While American Horror Story is a fun and scary anthology series, there’s only one truly incredible season. Season 1 of the FX series premiered in 2011 and is one of Ryan Murphy’s most beloved shows. He has a lot on his calendar these days, with the adaptation of the comic book series The Beauty premiering in January 2026 and Monster Season 4: The Lizzie Borden Story on the way. Horror fans shouldn’t worry, though. American Horror Story Season 13 is in the works, and Ariana Grande will appear in the new season.
The beauty (no pun intended) of Murphy’s TV anthology is its exploration of tropes, and various seasons dive into the supernatural, share the tragedies and traumas of life at a circus, and depict a haunted mansion with more than its fair share of secrets. As several actors come back for more than one season, it’s cool to see who they’re playing this time around and how different their characters are from one another. Since every horror fan has their own favorite subgenre, not everyone’s going to agree on the best American Horror Story season. However, there’s one that stands out above the rest.
‘American Horror Story: 1984’ Is a Fun Take on Slasher Movies
American Horror Story: 1984, which is Season 9, premiered on FX on September 18th, 2019, and tells the tale of Brooke Thompson (Emma Roberts), who gets a summer job at Camp Redwood. From the beginning, the season is set up as a slasher story. There’s the quintessential horror movie setting of a summer camp, a serial killer (The Night Stalker, played by Zach Villa), and a few final girls. Besides Brooke, who escapes a run-in with the killer, there’s Margaret Booth (Leslie Grossman), the camp’s owner, who is the only one left after a brutal string of murders there in 1970. After watching seasons focused on witches, cults, a strange hotel, and a circus, there’s no doubt that many viewers were waiting for Ryan Murphy to take on a slasher.
Rounding out the cast are other Camp Redwood counselors Ray Powell (DeRon Horton), Xavier Plympton (Cody Fern), Montana Duke (Billie Lourd), and Chet Clancy (Gus Kenworthy). There’s another villain, the eerily named Mr. Jingles (John Carroll Lynch), too. Each of Season 9’s nine episodes blends the past and present, sharing the creepy current state of Camp Redwood and more about what happened there several years ago.
No horror movie is worth talking about unless it has a good plot twist, and thankfully, 1984 has a few solid ones. While it’s great to pick out the Easter Eggs in each season of AHS, it’s also hard not to hope for a few good reveals.
Why ‘American Horror Story’ Season 9 Is the Best One
We’re several years past debates on elevated horror, but whether that seems like a great term or it should be forgotten forever, there’s no denying that many slasher films are about important themes. Each movie in the Scream franchise, for example, has jokes and meta moments, but they’re also a depiction of grief. However, there are also a lot of slashers that are just plain fun, and that’s where American Horror Story Season 9 soars high above the other seasons of the Ryan Murphy anthology series.
Yes, it’s possible to read something deeper into each episode and storyline. Brooke is terrified of the Night Stalker, and she doesn’t feel safe at home. His attack is the inciting incident that draws her to Camp Redwood. Through her character arc, one could say the show is making a statement about safety, danger, and living in a big city. The Night Stalker/Richard Ramirez is based on the real serial killer of the same name.
At the same time, though, American Horror Story: 1984 is an entertaining ride about the thrills of summer camp and heavily leans into the cheesy nature of its 1980s setting. Season 9, Episode 1, “Camp Redwood,” features a vibrant scene of Xavier Plympton (Cody Fern) teaching aerobics, a fun reminder of the fitness trend from that decade popularized by Jane Fonda. There are also plenty of ghosts in these nine episodes, and who doesn’t love seeing some spirits hanging around? Since viewers get enough answers throughout, you’ll feel satisfied rather than frustrated and will be able to focus on the story.
There’s no getting around the fact that AHS: 1984 draws some inspiration from Friday the 13th, the iconic slasher about hockey mask-wearing killer Jason Voorhees. There’s the obvious summer camp location, but there’s also the camaraderie of the counselors who are running from a killer and helping each other out.
Other seasons have some weak elements. While every American Horror Story season has terrifying scenes, the scary pregnancy storyline at the heart of Season 12, or Delicate, didn’t feel fresh enough. Most weren’t a big fan of the choice to split Season 6, or Roanoke, into two halves focused on the filming of a documentary and found footage. 1984 may not be the first season that fans celebrate regularly, as Coven is often considered one of the most popular seasons. Still, there’s something undeniably enjoyable and engaging about it, and it deserves more love from fans.
- Release Date
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October 5, 2011
- Network
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FX
- Directors
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Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, Jennifer Lynch, Michael Uppendahl, Loni Peristere, Gwyneth Horder-Payton, Ryan Murphy, David Semel, Howard Deutch, Michael Lehmann, Angela Bassett, Jeremy Podeswa, Max Winkler, Michael Rymer, Paris Barclay, Axelle Carolyn, Anthony Hemingway, Craig Zisk, Elodie Keene, Jennifer Arnold, Jessica Yu, John Scott, Laura Belsey, Liz Friedlander, Maggie Kiley
- Writers
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Halley Feiffer, Ned Martel, Crystal Liu, Charlie Carver, Kristen Reidel, Adam Penn, Douglas Petrie, Todd Kubrak, Reilly Smith, Jay Beattie, Dan Dworkin, Joshua A. Green, Akela Cooper, Asha Michelle Wilson
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