Luke, who is apparently interesting enough to earn his own storyline, is still in a coma, and Nan uses her powers to help him communicate with his psychopath mother. While unconscious, he somehow discovers that she was actually responsible for his father’s death, murdering him with the power of bees to keep them from getting divorced. Not realizing that telling a psychopath that you know they killed someone close to you while in a vulnerable position is a terrible idea, Luke ends up with a nice pillow to the face in the end. Knowing the track record of the season though, I’m guessing he’ll find a way to spring back to life.
I’m not exactly bothered by the fact that the only hyper-religious character also happens to be the most insane, but it’s such a played out trope by now, and I know that American Horror Story: Coven is smarter than to play that card. A little complexity is all I ask for.
Laveau’s war on the Coven is brought to a somewhat abrupt end when Hank decides to bite the hand that feeds after being pushed a little too hard. Using some of her fancy voodoo, Laveau pressures Hank to either take out the Coven or give up his life. Choosing neither, Hank goes on a rampage in Laveau’s hair salon. This scene and the final minutes that follow are spellbinding, shot in slow motion while a gospel choir sings in the background. Even if Hank ends up dead before he can finish off Laveau, his final sacrifice is actually pretty beautiful. For whatever he was, he really did love Cordelia, and his final act of protecting the Coven served a greater purpose: namely, a truce.
By the end of the episode, Laveau and Fiona have made a pact to work together to take out the Delphi Trust, who apparently is now the real enemy. It’s a Hail Mary twist, but it actually works, because the feud between voodoo and the Coven never really made sparks fly. Sure, the zombies and the minotaur were interesting diversions, but the animosity between the two groups felt forced. So hallelujah, let the real war begin.
The episode’s one flat moment was brought to us by Delphine’s head and Queenie’s need for revenge. Placing her on a platter, Queenie forces Delphine to sit through a viewing of Roots – the whole thing. It’s a masterpiece, but come on, nobody can watch eight hours of anything in a row. I’m sure it’s supposed to be funny, and Delphine’s change of heart as she listens to the admittedly haunting gospel is a nice change of pace for her stubborn character, but I can’t help but to feel bad for Kathy Bates simply because her character has been reduced to comedic relief in a series that doesn’t really need it.
That being said, one splotch on an otherwise good episode is hardly enough to be angry over. If anything, I’m excited to see Delphine show some sympathy towards her captors now, if only to put an end to the stereotypical racism. In fact, there were more than a few moments in Head that gave me chills (yes, chills), including the final shootout and the image of Hank’s father weeping over pictures of his corpse. I was genuinely surprised at how touched I was by a brand new character, but what can I say? It works.
Just as everything builds up to a final war, we’re forced to take yet another break, so we’ll have to wait until January to see the final episodes of American Horror Story: Coven. For once, I genuinely can’t wait to see what happens to these characters, so be sure to check back in 2014 for the rest of our reviews!