What I'm Watching: American Horror Story

I'm starting with this one for no particular reason except it's new and I haven't heard much chatter about it yet.  But that is probably because I'm never anywhere to hear chatter, except in my basement, where my husband and I wear sweatpants and talk about who has to get up and go to the garage to refill the ice bucket this time.

When we first saw the previews we were both all "Oh HELL yeah," and I was excited because it looked spooky but smart, and beautifully shot which is always a plus for TV since my sitcoms and reality shows suck in that department.

But I'll be honest.  The first couple of episodes were a little scarier than I wanted them to be.  I mean, folks, this stuff is creepy.  It has moments of sheer terror and the funhouse cinematography makes it all the more difficult to swallow.  To be honest, this is a good thing.  I mean, the show sets out to do something, and it does it.  I mean, it really freaks me out.

I love a good thriller but I'm not so much about gore.  I love suspense but I'm not really into ghouls or ghosts.  This show does both.  And as long as I can handle my fear, I love it, which comes as a bit of a surprise to me, seeing as there is a very "ghosty" and "devilinthebasement" quality to it.

We suspect it's a little "LOSTish" in that we figure the writers are putting this thing together as they go and aren't completely certain where it's headed - at least not specifically.  But that's okay.  We love that it also has that LOST quality of "maybe it's this" or "did you catch that" or "do you think maybe..." about it.  There's lots to think about and theorize about and it's all pretty freaking fun and masterful.

As for the characters, Jessica Lange's is by far my favorite.  I'm also intrigued by the maid and I think the daughter is a pretty interesting teen.  Usually teens on TV irritate/gag/bore me, but this one is just aloof enough, but not too aloof, to keep my eye on her.  She's a smart one. Or, maybe she's very, very stupid.  Jury's out.

We watched two episodes on Sunday because it was daylight and I prefer to watch it when the sun's out.  We were behind by two because I am too weenie to watch it in the dark, right before bed.  Todd begged me to watch the most recent one last night, but uh-uh.  No can do.

It aired at just the right time.  Fall, Halloween, and oh yeah, we just moved into a new house full of sounds and spiders that are new to me.  We killed a mouse the other day.  Granted, it's not the same as jars of human remains or ghosts of dead families lurking in the basement, but still, it's just enough scary that I don't need that business before bedtime.

Which is, in my never-to-be-humble-opinion, the mark of a damn fine horror program.

The question we keep asking ourselves as we watch this amazing show in awe is, "Why hasn't anyone thought of this sooner?"  I mean, duh.  The serial horror tv show?  Freaking brilliant.

Forks: 4 out of 4 (but just watch it in the daylight.)