Wednesday, October 23, 2013

'American Horror Story:Coven' 3.03: "The Replacements" Review

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When Cordelia Foxx performed her snaketastic fertility ceremony with her husband Hank in last week’s episode, people probably assumed it would work. Magic, we've been taught throughout the pop culture landscape, is the ultimate problem solver and just as Delia’s doctor said when he informed her that she could never be pregnant, ‘if I could wave a magic wand, I would’. We've already seen Cordelia try this along with every other method that’s more medically legitimate and still nothing. Tonight’s episode proved the point in several storylines that magic is far from a problem-solver and its consequences are dire in a world where the realms of science and even God preclude what nature can sustain. Or put simply, everyone dies, some people can’t give birth, and never ever fuck your son.  These may seem like common facts of life but in the world of American Horror Story there are few, if any limits.



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It almost feels as though the writers made their own list of the few remaining widely recognized taboos that AHS surprisingly hasn't hit yet. Poor poor Kyle Spencer, it isn’t enough that he died in the first episode only to be brought back to life as a sort of Fratenstein stitched together hodgepodge of boy parts. No, he also gets to be a part of the first-ever incest storyline in all three years of American Horror Story. I know, it feels like that’s definitely one they would have gotten to already, right? Kyle’s incredibly close mother wasn’t only the most squick-inducing moment a show with adult breastfeeding has featured. It provided Kyle with a harrowing back-story which proved that this boy was broken long before that bus flipped over. It’s clever storytelling because any concept of sex is now likely associated with a plethora of bad memories for him, and his caretaker Zoe can’t ever have it with him anyway so their relationship is forced to exist outside of the sexual plane. A refreshing change for most teenage love tales in general. Their trust will be built on something more than skin-deep and it’s why I’m actually pro- Zyle when it comes to ships on this season.

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Even though I too picked up on the chemistry between Zoe and walking Stevie Nicks Wikipedia page, Misty Day. I would love nothing more than the first quite popular non-canon femslash ship of AHS to come into fruition as well but it seems as though Misty’s tale is going to be far more tragic ultimately. The desperation that veers toward anger in Rabe’s voice when Zoe comes to take Kyle away was powerful and it makes me wonder if her goodwill toward people like Zoe will become twisted against her in future episodes. Misty’s tale is certainly one of the tragedies of the season, but it’s easy to argue against solidarity (‘you can’t be your best self until you join your tribe’) when the De facto leader of the coven is as toxic as Fiona Goode proved herself to be.

What makes the Supreme manifest and how deadly it is to follow lineage rules was a focus of
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the episode. Two scenes
book-ended ‘The Replacements’, both featuring one character committing the same act in the presence of another. Did anyone truly believe that tripe Fiona said about regretting how she spent her time as a Supreme? The only thing she regrets is that it will come to an end, especially now that we know the weakening of her life force has presented itself in the form of cancer. Fiona acts under the idea that someone her age isn't about to change now so she may as well keep on keepin’ on with the kind of behavior she’s shown so far. I’m positive this isn't the last we've seen of Madison either, paging Misty Day for a quick resurrection. Not only has Fiona taken lives in the past and present, but she’s also ruined her daughter Delia’s chances to make her own.

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Cordelia crossed the unofficial battle lines to try and get Marie LaVeau to perform a dark fertility ritual on her only for her pleas to be rebuffed with the knowledge that her mother had already stirred up shit between the two ‘tribes’ of witches. It’s such a shame how Delia is a victim of her own bloodline when, so far, she’s shown herself to be a level-headed witch with maybe not so ‘supreme’ capabilities. But now she’s being denied access to something that in her mind will make her dreams come true all because of the meddling of her mother. Ryan Murphy has hinted that Cordelia is bound for quite a dark journey ahead of her and if she goes all ‘Dark Willow’, to borrow a famous fandom witch, then Fiona is going to learn just what it really feels like to regret her mothering choices.

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Part of the major plotline of this series has to do with growing tensions from the witch war as both sides prepare to unload centuries worth of bad blood by spilling it onto the streets of the French Quarter. Right now though it’s a bit of a slow burn as we’re still building characters up on both sides. That said, I feel like we haven’t gotten to spend nearly enough time with Madame LaLaurie, Marie LeVeau, or even Queenie and Nan. I understand the concept of a supporting character, but all four of these women have the potential to be complex individuals. What Queenie had for her big scene felt like another mark on the aforementioned AHS taboo checklist. She deserved better tonight and I hope she gets it in the weeks to come.

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Also, was I the only person that felt that the most terrifying thing about tonight’s episode was the fact that LaLaurie’s tears of anguish over Obama being president, and her resulting dialog, could have easily been spouted out of the mouth of a modern-day Tea Party member? Real life horror as it exists today people, and that’s part of the fun of the liberal dream world concocted by this show--one where a raging racist is forced to serve at the whim of the only black girl in the house. Taste the justice.

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