Zeitgeisting TV: 'American Horror Story: Freak Show'; Episode 7

Jason St. Amand (national news editor):

I didn't hate this episode as much as I thought I would (I feel like I say this a lot) and I enjoyed it more than last week's episode but I still have (mostly the same) problems.

"Freak Show" is still frustrating to me because it has the makings of a really good show but I just can't shake the feeling Ryan Murphy is either lazy or doesn't care enough about it anymore and is off working on his new true crime and comedy-horror projects.

Let me start with the musical number by Evan Peters that was Jerry-rigged into "Test of Strength." He covered Nirvana's "Come As You Are" and I couldn't tell if this was a wink to "Murder House" when we all couldn't stop comparing Peters' character, Tate Langdon, to Kurt Cobain, or if Murphy still just sees Peters a Kurt Cobain and is like, "Yeah, hey, let's go with that!" Anyway, the song didn't work for me. Since when does Jimmy Darling care about singing? I've gotten the impression being a freak and performing as such is second to him: first is fighting the injustices of the world because "WE ARE NORMAL TOO" -- a theme that was hammered into us way too much this episode.

The song felt forced and it didn't mean anything; it was just a way to remind us this season was full of future pop songs. It also bothered me that they showed us a montage of what's been going on since we last checked in with Fraulein Elsa's Cabinet Of Curiosities, i.e.: a lazy way of catching us up.

I really liked what happened to Penny (Grace Gummer), though. I would have loved it if we knew more about her and saw her story develop during the last six episodes instead of it being wedged into the storyline. Her dad disfiguring her was unsettling and disturbing but the motives didn't make any sense. He doesn't want her to ruin his electric business? What? I did not believe his little speech, albeit a fantastic little performance, he gave to his daughter about his reputation blah blah blah. Is this the same man from the last episode, who would do anything to protect her? And where the hell did he meet that tattoo artist? It's 1952.

Then we have the death of poor Ma Petite. Or did we? Who's to say this wasn't another fantasy / daydream. I don't get the sense that it was, but when strongman Dell (Michael Chiklis) snapped her tiny neck and her limbs went limp, I didn't really react. I just thought "OK." What's the point? And what was the point of having her fake-killed an episode where she's killed (allegedly!) for real. The shock factor was so dull at this point; especially because this episode faked us out two other times: Dell (comically) failed at capturing Amazon Eve and didn't have the guts to take out his son with a brick to the head. It was a game of chicken that went on too long. Without continuity, there is no consequence.

I also don't buy Dell being blackmailed by con-artist Stanley (Dennis O'Hare). It just doesn't make sense. The only way to out Dell is for Stanley to blow his cover and out himself too, it's a slippery slope. And why is Stanley always milling around the camp? I know he's supposed to be working with Elsa on a TV deal but, don't you think someone would wonder why he's here so damn much and why Elsa hasn't peaced out by now to start her career?

But I did enjoy all the father-son bonding. The bar scene and the drunk bit were both great. And although we saw very little of her, Angela Bassett was fun. Why are they not using her as much this season? It's a shame. Maybe this episode could have used a little more Dandy, too. He was pretty much plastic in this episode -- he didn't even throw a bitch fit when the Twinnies weirdly complied to leave the Mott estate to go back to the freaks. Perhaps he's saving his rage for the next episode when he plans to get the girls back?

Robert Nesti (arts and entertainment editor):

At first I had mixed feelings about this episode. It felt more transitional than what should be the climax of the first half of the season. Perhaps you put this bug in my head, but it is all atmosphere, no real horror. I was expecting more from Dandy - he disappeared early on and his presence was sorely missed in this episode.

But the fact isn't overtly horrific doesn't bother me as much. I enjoy the mind games these characters play on each other. I especially liked how Bette/Dot returned to the fold and how Fraulein Elsa is now playing Bette against Dot, reversing what she attempted to do earlier in the season. And I liked how she showed her true (nasty) colors when Stanley told her that he could make the twins disappear without sending them to Chicago. Fraulein Elsa is quite a piece of work.

As for Tate (Evan Peters). I agree, his song was a bit much and seemed more dropped into the action than adding anything to it. This was a case where a musical number just felt like filler. I agree that the father-son bonding scene was very effective. It had tension and tenderness. Both Evan Peters and Michael Chiklis brought depth to the scene and made it convincing, as improbable as it seemed.

I totally bought the murder of Ma Petite. Her death at Dell's hand did surprise me, largely because I didn't think that the show's most lovable character would be murdered; but perhaps that was the point. That scene, coupled with Dell's bonding with his son, gave him a moral complexity that he's been missing up to this point. I totally bought that he'd be a victim of blackmail - his fear of being exposed as gay would be the kind of thing that he would commit murder to hide. This is 1952 and being labeled a homosexual would undermine Dell's he-man image in ways that would cripple him. I never for a moment thought that her being in the jar at the end - the most jarring image in this season so far - wasn't real. I don't think that Murphy and the writers would invest this much emotional weight to something that's a cheat. But I could be wrong.

Didn't you love how Dot and Bette are each finding their own identities? It was funny that Dot went Hollywood blonde and wants to be a droll comedienne like Eve Arden. She's about as much like Eve Arden as Taylor Swift. But it is funny how deluded Dot is. )And the shot of them getting their hair done brought to mind a twist on an old ad: "Which Siamese Twin has the Toni?") And I loved what the hairdresser said: "This is a first for me. I've worked on lots of gals with double-chins, but never one with two heads. But I don't judge. Every client is different."

My problem with Stanley is that he isn't very convincing as a con-man. Why would anyone, especially someone as cynical as Fraulein Elsa, fall for him? Maybe she's just using him; but he's the weakest character this season. What happened to Penny was truly chilling and fit right into what it the most horrific element this season: the evil that lurks in the hearts of men. I totally bought how her father would respond this way. If she was going to run with the freaks, he was going to make sure she would become one herself. It was a plot point perfectly consistent with what I like most about the show - how it pushes the emotional envelope of its characters.

Jason St. Amand (national news editor):

If I did put the bug in your ear (oops...head!) I'm glad. I keep coming back to "Freak Show" because it still manages to squeak out a few horrific scenes in every episode, which is more I can say for "Coven." But I think main reason it's not scary is because of the inconsistency and lack of structure: how can a show that makes up the rules as it goes along be horror? If anything can happen at any point it takes away from the scary factor.

And I agree this episode should have been something bigger than it was (we won't be seeing the gang for two weeks). Maybe FX should order only 10 episodes (at a respectable hour each please) instead of 13 or 16 or whatever it is now.

Why wouldn't Murphy and co. do something that's a cheat? They already did it a few times before and it left us confused. I'm sure it'll happen again this season. Like I said, I get the feeling this time it's legit, but it just leaves me with this "so what" feeling. I just don't get the reason for fake killing her one episode before she's offed for real.

As for the blackmail, you're right and I guess what I was trying to say is exactly what you said: Stanley is totally unconvincing as someone who can pull this off. I don't get why Elsa and Dell are fooled by him. And why is Maggie (Emma Roberts) suddenly back in cahoots with Stanley? Isn't she about to run off with Jimmy and she's come to love the freaks? I thought she was ready to dump his ass!

Yes, I love how Bette is getting too big for her britches. This can only lead to a big demise. I can't wait to see how that all goes down. Though I guess they're not in love with Jimmy anymore? That love square seems to be out of the equation.

I totally agree what happened to Penny was disturbing and shocking but I have no connection with her or her father. I could probably buy the father's motives if I saw him for more than a collective 10 minutes over two episodes. He was dropped here at the halfway point of the season. I know nothing about him. That doesn't make much of an impact on me if he was someone I got to know over the last month-and-a-half. This was one-dimensional horror, which is much better than no horror at all. The ideas are good, but the execution for me is a miss.

Besides consistency, I think "Freak Show" is trying to do too much, which is often a big complaint with "AHS." There are way too many things going on -- instead of balancing all horror tropes like in "Asylum" (nazi experimentation, aliens, torture), there are all these plot threads and ideas that spring up and stretch for an episode or two before we forget about them (the love square!) because we're distracted by something else (Dandy loves the Twinnies!) There is some major fat that needs to be cut for "Freak Show" s it can work the best way possible.

P.S.: R.I.P. that super nice doctor who shot himself because of Dell's threats. Screw you, Dell.

Robert Nesti (arts and entertainment editor):

I agree the show's got problems, but I still love it! Talk about glass-half-full. I'm feeling much the same way I feel about this season as I did about "Asylum." I was never sure where that was going, but it fell into a really smart arc. I keep hoping this season does the same. But even it it doesn't, it remains so well-acted, designed and directed. It may not be new anymore, but it still packs a punch.

Still I agree that it appears that Murphy et all are making it up as it goes along, not developing plot memes and clearly delineating the characters by episode. The story seems to focus on different characters from episode-to-episode; instead of creating a unified narrative, it feels fragmented with characters disappearing for weeks at a time while the story focuses on just a few characters.

Perhaps there's a reason for this construction, but I felt cheated that Dandy fell out of the narrative this week. Perhaps the canvas is too wide to be cohesive, but it remains the most fun pulp television currently to be watched. At this mid-way point, I am still hooked - a bit doubting perhaps, but looking forward to each episode. And I don't think the show could possibly top that final image of this episode - a crude, fast close-up of Ma Petite in a jar that cuts away far sooner than other shows might. It was jarring, sad, terrifying and haunting. Killing this guileless, tender character and then showing her in such a horrific way will stay with me until the show returns in two weeks; and how it came about was convincingly done. This season may be about freaks, but it seems more about monsters.

PS: Wasn't Kathy Bates awesome when she expressed her cynical world view to Tate: "Once you buy into that horseshit, you're dead in the water. The only way to survive in this disgusting, Godforsaken world is to take control. Nobody gonna take care of our people but us. Dell hurt one of our own. We can't let him get away with that. We can't let that degenerate prick win. He's gotta pay."

Her lines proved prophetic. Too bad she didn't act sooner if, indeed, Ma Petite is dead.

This story is part of our special report: "Zeitgeisting TV". Want to read more? Here's the full list.