Why American Horror Story Fans Were Underwhelmed By Apocalypse
"American Horror Story: Apocalypse" premiered on FX in 2018. The eighth season by "American Horror Story" creator Ryan Murphy and co. was highly anticipated by fans of the show. By that point, the series had touched on every horror trope from haunted houses to aliens — so fans were excited to see what the "AHS" team had in store for a season holding such a weighty name.
The term "apocalypse" tends to yield some high expectations, as visions of zombies and plagues have been instilled into the minds of many upon hearing the word. Unfortunately, despite tying together "Murder House" and "Coven," "American Horror Story: Apocalypse" felt like a painful crawl to the finish line for most fans. In a discussion of their least favorite season, "AHS" fans on Reddit divulged the reasons why they found "American Horror Story: Apocalypse" underwhelming, many of them echoing similar sentiments on their distaste for the season.
There wasn't much apocalypse in American Horror Story: Apocalypse
One user put it simply when they said that "Apocalypse" "lacks actual apocalypse content." The season incorporated the rise to power of the Antichrist (played by Cody Fern), which, in the biblical text, also includes the arrival of everything from locusts to plagues to the rapture — none of which were present in the ten-episode span. Instead, the season focused on a few remaining survivors and the witches who try to overthrow the son of Satan. Fans were also curious about the world outside of the two outposts, but the only glimpse given of life on the outside was a short scene between radiation-poisoned Brock (Billy Eichner) and a stranger during his search for girlfriend Coco (Leslie Grossman). One fan complained that they would have preferred to see other outposts or the sanctuary that was mentioned a couple of times.
While some fans found the tie-ins to previous "American Horror Story" seasons as one of the few redeeming factors, others considered the connections pure "fan service." One commenter went so far as to call the horror story "a cheesy comedy drama."
Fans were also disappointed with how little some of the new actors were showcased. "AHS" newcomers Billy Porter and BD Wong portrayed warlocks on "Apocalypse," but fans considered their talents underutilized and "distractingly silly." The time-traveling twist of an ending also frustrated fans, who called it "wishy-washy" and "rushed" and wished the apocalypse hadn't been reversed at all.
Perhaps fans' distaste for the futuristic season is what stirred the '80s throwback that is Season 9's "1984" — which also seems to tie into previous seasons.