AHS: Red Tide. A Bloody Strong First Half

Synopsis

So, readers, for those of you who didn’t know, Writer Ryan Murphy split season 10 of American Horror Story into two halves, aptly naming it Double Feature. After watching the entire season, I did not find any real connection between the two halves, so I am going to split my review for you the same way.

Red Tide, the six-episode first half features a family moving into a somewhat creepy house in a seacoast town that is pretty much abandoned for the winter. But the real main character in the story is the town, Provincetown, or P-Town. It has its own back story, which unfurls as the episodes play out.

You will meet the successful artists that came into town as desperate nobodies, and find out what they sacrificed to get there (yes, think morals, souls, etc). You will meet the ambitious chemist that started it all. You find out what happens when you try to sacrifice your soul for talent and have none. Eventually, you watch the remaining untainted people fall. They are followed by the talented and untalented alike, all to a gloriously bloody ending.

The Good

All of the characters are incredibly well developed, even the ones that only come up once or twice. You start to really care what happens to each of them, even if you are watching them fall further and further from grace. The people who start out good end up not so much, and the ones who seem the lowest soar the highest. And every bit of it comes from the completely logical goal of aspiring to great things.

Every one of us can identify with that. So you wonder, as you start to get to know each and every character better and better, are they that different from me? Would I make the same choice?

Also, the town itself is a beautiful backdrop for all this change and fury. The dark graveyards, the cloudy beaches, and the historic houses are beautifully gloomy. Also, the LGBTQIA+ presence just screams Ryan Murphy, and much support from me in that.

The Bad

The ending is left a bit unresolved. I don’t think it needed 4 more episodes or anything, it stopped in a good spot. That being said, you don’t fully find out what happened to half of the remaining living characters, or what Provincetown becomes.

Overall

I really couldn’t find much bad in this. From the start, with a 9-year-old girl counting animal corpses that guide the way into town to the bloody mess left when the few survivors departed the scene, it was gripping the entire time.  My hat goes off to Murphy for yet another creepy season that will stay with you into your nightmares (or good dreams, your choice).

Also amazing performances by all of the actors, the repeat ones and the new ones. I had no idea Evan Peters could sing! I didn’t even identify Sarah Paulson until a couple of episodes in, her character was so different from her usual. Macaulay Caulkin was awesome and unpredictable. And Ryan Kiera Armstrong stole the show as 9-year-old Alma.