The Morning After (American Horror Story)
“The Morning After” may be the second episode from the eighth season from the anthology tv series American Horror Story. It aired on September 19, 2018, around the cable network Forex. The episode was compiled by James Wong, and directed by Jennifer Lynch.
Emily finds her room infested with snakes and her screams alert Timothy and Ms. Mead. Mead rejoices in the new protein and theorizes the snakes went deep subterranean to prevent the blast. Emily asks Ms. Venable concerning the new arrival in Venable’s office, that she responds that “all questions is going to be clarified in the end.” The grays lift the dinner cloches to show the snakes, suddenly alive, which slither over the table.
The Outpost 3 visitors assemble within the library. Langdon enters and proclaims the other American compounds in New You are able to, West Virginia, and Texas happen to be overrun and destroyed. He explains that he’ll be evaluating candidates for survival. Individuals selected will reside in The Sanctuary. Individuals not selected will be presented suicide vials. Mr. Gallant volunteers to become evaluated first.
In Venable’s office, Langdon begins assessing Gallant and asks him of his sexual orientation. Gallant states he’s gay but asserts he could impregnate women for procreation if required. Langdon asks Gallant about his anger towards his grandmother. Gallant describes a cocktail party where Evie tried to set him track of qualified bachelors. Gallant showed up in BDSM gear and Evie never tried to tame him again. Gallant asks Langdon about their own sexual orientation and Langdon suspends the rest of the conversation. Gallant fantasizes about Langdon while touching themself and it is interrupted by the appearance of the Rubber Man. Gallant gives themself to the suited figure and Evie observes the 2 getting sex. She visits Mead and informs the warden about her grandson’s indiscretions.
Elsewhere, Timothy and Emily sneak into Langdon’s bed room and uncover his functional MacBook. They find shown on screen emails detailing Venable’s transgressions against proper protocol, namely implementation of her very own rules. The Rubber Man is above them, searching on. Langdon visits Venable and inquires about her violations. Venable insists that they was handed classified instructions. Langdon informs Venable in regards to a lady and child he happened upon on his travels who have been struggling with fallout exposure. He states he didn’t show the lady whim by killing her child despite her pleading. Venable insists that none of her expenditure is worthy to proceed to the Sanctuary apart from Dinah, whom she admits she knows little of. Langdon informs Venable to undress for any physical examination and she or he rebuffs. He unzips her blouse to reveal extreme scoliosis, which she admits brings her great discomfort and shame. She asks him if she’s passed his make sure he states no.
Mead relays Evie’s story to Venable plus they suspect that Langdon was the suited figure. Venable interrogates a chained Gallant while Mead whips him. Later, Langdon enters and insists he has not been in Gallant’s bed room. He calls Gallant pathetic and informs him that their own grandmother ratted him out. Dinah reflects around the song playing within the library (“Amount of time in a container” by Jim Croce) and Coco mocks her nostalgia. Gallant confronts Evie about turning him in and she or he retorts that he doesn’t deserve to become a survivor which accepting him isn’t in her own nature.
Timothy and Emily speculate around the true reason for their saving and cast aspersions on Venable’s rules. The 2 want to dismiss them and also have sex the very first time. Gallant broods within the library and also the radio shifts to “Gold Dust Lady” by Fleetwood Mac. Gallant follows the Rubber Man to some bed room. He throws the suited figure to the bed and straddles him. Then he reaches over and grabs a set of scissors like a murder weapon. Langdon seems within the entrance and finds Gallant covered within the bloodstream of his grandmother’s corpse. Mead intrudes on the sleeping Timothy and Emily and drags them. They confront Venable about her self-enforced rules and she or he transmits them off. Mead takes these to a chamber for execution where Timothy shoots her within the torso within an escape attempt. She staggers away and her wound reveals white-colored fluid and wires.
“The Morning After” was viewed by 2.21 million people during its original broadcast, and acquired single.1 ratings share among adults aged 18-49.
The episode received reviews that are positive from critics, with a lot of the praise going towards Cody Fern’s performance. Around the review aggregator Rotten Tomato plants, “The Morning After” holds an 88% approval rating, according to 17 reviews by having an average rating of seven.14/10. The critical consensus reads, “Though less strong because the premiere, “The Morning After” is effective enough because of its readiness to wade into weirder waters.”
Ron Hogan of Living room of Geek gave the episode a 3.5/5, saying, “I am sure that the shocking and confusing occasions of the episode will come up later within the season. It’s early, and situations are still building. What’s confusing now will be preferable later, or is going to be hidden beneath a lot more confusing things afterwards. In either case, ‘The Morning After’ is really a satisfying enough episode that lacks the first hook from the first episode, but adds lots of weirdness in to the snake stew.”
Kat Rosenfield from Entertainment Weekly gave the episode a b -. She was dubious due to the cliffhanger, stating that “for a motion picture where freaky moments really are a cent twelve, that one is weird as hell”, but she appreciated the general atmosphere and manipulation produced by the type of Langdon. She also enjoyed the chemistry between Peters and Fern, commenting that “there’s certainly a vibe”. Vulture’s Ziwe Fumudoh gave the episode a 5 from 5, having a positive review. She particularly recognized Paulson’s performance, calling her “the right actress”, but additionally Collins and her character, stating that “Evie is really a cultural icon and that i aspire to be as influential and filled with it as being she’s eventually.” Finally, she enjoyed the cliffhanger from the episode and also the thought about Mead’s character.
Matt Fowler of IGN gave the episode a 6. from 10, having a mixed review. He stated, “Getting Rubber Man, or whatever form of Rubber Man this really is, into the mix is really a fun and firm method to condition for sure that Murder House-y things are likely to happen. The small random hauntings and trickery, which might also involve the Coven witches, are that’s keeping this story alive, regrettably.”