American Horror Story: Asylum - Episode 2.13 - "Madness Ends"

     On its own, "Madness Ends" is a great episode of television, but as a conclusion to American Horror Story's second volume, I'm not sure it really gives a proper ending to anyone, aside from Lana.  The series' anthological structure allows it to kill off most of its primary characters 2 or 3 episodes before the season finale, which is exactly what both Murder House and Asylum have done.  Unfortunately, it is that very structure that seems to inhibit Ryan Murphy and company from creating full arcs for characters like Sister Mary Eunice, Dr. Arden, or Monsignor Howard.  The former two were killed off in episode 10 for unknown reasons other than to shock the audience, considering much of the conflict of the season had depended on them.  However, by (quite unfairly) cutting their stories short, it would ostensibly allow for a tighter focus on characters like Lana, Kit and Jude, each of whom had been put on the backburner.  This tighter focus is exactly what they did, but there were also characters such as the aforementioned Monsignor, Oliver Threadson, Alma, Grace, and Pepper to deal with.  For the most part, each of these characters was interesting, yet it seems like the writers didn't think so.  Over the last few episodes, Lana shoots Threadson rather unceremoniously, Pepper dies offscreen, Grace gets axed in the back by Alma, who quickly dies at Briarcliff, and Monsignor Howard commits suicide in a bathtub, despite the writers giving no indication that he would ever do such a thing. He was nailed to a cross for Christ's sake! (pun intended) These things feel significant on the page but the way each of these scenes is directed makes them feel so inconsequential that it becomes difficult to feel anything when they die.

American Horror Story: Asylum - Episode 2.12 - "Continuum"

Umm...

???

American Horror Story: Asylum - Episode 2.11 - "Spilt Milk"

     At this point in the second season of American Horror Story, half of the principal cast is dead, people we thought were dead are coming back to life, everyone has seen their life threatened on many occasions, there are babies being born left and right, and that's not even scratching the surface: aliens preying on women, the Devil inhabiting an innocent nun for seven straight episodes, numerous lobotomies, an evil Nazi scientist, "Bloody Face", a completely out-of-the-blue song and dance number, and a legless Chloe Sevigny scarring school children for life.  And just when I thought they couldn't throw in any more horror, the episode began with Dylan McDermott sucking the milk out of a hooker's breast.  Yeah.

     Lana remains the show's heroine as her quest to leave Briarcliff and expose its horrendously wicked corruption comes to fruition in the form of a merciful nun who wishes to see the institution shut down.  The nun discreetly coordinates an escape route for Lana and away she goes, but not before giving Oliver Threadson the finger and showing him his confession reel that she intends to use as evidence to lock him away.  It's a great moment, one of many for Lana in this episode, and Sarah Paulson completely owns it, as she has all season.  The scene with Lana in Oliver's house, which cuts back and forth with Dylan McDermott's excursion with the hooker is interestingly composed, with shots fading into each other elegantly.  And just like that, Oliver is dead, shot by the woman he raped.  It's a gratifying moment, one that only could have come from Lana shooting him.  Her final scene where she breastfeeds her newborn baby while looking up at the cross on the wall through tears is a truly powerful end to the episode, and very well-directed.