These new powers also apply to Nan, who can now control people with her mind and bend them to her will. She gets to try out her powers on Luke’s mom after she discovers that she killed him and had him cremated to avoid resurrection, and it’s nice and brutal, if not a bit rushed after last episode’s setup. The plots are all running at different speeds, and those that were getting nice, long setups previously are now being rushed to completion in order to meet the deadline. This problem hampered during the last two seasons (especially Asylum), and it’s a shame to see Coven face the same issues.
Nan’s rushed plot ends when Laveau and Fiona decide to drown her to satisfy Papa Legba for another year, which is apparently something the newly empowered Nan couldn’t see coming or prevent. Of the three young witches left, I was finally excited to watch Nan’s story develop, so it’s a shame she dies in a bathtub instead.
Zoe is once again left in the shadows of the other witches, doing nothing and not really adding anything to the plot. Maybe she was busy teaching Kyle the alphabet again, because he’s nowhere to be seen either. After all the work put into his plotline early in the season, it’s disappointing to see it going nowhere fast.
Finally, the war on Hank’s father and Delphi Trust has begun, although it was at the hands of an FBI search and seizure job apparently created by putting enchanted mice in a maze. It doesn’t make much sense, and it’s a much more boring opening blow than I expected. I guess it makes sense that such a small coven would have to start small, but now that they’re left open for attack, they’re going to need to get a bit more violent. They’ve never had issues with that before now.
Cordelia is left hopeless after Fiona all but disowns her because of Hank’s true colors. Despite running the academy, Cordelia has hardly had much impact on the plot, and she continues to not do much here too. She’s the most sympathetic of the witches, but it’s hard to feel bad for her too simply because she doesn’t have that much effect on the plot. When Myrtle was giving her suggestions of what to do with her life, it boiled down to selling homemade salad dressing or working as a hostess on a cruise ship. At this point, I’d have to agree that those are her best options.
There are only three episodes left in the season, and American Horror Story: Coven is still meandering about, introducing new elements and rushing to tie up established plots to make room. It’s disappointing to see that the third season still hasn’t learned much from the past two, and what’s worse is that the horror aspect has almost completely been removed from the title. At least the first half of the season had bloodthirsty minotaurs and zombies. Now we don’t even get a peek of Kathy Bates’ dismembered head. If you’re a fan of Stevie Nicks, then enjoy her cameo, but for fans of the show, this is one episode that won’t be revisited with fondness any time soon.