1.06 - "SEVEN MINUTES IN HELL!"
Directed by Michael Uppendahl
Written by Ryan Murphy
Reviewed by Gavin Hetherington
1.07 - "BEWARE OF YOUNG GIRLS"
Directed by Barbara Brown
Written by Ryan Murphy
Reviewed by Gavin Hetherington
Click on a title to be taken to the review for that episode.
1.01 - "
Pilot" (September 22, 2015)
1.02 - "
Hell Week" (September 22, 2015)
1.03 - "
Chainsaw" (September 29, 2015)
1.04 - "
Haunted House" (October 6, 2015)
1.05 - "
Pumpkin Patch" (October 13, 2015)
1.06 - "
Seven Minutes in Hell!" (October 20, 2015)
1.07 - "
Beware of Young Girls" (November 3, 2015)
1.08 - "
Mommie Dearest" (November 10, 2015)
1.09 - "
Ghost Stories" (November 17, 2015)
When this episode first started, I began to think that this was just filler-fodder as nothing very exciting was happening. We had the election results for presidency of Kappa House which was all fair and well as Zayday and Chanel both tied, and then Zayday suggested a slumber party. This felt very '90s teen drama at this point, like something from Nickelodeon. There were quotes galore that I found very funny still, yet something was missing - excitement. That was until the actual slumber party began. It was a good set up for the episode, to have all the girls in the one room in the one house, only for them to be locked inside it with no escape (though there were plenty of opportunities to escape, to be fair). I love this kind of thing where the stakes are high and it seems like anybody could go at any moment. That's what I've missed in this show, and while the balance still seems a little off, I did quite like this episode and its content.
The Truth or Dare game was pretty hilarious, as was Chanel number 3's insistence to play spin the bottle. I really liked the dynamic between Sam - the predatory lez - and Chanel number 3. I didn't know she would be killed off in this episode, which is fine as she doesn't really add to the story in all honesty. I would have liked to have seen the two girls develop a bit more, see where they'd go, but I love Chanel 3's idea that she is just in love with love - no gender involved. So another casualty was the armless guy, who survived a brutal chainsaw attack to be struck repeatedly with an axe before decapitation. I couldn't help but laugh at the characters' reactions, with Chad saying they should honour him by watching. It's ridiculous yet so good. "Oh not the head!" We also get a third death in Roger, another Dickie Dollar Scholar - they're going down as quickly as the Kappa Kappa's. He was a bit weird, especially when he said he felt quite relieved that his brother was gone. Why didn't he have any blood from the dozens of nails shot into his face? That was a weird death (though nothing will really top Ariana Grande's).
I really enjoyed certain characters and duos in this episode. For one, Jennifer the Candle Vlogger doesn't get enough credit, so this was a great episode for her. The part where she said she moved because she farted over there and it smelled bad was totally something I'd do. Props to her. Chanel number 3 and 5 have hardly had moments of just those two, but now they've made a deal to outlive Chanel, it's just made things with them so much more interesting! The best dynamic duo of the episode was the unlikely pairing of Chanel and Zayday. I enjoyed their scene in the tunnels and their stroll down Kappa's history. Their little attack from the Red Devil was good and I did expect Chanel to ditch Zayday, but she came back and saved her. She said it was selfish as she was only thinking of herself, but who knows, maybe there is a heart beating under the facade?
EPISODE VERDICT
This episode could be the turning point for the show. There were more deaths - though nobody of note - but most importantly, the end promises more of a fight back against the killer. It's something they need to do in order to stop looking like constant gullible victims. It started out as a drab episode that felt like any other children's programme, but things heated up in the middle and stayed hot until the end. Only problem - No Denise!
FAVOURITE QUOTES
Jennifer: "I am simply a victim of my time."
Hester: "Are you aware your pants are on backwards?"
Chanel: "Clearly there's only one person to blame for all this... number five."
Chanel No. 5: "Wait, what?"
Zayday: "The first change I'd like to implement is for everyone to stop getting killed by a serial killer."
Chad: "I'm totally poking Dean Munsch."
Sam: "You're a great kisser."
Chanel No. 3: "Thanks. I guess you're okay."
Chanel No. 3: "Our vaginas may never touch. It's too dangerous."
Chanel No. 5: "Guys, I am freaking out, I hate being trapped in small places."
Grace: "Okay, this house is like literally fifteen thousand square feet."
Chanel: "And I'm yours for an amount of time that feels appropriate."
Chanel: "Number five. Does your vagina have teeth?"
Chad: "If you're not the killer, you should give it a shot, think you'd be pretty good at it."
Chanel No. 3: "The only things I feel for you now is rage and pissed-off-edness."
Chanel: "So if you'll excuse me for seven minutes, I'm gonna ask my boyfriend - Chad Radwell - to dial 0 on my pink telephone."
Hester: "I came to see if Sam needs anything but she doesn't because she's dead."
Jennifer: "Oh, I kinda just came over here 'cause I farted over there and it smelled bad."
Chanel: "Thank you for making that announcement no-one cared about."
Despite episode six being jam-packed with red devil action, this episode stepped down a little to allow a different sort of story to unfold. While the Dean was pretty much absent in the episode before, this one turns out to be one of her highlights. She comes front and centre here and while I did like this focus on her character and her complexities, I found this to be one of the weaker episodes yet. For one, there was again no Denise Hemphill. That is a crime in itself. One episode is bad enough but two in a row requires justice. There wasn't enough excitement or action in this episode to justify an absent Denise, who no doubt would have elevated this episode even more. Despite this, Chanel has been able to balance this episode on her shoulders as she really proves why she is perfect as the female lead. Every episode we see bits of her intelligence and cunning, removing her from that stereotypical look at a popular girl.
There were plenty of scenes I enjoyed regardless. The memorial scene was pretty grim yet light, with Chanel bitching about Chanel 2 with her dead body in the room. It's quite sad how her parents went on a cruise to celebrate their daughter's death - if Chanel wasn't lying, that's seriously messed up! I thought better of Charisma Carpenter! The ouija board scenes led to some good developments, such as Chanel going to see Chad after claims of him cheating, only to find him with a goat. I questioned this at first, thinking maybe he was into beastiality but his explanation was bizarrely sound. I use bizarre a lot when it comes to this show, I admit, but that's what this show is. I liked how Chanel 2 pitted the Chanels against their leader by saying she is the killer. The escalation of this was great, seeing what ways they would kill Chanel, leading to her confronting them and giving them a lesson about rat poison. Just proves Chanel is a bitch no bitch should mess with!
We got more of a glimpse into Gigi's role in the Red Devil saga too as she shouted on the phone "We are not kidnappers, we are murderers hell-bent on revenge!" This was interesting and further proves she's the mastermind behind the whole operation. She also led Grace to Feather, whose boyfriend (the Dean's ex-husband) was killed by Dean Munsch. Either she was setting up the Dean or knew of her plan, so it was to aid her in the disposal of her ex-husband. Either way, I loved when Feather walked into the house to find the arrows and the notes on the walls. 'Step This Way' was a good one. 'Just A Head', like we expected anything other. The little 'twist' at the end that the Dean did kill her ex-husband was good, though I suspected she planted the sandwich there anyway as I found it highly suspicious that the exact meat she couldn't eat, and stated she couldn't eat, was the kind of sandwich left at the crime scene. Maybe I'm just smarter than Grace and Pete, but it really wasn't hard to figure out. Still, a nice reveal and shows the Dean's murderous culpabilities.
EPISODE VERDICT
A step down from the previous episode as it was a little dry on action, instead focusing on the Dean and her murderous tendencies towards her cheating ex-husband. We are getting somewhere with Gigi as we see a darker side of her in pulling the strings, and the Chanels continue to impress as a great team with hopefully more sleuthing in the future. The absence of Denise is definitely noted.
FAVOURITE QUOTES
Chanel: "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today because that back-stabbing little bitch got exactly what was coming to her."
Hester: "Did you see the movie?"
Chanel: "Ouija? No! No one did."
Chanel: "Chanel number 2, does Chanel number 5's vagina have teeth?"
Chanel: "Are you having sex with a goat?"
Cathy: "Please tell me they killed that bitch Feather too."
Officer: "No, she's fine."
Cathy: (disappointed face)
Cathy: "I don't trust a girl with a huge bush of pubic hair."
Chanel: "Why do you have nine tampons? How big is your cooch?"
Chanel 2: "I was probably in a bad mood 'cause Adolf Hitler was motorboating my boobs."
Hester: "I would sooner kill my own mother!"
Chanel: "Not only would I have survived your attempt on my life, it would have also made me skinnier."
CHARACTER OF THE EPISODES: Chanel. She continues to prove her smarts and brawn despite her stereotype.
HUNK OF THE EPISODES: Chad for coming to save the girls in 'Seven Minutes in Hell!'
SHADIEST CHARACTER: Gigi, and the Dean. The Dean is a murderer, and Gigi also confirms that she is a murderer.
FUNNIEST LINE: "Number five. Does your vagina have teeth?"
BEST MOMENT: Chanel and Zayday are chased in the tunnels.
FUNNIEST MOMENT: Truth or dare.
SHADIEST MOMENT: Gigi on the phone, plus the flashback of Feather in the bath as it alludes to the idea that the Dean killed the previous Dean in that manner.
Did you guys enjoy these episodes of Scream Queens? Let me know your thoughts in the comments and be sure to watch the next all-new episode on November 10th at 9.00PM on FOX!
About the Author - Gavin Hetherington
Award-winning author of the 'Abyssal Sanctuary' series. Gavin joined SpoilerTV in August 2014 and reviews 2 Broke Girls, Devious Maids, The Flash, Mistresses, Pretty Little Liars, Salem, Scream Queens and Sleepy Hollow. Gavin will write previews for Devious Maids and Shadowhunters, and backs-up Empire, iZombie, Once Upon a Time, Reign, Scandal and Supergirl. You can contact him at gavin@spoilertv.com.
