AHS Asylum: I'm Sorry... WHAT?

Welcome to the most confusing episode in AHS history. Last year at this time, we had no idea that Season 2 of American Horror Story would have a new storyline with new characters, so we went into the finale thinking “What the hell? We’re going to have a Season 2 with all dead characters?” But now we know each season will be that way, so surely the second to last episode of this season will start giving us answers, right? RIGHT?....

 

The episode opens in 1967, three years after Kit and Lana entered the asylum. We are in Kit’s house now where the camera pans through happy pictures of his unconventional family, followed by a shot of Kit lifting an axe from someone/something and sitting down in a chair crying and covered in blood. We then flash back to the events leading to this moment.

Kit Grace and Alma have their own Big Love thing going…living together and raising Alma and Kit’s daughter, Julia and Kit and Grace’s son, Thomas.  I miss Big Love. And I miss Chloe Sevigny (RIP Shelley).  Alma seems surprisingly okay with the fact that Kit knocked up a certified axe murderer, and I realllllly wish we had been there for that conversation. How did he explain it?

Kit: “Alma – you’re not dead! And you have a baby!”

Alma: “I’m back from outer space! And while I was getting probed, you were having sex with a murderer on a baking table. And YOU have a baby! Asshole.”

Kit: “Um, yeah. About that. Think we could all live together? You’re obviously still the ‘First Wife.’”

Regardless of how it went down, Grace is hell bent on reliving her abduction, struggling to remember the details and drawing pictures almost obsessively of the aliens. She calls one of them her “doctor.” Grace views her extraterrestrial experience as some sort of enlightenment – a life changing event she is grateful for. Alma, on the other hand, wants Grace to stop being so damn creepy because she is still terrorized by her own abduction.

Kit is passionate about the Civil Rights Movement and wants his family to participate in the local march.  He goes on and on about this not really realizing that he may have walked in on a family dispute.   When they get ready for bed that evening, Alma tells Kit that Grace’s obsession indicates that she is dwelling on the past because she is unhappy in the present. She encourages him to spend more time with her. He goes to Grace, and she explains that she’s making the drawings for the kids….that they need to know where they came from. Grace is less concerned about past memories of the alien abduction and more worried by her memories of the night she murdered her Mother and Stepfather with an axe. Fair point. He begins to give her some “special attention,” but they are interrupted by flickering lights and loud noises. Could it be another invasion? No, just some hooligans trying to set fire to their house. It happens. But Alma is inconsolable - she is clearly terrified of seeing the little green men again.

When Grace confronts Alma on the tension in the house, Alma tells her she is done with the alien talk. Alma compares the aliens to little boys plucking wings off of butterflies. They performed senseless and cruel experiments (paging Dr. Arden) that horrified her. Grace explains that their two children are miracles and one day the aliens will come back for them - that the aliens chose Kit because his mind is so open.  She starts to describe how Kit has empathy for all living things and how Alma is hiding herself away. “Is this how you want Julia to grow up? Ashamed of who she is?!”Alma slaps her across the face and shuts her up. She apologies as Kit walks in and Grace leaves the room.

That night Kit finds Grace in the living room drawing more pictures. She tells Kit she loves him, loves Alma, and loves their miracle babies. Grace also explains though that she does not want to live in isolation, that the future is coming and locked doors and shut windows won’t keep it out. Kit being so energized by the changes he hopes will come from the Civil Rights Movement is captivated by Grace as she talks….right up until the moment Alma puts an axe in Grace’s back. Twice. WHOA! The irony!  Kit jumps on Alma as she is yelling “She wanted to bring them back into our home! I couldn’t let her! We have to hide.”  He checks on Grace, who has bled out at this point, removes the axe from her back and sits on the chair. And this is where we came in….

Jumping forward again to 1968, we visit Briarcliff now where Judy is dominating a game of Candy Land. Pepper is now her right hand woman, and the two seem to be running the joint… from the inmate standpoint anyway. She can’t be bothered with the television reports that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. had been assassinated – she is too busy concentrating on Peppermint Stick Forest. Enter Monsignor Timothy to deliver the news that he is leaving. He tells Judy (newly named Betty Drake because Father Jackass faked her death) that he has been appointed Cardinal of New York. He also notifies her that the Catholic Church has released Briarcliff to the state to be used as an overflow facility. Just like that, huh? Father Jackass then promises to get Judy out of the asylum. “The cruelty ends here.” Really? Cruelty? He ARRANGED for Judy to be confined in the asylum in the first place! She replies, “The cruelest thing of all, Timothy, is false hope.” False hope indeed. He’s not going to set her free.

As Judy revels in thoughts about her pending release, the overflow inmates begin to arrive…including Alma. Bummer. One of the other inmates is played by Frances Conroy and obviously is a dead ringer for the Angel of Death. Judy tells her to stay away over and over again stating she’s “not ready.” However, this woman legitimately does just seem to be a convict and wants to dethrone Judy as the Queen Bee (or Queen of Candy Land – whichever works best). She even stabs one of the other prisoners for continuing to take his medication. Clearly he did not respect her authority. The Angel look-a-like ends up as Judy’s roommate and tries to get friendly with her. When she leans in to give her a kiss as she sleeps, Judy thinks it’s the kiss of death and beats the crap out of her. However, as the security guards arrive and turn the lights on, Judy’s roommate isn’t the Angel of Death (or Frances Conroy at all). It’s just some unattractive, and perhaps unhygienic, pissed off woman instead. What?

It gets better. Judy now sits in a straight jacket in her former office where Dr. Miranda Crump is trying to bring her to her senses. She informs Judy that she’s been through five roommates in the past 2 months, which doesn’t add up for her considering she just spoke with the Monsignor the Monday before. Dr. Crump then tells Judy that Cardinal Timothy Howard moved to New York two and a half years ago and that Pepper has been dead since 1966. WHAT?!? So Judy’s just bonkers?

Side note: Jessica Lange did NOT with the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress. She lost to Julianne Moore. Here’s hoping the voters get it right at the upcoming Screen Actors Guild Awards because she is stellar at playing crazy.

Now at this point I’m thinking: why is Briarcliff still running? Did Lana give up after she found out Judy was “dead?” Well, it seems Lana had other priorities after giving birth to the son of Bloody Face. When we catch up with her, she is at her own book signing and she has become quite the celebrity. Lana reads a passage from Maniac: One Woman’s Story of Survival but it seems as though she has embellished a bit. She imagines Thredson standing up in the bookstore and calling her out on the details. An imaginary Wendy pipes up as well, blasting Lana for calling her a roommate. Granted, most “true stories” are not completely accurate accounts of the events that occurred, but Lana’s attitude is starting to put her back to Stupid Lana status.

As she signs books, Kit surprises her. She is happy to see him and gives her condolences regarding Grace. Stupid Lana explains that she has just been too busy to contact him. Kit begins to tell her about the asylum, Grace, Alma, etc. but Stupid Lana goes back to bragging about her book and the movie rights to her book. She also goes on to talk about her next book which will be about Lee Emerson, our Bad Santa. I was wondering what happened to him. He apparently killed seven nuns before he was caught again. Stupid Lana wants to call her new book Santa and the Seven Nuns. Whew. She is just so full of herself right now. Kit has had enough. He yells at her for not taking down Briarcliff and not saving Sister Jude. “You were going to be a reporter, not a cheap celebrity.” Stupid Lana explains that people change, that she’s made a life for herself, that she found a voice…blah, blah, blah. Then Kit tells her Sister Jude is still alive.

How does he know this? Kit tells Stupid Lana he visited Alma at Briarcliff to bring her art projects from the kids. Security at Briarcliff, by the way, was worse than ever. In one corner a man ripped off his catheter and played with it….in another two inmates had sex. I never thought I would long for the days of Security Guard Frank. Couldn’t Kit just take Alma out through the death chute? This seems a little ridiculous. No matter though – Alma is dead. “Her heart just stopped.” Kit stood by her bedside and apologized for failing her, Grace and the kids. Whoa. Wait. Alma’s heart just stopped? And we’re good with that? No outrage? No “THEY MURDERED MY WIFE!” How are we okay with her heart just stopping one day. American Horror Story, you are starting to piss me off.

When Kit was on his way out of the asylum that day, he ventured into the common room where he found Sister Jude. She was watching “The Flying Nun” on the television and rocking back and forth in her seat. She tells Kit the TV show is based on her life saying, “she stole my hat.” This gives me a giggle. Judy then tells Kit. “I don’t need the hat. I can fly without it. One of these days, I’m going to fly my ass right out of here.” Bonkers.  

Stupid Lana tells Kit she is sorry for all that has happened to both him and Jude but there’s nothing she can do about Briarcliff. She even goes so far as to say that every bed in that place, Sister Jude made. Stupid Lana then goes back to her book signing, and I hate her.

Our episode ends in the present day with Johnny Morgan tracking down one of the last autographed copies of Maniac at a bookstore that is going out of business. The owner does not want to give the book up, saying it was her mother’s and had inspired her mother to leave her abusive husband. Johnny claims to be Lana Winters’ son, but the book store owner tells him the son of Bloody Face died shortly after birth and he can’t have the book. He then gives her a convincing argument:

"When I see her, I am going to greet her with a polite 'Hello, Miss Winters. Do you know who I am?' And she'll shake her head in ignorance. And then I’ll present her with this book of lies. And then I’ll say, 'I'm in your book! Except I didn't die. I'm the piece of trash you threw away 48 years ago. I’m your son.' And when she fully understands who it is standing in front of her, I’ll take out my handgun, point it at her face, and pull the trigger. And finally, I will have completed my father's work. But first: I'm going to need that book!"

Not surprisingly, the owner hands the book over.

So now we are down to the season finale next week, and I have to say that this was my least favorite episode of the season. I realize they needed to start wrapping things up, but this was a little much for me. Alma kills Grace, Alma goes to Briarcliff, Alma dies with no real explanation. Judy is living happily (for the most part) at the asylum as mother hen with Pepper at her side, except she’s not because she has no concept of time, she sees the Angel of Death in other inmates, and Pepper’s dead….with no explanation. Stupid Lana is a successful writer and a massive bitch, and I honestly don’t care at this point if she prevails next week if/when she comes face to face with Johnny. Ryan Murphy indicated that there would be one person left standing at the end of the show.  I’m hoping for Kit instead of Stupid Lana. It would be awesome if Judy remained  (since her character was the survivor last season) but by present day, I feel that she would have to be either dead or reallllllly old. We have a short wait to find out, and I am borderline freaking out in anticipation of what’s to come!

AHS Asylum: The Beginning of The End

Tonight’s episode of American Horror Story opens with our modern day Bloody Face, Johnny Morgan, waiting for a visitor. When he answers his door a busty woman named Pandora is standing there, all smiles because she just gave birth three weeks ago. There’s nothing like a prostitute who has been out of work because of child bearing. Welcome back to the world of fetishes and kinks, Pandora. I will do my best to refrain from “Pandora’s Box” jokes. Maybe.

 

Anywho, Johnny had used the internet to contact Pandora and her triple Ds because much like his daddy before him, baby needs colostrum. No seriously – after some “dirty talk” regarding lactating and wet bras (gross), Johnny breastfeeds from this woman. Breast. Feeds. My first thought: EWWWWW. And...I don’t think I had a second thought. Unfortunately for Pandora though, she allows Johnny to talk about his mommy issues. He gets himself all worked up over his biological mom, eventually grabbing Pandora by the throat and screaming in her face. We can go ahead and imagine that her evening does not end well.

Back to 1960s Briarcliff now, where Kit awakens in solitary confinement. Thredson enters to assure Kit that he believes all children require love and attention and offers to allow Kit to spend time with his bouncing baby (alien?) boy. They make their way to the common room where Grace and baby Thomas are hanging out, and Thredson allows the three of them to spend some quality time together. Kit is overwhelmed by it all and finally asks Grace for some details. I’m pretty sure we’ve all been wondering “WTF?” right?

Grace then begins to explain her time away from Earth. She remembers being shot by Frank the Security Guard but when the bright light came, it was the aliens that came to get her. They impregnated her (with a baby that looks like Kit?) and her pregnancy advanced quickly because “time works differently up there.” No kidding.  Grace also tells Kit that Alma is dead, but the only reason the aliens wanted Alma and Grace is because Kit is the common link. He is “special.” Baby Thomas is also special and Grace predicts that he will change the way people think. Believing his wife to be dead, Kit looks at his newborn and then asks Grace to marry him so they can become a real family. She agrees and it’s all very adorable.

The sweet scene is interrupted, however, when Monsignor Timothy and the orderlies enter to take baby Thomas to a home for lost children. It seems the Monsignor thinks a lot of himself now that he has rid Briarcliff of the devil (and inadvertently Dr. Arden as well), and he has resumed his role as head honcho. He has also become quite the dick at this point, and I can no longer feel good about calling him Father Hotness…. Father Jackass works better for me now. He has no remorse at all as the baby is ripped out of the arms of his parents and walked out of the room. But wait. Thredson would never allow another baby to be put into the system on his watch, would he? Not if Kit gives him the confession tape….which will not be an easy feat.

Meanwhile Mother Claudia finds Stupid Lana in the bakery and tells her she is taking her from Briarcliff. She explains that Judy confessed everything that Stupid Lana had been through and hands Lana her patient file which documents the awful things that have happened to her in the asylum. Lana now sheds her stupidity (finally!), grabs Thredson’s confession tape and promises Judy that she will come back for her.  As Kit distracts Thredson, she follows Mother Claudia out of Briarcliff and hops into a cab. Thredson realizes just a bit too late that this is happening and when he runs outside to stop her, she leans forward in the cab window, holds up the confession tape…and flicks him off as the cab speeds away. Priceless! 

Knowing that he is screwed, Thredson hurries home to begin whatever escape plan he had in mind. Lana, however, is waiting for him there with a gun. She tells him that the police have the confession tape and should be arriving any moment. Thredson says he is relieved not to have to live with secrets anymore, and he reiterates that he was right about her being “the one.” He moves to make himself one last martini and we see that he has a gun stashed in the bar area. The suspense builds.

Lana asks him what happened to Wendy’s body. She wants to be able to give her former love a proper burial. Thredson wants to spare her the details, but Lana insists: “I want to know everything.” He begins to describe how he left Wendy’s body intact and put her on ice just for Lana. You see, he “practiced” with Wendy before raping Lana. How could Thredson be okay with having sex with a corpse you wonder? Well, he just turned her head around the other way and then everything worked splendidly. “Wendy allowed us to create this life you have growing inside you.” And now I’m just nauseous.

Unfortunately for Lana (and Wendy), Thredson had to take Wendy’s body apart and scatter the pieces when Lana escaped from him the first time. So…no burial for Wendy. He begins to make himself another drink as the sirens are heard approaching the house. Lana assures him that even if she kept their child, he would never see it because he would soon be on his way to the electric chair. Not so fast. Thredson is quick to remind her that he is "insane" and will most likely end up with a life sentence at Briarcliff. He reaches for the gun and Lana blows his brains out.

When we next see Lana she is putting flowers near a plot in a mausoleum. Though Wendy’s body was not recovered, this will be designated as her final resting place. Lana plans to wrap some things up (get an abortion) and then head to New York to live out her days as a famous journalist. She leaves the mausoleum surrounded by paparazzi. They all shout questions to her and she climbs into her car, rolls down the window and tells them “all I can say is…read my book.”

Back at Briarcliff Judy is becoming a constant rebel. She challenges the patients to stop taking their happy pills, and she has also developed a deep appreciation for the new jukebox. Father Jackass knows that he needs to keep her quiet. The newspapers are all publishing stories about Briarcliff and the reporters linger outside the gates hoping to speak with someone inside. I guess they don’t know about the death chute – it’s so easy to come and go as you please when you know about the death chute. 

Judy is rocking out to “Love Potion No. 9” in the common room when Father Jackass approaches her. She calls him out on relinquishing his virtue to the devil (big no-no for those who want to be Pope) and expects him to renounce his vows because of his unholy indiscretion. The Monsignor tells her he has too much to give…too much to offer. He can’t just throw it all away now because of a weak moment while being mounted by a demon. (Oh, and there’s the little matter of him MURDERING Shelley, but Judy doesn’t know about that). She is disgusted and feels ashamed that she once would have done anything for the Monsignor and she causes a scene. “I am blessed with the gift of total clarity. I am more sane now as a mad woman than I ever was as the head of Briarcliff.” Father Jackass orders her to solitary confinement.

Kit, on the other hand, is getting out of solitary confinement for good as he has been served his walking papers from Briarcliff. Now that he has been cleared of the Bloody Face murders, he is a free man. He’s not going anywhere without Grace and baby Thomas though, so he strikes a deal with Father Jackass. Technically Grace is dead – Frank shot her and Arden signed a death certificate. So no one would need to know if she is “released.” In exchange for his family, Kit promises to never speak to any of the journalists about the asylum. He promises that no one at Briarcliff will ever hear from him again.

Kit, Grace and their baby arrive home at Kit’s house. I know I am not alone when I ask: how does Kit still have his house? Do accused serial killers in insane asylums get to hold on to their houses just in case they’ve been falsely imprisoned? It’s not like we’ve seen any evidence of Kit and Alma’s families playing any kind of role in their lives. No matter though – the spare key is under the rock right where it’s supposed to be (cringe), and the house is in the same state it was during the alien invasion. The happy homecoming is short-lived, however, due to a noise coming from the bedroom. Kit approaches the intruder…only to see ALMA alive and well…and holding a baby of her own. HA! I feel that Kit could easily have his own baby mama drama reality show now.

Speaking of baby mamas, Lana is now faced with the decision of whether or not to keep her baby. She’s at a home of a doctor who performs abortions on the side and after hearing Lana’s story (though she tells the woman her name is “Jane”…interesting), the doctor is more than happy to assist. As the procedure begins however, Lana just can’t go through with it. “No more death. No more.”

Several months pass (in looking at how far along she is in her pregnancy), and Lana returns her focus to taking down Briarcliff, visiting the police to help with their investigation. Seems Mother Claudia was transferred to Puerto Rico right after she helped Lana break free, so more witnesses are needed. Lana tells the detectives that Judy can corroborate her allegations, but she hasn’t been allowed back in to Briarcliff to see her. Yeah, no kidding. Armed with a court order, she accompanies the detectives to the asylum to confront Monsignor Timothy and get Judy out of there. Father Jackass informs them that Judy hung herself and produces a death certificate to “prove” it. He also explains that because she committed suicide, she was denied a Christian burial and was cremated immediately. Convenient. Lana is soooo pissed, however, we the audience know that Father Jackass is lying. Judy is then shown in solitary confinement.

Our episode ends with Lana in a hospital after giving birth. She had asked not to see the baby, but the boy is allergic to formula and won’t stop crying. Yup – baby needs colostrum. Lana begrudgingly breastfeeds the little one, looking disgusted at first, but then eventually cradling him.

So, is Johnny Morgan truly the son of Lana and Bloody Face? Does Lana end up keeping the baby and raising him in secret? Is there some sort of twist coming where he ends up being the son of Kit and Grace? We’ll know for sure in a couple of weeks.

I also wanted to say how captivated I was during this episode. It was brilliantly directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, and the camera angles, music and split screens were a throwback to Brian De Palma films, with some Alfred Hitchcock thrown in, and I LOVED every bit of it.

AHS Asylum: Let's Play a Game

Happy New Year! American Horror Story’s first 2013 episode begins with a jolt as Dr. Arden is bringing Kit back from the dead, so to speak. In the previous episode, Kit’s “death” was part of an experiment to see if the aliens would come a runnin’ to save him. Dr. Creepy lies to Kit saying there was no visitation when we know there most certainly was. Also back from the dead? Grace, who the aliens have apparently healed and protected. She is in the final stages of being preggers, which is odd considering there is no way 9 months have passed since she and Kit had their bakery romp.

 

Our strange little patient, Pepper, has been charged with guarding Grace. Up until now Pepper had not really spoken and gave the impression that she wasn’t exactly mentally developed. After some time in space, she’s become quite articulate…though the aliens did nothing to improve on her physical appearance.  As he tries to take x-rays of Grace’s belly, Arden scoffs at Pepper, telling her that just because she can speak doesn’t mean she is able to think for herself. She puts him in his place immediately:

 

 

“They’ve been watching you. They laugh at you, Dr. Arden. They make jokes. Knock, knock? Who’s there? Arden. Arden who? Arden you a quack who’d make a better duck?”    ZING!

Dr. Creepy starts to perform a C section instead, but his scapal flies out of his hand he stumbles back in fear. Pepper continues:

“No one takes a pinhead seriously. When my sister’s husband drowned her baby and sliced his ears off, he told everyone I did it. They tied me up and paraded me in front of the judge. He took one look at the shape of my head and I was locked up for good. That’s how it works with us freaks. We get blamed for everything. But if something happens to Grace in here and she is harmed in any way, there won’t be anyone else to blame. They’ll take you, open up your head and stir your brain with a fork. And when you return, you’ll experience first-hand how you people treat us ‘freaks.’ I’ll take care of Grace. Why don’t you go to your whore nun. Have her soothe your deflated ego.”

We are only three minutes into the episode and I am already salivating with excitement. Who knew Pepper would become such a bad-ass?

The whore nun (I like that name – wish I had thought of it) is busy tending to Monsignor Timothy who is healing from his crucifiction experience. When we last saw him, he had been nailed to a cross by Lee, the Bad Santa, who had subsequently escaped....because it's pretty easy to do that at Briarcliff. The Monsignor had a visit from the Angel of Death as he waited for rescue, but she was not there to take him – she told him he still has work to do.  I guess it was time SOMEONE clued him in on the demon possessing Sister Mary Eunice….God knows (clearly) that he wasn’t going to figure it out on his own.

 

Sister Mary Satan wheels Father Hotness to a recovery room to rest, and he lays down on the bed clutching his rosary. Hey - is that the same rosary you used to strangle Shelley? If so, I’m pretty sure it’s tainted and not going to be of much help here. He holds the cross against the nun’s forehead and tries unsuccessfully to cast out the demon. She tosses him on the bed and reveals the red lingerie under her robes (previously owned by Sister Jude). At first Father Hotness tells her to stop, that he has taken a vow, that he has given his body to Christ…but then she rides him like a porn star and he can’t help but want it. The, um, timing is perfect here because Dr. Arden enters the room just as the tryst is ending.

Soon after, a jukebox is delivered to in the common room. Sister Mary Satan christens the jukebox by selecting “I Put a Spell on You” and dedicates the song to Judy Martin. Stupid Lana finds Kit at that moment and starts to tell him that Thredson got loose…and then Dr. Thredson himself pushes through the doors of the common room in slow motion as the song continues to play. Seems he has taken a full time position at Briarcliff and so he can continue Kit’s “treatment” and monitor Stupid Lana and their unborn child. And once again, you guys are screwed.

 

Beyond screwed, however, is Judy Martin. She has been sentenced to electroshock therapy, and when she returns to the common room, Judy is a hot mess. Making her way over to the jukebox, she beats it for a second before Stupid Lana walks over and re-introduces herself. Judy struggles to remember her as well as her own name. She turns back toward the jukebox and now, my friends, we have reached one of the most awesome moments of Season 2.

Judy envisions herself headlining a song and dance number to “The Name Game” to re-learn everyone’s names. This scene is ludicrous, hilarious and wonderful. I can’t imagine how much fun this must have been to shoot. We, as viewers, have seen very few light moments in American Horror Story, and I imagine this must have been a breath of fresh air for the actors to participate in this as well. When the song ends we are back to Stupid Lana trying to get Judy to remember her.
 

 

A defeated Dr. Arden goes off to feed raw meat to his creatures in the woods. The devil nun catches up to him and accuses him of being jealous of Monsignor Timothy, essentially telling him to get over it.  She suggests they give Judy a lobotomy like the procedure he so lovingly performed on the fake Anne Frank. He’s having none of it and none of her. He pulls out a gun and shoots all of his creatures...declaring his experiments are over. Arden then turns the gun on himself but can’t quite go through with it. He falls to his knees, sobbing, and Sister Mary Satan calls him “pitiful.”

As Arden lays on the ground weeping, Dr. Bloody Face is raiding his office. Thredson hears a woman’s screams behind a closed door and discovers Grace – alive and in labor. Seeing an opportunity to threaten Kit into submission, Thredson brings Kit to Arden’s secret room just after Grace gives birth to what looks like a healthy, normal baby boy. Fearlful of losing Grace and his newborn son, Kit tells Thredson where he hid the Bloody Face confession tapes.

 

Thredson makes his way to the bathroom where Kit had hidden the tapes. However, Lana has accomplished her first non-stupid act all season – she has taken them, and Thredson is pisssssed.

Meanwhile, Monsignor Timothy is detaining Judy in the bakery for a heart to heart. She’s having a difficult time kneading the bread due to her brain being fried and all. Father Hotness proceeds to apologize, calling her “Jude,” and admits that she was right about everything. He also confesses that the possessed Sister Mary Eunice violated him and stole his virtue. Yup. That’s one way to put it I suppose. Unsure of what to do next, the Monsignor now seeks advice from his former loyal supporter. Judy’s words are clear: “Kill her.”

 

Judy moves on to the common room, watching each patient and trying to remember their names. For a moment, I believe she is back on track to become a force to be reckoned with again. Mother Superior arrives and I wait for Judy to air all of the asylum’s dirty laundry. Instead…Judy wants to say “goodbye.” She shakes, touching her temple repeatedly as she explains that she and the Monsignor are going to Rome. “We’re going to be Pope. We’re getting married. He likes my cooking. I’m a rare bird….” Oh hell. She does, however, ask Mother Superior to help Stupid Lana get out. “She doesn’t belong here. I put her here." I guess that counts for something?

Newly invigorated, Father Hotness confronts the devil nun again….but rather than address the demon, he appeals to Sister Mary Eunice instead. She emerges for one brief  heartbreaking moment to tell him she is tired of fighting. She wants to let go. And with that, he hurls her over the stairway to Heaven. The Angel of Death appears and informs Mary Eunice that she will take  both her and the demon with her kiss…the tormented nun is then finally at rest.

 

The Monsignor blesses her body and initiates burial procedures, but Dr. Arden insists that Mary Eunice be cremated given the whole devil was inside of her issue. He looks entirely grief stricken as he has now really lost her twice.  Arden places her body on the slab/conveyor belt to be put into the crematorium. He pulls back the white sheet, revealing her angelic face one last time. Then he climbs on top of her. Wait, what!? He wouldn’t force himself upon her know, would he? I mean, he's creepy, but is he THAT creepy? No, he isn’t. Instead he starts the conveyor belt and burns with her.

I am a bit distraught as I watch these two deaths. On the one hand, I know this is American Horror Story and most of the characters will probably die. On the other, I was hoping that Sister Mary Eunice would be one of the few who survived. She was, after all, so naïve and pure when the season started, and when I think about her back story as an introvert that everyone made fun of, this becomes all the more tragic.

 

 

With only three episodes to go, we are down to the wire. Mary Eunice and Arden’s storylines are finished (including his creatures), leaving us with the Judy/Monsignor/Bad Santa (?) mess, the(possibly alien) Kit and Grace family situation, and the Stupid Lana/Thredson/Modern Day Bloody Face conundrum. There is a whole lot of information to be revealed in these last episodes to tie everything up, and from what I understand, there is not cliffhanger type ending like we had when Season 1 came to a close.

Also, Ryan Murphy had mentioned that the clue to Season 3’s theme/location would be in tonight’s episode. I have to wonder if the jukebox choice of “I Put a Spell on You” has something to do with it. Witchcraft maybe? Might as well at this point! We’ll see…