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American Horror Story: Coven has started a journey down that rabbit hole where I just try to enjoy the little things versus trying to make sense of the overall show. Nevertheless, it returned this past Wednesday from its winter hiatus with “The Magical Delights of Stevie Nicks”.
I must admit that I missed Jessica Lange and Angela Bassett lighting up my TV with their impeccable delivery. The quick wit and sarcasm between Fiona and Marie Laveau is what keeps me entertained and tuned in at the moment. On the other hand, I don’t actually understand how these storylines are progressing because it’s completely disjointed.
Fiona and Marie Team Up
Overall, it felt like different storylines circling around that just happen to be in the same house. Fiona is providing Marie with shelter and has joined forces with her to fight the witch hunters, who happen to be Delia’s (now deceased) husband and father-in-law. The new dynamic duo casts a spell to weaken the witch hunters’ corporation by sending in the law to investigate them, potentially setting up a final showdown between the coven and the hunters.
It’s interesting to learn how Marie became immortal: giving her soul to coke snorting voodoo spirit, Papa Legba, in return for her stealing a new soul for him every year – in the form of a newborn, including her own firstborn. Ouch. Of course, Fiona’s quest to beat aging and dying is in full swing after hearing Marie’s story, so when Marie refuses to give Fiona immortality, I already knew she was going to try to make a deal with the devil.
Drawing Papa Legba out with high quality coke – his words, not mine – Fiona attempts to give her soul to him in exchange for immortality. Except she fails, because he sees that she has no soul because the incoming Supreme (who is still unknown) is sucking Fiona’s body, soul, and powers dry . So Fiona decides that all the new witches need to die. Overact much? Someone needs to give her a valium and some scotch and tell her to calm down.
I should note that Fiona continues to win the “Worst Mother of the Year” award with her treatment of Delia because I felt that backhand slap through my tv. I get that Delia screwed up and married a witch hunter and partially brought this war into the coven, but if Fiona hated Hank so much why didn’t she investigate him? She just took Hank’s word that he had no family and left it alone? She fails as both a mother and supreme with this nonsense and Delia is about ready to slit her wrists with one of her broken bottles.
Stevie “The White Witch” Nicks
In the meantime, Stevie Nicks shows up at the coven at Fiona’s request to stun Misty and basically give her a scene to twirl in her shawl. Don’t get me wrong, there is NOTHING better than Stevie Nicks and piano and I do enjoy that Stevie is the “white witch” but I’m still not sure what this added to the overall storyline. However, it was damn funny when Misty passed out upon seeing Stevie and Fiona quips, “You owe me five bucks,” to Stevie.
The Young Ones
Elsewhere, the young set of witches is going around unsupervised and getting into more trouble AGAIN. It’s funny to me that Zoe professes that the young ones need to stick together for the coven to survive, only to watch everyone plan how to exterminate each other to become the next Supreme. In my opinion, Madison could have been the first one to go. She just won’t die. Unfortunately, she strikes first and knocks Misty into a casket about to be buried. I honestly thought Misty was pulling a “dumb like a fox” act to trick Madison, she wasn’t.
Nan
Kudos to Nan for being a badass. Not only is the only one to step up and screw with Madison, but she takes care of the neighbor, Joan, for killing her son, Luke. To be honest, she’s the only that calls everyone out on their bullshit. For this reason, I am team Nan all the way. Of course, Marie and Fiona realize that Nan is a legitimate threat to their shared power because she finds the baby that Marie stole for Papa Legba. So Fiona and Marie drown her to give her soul to Papa Legba instead of the newborns. WHAT IN THE HELL. Of everyone in the house, this is who they go after first?? No. Just no. Madison followed by Zoe, because she’s responsible for the mess that is Kyle, is the correct order of victims. I did laugh at Fiona’s bargaining “She’s innocent, mostly. She killed the neighbor, but the bitch had it coming,” but not enough to stop shaking my head at Ryan Murphy.
Final Thoughts
I’m hoping this episode, which can only be accurately described as a filler, is a set up for a coherent latter half of the season. Hopefully it will save the mess that has been unraveling in the last couple of episodes. Bassett and Lange steal their scenes as always, but at some point the storylines have to begin making sense. How does Fiona not know what’s going on in her own house? Why is Myrtle still relevant? Why does Marie seem to play second fiddle to Fiona? Why does Ryan Murphy pull this nonsense every season? Sigh.
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