Hello, my fellow horror fanatics! “1984” is proving to be completely opposite from what we, as horror fiends, have come to expect from a “camp-based slasher flick”. There always seems to be a formula for this classic setup; usually, when watching, it’s easy to expect what comes next. “1984” completely breaks that mode- there’s no “usual” formula here. As always with AHS, you can expect the unexpected. Geez, can you ever!
In episodes 2, 3, and 4, named “Mr. Jingles”, “Slashdance”, and “True Killers”, respectively, the plot thickens into a murky, twisted mash of chaos and confusion. Just when you think you understand something, wham! Something new happens to completely alter whatever plot-point you think you’ve got figured out. It’s almost as though we are being teased, as absolutely nothing is as it seems, and in true AHS fashion, nobody is as they seem, either. Let’s dive into these episodes and analyze what we know, for now. There’s so much going on…And we’re only four episodes in!
Episode 2 begins with Dr. Hopple from “Red Meadows Asylum” screeching up to Camp Redwood in her car and confronting Margaret Booth. She begs her to stop the camp from the opening: Mr. Jingles is on the loose! Margaret is displeased, to say the least, not impressed at all by this development, and firmly states the camp will be opened, no matter what. Dr. Hopple leaves, defeated and concerned. She hops in her car and starts to drive away. Moments later, her tire blows. Miraculously, a tow truck appears, and Dr. Hopple has no reservations about this (at this point, I’m yelling at the TV, “Don’t fall for it!” This was a rather nostalgic moment for me- how many times have we all yelled at actors for not thinking, for walking right into a trap? Or in this case, driving into one? This was great fun! Dr. Hopple should have realized that a tow truck showing up at the exact moment she needed it- after her tire randomly blew- was entirely too coincidental. Obviously, it was Mr. Jingles!). Alas, Dr. Hopple gets a big surprise when she realizes who her “savior” is, and he ends her life swiftly, apparently with the same sharp-edged object he used to blow her tire. Dr. Hopple realizes who her killer is, looking up at him with pleading eyes, begging for her life. Jingles shows no mercy.
Meanwhile, the counselors are settling in, having some fun and blowing off some steam (carrying on in just the manner that Ms. Booth has warned them away from). The news is playing on the TV in the background, informing the public of Mr. Jingles’ escape and reporting the death of a man at a gas station (Gus!). Brooke seems to be the only one paying attention. She worries, afraid, and tries to get everyone else to pay attention, too. No one is as worried as Brooke. However, Margaret bursts in at this point admonishes the group for breaking her rules, and breaks up the party, much to the counselor’s dismay. It’s time for the boys to go- and Margaret means business. They must shower before bed, to “cleanse themselves for purification before morning prayer”. No exceptions. Everyone wonders, Why is Margaret so uptight? A snarky Montana quips, “She really needs to get laid, or it’s going to be a long summer!”
The men head off to shower, in a remote, very dark part of the camp. They joke and play around, especially likable Trevor (who rocks a healthy pornstache!) and who also has a large ‘package’ that he’s quite proud of. Everything seems fine. Suddenly, the power goes out. (This is Margaret’s doing…but why? Why would you power down camp, the night before the guests arrive? Grr) The boys are annoyed, but continue to start showering. There are no towels, so Xavier heads back to grab one, and while doing so, is attacked, by a big man. It isn’t Mr. Jingles, however.
Finally, a question from episode one is answered: who left Xavier that threatening message on his voicemail? Enter Blake, a bigger man, whom I thought was Mr. Jingles at first. I was wrong! This is the man who left the message: Blake, a pornography director, the one who “found Xavier in a park, needle in his arm, piss in his pants… and saved him, cleaned him up.” Now, he feels owed. Blake has followed Xavier’s forwarding address from the aerobics studio to the camp, and he’s come to claim Xavier, whom he views as ‘his’. Blake is just a creep! Blake made Xavier star in a gay porno, apparently as repayment for ‘saving’ him, and now, he wants him to do more, but Xavier is not okay with this. “I’m not gay!” Xavier pleads, near tears. Blake, who insists on being called “Daddy”, isn’t about to let this hottie get away. “Gay for pay,” Blake retorts. Thinking fast, Xavier says he can find a replacement, “bigger than John Holmes!” to take his place. Trevor on his mind, Xavier directs Blake to the showers, where Blake leans down to peer inside a hole in the wooden fence. He’s beyond impressed by Trevor and his anatomy. It will be his last look at any dong, however, as a spike is driven through his eye while he is spying. Kill count so far this episode: two.
Meanwhile, bonding is happening between Montana and Brooke, whose characters are polar opposites. Montana is bubbly and carefree, very intense, completely Madonna-ed out; Brooke is almost childlike- no wild outfits or crazy makeup for her. She instead seems very innocent and naive, and very timid. I’ve questioned Montana’s motivation for seeking out Brooke’s friendship since the beginning. Something just seems off to me… Why would outgoing Montana seek friendship from mousey Brooke? We’re going to find out!
Now, we get to hear the back story of Brooke, and get to see why she calls herself “the last American virgin.” Almost ashamed, she tells Montana about what she went through the previous year. Flashback to Brooke a year earlier (Billy Idol’s “White Wedding playing in the background), beautiful in her white wedding gown, standing at an altar with her groom, Joseph. He hesitates before saying I do, and a confused Brooke wonders why he’s stalling. As it turns out, his best man, Sam, had gone to comfort a nervous Brooke the night before, and Joseph had seen him go inside, then not leave until morning. Enraged, he doesn’t believe Brooke or Sam when they say it was completely innocent, that she was just nervous about being alone, and Sam came to comfort her because Brooke felt that seeing her groom beforehand was bad luck. Joseph believes none of this. Moments later, he’s pulled out a small gun, shot Sam the Best Man, Brooke’s father, and then shoots himself, covering Brooke’s beautiful white dress with bloody gore. Now we know why Brooke seems so timid and distraught. As she finishes her tale, Montana kisses her. Shocked, Brooke excuses herself to “get some air.”
Brooke heads to the dock to brood, her feet dangling precariously over the edge of the black water. (NEVER!) Suddenly, something bumps into her leg and she looks down to see a body floating there. With a scream, she leaps up, only to whirl around to find herself face-to-face with our infamous Night Stalker. He lunges, swinging his knife, which embeds in the wood of the dock, giving Brooke enough time to grab an oar, whack him, and run away. She bolts into the woods, Ramirez on her tail. Suddenly, the hiker from episode one is there, knocking Ramirez off his feet. Angered that Brooke has gotten away again, the hiker is then murdered, absolutely brutally gutted, by an enraged Ramirez.
“Jump” by the Pointer Sisters starts playing as we switch to Rita at the infirmary, who suddenly hears keys jingling. She turns to face Mr. Jingles stepping in. Her face is a shock of terror. What is she going to do? She bolts.
Brooke, meanwhile, is racing to find the payphone. Montana is suddenly behind her, confused. Brooke hisses that he’s HERE! “Mr. Jingles?” asks Montana. No, Brooke tells her. The Night Stalker has followed her here!
Back to Ramirez in the woods where the hiker is alive again, much to Ramirez’s confusion. He’d just gutted this guy! Not understanding, he wants to know how this is possible. “How are you alive?” he demands, grabbing the necklace the hiker is wearing around his neck. It says, “Counselor, 1970”. Looking back at the man, Ramirez is startled that the hiker has vanished. Just poof, gone. Ramirez is more confused than ever. He decides to pay a visit to one Margaret Booth to demand answers.
In the distance, Ray screams, his shrill cry echoing in the woods. Blake’s body has been discovered. Brooke and Montana join the men at the showers and Xavier also joins them (coming back with his towel) and is horrified to see Blake dead. He claims has no idea who this man is. The girls tell the boys that Ramirez is here, but then they hear keys jingling. It’s Mr. Jingles! They decide it’s time to get the hell out of there and race for Xavier’s van.
Margaret, meanwhile, walks into her cabin to find Ramirez there. Seemingly unafraid, almost pleased to see him, they have a bizarre conversation in which Ramirez opens up and tells her of his horrific past, which he describes as utterly painful. Margaret soothes him, gains his trust. She tells him that everything that has happened to him has made him the man he is today, and led him to her. She enlists him in helping her to open the camp- find Mr. Jingles and end him, she requests. There is a weird chemistry here. Ramirez wants to know about the hiker- he admits he’s killed before, “but I’ve never had to do it twice.” He listens as Margaret tells him that God can give reason to anything- even for the bad things people do. “To have the freedom you want, you only need two things- God and trauma.” Ramirez hangs on her every word, saying that Margaret is the first person to truly see him. He seems enlightened by Margaret’s absurd thoughts on God, as well as her proclaimed need for him to stop Mr. Jingles. He agrees to help her.
As this happens, the counselors and Trevor are racing for Xavier’s van. They are whooping with glee to be leaving, but then a figure jumps into the road and Xavier crashes the van. It’s Rita, with news that Mr. Jingles is there. Since the van is totaled, they decide to split into two groups to go find the keys to alternative vehicles. Everyone is terrified. Xavier, Trevor, and Montana head off to find the keys to Trevor’s motorcycle. Rita, Brooke, Chet and Ray head to find the keys to Rita’s car, which are in the infirmary. Moving fast, they plan to meet after getting the keys.
Cut to Margaret in the woods. She’s confronting the confused hiker, who seems delirious. He recognizes Margaret- a young Margaret, hair in pigtails, obviously from 1970 where apparently they were counselors together. Margaret tells the hiker, “Jonas, I think you’re dead.” Dismayed, confused, he apologizes for leaving Margaret to die back when the 1970 massacre happened. He blames himself. He’d run, then died after being hit by a car. Margaret makes the comment that had the counselors not brought him from where he died, he wouldn’t be here now.
Back at camp, Rita and the counselors find the keys they need. However, while in the infirmary, they hear jingling. They don’t know it, but Ramirez is headed to the infirmary as well. Xavier is blubbering with fear, finally admitting he knew Blake (excellent acting by Cody Fern, who played the vicious antichrist last season). It’s chaos, completely. They lock the doors as Brooke predicts tearily, “We’re all going to die!” Someone starts pounding on the door. It’s Mr. Jingles? Ramirez? Who? Cut to black- and that’s the end of episode two.
Episode 3 “Slashdance” is a great episode that explains many things to us. Already convinced you to know what’s going on? Maybe, maybe not. AHS will never fit in a box- and it’s the unpredictability that keeps me craving more! As we open this episode, the counselors and Rita are stuck in a cabin, surrounded by the sound of jingling and pounding at the door. I’m going to move quickly through this episode, so hang on!
As I previously stated, this episode is full of information. We find out that Rita- isn’t Rita at all! But first, we realize that Xavier, Montana, and Trevor aren’t really in that much trouble; although surrounded by the sound of jingling, a bag gets thrown in through the window, a flaming bag, a flaming bag of shit! Laughing can be heard outside. This isn’t Mr. Jingles; this is a group of young men paying homage to Mr. Jingles, as it’s “Mr. Jingles night”. It’s just a group of silly teens. They laugh uproariously at their victorious scare- until they hear jingling. The legend himself steps up, and as the other boys don’t realize this is really The Man, they are rather disrespectful. So, the real Mr. Jingles kills them, in front of the mortified counselors.
Later, Mr. Jingles runs into another bumbling imposter but allows him to live, I think because he was flattered by the young man’s sincerity. “Please let me be a badass for just one night,” he wheezes to Benjamin, who he can’t tell is the real Mr. Jingles because he’s not wearing his glasses. I immediately liked this kid and was happy he wasn’t killed off. He admitted that he knew his mom had paid to have him come and begged his “friend” to let him stay. That was endearing to me, and it must have been to our Mr. Jingles as well because this doofus was spared. He showed respect and was rewarded with his life.
Back to Rita/Not Rita. Meet Donna Chambers, psychologist and serial killer enthusiast (who claims to have pried two confessions from Ted Bundy, among others) as we flashback to a week ago. Dr. Hopple is talking in her office with who we’ve come to know as Nurse Rita. “Donna Chambers” is her name, and she wants to speak with Benjamin Richter. Although initially denied, she is finally granted access, with the warning that Mr. Jingles hasn’t spoken in years… Indeed, Ms. Chambers does break through to him. Blaming “the increased availability of pornography” and “the echo of the way South East Asia”, Chambers believes there is no such thing as evil, and that good men were turned into these “killers” because of these certain issues. Benjamin Richter sees her, feels her sincerity, and answers, “Corn syrup,” the first words he’s spoken in years. “They started using that in things, too.” Chambers then shuts off the recorder that is monitoring them and asks him if he’d like the honor of being the world’s last serial killer. She lays it out: she wants to study him in his natural habitat. Plan already decided, she explains what she wants him to do. Escape, go to Camp Redwood, do his thing. Donna Chambers has set this all up. She wants to watch, for her research. Benjamin is hooked. He agrees.
This is a very active episode in which both Mr. Jingles and Ramirez are on the loose. The counselors are upset and confused. At the cabin, they end up having to split up. Ray gets stabbed by Ramirez. Chet saves him and they run away. Before getting separated, they’d all agreed on a meeting point. The main goal of everyone at this point is to get to the car and motorcycle. They have just witnessed the Mr. Jingles kill the fake ones, so they want desperately to get out of there. As Rita, Brooke, Chet, and Ray run for the car, the boys fall into a hole that is spiked with heavy wooden sticks. It’s much like the ones built in Vietnam to capture and kill the enemy. A spike goes through Chet’s shoulder. Ray doesn’t know what to do. He gives an ominous confession to Chet, as he thinks he is unconscious, admitting that three years prior he’d killed a pledge at his frat house. Once he realizes that Chet is actually listening, he freaks out and bails. Thankfully, Xavier and Trevor come along later and pull him off the spike and then drag him out of the hole.
Rita and Brooke do make it to the car. Brooke wants to go get help. Rita finally acquiesces and tells her to go; she will wait for everyone. As Brooke is unlocking the car, Rita stabs her with a syringe full of liquid. Rita’s story is thus questionable and that is our segway into finding out who she really is.
The rest of this episode had me biting my nails! Xavier, Trevor, and Montana are almost caught and killed by Mr. Jingles. While hiding, they discover the real Rita tied up under a boat, and she is quickly killed by Mr. Jingles. The others wonder with horror about who is really with Brooke, if Rita isn’t who she says she is. Tension is rippling.
Jingling sounds pierce the night. Everyone takes off, leaving Montana with Ray, who jumps on Trevor’s motorcycle and takes off. We see his head get hit like a professional baseball player hitting a home run; his head goes flying, and that’s the end of Ray.
Alone, Montana turns to face Ramirez. He runs his sharp, shiny blade down her cheek. Eyeing him, suddenly Montana pushes, then grabs him and pulls him close to kiss her passionately. She pushes him again, this time asking, “Why the hell haven’t you killed her yet?” Cut to black- this is the end of episode three.
At last! Episode four! “True Killers” is the name of this episode, and for good reason. So many things happen in this episode, I’m still processing! Of course, this is AHS. I should have expected all this- but I didn’t! Not to this extent! This one hit me. Hard. I’m also wondering, where do they go from here?
We open at a fast-paced aerobics class, Montana leading. She’s glowing in a unitard and shiny eyeshadow. A man walks in. It’s Richard Ramirez. He’s drawn by the Billy Idol song playing in the background. Montana eyes him, then storms over to inform him that her class is not for posers, and also telling him that he needs something more than a blade in his holster. You can tell there is immediate chemistry here; Montana biting her lip, Richard smiling widely her. The song throbs. A man, Rob, from the class whines about the music; Montana basically tells him to stick it, and he leaves class angrily, threatening to tell on her. Ramirez watches with interest.
Later, Montana walks into the locker room to find that Richard has left her a present. A bloody, flayed Rob is ornamentally hanging from the ceiling. Montana is overcome; this seals their passion for one another. She asks if he would kill her. He says no. She asked if he would kill for her, and he replies with a chuckle, he already has. Montana has someone special in mind. A girl named Brooke. A girl named Brooke who’d gotten her brother Sam killed. (I knew! I knew there was something to that! I just didn’t know what!)
Back to the present. At Camp Redwood, Montana tells Richard that Mr. Jingles is there.
On the other side of camp, Chet is transported to the infirmary by Trevor and Xavier. They plan to go get Margaret and Bertie (the cook- I love the devotion of these characters- leave no one behind!). Trevor heads out for Margaret, while Xavier heads for Bertie. Their plan is to circle back around to get Chet, then head to Blake’s Cadillac, which they plan on using to escape.
Xavier finds Bertie in the cafeteria, only to have Mr. Jingles show up. Xavier, he’s beneath a table hiding. Bertie, bless her heart, does her best to seem welcoming and happy to see Benjamin. She makes him a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. It may have worked out had Xavier not made a noise, and set him off. Mr. Jingles proceeds to slash up Bertie, then puts Xavier in an oven and sets it to broil, sticking a ladle through the handles to ensure he can’t get out. Bertie, almost lifeless, saves him by pulling out the ladle but makes Xavier put out of her misery, much to his heartbreak. I cried.
Trevor finds Margaret in front of the bodies of the imposter Jingles. She declines help, saying she has a gun. She’s not afraid, and NOTHING is going to stop her from opening the camp!
Margaret has had a flashback of her days in 1970 when she was a counselor there, bullied and made fun of. Richter was in the flashback, too, promising to always protect her. The other counselors make fun of them, infuriating the pigtailed Margaret by suggesting that she had found the perfect match. A glimpse into Margaret’s psyche.
Ramirez has made a makeshift pentagram in the woods to use for prayer and strength. Montana questions this, but he clearly has his reasons. She leaves him to it.
Meanwhile, Brooke finally gets out of the cabin Rita put her in, but immediately is caught in a net that entraps her. Montana finds her, but doesn’t help and goes away. Rita watches from the woods. “It’s all in the name of science,” she explains, as Brooke spins helplessly in the net, begging Rita/Donna for answers. Ramirez and Jingles now both approach from opposite sides, after Montana told Richard where to find Brooke. Bantering, a confident Ramirez isn’t worried. They fight, but Mr. Jingles overpowers and kills Ramirez gruesomely. It’s an awesome scene. Only watching it will do it justice!
Flash to the present. Margaret is praying on her knees in her cabin. Suddenly the door opens behind her and Benjamin Richter is there. Smiling, she welcomes him, and thanks him for always protecting her. She proceeds to tell him he is innocent. Says she created the story that convicted him. Gathered the ears, put them in his box. She calls him Benji, with affection. She tells him it was all her, and in classic flashback, all is revealed. It was her. She even sliced off her own ear! It was her all along! Benjamin was committed, mostly thanks to ears that had been found in his storage locker (which had been set up by Margaret!) Benjamin is confused; the shock treatments and suffering he’d endured over the years made him believe he had actually done those things. He “became the monster she made him,” he tells Margaret, but Margaret only laughs, and then she shoots him. “Once more I get to lay my sins at your feet,” she taunts his unmoving body. Everyone else hears the shots. Trevor runs to Margaret’s cabin, where he sees the dead Mr. Jingles. “You did it! You killed him!” he exclaims.
“Yeah,” Margaret replies, “Right after he killed you…” And she proceeds to shoot Trevor. She cuts off his ear, then looks back, only to see that Mr. Jingles is gone…
Next. Xavier is standing on a small bridge, burned badly. His skin is boiled, blistered, flaying off of him in shreds. Jingles walks up. “It was never me…” He says. Brooke runs up, having escaped the net. But it is Xavier only, Mr. Jingles is gone; Xavier is adamant that Jingles was there. The sky lights up, somehow the Caddy, their only hope for escape, it’s on fire. Margaret appears, saying she’s been attacked, that Trevor was so brave, faking the victim perfectly.
Rita’s still in the woods. Fascinated, frozen in place, she is watching Ramirez’s body be lifted up while the word “Satan” is chanted over and over. He’s floating, levitating in the air, lifeless, until his eyes open, showing all black. He’s been resurrected. He turns to look at Rita/Donna. He laughs.
See you next week!
While loving this cast, I can’t help but wonder why so many of the original and expected actors aren’t touching this season. Do they not like it? Any thoughts?
Written by Mandie Stevens
