“American Horror Story” is officially back. Season eight takes place in an apocalyptic America after several nuclear intercontinental missiles have destroyed the world. This season is also set to combine seasons one, Murder House, and three, Coven. These seasons have been fan favorites and have many fans thrilled to see how they will be incorporated in the upcoming season.
Season eight opens with a snobby rich woman, Coco St. Pierre Vanderbilt, getting her hair done in the latest trend for the viewing pleasures of all of her followers on social media. All of a sudden, panic arises in the streets as everyone gets an emergency alert of a ballistic missile in bound for Los Angeles, California. Coco immediately claims that the alert is totally fake and receives a FaceTime call from her father, mother and brother in Hong Kong. They tell her the threat is real, and there is a plane waiting for her in Santa Monica Airport. All major cities over the world had been destroyed: London, Hong Kong, Los Angeles.
The show then cuts to a scene where a high school senior has just received his acceptance letter to UCLA. His father then walks in and explains the missile crisis occurring, and at the same time, a government vehicle pulls into their driveway asking for the son. They explain that he has optimal genetics to survive and take him away by force.
Many viewers will experience more anxiety while watching this season as compared to previous ones. Once again, “American Horror Story” has managed to target its audiences’ fears.
That’s the thing about “American Horror Story,” though. The show goes deep into the true fears of people in America and twists them to truly frighten its viewers. The opener was so scary was because of how real it seemed.
The show manages to ease viewers’ anxieties as they dive deeper into post-apocalyptic America. At this point, it seemed as though they went back into the dark ages, and a class system had been invoked with workers becoming the greys and the worthy becoming the purples. The head mistress explained that technology is what ruined the world and that the nuclear bombs were not the end but only the beginning.
Some aspects of this part of the show seemed a little hokey. I couldn’t take the names of the monsters that lurked beyond the gates and the names of some of the food seriously.
The episode ends by fast forwarding to 18 months in the future, where viewers are first introduced to the Antichrist, Tate Langdon’s son from season one. He promises shelter to whoever he deems worthy, and that could be everyone, some or even none.
With the combination of two of the best seasons and such a realistic storyline, I think this may be the best “American Horror Story” has done so far.
