What an absolutely insane episode of American Horror Story! I’ve felt the show has been lacking in the last few weeks, but in “Smoldering Children” American Horror Story stepped up and brought back the insanity!
Let’s talk about the not so interesting stuff first. We open with Constance, Addy, Larry, and Tate all sitting happily around the dinner table. Everyone seems content – Constance is back in her Victorian house, Addy is just adorable and happy all the time, and Larry is thrilled at his good fortune that Constance is living with him. The only dark spot at the table is Tate. Tate isn’t overly pleased with his new dad – and he let’s Larry know by giving a wonderfully acidic rendition of grace before dinner.
Larry plays off the tension and Constance tells Tate that he needs to smile more, but Tate (who is angry at the world about everything) basically tells her to get lost – the guy sitting across the table killed his brother. Tate decides to take matters into his own hands with Larry. We see Tate wake up early, do a bunch of drugs, and set out to Larry’s work… where he promptly douses Larry in gasoline and lights a match before setting out to shoot up his high school.
Wow.
Back in present time, Constance finds out that her boy toy is dead and she automatically assumes it was Larry that killed him out of jealousy (it wasn’t). She is then hauled into the police station for questioning where she’s told that she’d previously come inches from being convicted of her husband and maid’s disappearances, but without bodies no charges would stick. However the cops want someone for this latest murder and since a butcher knife fell out of Constance’s bag directly at their feet, they’re looking to pin it on her. Enter Larry who takes the fall after a reunion with his dead children and wife.
Personally, I found Larry confessing to the murder to be a way of redemption for his wrong doings. He now understands that it wasn’t Constance’s fault his family burned to death – it was his infidelity that drove his wife to kill herself and their children. He now has to pay for his sins, and he seems okay with the result. Leave it American Horror Story to add funny antidotes to a seriously dramatic scene – did anyone else notice the “no smoking” sign in Larry’s room when he was talking to Constance?
I suppose talking about Viv and Ben is important as well – Ben now believes that Vivien was raped by the guy in the rubber suit, and against doctor’s orders tells her that he is only the father of one of her creepy demon babies, not both. Needless to say, Viv doesn’t take this news overly well, but Ben assures her that everything will be okay. He’ll find out who the mysterious masked man was and take care of it.
Viv does put her foot down and says she will never step foot in that house again (can you blame her?), and Ben doesn’t really have a retort for this. Instead he leaves her in the loony bin and returns home to talk to Violet.
Dear, sweet Violet who has missed 16 days of school according to the truant officer that arrived at the door to speak to Ben. Ben talks to his daughter and instead of blowing up in her face, apologizes for being a horrible father and says that he wants to help her. He’ll send her to any school that she wants, but she at least has to go. Violet agrees and Tate freaks out when he hears the news.
Meanwhile, Ben has hired an exterminator to get rid of the flies that have taken residence at the murder house. This is when things get interesting. Tate kills the poor guy, and gets rid of his body. He then goes after Ben dressed in the rubber suit. Tate is not prepared for the fight that Ben gives him, and ends up losing his mask and Ben finally gets to see the face behind the mask… before he’s knocked out.
Cut to Tate telling Violet that her dad is planning on sending her to boarding school… which is false. However, Violet buys into it and when Tate tells her to kill herself so they can be together forever, she doesn’t seem too concerned. Violet agrees, but says that she wants to do it in the bath so it can be cozy, with candles, etc. Tate sets out to draw their bath and Violet runs down the stairs screaming for her father.
She gets out the front door, runs to the gate… and freedom! Nope – she’s right back in the kitchen. Violet keeps running through the house several more times, and every single time ends up out the front door and right back into the kitchen. Tate grabs her and in a moment that was actually pretty sweet tells her he wants to show her something… and once he does, she can go anywhere she wants – he won’t stop her.
Then Tate doesn’t even ease her into it – he just shows her the rotting corpse of the teenager that she used to be. Remember a few weeks ago with Violet took those sleeping pills and Tate made her puke them up? He explains that she actually did die during that little mistake, and even though he tried to help her, she just took too many of them. Tate does try to help her by saying: “You died in my arms, you died loved…” which actually almost broke my heart.
Tate just wants to love Violet and Violet just wants someone to love her… and now that they’re stuck together for eternity it seems like they’ll both be happy!
Let’s talk about Violet for a second. There were countless clues about her death – the flies, her absence from school, Violet never leaving the house, etc. But I have to say I did not see that Sixth Sense twist coming. I like it, though! American Horror Story you have sucked me in again and I cannot wait for more!
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