The first hour of AHS: Freak Show, with its amazing new title sequence, odd characters, gorgeous production values and depiction of a dying show-biz era, totally pulled me in. But I'm a sucker for the nostalgia and the creepiness of the sideshow world.
As with the previous three installments, "Freak Show" has that "hard to watch but can't look away" quality that will keep me wondering throughout the whole season if I can stick it out or not.
Subtlety has never been creator Ryan Murphy's strong suit, but Murphy (who also wrote and directed tonight's premiere) seems to have fully embraced that approach, delivering what appears to be both the most horrifying and joyful season yet.
It is Sarah Paulson who is the main attraction as a Siamese Twin that is actually more like the central creature in "The Thing with Two Heads" with Rosey Grier and Ray Milland. It's a triumph of special effects.
The appalling splendor is right there in credits. Credit sequences are an "AHS" specialty, but the FX franchise pretty much outdoes itself with this one.
Freak Show looks like a beauty, with a wealth of fascinating characters and a little smattering of heart helping to balance out the grisly appointed rounds of a so far unidentified clown with a hellish half-mask.
Mesmerizing characters, a perfectly realized atmosphere and one truly terrifying clown could make American Horror Story: Freak Show the most deliciously creepy and captivating season yet.
Speaking of scary: There's a clown. And not just any scary clown, but the scariest clown ever, a gruesome killer with a huge smile hideous enough to make us apologize to any ordinary clown we ever called scary.
