American Horror Story: The Modern Telecinematic Reinvention of Horror and Anthology

The season finale of Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story, the second installment in his television anthology, premiered on Thursday– and I have to say, it is his greatest work thus far. It’s a pretty strong compliment considering he also co-writes the award winning shows Glee and The New Normal. He is also well known for his provocative and cutting-edge drama Nip/Tuck. But American Horror Story is effectively changing the face of modern horror with each and every episode, which is why I believe it is one of the most important dramas on TV.

Last year, season one of AHS completely revolutionized the concept of putting a horror show on television. It was a more common practice in the 1970’s and 80’s with (moderately) successful series like Elvira and Dark Shadows, but since The X-Files ended, there has been a vacancy on television. The horror genre seemed almost entirely focused on making films and it seemed strange that crime dramas were the closest that networks seemed to come to horror. But Murphy envisioned something else entirely in a drastically new format: the anthology series. The first season focused on a family living in a haunted house in Los Angeles, as well as all of the ghosts and monsters that lived in the house. Jessica Lange won the Emmy for Best Supporting Actress as the vain and malicious neighbor Constance. Lange was also the featured lead in this most recent season: she played the sadistic Sister Jude (a.k.a. Ms. Judy Marten, or Betty Drake).

Murphy has said that each season of the show will be like a chapter in a greater anthology of stories. While the first season used a haunted house format, the second was structured around an insane asylum. Both stories moved backwards and forwards through time, seeming to suggest that the past moved parallel with the present. For example, in the first story the ghosts of the people who died in the house continued to exist in the house for years and years after they’ve died. These spirits choose to help or harm the current occupants of the house, and each of them have their own experience of true horror that they bring into the whole house dynamic. It is interesting to see how the horrifying actions of the past still retain such power over the course of the future and Murphy personifies this idea through his use of ghost and human interactions.

AHS further separates itself from the crowd by constantly pushing the envelope. The show is sexually explicit, contains crude language and violence– once it starts, it is impossible to look away from. It appeals to a darker side of human nature that is curious about questions that Murphy is not afraid to ask. Topics like gender equality, religion and science, gay rights and psychological trauma are all equally explored throughout both seasons. A more specific example could be made of the sixth episode in the first story, when a character goes on a shooting rampage in a high school. In the wake of tragedies like Sandy Hook and the Aurora massacre, topics such as gun violence are very controversial, and prone to create sometimes polarizing discussions. However, I believe this is important because we cannot pretend like awful things like the shooting at Virginia Tech didn’t happen. It’s terrible to think about it, but AHS forces the viewer to confront the darkest of terrors and recognize that the world is not always a wonderful place.

Murphy has not yet said what the third season of the show will be about, but he did say that it will be shot in the cities and Jessica Lange, Evan Peters, Sarah Paulson and Taissa Farmiga will all return for the third installment. It is exciting to think about the limitless possibilities that could be in store for next year and it’s safe to say the only thing that overshadows this is the impending conclusion of AMC’s Breaking Bad. It’s smart for Murphy to utilize the anthology format because there is no pressure to connect each preceding story with the next one; however, common themes do resonate in both seasons. There is such a thing as innate evil, there are horrifying people scattered throughout the world, and the only salvation for humanity is the ability to forgive. That is what saves Sister Jude, Lana Winters and Kit Walker in the second season and it’s what saved the Harmon family in the first. AHS has broken new ground in the genre and is creating something that will live on forever in the annals of American literature, television and horror.