American Horror Story: Freak Show - Massacres and Matinees - Advance Preview, "These Evil Deeds"

“People don’t come to see freaks in the heat of the day, they come in the evening… when the darkness moves in and speaks of mystery, the unknown. When logic loosens its vice grip and the imagination comes out to play. Night allows the stars to shine and we come alive.”

While last week’s premiere episode gained series-high viewers that ensured American Horror Story would be sticking around for at least one more season, Ryan Murphy’s band of freaks sure aren’t shown the same love in Wednesdays new episode. After a stellar start Freak Show continues to come on strong with “Massacres and Matinees”; Elsa gets jealous, Jimmy sets out to prove a point, Twisty the Clown gets hired, and the two-headed twins take on Fiona Apple.

There’s a lot going on this week – more than last – but things actually seem to come together more and more with every new bit of information revealed. By episode two, Freak Show fully sets itself apart from past incarnations of AHS with characters backstories crisscrossing, exciting themes taking the forefront, and more squeamish moments in a single episode than Coven packed into a season. On top of that, the look of the series has changed. Shots are steadier and held longer, allowing imagination and suspense to reach a fever pitch. The sets and scenery are beautifully haunting, too, with many set-ups reminiscent of eerie classics ranging from “The Shining” and “A Clockwork Orange” to “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre”. If you found last week thrilling, you’re sure as hell in for a treat this week.

Center stage this year is Evan Peters as Jimmy Darling, the hero of our troop of freaks, still attempting to cover up the murder of a detective who came to remove Bette and Dot (Sarah Paulson) from their new home. Last week we saw Jimmy's frustration not only with life on their compound, but primarily with how the outside world views the performers (don’t call them freaks!) Here he attempts to ‘make them see’, taking his crew out for lunch at the same diner he sat at – gloved – last week, flirting with a waitress. Suffice it to say the waitress isn’t quite as welcoming when the handsome Darling shows up revealing his deformities and alongside a number of his cohorts from Fraulein Elsa’s Cabinet of Curiosities. But the staff and diners are not the only ones upset with Jimmy’s little stunt…

One of the major downfalls of Coven, for me, was the total lack of any male presence. It’s not that every story needs a guy to work, but the men last year were so horribly underwritten or swept aside that it was jarring, especially when their stories started off promising (like Peters’ frat-guy-turned-Frankendog-turned-sextoy-turned-butler) and given the amount of talent there (Denis-freakin-O’Hare!) Freak Show is still absolutely packed with powerhouse women this year, but so far the season belongs to the men. This week we meet Dell Toledo (Michael Chiklis) and Desire Dupree (returning Angela Bassett), a Strongman and his triple-breasted bride on the run and in need of a new place to call home. But Toledo has a history with the troop – his former wife is none other than Elsa’s right-hand woman Ethel Darling (Kathy Bates). So unbeknownst to Jimmy, his dad has just joined the show. Toledo quickly causes sparks to fly around the camp, not only clashing with Ethel but eventually Elsa, too, as he announces intentions to start running matinees. When Dell discovers Jimmy at the diner, things take a turn for the worse.

I mentioned in my preview of the premiere how much I enjoyed Finn Wittrock’s performance in the first two episodes and now I can finally talk a bit more about it. After a hilarious and equally dark conversation with his mother Gloria (Francis Conroy), Dandy runs away from home in hopes of joining the freak show, but he’s quickly turned down by a jaded Jimmy who points out how thankful he should be for his normal appearance and privileged life. Meanwhile, Gloria searches for her son and comes across something she hopes may cheer him up – a clown. Twisty (John Carroll Lynch) to be exact. Because who wouldn’t want this clown to entertain their children? Unaware that Twisty is the deranged killer who’s been tormenting Jupiter, Gloria brings him into her home awaiting Dandy’s return (can I just add how ridiculously awesome a name Dandy Mott is?) The Mott house is beautifully dressed, the sets and shots both meticulously crafted – scenes that take place in the house are immediately reminiscent of Kubrick in how still and eerie they are. Dandy’s toy room (wait until you see his puppeteer reenactment of “The King and I”) looks like one of the mansions Alex DeLarge and his droogs would break into to pillage – Dandy Mott, though, is anything but a victim. Wittrock is a seriously great find for the series and I can’t wait to see this story play out over the next several episodes.

Once again Freak Show is so great this week because rather than relying on the successes of past seasons, Murphy and his crew (this episode was directed by the always-impressive Alfonso Gomez-Rejon) blaze an entirely new trail. The characters are rich and exciting, the music is sinister and the look of the series has completely changed. If Twisty had you sleeping with the lights on last week… don’t count on falling asleep tonight.

Freakiest Bits:

- I already said it, but Finn Wittrock is killing it. It’s not easy to be the most memorable thing in an episode that features the intro of Angela Bassett as a three-breasted hermaphrodite – but he does it.
- Patti LaBelle also makes her first appearance tonight as the Mott's maid.
- There's another musical number this week and once again back in 1952 the song was decades away from ever being recorded. This week Sarah Paulson takes on Fiona Apple’s “Criminal”. Elsa's Bowie cover in the premiere was great and Paulson does a good job with the song tonight… but here’s hoping this isn’t a weekly thing.
- Ready to see what’s under Twisty the Clown’s mask? No? Too bad.

American Horror Story: Freak Show airs Wednesday nights at 10pm EST on FX. “Massacres and Matinees” premieres tonight. For more on the series and all my other SpoilerTV work, feel free to follow my Twitter account. Hit the comments to let us know what you’re most excited for tonight and come back after the episode airs to share your thoughts. Enjoy the show!