Wednesday, October 30, 2013

'American Horror Story:Coven' 3.04 "Fearful Pranks Ensue" Review

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You could say that if last week the battle lines were drawn then this week is all about the opening shots in the grand war of witch vs witch down in New Orleans on Halloween. Already both sides have taken casualties and from how the traditional yearly Halloween time two-parter concluded it’s clear that the battle is about to get truly brutal indeed. Even before Marie Laveau’s wakened her undead horde (for the second time even in just one episode) one side is already facing some serious internal conflicts as Fiona’s actions from last week carry some big consequences that promise to leave at least one witch’s life in ashes.




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Well, it’s on now as Marie Laveau declares the ‘truce is over’. First there was Bastien’s attack on Queenie which actually took her life briefly before Fiona did something uncharacteristically noble and breathed restorative life energy back into her. That was just the start however, soon Fiona has Bastien’s Minotaur head delivered to Cornrow City in a lovely homage to Se7en. Except Gwenyth Paltrow wasn't immortal in that movie so poor Bastien is a winking severed head in a box when he’s returned to his longtime lover.


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This episode actually treated us to a more complete portrayal of Angela Basset’s character than we’ve had yet this series. Laveau is the kind of head witch that the coven sadly has lacked for as long as Fiona’s tenure as their Supreme has lasted. She never stopped meting out justice to the wicked even after her punishment of Madame LaLaurie. She’s used her own everlasting life to stand up for her maligned minority group at the times they needed her most. For example, the cold open in 1961 gave us a chance to see how Marie’s friends and allies see her instead of as some sort of nuisance--a holdout that shouldn’t dare deny the almighty coven leader whatever she wants. 

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No, Marie Laveau is a heroine, she is someone that puts herself and her power on the line to do good for her community. She has spent centuries now watching as her people fall into the same instances of being put down, terrorized, and murdered. What she sees in Fiona is basically another oppressive force that wants to control her and that will not stand. I think perhaps Laveau may come to realize that it’s not worth wiping out the entire coven but removing Fiona from power can only be seen as a positive effect of this conflict--not just for her community but the coven would greatly benefit as well. Not only did she lie and break the number one coven rule to get where she is but she also apparently does so little with her title of Supreme.


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When the council shows up at Miss Robicheaux’s Academy it’s clear that we’re going to get a better sense of the witch hierarchy in the coven. We also had the chance to learn that Fiona’s ill-gotten position of power was actively contested by current councilwoman Myrtle Snow. As a young woman, Myrtle attempted to extract the truth about how the disappearance of former Supreme Anna Lee Leighton. Her thirst for justice, or rather just a hard-worn grudge against Fiona, has given her a second chance to take this witch down in flames. Frances Conroy provides Snow with so many layers in her interrogation scenes as to the disappearance of Madison Montgomery--each more bitter than the last. It’s always fun to know when a character’s presumptions are correct because we know who killed both witches, but at the same time it’s clear that Myrtle isn't going to let this opportunity slip from her finely gloved hands. Also, how much fun was it to see fabulous character actor Leslie Jordan show up? I’ve adored him in several films and shows over the years and he’s a great fit for this show as the eccentric Capote-esque author/council member Quentin who seems to be more on Fiona’s side than Myrtle would like.


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The flashback surrounding young Fiona and Myrtle also gave us the answer to which cat got Spalding’s tongue, so to speak. It turns out that Myrtle had a truth-telling hex placed on him as she figured he would have been around to clean up Fiona’s mess like usual. Instead of rat her out, Spalding chose to shear off his own tongue to keep from speaking against her. I’m sure I’m not alone in getting serious season one vibes from when he told Fiona that he always loved her just as Larry did with a less than receptive Constance Langdon in the Murder House arc. It could also be because Larry is one of my all-time favorite characters across the board on American Horror Story. His commitment to protecting her was sort of...sweet. But don’t you worry, because American Horror Story doesn’t do sweet without making things really twisted.


Denis O’Hare got the honor of doing the Most Fucked Up Character Work as we learned of
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Spalding’s affection for having tea parties with his massive dolly collection and also sometimes wearing a baby bonnet and dressing gown when attending said parties. This show has always had strong memorable imagery and what better way to highlight that than with a character that never has dialog as he excitedly set up for his new dolly guest--Madison! Yes she’s dead but she’s not forgotten as questions surrounding her disappearance abound in the house, Spalding shellacked her in pretty makeup and now he has the ultimate life-size doll to keep him company. I suppose someone that lives within their own silence prefers the company of those who are the same so it makes sense even if it is super creepy to watch unfold. Plus, if the body is around for a while longer maybe we can get a chance to see Misty bring her back one day although she might be a bit decomposed by then.


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As fun and tempting as it may be on paper to bring back dead characters this year we’re really getting the chance to see that such actions have horrible consequences. Madison could wind up no better than Kyle who’s in a state of complete disarray following the slaying of his mother by his own (okay one of his frat brother’s) hands. Zoe realizes that maybe this is a mistake she needs to rectify and so we’re given the hint that she may have intended to poison Kyle to put him back where he belongs--in death. It’s going to be entertaining to see where the escaped Kyle winds up but I’m willing to bet he’ll find his way back to Misty. There’s probably some kind of deep internal connection with her magic that he’ll respond to. I gotta give Zoe credit for at least trying to fix her mistake but from how it wasn’t mentioned again by the episode’s end I wonder if his return is going to raise a whole new series of questions from her remaining coven sisters. For now it’s another closely guarded secret that a character on this show wants to keep to themselves. Unlike say, whatever the hell Cordelia’s husband Hank is up to.


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Hank is off on a business trip but what business exactly? Cordelia in the first episode mentioned he was a contractor and his fling, Kaylee, said USDA agent. That’s average cheating behavior but putting a gun to the other woman’s head and blowing her brains out isn’t usually of the norm. I can’t believe that is how they chose to bring Alexandra Breckenridge back. It was a shame she wasn’t in Asylum and now it’s a shame that she had that thankless of a role in Coven. Someone start one of those Change.Org petitions to get her lead role in next year’s installment asap. Back to Hank, it’d be easy to just dismiss his activity as that of a murderer but things aren’t quite what they seem on this show. There were little cues in his behavior while engaging in sex with Kaylee as well as their conversation before he offed her that made me question just who the hell is Hank Foxx? A number of thoughts went through my head including he’s a supernatural creature of some kind or even a hunter. What better way to get in with a coven of witches than to seduce one, marry her, and you’ll have full access to the rest of them so you can bring them down. I hope the second part illuminates the Hank mystery for us because right now wow was it ever random in the midst of the rest of the chaos going down.


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That includes the tragic incident that befell his wife back home while out on a night on the town with her mother. Cordelia has such a tragic depth to her thanks to Paulson’s humanistic portrayal that I couldn’t help but instantly connect with the least ‘witchy’ of the coven from the first episode on. Her very real struggles were a great grounding point for the series as things went off the hinges in other character’s stories. But poor Delia learned personally just how off the truce is when she was ambushed in the bar bathroom and doused in the face with what appeared to be hydrochloric acid. Of course, that’s what the show wants you to believe but personally I’m betting there was a member of the coven, the council actually, under that elaborate cloak. What better way to remove a corrupt and lazy figurehead than to help the war along by attacking her hapless daughter? They’ll think it was the voodoo side and strike back when Fiona is not strong enough to take on Laveau and live.
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This will be a perfect chance for the Supreme to fall just as Myrtle Snow has always wanted since the day Fiona was given the title. It’s a shame that perpetual victim Cordelia (from what we’ve seen so far that is) is the one that had to suffer so much for this to be done. Regardless of who did what, things are about to get downright nasty down south and as the Laveau’s undead army descends upon Miss Robicheaux’s Academy it seems as though some won’t even make it to see the first light of November. Forget lighting bonfires, our witches are going to need at least a flamethrower to get out of this mess alive.

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