The second season of American Horror Story is named Asylum and is taking place in 1964 uncovering the past of the hospitals doctors, patients and administrator.
Less scary than freaky, it's deliberately unhinged-light horror about low camp, a showcase for scenery chewing and giddy blasphemy, an exploitation chamber piece.
American Horror Story: Asylum is filled with plenty of dark secrets, sinister twists, and unexpected turns - but unfortunately the one thing this psychologically invading season lacks is thoughtful explanation.
Like a good scare? How about a bad scare? Or a thousand scares, good and bad and crazy? Season 2 of American Horror Story, subtitled Asylum, is for you.
One final warning before you plunge in: AHS: Asylum crosses a line for television (which is getting harder and harder to do). It goes beyond dark all the way to clerical black, the scourge of all light.
Camp, not horror, is the soul and motivating force of AHS, and if you don't delight in the fate that befalls Maroon 5 lead singer Adam Levine in the season premiere, you are not resonating at AHS's frequency.
It's a solid setup. And given the writers were tasked with coming up with a completely new storyline for an established hit, the foundation seems well laid and primed with numerous avenues to explore.
