Open the door for this weekās home-invasion-themed episode of AMERICAN HORROR STORIES. Husband and wife Jaslyn and Bryce (AHS alums Gabourey Sidibe and Max Greenfield) have moved into a new home in a seemingly safe gated community. After suffering flashbacks of a traumatic childhood home invasion, Jaslyn installs the latest home surveillance technologyāa front door camera/app called AURA. Before you can say, āknock, knock, whoās there?ā the camera begins to pick up on an unwelcome visitor at the couplesā doorstep. The episode plays with the creepypasta images and videos weāve all seen of weirdos hanging outside peopleās front doors caught in eerie night vision recordings. Ultimately whatās most frightening about this episode is that you never know who could be standing on the other side of your door.
This felt like one of the seriesā stronger episodes. Despite what is ultimately a silly and poorly-delivered explanation of the primary plot device, the episode maintained a high level of suspense by playing on the universal fear of home invasion. Well-written-and-portrayed characters contributed to this as well. Sidibe doesnāt fall into the typical tropes of a horror heroine; even when sheās afraid, she is reasonable and makes intelligent choices. Greenfieldsā later scenes showcase his acting strengths.
After last weekās so-so premiere, Iām excited to see what more this season offers. Was it perfect? No. Did I overlook a couple of silly moments and plot holes? Of course. But I had fun watching it. This further proves that the micro-anthology format works much better for the franchise than the full-series version.