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At first I wasn’t really sure how I felt about this episode
as it was ongoing. I was fully on-board with the idea of an American Horror Story holiday episode after last season's finale ended with a final shot of the Harmons--dead and ghostly in the house that killed them-- trimming the tree together. But this was the very definition of a filler episode. First of all, visually this episode was a huge let down. There had to have
been any number of cinematic tricks that could have been busted out for this
type of holiday-tinged affair but there wasn’t anything but some cheesy jump-cuts
and jump-scares to be found. I expected better after we’ve had some truly
spectacular camerawork this year. It wasn’t my favorite of the season, but there were
ultimately a few good moments of character development and forward plot motion in it. Jude and Lana both got the chance to show us just
how hard they’re willing to fight, and we were treated to a full episode of the
devil in Sister Mary Eunice running the place with perverse glee as the
Christmas holiday nears. I wish they would have shown us more of the grotesque objects on that tree...but hit the jump to see how the naughty and nice of Briarcliff Manor fared in 'Unholy Night'.
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Let’s talk about Ian McShane, arguably the biggest ‘get’ of
the season, and his bid to win the most scenery chewed on American Horror Story
award. I’m incredibly conflicted about this entire storyline. It gave
Sister Jude a chance to not only pay for the sins that the entire institution
has perpetrated against the criminally insane—of which there is no doubt that
McShane’s character qualifies. But other
than the new world his actions have opened for Jude, his entire arc amounted to
an insane man babbling no matter how talented the lips may be that spouted off
with the dialog they gave him. But as for the forward movement in Jude’s arc it’s
a nice shot of irony that she now has been forced to attempt to kill an inmate at the asylum. The act of committing murder has propelled her guilt throughout the season when she mistakenly
thought she killed that little girl in a hit and run has now come to fruition
and in the worst possible circumstances when everyone at Briarcliff is firmly
against her and wants Sister Jude to fall even if Leigh Emerson lives. But that’s part of the deal Sister,
if you want to be a soldier for God you have to be willing to get blood on your
hands from time to time.
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It’s part of how the arcs of the characters this year are constantly winding up in truly interesting and not quite expected places. That makes for good television especially with this horror story that feels more like a very good melodrama on its best days. When Jude was at
her raving drunken worse she was still head of the asylum and now that she’s
truly clear-headed and there for the right reasons she’s headed for a
straitjacket. Everyone thought that Lana was going to bring Oliver Thredson
down but it seems that the kind-hearted reporter has machinations to embrace
her inner monster herself as she chooses to isolate him in an abandoned room at
Briarcliff for some payback. (Honestly that place might be sprawling but it’s
pretty ridiculous to watch the inmates essentially run the asylum in a way when
Kit and Lana team up to assault Oliver so easily.)
I mean unless she kills him
(spoiler alert Zachary Quinto has been on-set and is looking quite fine as was Sarah Paulson interestingly enough so I'm saying no there) then she’s only
helping the case being made against her. Right now she's just an inmate at an asylum that has delusions about one of the
medical professionals there to help her, just as Oliver told her would happen
if she squealed. He’s destroyed every bit of evidence against himself except
for the bun in Lana’s oven. You can see it in the set pictures and it’s
becoming increasingly clear that modern-day Bloody Face is more than likely
going to be Lana and Oliver’s child carrying on the dark family legacy. Lana may be out of the basement but to me she's completely still trapped now that everything's said and done. On one hand no one will believe the crazy girl crying 'Bloody Face!' while pointing at the good doctor. While on the other hand if she does attack him, or what she's carrying inside of her, then the evil Thredson has done to her is far worse than she ever could have imagined. He made her like him.
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During his big confrontation scene, Oliver got caught monologuing so he definitely
deserves whatever Lana or Kit gets the chance to do to him. I have no sympathy
for a villain that gets taken down because they were too busy yammering on
about their hurt feelings to do what they should have been doing. That’s
basically villain rule number one and he broke it with deranged gusto so now he has to pay the
price for it.
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In all seriousness though, I feel that this Bloody Face story isn’t really going
to wind up the way everyone feels it will either at least not for Kit Walker. It’s
too easy and it isn’t befitting Ryan Murphy’s style to have Thredson go down
for his own crimes, in a traditional manner anyway as personal vengeance isn’t
the same as institutional justice, and I truly think that Kit’s fears of the
electric chair are incredibly justified. I could hardly see Ryan Murphy
resisting the urge to have such a tragic ending for an innocent character—it’s
kinda his thing if you haven’t figured it out by now. Just look at actual good and decent fellow Frank the security guard. He felt guilt for what he did to Grace last week and he's been nothing but a total professional for his brutal job all season, and so naturally he paid for it by getting his throat cut by the devil herself nonetheless. Even if Kit doesn’t die he’s still got some
mental issues to sort out as evidenced by his deluded fever dream of a happy Christmas with Alma who then becomes Grace, both pregnant. Let's give an acting shout-out here to Evan Peters who has been very strong this season and you can see even just depending on who his scene partner is how he shows Kit's fragile state of mind with a simple change of facial expression--a flicker in his eyes. Kit has some serious lady problems and what in the actual hell was up with the
aliens coming and taking Grace’s body? They put something in her I’m sure of
it.
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Even though the hour was billed as belonging to guest star
McShane, it was season regulars Lily Rabe and James Cromwell that deserve all the awards. The back and
forth between the two characters was compelling to watch and there’s so much palpable sadness in Arthur that even though you know what he is and what he’s done
(neither of which he’s really interested in hiding anymore) there is a chance
to feel sympathy for him. The single shining light in his life is gone,
possibly forever, but it was watching him take part in the plan to set-up
Sister Jude that gave Cromwell some of his finest work on the show to date as
well as his entire test with gifting Mary Eunice with Concentration Camp blood
rubies. Cromwell displays human evil personified in letting Sister Mary
Eunice continue to have power because it means he can continue his work and he’s
just so apathetic to these heaven and hell battles.
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Rabe’s performance meanwhile outshone
all others tonight. Her demon in a nun’s habit is sassy, cruel, and just so
much fun to behold that it’s hard to root for anyone to excise the devil from
Sister Mary.
Let’s hope that next week’s episode is better than this
filler episode was. I have high hopes considering the return of Dylan McDermott
is near. No, he’s not Ben Harmon, but yes that might be the redressed set of the
Murder House interior that he’s having his therapy session in. Those trolls.
Great review
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