TV Review: American Horror Story: Freak Show (Season 4, Episode 2)

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

EPISODE: "MASSACRES AND MATINEES"

THE SCOOP: A citywide curfew threatens to shut down the Freak Show. A strongman from Ethel’s troubled past arrives at camp. Gloria arranges a terrifying play date for Dandy. The Tattler Twins reveal a talent that could knock Elsa from the spotlight.

The Following May Contain Minor-To-Major Spoilers. If You've Not Seen This Episode, It Might be Wisest To Stop Reading Here!

THE SKINNY: Well well, The Freakshow's second frame has leaned woozily into quite a curve with the intro of a few bold and brazen new characters this week. First up is Dandy (Finn Wittrock), a spoiled snot-nosed rich-boy who sucks bourbon from a baby bottle and whines to his doting mother (Frances Conroy) and fed-up housekeeper Nora (Patti LaBelle) about being bored. As Dandy storms out in a huffy lament, his mom happens to pass on her cozy Sunday drive the filth-stained, maniacal clown-man who so charmingly made his presence known in the first episode. And guess what, she invites that dirty old bastard over to cheer ol' Dandy up! Meanwhile there's Del ( the great Michael Chiklis, who I still want to call Vic Mackey), a blustery "Strongman" with more ruse than his hot temper and low IQ lets on. He suddenly shows up in Jupiter with his hot, hermaphroditic 3-tittied wife Desiree Dupree (Angela Bassett) under the guise of needing work, but is really there to pay a visit to the scowling and bearded Ethel (Kathy Bates), with whom he shares a sordid past. Turns out Del may have a vendetta to score, but that shall wait for now…

Dandy voices to Jimmy his desire of being in the freakshow.  JImmy jilts him, Dandy throws a hissy self-mutilating tantrum. He then regroups and amuses himself back at his manor by puppeteering in front of the crazy-killer-clow, who his mother has brought home. The clown in turns cracks the dude upside the back of the head with a juggling pin and escapes. When the clown gets back to his ramshackle bus as if he were Emile Hirsch in INTO THE WILD for fuck's sake, he unwittingly allows his two young captives to escape. Well at least the older gal, until she runs right into an invigorated Dandy, who followed the clown from his house. I liked these scenes a great deal, even if they lacked the requiste blood and guts.  Then there's Evan Peters as Jimmy Darling, who is so far – aside from looking like John Mayer playing Kenickie on Broadway – is pretty one-note, only there to trumpet how normal the freaks are and demand to be respected as such. I did like when he tried to stir shit up when he showed how lowly billed Elsa was on Del's new matinee flier-card, but she knows Del's more of a muscled-asset than a real threat at this point. After-all, a killer is on the loose! Jimmy, guiltily drunken, goes on to lament the cops' arrest of Meep the Geek. Moments later Meep's bloody dead body is thrown in front of them from the back of the truck. Jimmy weeps into the sky as the credits come crashing down.

Alright, so, despite this being one of tamer episodes of any American Horror Story episode I can think of – at least in terms of out-and-out wackiness and over the top flash-gore – I'm definitely feeling the newly introduced characters. Chiklis as the take-no-shit Del adds instant cred to an already impressive ensemble, and really looks to be one of Elsa's main foils and accomplices moving forward. A tricky role indeed. And hell, what's not to say about Angela Bassett? Even with three tits and a dick, she's totally bone-able still, well over 50. Definitely looking forward to more of her. As for Wittrock as Dandy, he's well cast as a richy-rich quack-job, but I hope he gets bludgeoned to death by creepy-clown-man (who I think might be John Carroll Lynch), currently my favorite character on the show behind Elsa. Also, and this expounds a bit on the episode's tamer quality mentioned above, I actually dug the slower, much more tempered pacing here. Director Alfonso Gomez-Rejon (THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN) glides with a film-like rhythm that bucks the flashy, fast-cutting style the show is known for. I dug the deliberation!

Problem is, not a ton a violence went down this week. Forgivable, sure, it's still early and we're still meeting new characters, so I'm not worried too much. That said, without a doubt the worst part of the show is a recurring carry over from last week. Straight up, what the f*ck is the deal with this gauchely eye-averting catastrophe I'm here now disaffectionately dubbing last-act karaoke hour. Wow!! I mean, Jessica Lange faux-crooning to Bowie the first go around was forgivable, but what about a two-headed Sarah Paulson (as Bette Dot) lipping the words to Fiona Apple while awkwardly bobbing in unison is either entertaining or even remotely scary? For us the audience or the patrons of the freakshow? It ain't! It stinks, and if persistent, threatens to undermine all that is cool so far in the otherwise fantastic Freakshow up till now.

KILL OF THE WEEK: Since it's sure to pay off huge plot points down the road, the unwarranted killing of harmless little Meep was pretty disturbing. On one hand it's nice to know that the real life "freak" cast in the show aren't immune to getting whacked, but on the other, there's clearly recompense to be had after such a unjust slaying. What will Jimmy do you think?

BLOOD AND GORE:

• A severed head perched on a bookshelf.
• Jousted pair of familiar antique scissors through back of throat.
• A self-inflicted head-bash.
• A juggling pin to the dome.

WTF CHARACTER MOMENT: What the hell was up the clown's momentary lapse of inspired entertainment on the bus? Immediately following Dandy's puppet show, he returns back to his abode to pull out a toy and entertain the enfeebled kids he's held captive? And then, as if remembering he's a homicidal maniac, interrupts his sweet moment of bliss to scare the piss out of the kids by pulling a freshly severed head from his knapsack before chasing them into the woods? The hell was that?!?

MOST BIZARRE SCENE: Bizarre, I don't know…but most awkward scene surely goes to Del's matinee karaoke show. Yikes! Went off on it above, but why the hell is Ryan Murphy suddenly turning his 4th season of American Horror Story into a freaked-out episode of Glee? Enough already!