American Horror Story (2011– )

An anthology series that centers on different characters and locations, including a haunted house, an insane asylum and a witch coven.

Creators:

Brad Falchuk, Ryan Murphy

Stars:

Evan Peters, Jessica Lange, Lily Rabe

Won 1 Golden Globe. Another 10 wins & 36 nominations.

Cast

Series cast summary:
Evan Peters	...	Kit Walker (26 episodes, 2011-2013)
Jessica Lange	...	Sister Jude Martin (26 episodes, 2011-2013)
Lily Rabe	...	Sister Mary Eunice McKee (21 episodes, 2011-2013)
Zachary Quinto	...	Dr. Oliver Thredson (17 episodes, 2011-2013)
Sarah Paulson	...	Lana Winters (17 episodes, 2011-2013)
Frances Conroy	...	Moira O'Hara (17 episodes, 2011-2013)
Joseph Fiennes	...	Monsignor Timothy Howard (13 episodes, 2012-2013)
Lizzie Brocheré	...	Grace Bertrand (13 episodes, 2012-2013)
James Cromwell	...	Dr. Arthur Arden (13 episodes, 2012-2013)
Dylan McDermott	...	Ben Harmon (13 episodes, 2011-2013)
Taissa Farmiga	...	Violet Harmon (13 episodes, 2011-2013)
Connie Britton	...	Vivien Harmon (12 episodes, 2011)
Denis O'Hare	...	Larry Harvey (12 episodes, 2011)

Storyline

An anthology series that centers on different characters and locations, including a haunted house, an insane asylum and a witch coven.

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Plot Keywords:

asylum | alien | nun | haunted house | anthology | 

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Taglines:

The Asylum Is Open for Business. Check Your Sanity at the Door.

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

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Certificate:

TV-MA

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 October 2011 (USA)

Also Known As:

AhS

Filming Locations:

Hidden Valley, Thousand Oaks, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Brad Falchuk Teley-Vision, Ryan Murphy Productions, 20th Century Fox Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

60 min 60 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

16:9 HD

Did You Know?

Trivia

Creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk stated from the beginning of the project that each season would feature a new story and cast.

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Goofs

Frances Conroy ("Old" Moira O'Hara) is right-eye dominant. Many times you can see that she, as Moira, is focusing on the object she's looking at using her "blind" right eye instead of her left eye.

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Connections

Spoofed in Family Guy: Space Cadet (2013)

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Soundtracks

"Tainted Love"
Written by Ed Cobb
Performed by Hannah Peel
Courtesy of Static Caravan

User Reviews

An excellent, entertaining, and very intriguing Horror show!

Unlike many reviewers on here, I have waited until the end of the first season to actually review this series as a whole. I want to start off with the Pilot. When I first saw it, I had a lot of problems with it. It was messy, and some of the characters were dumb, and some of the acting was corny. However, after the Pilot ended, I realized just how intrigued I was by it. It sure was a messy Pilot, but that's the beauty of it. It was always moving, it wasn't your typical slow-paced suspense show.

In fact, that pretty much sums up the whole season. This is a crackling, fast-paced and entertaining horror series. I would never call this high- art, but that's what makes it great. The show doesn't take itself seriously at all, and it always remains fun, even when it's silly, and yet you get really invested in the story lines and characters. Sure, the performances are flawed at times, and the writing and directing awkward, but the fast pace in every episode doesn't ever let the viewer gasp for air. This is the true definition of a thrill ride. It also feels very experimental. It executes a lot of things in very unordinary ways, in ways that no other TV show does. It doesn't always succeed, but even when it doesn't, you can appreciate it.

Your friends might call The Walking Dead the better horror show, but I disagree. As far as Pilots go, no matter how entertaining or thrilling American Horror Story's Pilot was, the Pilot for The Walking Dead was better, masterful in every way. Since then, it's merely a good, sometimes great, TV show. It takes itself more seriously and is slower-paced, but it's problem is that a lot of times the writing just feels stale, recycled. You are intrigued by it, but it sometimes feels weaker than it should be. And the fact that it takes itself too seriously sort of dampens the fun one should be having with it, simply because its writing isn't strong enough to stretch out its story lines (like the two best TV shows on air, Mad Men and Breaking Bad, do). American Horror Story is better for these reasons- each episode by itself is exciting, it's always moving, and instead of trying to slow things down and makes its flaws more apparent, it even overdoes things on purpose. Messy, sure, silly, sometimes, but overall more intriguing, funner, and more exciting. I cannot wait for the second season of this, since I thought the resolution to the story of the first season was excellent, as well as the final shot.

P.S. Oh, I also want to add another note to take. The performances do hit their great marks, but the only truly incredible performance is Jessica Lange. Her character and performance makes all other supporting turns in television look stale by comparison, and all of her scenes are truly gold! She needs to win that Emmy next year! I want to see her back!