Since I’m on a bit of a reviewing streak, I felt it only right to review AHS Hotel. I finished watching the final episode last night. Now I’m gutted because it’s over and I have to wait till late in the year for Season 6 to be added to Netflix. Oh well, it seems like life is all about waiting. Like the yearly wait for Game of Thrones and, way back when, the yearly wait for the next in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
I must admit, when I watched the first episode of Hotel I wasn’t convinced. That is, I just couldn’t see where the storyline would go and had a momentary lapse of faith that AHS could put on another great show. But I couldn’t have been more wrong. Hotel ended up sharing joint place for my favourite AHS, alongside Asylum. It’s dark, deeply disturbing, intriguing, funny, sad, kinky and addictive as hell. There are lots of threads running throughout involving vampires, murderers, ghosts, junkies, film stars, a bunch of kids who look like the set from The Children of the Corn and a homicide detective.
I was gutted to learn that Jessica Lange wouldn’t be in this series. Instead we got Lady Gaga. But wow, she totally rocked the roll of The Countess. Hers was one of my favourite characters in fact – and dare I say, sometimes for her fashion sense alone.
My other favourite characters were Liz Taylor (Denis O’ Hare), the transvestite who helps run the Hotel Cortez with manager Kathy Bates’ character Iris (who was also a treat), and James Patrick March the owner. James Patrick March was played by Evan Peters, who is undoubtedly my favourite cast member of AHS (alongside Jessica Lange usually). In this season he donned a pencil moustache and totally owned the vintage film star voice he managed to pull off. He was wonderfully sadistic in this role – perhaps his best yet!
Season 5 is ultimately about acceptance and belonging. It’s about finding your place in a fucked up world that’s filled with human cruelty and evilness. Having a one true love was mentioned throughout, it was key to the whole series. For the lucky ones it was about finding or realising their one true love. For the unlucky ones it was about accepting that they’d lost it or never had it, and to move on in a way that wouldn’t destroy them in their desire to be loved. The lasting message was one of hope.
All in all, the converging threads of all the characters tied up well, making for a satisfying ending.
It’s maybe worth mentioning that there’s lots of sex and nudity throughout, so definitely not one for the straitlaced. In fact, there were more nudey scenes of Lady Gaga than I had glasses of wine last weekend (take from that what you will).
AHS Hotel gets a great big 5 stars from me!
R. H. DIXON 