Elsewhere, Misty is enlisted to resurrect Madison, because it worked so well the last time somebody was resurrected. Luckily, she’s a little better at it than Zoe is, and Madison returns to the land of the living, for better and for worse. It’ll be interesting to see where her story goes from this point, mainly because it seemed that her purpose was served once she died. But hey, more Emma Roberts is hardly ever a bad thing. Plus, Queenie couldn’t carry all the sass in the house by herself.
Cordelia returns to the academy with husband in tow, who she quickly sends away after seeing his infidelity with a touch. Her new powers are going to be more trouble than they’re worth, though, because Hank, who is just all over the board at this point, is also revealed to be a witch hunter hired by Marie to wipe out the coven.
I’ll admit that as far as twists go, that was a good one. Sadly, Hank has fallen into one of the bigger clichés and has fallen in love with Cordelia for real, making him a double agent with duelling interests. It’s a bit of a downer that that’s all they could come up with, but it at least gives Hank something to do and adds another aspect to the show that fits in well. Before leaving his meeting with Marie, Hank is tasked with killing the entire coven or facing death himself, so hopefully this will give him a reason to show up more than once or twice.
Of course, the episode can’t end without the Axeman making his anticipated return. Cordelia is lucky enough to encounter the ghost first, who attempts to assault her until Zoe casts a spell that she hopes will make him go away. To be fair, he does leave, just through the front door and back onto the streets of New Orleans, instead of wherever spirits go. To make matters worse, he finds Fiona sitting alone at a bar and offers her a drink. I doubt Fiona likes jazz, though.
What’s most impressive about this season is how seamlessly stories are introduced and concluded while still keeping a good flow. Last year’s Asylum felt entirely too disjointed and overloaded with stories that it was hard to enjoy any of them, but Coven has found the perfect balance, offering enough to keep you hooked without overloading your brain.
But again, the best part of American Horror Story: Coven is the liberal use of New Orleans as a setting, both geographically and historically. Events from the city’s past continue to literally haunt the coven, and each new twist is introduced brilliantly, making this the show’s best season yet.
What did you think of this week’s episode? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below.
