‘American Horror Story: Freak Show’ TV Recap

S4E11: 'Magical Thinking'
by January 10, 2015
Fb-Button

Overview:
Stanley’s visit to Jimmy offers some hope:  He has a way Jimmy could raise good money and hire a really good lawyer. Jimmy could cut off one of his hands and sell it.  Stanley warns this is an one time offer.  If Jimmy refuses, Stanley will disappear and Jimmy will be on his own.  Jimmy agrees and Stanley helps smuggle Jimmy out to have the surgery.  It’s a trick.  Stanley doesn’t take only one hand, he takes both of them.

Bette is reflecting on the how the troupe is handling the past events.  They haven’t let the sadness keep their spirits down.  Bette and Dot decide they need to move on as well.  They decide to hold auditions to find a lover.  They find their suitor when they meet Chester, a traveling salesmen (Neil Patrick Harris).  Chester is not only a survivor of Normandy, he can also perform magic.  Bette and Dot decide to get to know Chester better.

MagicalThinkingAHS2

Dell finds Jimmy in the hospital and is enraged at what he sees.  He can barely control his temper when he learns what Stanley did.  He has to hide the fact that he actually knows Stanley.  Dell switches his focus on helping Jimmy eat and telling him that Jimmy will be fine with some prosthetics.  Jimmy even spins an idea of buying the freak show from Elsa, now that she’s leaving for Hollywood.  The bonding takes a dark turn when Dell reveals he’s the ‘black sheep’ of the Toledo family.  His father and two brothers were born with ‘lobster hands, but he was born with ‘normal hands.’  His father saw it as a disgrace. Dell’s a freak for being normal.

Bette and Dot are in for a shock when they try and seduce Chester.  He’s eager at first.  However, a headache causes him to back away.  If Chester is going to have sex with Bette and Dot, he’ll need Marjorie, his ventriloquist dummy, because she helps him relax.  Bette and Dot agree and the three of them make love.  Little do they know, a private eye hired by Dandy catches them and reports back to Dandy.  He is not happy.

image_261625_4

Dell and Eve were able to free Jimmy from the prisoner escape but had to kill two cops.  The heat comes down on the troupe when other cops come looking for Jimmy and for revenge.  Chester appears and frantically looks for Marjorie When he begs the police for help, the troupe and the cops both realize Chester is a bit off.  After the police leave, Desiree summons Dell to her trailer.  She holds him at gunpoint and demands to know who’s he killed.  Dell swears he had to kill the cops to save Jimmy.  Desiree presses him further and he finally breaks down.  He killed Ma Petite by smothering her.  A gunshot rings out as Dell falls to the ground, dead.  Elsa holds the smoking gun.  She’s avenged the death of her friend.

Impression:
I’m a huge NPH fan.  I like the idea of him playing a darker character.  I’m just confused as to why he’s in this season.  Isn’t too late to add new characters this close to the end of the season?  I will give the show props for making Marjorie incredibly scary.  Jamie Brewer once again gives a memorable performance as Marjorie.  I can’t help but wonder if Marjorie is actually coming to life and talking to Chester.  This is American Horror Story, so nothing is impossible or too weird. 

Creepy

I’m glad Dell finally paid for killing Ma Petite.  However, I don’t buy Elsa’s ‘avenging angel’ act.  She has blood on her hands too.  She killed Ethel and tried to kill Paul.  She tried to send the twins away.  She’s by no means innocent.  The season is getting closer to its conclusion.  Readers, what do you think the writers have in store for us?

One Comment

Leave a Reply

*

*

  • Josh Millican
    12 January 2015 at 1:01 pm - Reply

    I agree that this season is all over the place with awesome characters getting written out to soon (TWISTY) and others coming in very late in the game (Chester). It really seems like there’s no real story arch, so it’s hard to predict how the writers will wrap this all up. I’m hoping it will end with another Asylum crossover, setting up a Season 5 as a hybrid of Asylum and Freak Show. Elsa needs to change her name and become a nun–not completely outside the realm of possibility! As for NPH and the menage a trois with Dot and Bette (or was it a menage a cat with the dummy in the mix?): What had the potential to be so sexy just turned out to be so fucking weird. I loved it! All in all, best episode in quite some time.

    • RELATED BY

    Search the Site

    CLOSE

    CLOSE