There isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t want more of some of my favorite American Horror Story characters.
When American Horror Story Season 8, “Apocalypse” premiered, I felt short-changed because the witches were nowhere to be seen. Then, they popped up a few episodes in and completely took over the story.
I didn’t enjoy that season when it aired because it suffered from severe pacing issues, and it just wasn’t fun watching it week-to-week.
So, when news emerged that American Horror Story Season 13 would feature returning characters from a wealth of seasons, I was intrigued.
The series was at rock bottom after American Horror Story Season 12, “Delicate,” a season I’d rather the series forgot exists because I never want to revisit it again.
Surely, bringing back some of the franchise’s most beloved characters could get things back on track?
After watching the first three episodes of American Horror Story Season 13, I’m not even excited about the returning characters anymore because the creatives have seemingly thrown the mythology established by previous seasons out of the window.
Addie, Kai, Tate, the Black Dahlia, Winter, and the rest of the ghosts seemingly have no memories of what happened in their lives following their deaths.
Listen, I could get behind that if it followed at least some of the rules we’ve come to know, such as the ghosts being tied to Murder House. Instead, we have ghosts popping up all over the shop, and it makes everything that came before feel irrelevant.
Maybe the answer is that because the Apollyon is above the portal to hell, the rules are somewhat murkier.
But it feels like such a big ask for a show that has told incoherent storylines in excess before to do it with a season that’s supposed to tip its hat to the 12 that came before it.
Is American Horror Story Season 13 Squandering an All-Star Cast?
The mythology changes are one thing, but the majority of the returning characters feel so off that I’m starting to believe they aren’t who they say they are.
For example, I wouldn’t be surprised if Nan was posing as Addie and Fiona was pulling a similar trick as Constance.
The Constance we met on American Horror Story Season 1, “Murder House” had words that cut like a knife. She was mad at the world and would make it her mission to let you know exactly how much she hated you.
On American Horror Story Season 13, she’s cool, calm, and collected, probably because she has an ulterior motive involving the ghosts going to hell for some reason or another.
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But it doesn’t feel like the same character at all, and I’m struggling to take her seriously.
Don’t get me wrong, there are flashes of the Constance I know, but maybe that’s the point this early into the season.
Maybe when the rug is inevitably pulled from under us, it will all make sense.
The Ben of it all was moderately interesting, but I’m already getting tired of his aversion to the number 13 already.
I spent the majority of the initial episodes convinced he was somehow Devan, the new Antichrist who took Michael’s place on American Horror Story Season 8 Episode 10.
He still may be, but the saving grace about Ben is that Joey Pollari plays him. Joey is a veteran of Ryan Murphy shows at this point, and I’d watch him in anything.
He’s easy on the eyes and can sell even the worst writing, as evidenced by The Beauty.
The problem with Ben is that the show seems desperate for us to believe he’s Devan. If you’re going to throw that many hints at us, why not just tell us who he is?
And don’t even get me started on the witches. Getting the witches back on-screen was a big ask, but that single scene soured me on all of it.
Cordelia bellowing, “I’m the f—ing Supreme,” to Madison landed terribly.
There was no build-up to it whatsoever, and it felt more like the show was desperately chasing a moment that could become a meme than delivering something that made logical sense for these characters.
That’s becoming my biggest problem with American Horror Story Season 13.
There’s a difference between keeping viewers in the dark because you’re building toward a killer reveal and keeping them in the dark because you haven’t given them enough information to understand the story.
American Horror Story used to understand that difference. Murder House had mysteries coming out of every corner, but we knew what story we were watching.
The same could be said for American Horror Story Season 2, “Asylum” and American Horror Story Season 3, “Coven.” Even when those seasons went completely off the rails, there was enough connective tissue to keep everything moving.
The Shorter Runtime Isn’t Positive
American Horror Story Season 13 seems more interested in making us question everything we already know, and three episodes in, I’m not convinced that’s a good thing.
I mean, these episodes are short as hell, too. I thought the intent was to cut out filler, not completely remove the context and leave viewers confused about what’s happening.
There’s still every possibility that the confusion is intentional and that some game-changing reveal will suddenly put all of these pieces into place.
Maybe Constance isn’t Constance. Maybe Ben is Devan. Maybe there’s a perfectly good explanation for why the ghosts are suddenly playing by a completely different set of rules.
But a future explanation doesn’t automatically make the journey toward it compelling. American Horror Story Season 13 has all of the ingredients to be the franchise’s biggest event in years.
It has beloved characters, familiar faces, years of mythology to pull from, and an audience that has been waiting for the series to recapture some of its former glory.
Three episodes in, though, it feels like the show is so determined to keep us guessing that it’s forgotten to give us a coherent story to care about.
I don’t need American Horror Story to give me all the answers. I just need to understand the question.
Over to you, American Horror Story Fanatics! What’s your take on the first three episodes?
Are you already as over it as I am, or do you think things will click into place?
Let’s keep the conversation going — it’s the only way the good stuff survives.
Say something in the comments, share if you’re moved to, and keep reading. Independent voices need readers like you.
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