AMERICAN HORROR STORY has proven that the model of introducing standalone season-long stories can work if done correctly. FARGO and TRUE DETECTIVE plan to follow the same model, but AMERICAN HORROR STORY is the standard they will compare themselves to. This season’s story, subtitled FREAK SHOW, reunites most of the cast from last year’s COVEN and looks to be one hell of a dark foray under the big top.
As has been custom for the last three seasons, AMERICAN HORROR STORY: FREAK SHOW has been teasing audiences with disturbing short commercials for what will be in store this year. A trio of new ones have just come online and feature a clown, a sword swallower, and a twisted smile. The opening credits of the show follow the same visual cue as the teaser commercials and set a deliciously nasty tone for the show.
American Horror Story: Freak Show begins its tale in the quiet, sleepy hamlet of Jupiter, Florida. The year is 1952. A troupe of curiosities has just arrived to town, coinciding with the strange emergence of a dark entity that savagely threatens the lives of townsfolk and freaks alike. This is the story of the performers and their desperate journey of survival amidst the dying world of the American carny experience.
With this season the last for star Jessica Lange, hopefully producer/creator Ryan Murphy plans to send her out with a bang. Kathy Bates, Angela Bassett, Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, and many others return when AMERICAN HORROR STORY: FREAK SHOW debuts on FX on October 8th.