Pepper came to live with her, she and her husband Larry unexpectedly had a baby (unexpectedly mostly because she's pushing 50) and they named him Lucas. Unfortunately, Lucas was deformed and Rita and Larry had no use for two oddities in their house. They came up with a plan to kill the baby and pin it on Pepper. So Rita plays the loving, grieving mother as she speaks to Sister Mary Eunice while we see what really happened play out on screen. It's brutal and very disturbing.
Pepper is committed to Briarcliff and Sister Mary Eunice takes her on as a special project. The young nun sees "redemption" in Pepper right away and gives her special jobs to do around the asylum. She tells Pepper that maybe someday she'll be able to work in the bakery, but for now, the library needs some TLC. While tidying up the library shelves, Pepper comes across a LIFE magazine featuring Elsa on the cover as a big TV star. Pepper cries, kisses her fingers with a smile, then taps the magazine.
"Orphans" ends there and though the content was heartbreaking, it was a really good episode. I doubt we'll see anything more from Pepper this season, but anyone who watches AHS Asylum will know what happens to her next. Even though I knew Lily Rabe would reprise her nun role in Freak Show, I still shouted "yaaaaaaay!" when I saw her on screen. Not only was she back as one of the best characters the show has ever had, that character was featured in her purest form tonight. I loved every second of it. The episode did not help me figure out how the other two seasons of AHS are related, but I will continue to rack my brain on that one. Perhaps we'll receive more clues in the coming episodes. For now though, we know Elsa does make it out to Hollywood to become a TV star. How she does it and who else gets hurt along the way remains to be seen. Happy New Year?
Enter slimy ass Stanley to tell Elsa she shouldn't be stressing herself out. She's had it with him (haven't we all?) and asks him to leave. He whips out... a letter... from a network executive asking for a meeting in three weeks. In the meantime all Elsa has to do is rest. She buys it immediately and Stanley has bought himself more time to kidnap and kill the freaks. Groan. And in the meantime, he offers to "take care" of Salty's burial. We see him chop off Salty's head with an ax...and Salty joins Ma Petite at the morbidity museum.None Of Your Business
Maggie/Esmeralda looks longingly at a picture of Lobster Boy when Desiree and
Later in the evening Desiree finds Maggie by the carousel and calls her on her bullshit. Maggie comes clean about who she really is. She tells Desiree that Stanley is not a talent scout - he's a con man who took her in when she was just a young thief trying to survive. When Desiree asks what kind of con they are trying to pull off at the freak show, Maggie lies and says they steal from the audience members. Desiree calls bullshit AGAIN and Maggie walks back to her tent.
Bette and Dot are waiting for her there and offer to give Maggie all of the money they've saved for their surgery to hire a lawyer for Jimmy. Maggie goes into bitch mode and pisses the girls off. Dot throws the money at her and says "you do right by Jimmy" before leaving the tent.
Desiree comforts Pepper, spending time with her and reading her bedtime stories. Dell interrupts one of the books to try to reconcile with his wife, who shuts him down pretty quickly. Desiree says they both deserve a shot at happiness and she can't make him happy. Truly happy. I'm guessing she's referring her not so ding-a-ling. Dell walks away dejected and Pepper tears up her tent when Desiree leaves.
Desiree finds herself drinking Schnapps with Elsa as Elsa explains where Pepper came from. "She's known nothing but abandonment her entire life." Oh jeez. That's never a good start to a story. Elsa had started her Cabinet of Curiosities before WWII. She was tired of being with the gypsies and circuses and came up with the idea of putting together her own freak show. The audience "would come for the freaks...but stay for the star." While trying to collect performers, Elsa found Pepper in an orphanage. Pepper never knew her father and her mother had died. Her sister could not handle the responsibility of caring for Pepper, and the orphanage took her in even though she was an adult....because she had the mind of a child. Pepper left the orphanage with Elsa and became the first member of the freak show family.
Pepper became lonely as Elsa continued to add performers to the show, but then one day a maharajah arrived with Ma Petite in his entourage. Elsa was able to snag Ma Petite for a few cases of Dr. Pepper (see what they did there?) and Ma Petite became fast friends with the lonely pinhead. Pepper still wasn't 100% happy with her home though and Elsa made it her mission to find Pepper a mate. Finally a home for wayward boys in Cincinnati contacted her and Salty came to live in The Cabinet of Curiosities. It was love at first sight! Salty, Pepper, and Ma Petite were their own little family with Elsa as their fairy godmother.
Heaven Or Hell
Desiree suggests that they find Pepper's sister. She says Pepper is not the handful she was when she was at the orphanage. Elsa agrees, saying it might be time for their little angel to return home. Really? The best thing to do for Pepper is to remove her from the place where she's been the most happy and reunite her with someone who wants nothing to do with her? Apparently. Elsa packs Pepper up and takes her to her sister Rita (played by season 3's Mare Winningham) and I have a pit in my stomach. Rita explains that she didn't want Pepper because she was worried she wouldn't be able to get married and have a family with Pepper around. She says that she did marry but was not able to have children. She's worried about how her husband will react to Pepper...but Elsa leaves her there anyway.
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| Welcome back, sister. |
Pepper is committed to Briarcliff and Sister Mary Eunice takes her on as a special project. The young nun sees "redemption" in Pepper right away and gives her special jobs to do around the asylum. She tells Pepper that maybe someday she'll be able to work in the bakery, but for now, the library needs some TLC. While tidying up the library shelves, Pepper comes across a LIFE magazine featuring Elsa on the cover as a big TV star. Pepper cries, kisses her fingers with a smile, then taps the magazine.
"Orphans" ends there and though the content was heartbreaking, it was a really good episode. I doubt we'll see anything more from Pepper this season, but anyone who watches AHS Asylum will know what happens to her next. Even though I knew Lily Rabe would reprise her nun role in Freak Show, I still shouted "yaaaaaaay!" when I saw her on screen. Not only was she back as one of the best characters the show has ever had, that character was featured in her purest form tonight. I loved every second of it. The episode did not help me figure out how the other two seasons of AHS are related, but I will continue to rack my brain on that one. Perhaps we'll receive more clues in the coming episodes. For now though, we know Elsa does make it out to Hollywood to become a TV star. How she does it and who else gets hurt along the way remains to be seen. Happy New Year?
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