American Horror Story - Hotel

It's as if, when Jessica Lange left the position of the perennial main character, they were looking for a new face. Not an acting face (which Ryan Murphy found immediately thanks to the phenomenal Lady Gaga), but the face of the entire show, because this year takes everything possible from previous years. It is closest to American Horror Story: Murder House, borrowing characters and atmosphere, from American Horror Story: Asylum the pervasive atmosphere of goosebumps, and from American Horror Story: Freak Show the storytelling pace with an endless number of supporting characters and detours. However, American Horror Story: Hotel has a crucial advantage over the last mentioned, as it remains gripping, focusing on the same storylines at the beginning and end, and more than ever before, it benefits from a delightful soundtrack. Even this time, the script cannot avoid certain mistakes, and for example, the civilian approach to John and his family's story feels last-minute, just like the reveals from his detective work. The contrast between the suffocating and fresh mood, the captivating performances of Denis O'Hare and the always brilliant chameleon Sarah Paulson, are such seductive temptations that the stay at the Cortez hotel became the second best season. (20.02.2016)

The beginning was great, somewhere around the middle I lost interest, but I finished the second half of Hotel, and I’m satisfied. For me, in fact the second best season of AHS (after Asylum). It helped a lot that Jessica Lange took a break (in the last seasons she was playing always the same character and it was boring already), and instead of her, Lady Gaga brought her own special aura. Hopefully, Murphy won’t make the same mistake and won’t let us pass the next season, like Jessica. I would also bring in some positive characters, though I could develop a taste for this panopticon of eccentricity. (18.01.2016)

I was generally satisfied, except for the somewhat lackluster finale and several plot digressions which barely had any impact on the story itself (vampire students). I appreciated how the filmmakers shrewdly avoided the hassle of creating scary monsters by casting Lady Gaga. She gave me the creeps every time she appeared on screen. I was amused by the recycling of Finn Wittrock, which was a great move. The star of this season for me was definitely Denis O'Hare, whose performance was excellent. (12.11.2017)

AHS in an art deco hotel? I am in. Hotel is such a relaxing series - old friends have new cool fetishes and strangely enough, even Gaga is alright. So it's going to be an overall enjoyable season. Love, blood, plenty of joy... There’s also the tender connection to Murder House and Coven. And the plot with Rambo and Valentino is completely satisfying. It didn't kill the whole, but it was an interesting excursion into the world of unfulfilled happiness. (16.10.2015)