rating: ★★★

I always get excited for the new fall season of television on cable networks like HBO, Showtime, FX and AMC. This fall there are new arrivals like Showtime’s Homeland, Starz’s Boss and AMC’s forthcoming Hell on Wheels as well as subsequent seasons of quality television programs like Boardwalk Empire, Dexter and The Walking Dead. However, the one show that got me really excited was FX’s American Horror Story.

I’m an unabashed junkie for both the horror genre and ghost stories so naturally FX doing a haunted house story caught my eye. However, I had a few concerns. The show is created and run by Ryan Murphy who, while creating the brilliant Nip/Tuck, also created Glee. When you think of ghosts and demons you don’t usually say, “Oh, get that guy who thrust show tunes, high school drama and a 3D concert movie in our face. He’ll know what do!” Since it was on FX, I decided to give it a chance.

American Horror Story stars Dylan McDermott (The Practice), Connie Britton (Friday Night Lights), Jessica Lange (Tootsie), Frances Conroy (Six Feet Under) and Denis O’Hare (True Blood). The story centres around the Harmon family, which moves to L.A. from Boston to start anew after the husband has an affair and slowly try to rebuild their family and escape their demons. Of course, the family happens to relocate to an old Victorian mansion that happens to be haunted and the scene of several grisly deaths.

Dylan McDermott plays the husband and psychologist Ben, whose patients may in fact be former victims of the house. Ben for the most part is skeptical of any supernatural activity and seems to be more annoyed that a neighbour and former resident who is now a burn victim keeps bothering him. Ben also has to ward off advances of the maid who seems to be tormenting him about his past in Boston.

Jessica Lange plays the nosy neighbour Constance who is always in the house for one reason or another. Lange is tremendous in this role and steals every scene she is in as the aging southern belle. Special mention to Frances Conroy and Denis O’Hare, who play the maid and burn victim Larry. Finally, Connie Britton plays Ben’s wife, Vivian, who may or may not have a demonic baby growing inside her.

Let’s make one thing clear: this show is weird, which is pretty awesome. Right from the beginning the family sees a demon baby, a man in a rubber S&M suit, a maid who alternates between old and young appearances and numerous ghosts. The show is very ambiguous about whether the people interacting with the family are in fact ghosts or just weird people connected to the house.

There have been three episodes so far and each one has revealed another layer of weirdness that is transfixing. The show is very reminiscent of Lost or Twin Peaks. It’s exciting to have a show that is bat-shit crazy at times and throws everything but the kitchen sink at its audience.

Now for a few complaints. While the weirdness is fun and exciting, sometimes it feels like too much and you realize there has been little character and plot development. For a show hyped as scary, it is very minimally so. There are a few jumps and thrilling moments but mainly it is just strange. That is very intriguing and even engaging, but not terrifying.

I hope the show has a plan and knows where is going rather than just being so strange that it creates a hype factor a la Lost, because the potential for a haunted house series is very promising.

So, give American Horror Story a watch. It’s actually the perfect show for a marathon around Halloween.

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