Today, TV Line confirmed that Neil Patrick Harris and his husband David Burtka will both be appearing in this season of American Horror Story: Freak Show and EW.com has confirmed that Lily Rabe will be appearing this season as Sister Mary Eunice, her character from American Horror Story: Asylum.
Connecting the Seasons
American Horror Story has made its mark on television by following a separate story each season, but with the inclusion of Pepper this season, Ryan Murphy has connected the second and fourth seasons. It was known that Pepper would be a part of the show, but it would precede her time in Briarcliff. The character of Sister Mary Eunice will return for the midseason cliffhanger and presumably to tell the story of how Pepper ends up in the asylum.
More Guest Stars
Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka will appear in separate episodes this season. Harris will be playing a “chameleon salesman,” which sounds like it’s sure to be a one episode guest spot. Burtka will play part in a “sexy storyline” involving Elsa Mars, Jessica Lange’s character on the show.
I think it would be great is Harris is playing a Bible salesman, in the vein of Manley Pointer from Flannery O’Connor’s “Good Country People.” Nothing screams Southern Gothic like Flannery O’Connor, and maybe it’s just my wish to see a version of O’Connor’s story on television. Also, maybe it’s just too easy to see the similarities between the stories: a salesman, a Southern setting, and an amputee.
Burtka’s storyline is a little less clear, but after the latest episode which shows Elsa’s sexual past and the disturbing way she lost her legs, it will be interesting to see what Murphy has in store.
Will it Help the Storyline?
These guest stars could help or hurt the storyline for this season and I think the storyline does need help. After watching the latest episode of Freak Show, I’m a little disappointed. The single most terrifying thing to me on this show was Twisty the Clown. SPOILER ALERT. Now that Twisty the Clown is dead, I’m a little skeptical of how well this season is going to be able to hold my attention. Twisty was horrific with his missing jaw, his need to entertain the people he kidnapped, and being a serial killer, of course. I’m not even scared of clowns, but I was hoping to be scarred for life because of Twisty. That’s why I watch horror movies and TV shows: that exhilarating feeling of being scared out of your mind. Now, I don’t think that I’m going to have that feeling now that Twisty is gone.
As for Dandy, was anyone surprised at the way he changed? It was obvious that there was something wrong with him from the start, and the fact that he didn’t shit his pants when he found Twisty in his playroom. Instead, Dandy followed Twisty and helped him in his sick game, so seeing him pick up Twisty’s mask and put it on wasn’t surprising. At this point, I’m hoping that Murphy and company are setting up something spectacular and that’s why there are these obvious moments.
With the addition of these guest stars, as well as Matt Bomer who has already filmed scenes for the show, I’m hoping to see the show take a different direction. I want it to hold my attention out of fear and dread, which has only happened when Twisty appears on screen, but now he’s dead. Hopefully the guest stars are bringing something new to the table with their characters, or Dandy can live up to the terror of Twisty. I’m waiting to see what’s going to happen next in the show, but I hope that it’s because I can’t wait to see what happens next, rather than feeling obligated to watch.
Sources: http://tvline.com/2014/10/29/neil-patrick-harris-david-burtka-american-horror-story-freak-show/
http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/10/29/ahs-freak-show-lily-rabe/