"its a good show you just cant think too hard into it" or "its a good show you just have to turn your brain off and watch it more in the background" PLEASE HAVE BETTER STANDARDS YOURE SUPPOSED TO BE ABLE TO THINK ABOUT MEDIA WITHOUT IT FALLING APART

I’ve been watching American Horror Story since Murder House, and I genuinely cannot believe how far this franchise has fallen. Season 13 might be one of the laziest, most creatively bankrupt installments Ryan Murphy has ever produced.

Let’s be clear: bringing back Jessica Lange, Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, and other beloved cast members doesn’t automatically make something good. Nostalgia is not a substitute for competent storytelling.

The pacing is atrocious. The episodes are ridiculously short, yet somehow manage to feel painfully long. The dialogue is repetitive, the plot is unnecessarily convoluted, and the constant callbacks to previous seasons feel like desperate attempts to distract viewers from the fact that there’s barely a coherent story underneath.

And can we talk about how utterly wasted this cast feels? You have some genuinely phenomenal actors returning to roles that helped define this franchise, only to give them material that feels like mediocre fan fiction.

What makes this especially frustrating is that earlier seasons actually understood how to build suspense, develop characters, and create genuinely disturbing atmospheres. Now we get endless cameos, recycled ideas, and the expectation that audiences will applaud simply because someone familiar walks onto the screen.

Ryan Murphy seems more interested in reminding us how great AHS used to be than actually making it great again.

At this point, Season 13 feels less like a celebration of the franchise and more like an expensive reminder that its creative glory days are behind it.

The finale hasn’t even aired yet, but I seriously doubt one episode can rescue this mess.

Am I the only one who thinks Season 13 is genuinely awful, or are people just afraid to criticize it because Jessica Lange is back?

Season 13 has just been bullshit and I just can’t follow along anymore. Bring on Kim K and whatever crappy nepo baby actor they can find, I quit.

I must say despite weeks of bad acting, many plot holes and absolutely zero story development for the most part, I'm actually looking forward to seeing John Waters and all i need is for it to be revealed he's the true villain or something

The man is such Gold in everything he does. One of the few positives I can actually think of in season 13

Michael was born in 2011 (when murder house was released) and apocalypse is in 2018, if Michael grew normally he'd be seven years old. They let the seven year old become one of the leaders during nuclear apocalypse. Okay.

Is it just me that is thinking about it or.. DID Ryan Murphy's shows get worse after him teamed up with Kim Kardashian???? And I post it here coz AHS was once great and nowadays it is shiat.

And I do believe Kim K and Murphy did meet before DELICATE... God knows when.

It's clear as day to me that at some point Murphy stopped believing in ANYTHING OTHER than money and status. Even the Monster series has been getting worse and worse.

I’ve been rewatching the show and this season has become my most rewatched I love it so much and find it pretty underrated. Has my favorite Evan Peters role in ahs

Credit: Liya (TikTok)

I really wanted to see more of her, I actually think she gave pretty good performance for little time she had and I really felt so terrible for her, Elizabeth Short "Black Dahlia" case was always horrible to me and always felt so bad for this poor woman, because of the awful way some monster killed her and profaned her body after but also because of how media painted her in such a disgusting, fake, unethical, and fabricated way. I actually thought before the season premiered, that they gonna actually give more spotlight to her and Mena this time and of course like with every other "13" thing, it was a dissapointment, though I did like at least a little more screen time she had and she made me feel genuinely sad and heartbroken for her. I really wish Mena got bigger role in some future season, she is genuinely such a good actress, I LOVED HER in American Beauty (with also phenomenal Wes Bentley performance) and in couple of others really good and fun roles!

We got 20 minutes left to explain the plot of this season. Why are Kai and Winter there, what about Twisty, will Constance get powers? Those 20 minute episodes were a mess. It only started getting interesting at episode 9 or something. I don't even care what will happen in the finale but it certainly won't fix this mess, unless Satan has a 10 minutes long monologue explaining everything

Personally I think Ryan doesn’t care about Asylum despite it being arguably the best season of the show… there are very few callbacks and Easter eggs to Asylum through the seasons yet plenty for hotel, murder house, coven etc.

In 13, sister Jude only got one scene which sucks and despite all these callbacks to the shows ‘greatest hits’ - Why haven’t we seen Bloody Face or Lana Winters.

Maybe I am just biased because Asylum is my favourite but the asylum connections were what I was looking forward too most in 13 and they are just not there.

Also (and I am probably in the minority here) but I was hoping for an actual conclusion/answer to what the aliens are

like in season 13, she keep talking about how that spectacle was bad and that she came back for nothing, and it sounds like it's what real Jessica Lange would think while acting for the season.

Especially after having to character assassinate her characters for money, like she probably doesn't care but I'm glad she protected Elsa, her favorite character from the character assassination at the very least.

this is SHITE !!!

Guys, this is my theory on what’s actually happening after that Episode 12 ("Sisters in Arms") cliffhanger. I don't buy for a second that the Coven was actually defeated at The Apollyon—the ending and Marie Laveau’s entire plan were a total setup. Earlier in the episode, Madison specifically warned Ben DeSoto that if he could hear Satan's thoughts, Satan could probably hear his thoughts, too. Knowing Ben was an open channel to the Devil, Marie, Fiona, and Cordelia intentionally fed Ben a fake, overly straightforward ritual—the "reverse-aging soul-split" using Queenie's hands—fully expecting Satan (Mr. Nas), Tate, and Phibes to catch wind of it and spring an ambush. Cordelia and Queenie didn't fail; they willingly allowed themselves to "die" during that fight because dying was the only way to bypass Nas’s earthly defenses and launch a direct spiritual invasion into the Hellpit. Cordelia and Queenie are descending into Hell to rescue and unite with the 13 leading ladies who were sacrificed in Episode 4, assembling an ethereal army to attack Satan’s core power from the inside while his guard is completely down. Meanwhile, the de-aging magic wasn't meant to keep Satan as an eternal baby in a crib; it was secretly designed to force his primordial essence into the single viable egg Madison Montgomery harvested. As seen in the finale teaser where Madison is screaming in labor, she is actually giving birth to Satan's trapped, mortal vessel—leaving him stripped of his cosmic authority, locked into human infant form, and completely under the Coven’s control while Cordelia’s squad dismantles his underworld empire from below!

Basically, the title. I wasn't going to watch until all episodes were released but... I've been lurking as people post about the new season, and I'm literally just here to thank yall for sharing your honest opinions on what sounds like a shitshow of a season 13.

People can complain all they want about negativity and how "you can't make everyone happy," but I'm honestly grateful for it lol. This entire sub was full of so much excitement and anticipation for the new season for months! everyone was so excited to see Jessica Lange return, the cast made it seem like this new season and was gonna be an absolute banger, and everyone just really seemed to be looking forward to it.

The sheer contrast and how the season is being received as episodes come out now, though? Hard fucking pass for me. I hated Delicate, like I was so letdown by the final episode after a full season of edging, and I feel zero desire to put myself through that again. Especially when it seems like my disappointment would be 10x worse given that our beloved golden cast are being given a dogshit, meme hungry script to work with. Someone posted about "Balenciaga" yesterday and that was the final straw for me lmao, "you've gotta be fucking joking" was my exact reaction.

Unless something magically turns around, which it feels way too late in the season to happen atp, I'd rather not soil the show for myself. Sooooo... thanks, guys! Not all heroes wear capes 😭😭

Seriously, what was the point of these two being in this season along with Twisty and Piggy Man? We got one episode left and they have done nothing the whole entire season besides taking Elizabeth Short down to the Hellmouth. We don’t even get to see them interact with young Mr. Nas at all and they basically just stood there whilst historical people were getting thrown into Hell 😭.

No mention of the fact that Kai murdered his sister which was set up by Ally, and Winter just seems to be okay with being around Kai? Also neither one ever mention Ally at all, despite her being the reason why both of them died in Cult. And Kai has his infamous blue hair back despite being shaved when Beverly killed him in Cult’s finale episode. This is what’s starting to make me think this season is an alternate universe or something too.

Sorry to be criticizing this season so much, but a lot of stuff about this season is starting to not make sense to me after looking deeper into this season. And I feel like there’s going to be A LOT of unanswered questions after the finale because we haven’t seen Kai, Winter, Twisty, and Piggy Man since earlier in the season. Not even Addie or Tate, Tate just constantly wears that damn rubber suit. It’s like what’s the point of these characters being here if they’re not going to do anything besides stand around and talk to each other whilst repeating once iconic lines, you know 🤷🏽‍♀️.

Yeah, season 2 is the best season! I’m currently on episode 7, I’ve seen this season maybe 4-5 times already, and I just can’t get enough of it. The acting, the storylines, how it’s filmed! You actually feel bad for all the people who get tortured and killed, you are disgusted by the killers and their actions. Even the intro is on another level.
I’ve seen people complain that aliens don’t make sense, but I completely disagree! I think aliens play huge roles in the story, and we didn’t need full on explanation about why they were doing it.

Everyone’s acting is so good, but Lily Rabe is my favorite, she is fantastic as devil!

But then again, someone on Facebook pointed out that Tate and Addy have no memory of being ghosts in 13 anyway so this is a plot hole??? Can someone confirm? I don’t remember and have to watch this episode again.

Please no spoilers for episodes beyond Madison’s Happy Ending!

I just stopped watching after Cult. I knew it was over for me with Hotel (which had great atmosphere, characters, story but was just too damned slow. It was like being in purgatory myself). I stuck around for two more seasons hoping against hopes (I didn't enjoy Cult or Roanoke both of which were massive missed opportunities).

But 13 is actually pretty enjoyable. Jessica Lange, Angela Bassett, Evan Peters, Sarah Paulson all doing great work (most of the cast is excellent). Joey Polari (what a name to have as a gay man) is milquetoast but I suppose that's what he's meant to be. He's not very interesting to watch, doesn't have much range). Papa Legba is a huge disappointment (small role I know, but it's the sprinkles that make the dessert) RIP Lance Riddick, you legend!

And did I forget to mention what an absolute phenomenon Jessica Lange is... but then again she could do a toothpaste commercial and be mesmerising. How she manages to play each woman so differently and yet there's the same anguish, loneliness, regret tying them all together. It's a masterclass that can't be taught.

The main disappointment is the short episodes. Hotel was too slow, this is too rushed. The conversation between Fiona and Cordelia after her resurrection was just spellbinding. Real magic without special effects. The show needed a lot more of that. The messy human stuff in-between the magic and camp and special effects.

Finally, Lucifer... it's the most boring, understated, bland interpretation I've ever seen. With that small role you could scene steal from even Ms Lange. It's actually begging for it in the "here's what I want the world to look like Mr Satan" scene. He could have gone so many ways with it, camp, menacing, cruel, dominating seductive, ham... or all of the above. There are plenty of models that have made decent actors. Couldn't they have found just one?

But overall, this is the AHS that I've been waiting to come back.

Knotty Pine forever!!!!

Anyone else find this funny? 😂😂

So if Madison gets a warlock for IVF, why didn't Cecelia have one in "Coven"? AND what timeline are we in? Because the "devils son" started apocalypse. But now we have a different one that seems to take place after "Apocalypse"?! Anyway, the best scene(s) thus far is Myrtle, and I did enjoy the monologue from Madison/Emma Roberts about us being in our 30s now....

I feel like it’s SUCH an easy name to remember lmfao. If you can remember “Morwenna”, you can remember “Ophelia” 😭

And I'm gonna do it by posting my personal rankings of the season. My divine Aries Energy is making an appearance tonight. On a scale: S+ for my number one favorite, S for close second places, A I loved, B is good, C is ehhh, D is nooooot great, and U for unfinished because reasons. Feel free to @ me so I can defend my position more fully. I will follow the letter grades with what I enjoyed, and what needed to be left behind.

Murder House: D. It's one of few I can say I genuinely didn't enjoy, and I attribute that to being the first season of a show that's the first of its kind. For my preferences, too often horror takes a backseat to drama, and an uninspired family drama where everyone hates each other at that. Setting was beautiful however.

Asylum: C. I loved Lana, the incomparable Ms Paulson really got to shine as a main character here. It's just... emotionally difficult to watch. It's bleak, sucking hopelessness, and just not something I personally can casually enjoy. I also feel it gets a pass on certain things that Hotel doesn't. Very unfair.

Coven: B. A nearly all female cast is something interesting, I think it passes that feminist test thingy. You have mother daughter relationships, sisters in arms, rivals, it's very stocked. I'll also say that (for a show made in 2013), it tackled racism to the best of its ability. The only reason it's not higher is because I've seen this season the most, and familiarity breeds contempt.

Freakshow: S. This show really skyrockets here. I'm not a crier, I don't just love characters casually, but this season was amazing. No notes.

Hotel: S. I said what I said. Yea, it's messy. It's convoluted and nearly all aesthetic, lots of style with very little substance. But it's a TV show, it's allowed to do that if it wants.

Roanoke: U. I had the flu and was watching it in bed, and I stopped watching when I got better. I do despise those shows it's trying to parody, but I liked what I saw.

Cult: C. It gets a bad rap, it's not terrible. It's engaging enough. It's also rare because basically every event is just people being people.

Apocalypse: B. Also a bad rap. But Cody Fern chewed up the scenery and spat it in our mouths. It. Was. Glorious. My only gripe is the bunker scenes take a while to connect.

1984: A. Very fun, very campy. A true love letter to the slasher genre.

Red Tide: D. I disliked it for two reasons: 1, it wasn't the sirens that we were baited with. I love mermaids and I don't fuck around. 2, it felt like a rehash of vampires because Hotel isn't as beloved as the creators wanted. It DID however have a haunting premise with the pills. D is for derivative.

Death Valley: U. It's four episodes stemming from the most uninteresting part of Asylum. We could have gotten more and better. Plus, body horror freaks me out. I'll wait till my stomach is stronger to handle The Thing having offspring.

NYC: S+. Not just horror. But gay horror. It was everything I dreamed of in those two words alone. Gino & Patrick are a much more engaging couple than Ben & Vivian. A metric ton of queer actors in a wide variety of roles. I was living.

Delicate: U. I'll give it another shot purely because everyone hates Kim K in it, and she makes me laugh. I will say what I've seen is a bit of a drag. I feel like Mr Murphy can do better than just a rehash of Rosemary's Baby. But I'd try it again.

13: U. Of course nobody's finished it yet. Mr Pollari was a snore at first. But hey, evil men are hot, I have a type. It is... confusing. I'm not fond of the AI allegations, or that I can believe them. But everyone hated Apocalypse when it came out, and look where we are.

Future season guessing: I'm really hoping for the sirens. And werewolves that run a speakeasy in 1931. Maybe a season about the horsemen if we have to have another world ending.