As all “American Horror Story” fans know, Ryan Murphy recently released the names of the two new season titles, causing a lot of excitement and anticipation. As an avid follower of the franchise myself, I found this to be the perfect opportunity to look back on the past seasons and rank them from worst to best. It may be tricky, since every season comes with it’s unique twists and turns, but at the end of the day there are clear winners and losers. In my personal opinion, here are the past seasons in order of least to most intriguing.
- Roanoke
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Though I may be biased because I did not actually watch the entirety of this season, this one did not quite do it for me. It lost my interest so early on. After multiple failed attempts to catch my interest, I had to cut ties. It is a season that is widely debated with the fans of the show if it was a stroke of genius or a bust and I would have to agree with the latter.
- Hotel
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Going into this season as a die hard Gaga fan, I placed a lot of expectations on Ryan Murphy’s shoulders. Unfortunately, he let me down. Despite the fact that it was well made and the cast was fantastic, it did not quite meet the standards of the other seasons. There was too much going on for me to keep track of and I felt like the plot lines of the seasons surrounding it grabbed my attention more than “Hotel.”
- Murder House
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I know this is a very unpopular opinion, but “Murder House” ranks fairely low on my list. Even though it is the first season of the show and they were still getting their footing, the following seasons tremendously outdid them, pulling rank to the original. Even so, I cannot say I didn’t love Evan Peters’ starring role as well as Jessica Lange’s debut on the show.
- Cult
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This recent season sits right in the middle of my rankings. Although it was an odd theme, it did not disappoint. I don’t find myself a very politically charged person, so the subject matter surrounding the 2016 election did throw me off a bit. Nonetheless, the alternate storyline about past cult leaders and the twists and turns throughout the episodes was really interesting to watch.
- Coven
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I absolutely loved this season. I know it usually is placed very centrally by others. I love witches and voodoo so I personally thought it should be in the top five, especially because of the amazing cameo from Stevie Nicks. Despite it’s interesting subject matter, some aspects of the plot are a little slow and not as thrilling as some of the others. All in all, this season will never leave me bored.
- Freakshow
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I can’t deny how good this season is. I do have an irrational fear of clowns, which is why it’s placed outside the top three. Out of the gate, the cast was fantastic. The ties between the other seasons made it even more interesting to watch. If it were not for Twisty giving me recurring nightmares, this season would be in my top three.
- 1984
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The most recent season of AHS is, in my opinion, one of the best. It may be a biased opinion because of my love for the 80s and everything about that lifestyle, but I think Ryan Murphy did a great job with this season. The alternating storylines paired with the murder house-like plot twists. This season really kept me on the edge of my seat.
- Asylum
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By far Asylum is one of the best seasons to come out of AHS. Following up from “Murder House,” it was a 360 turn around. This was the season that made me such an avid fan of the series. Besides the weird alien side plot, the episodes of this season were so incredibly intricate that I wanted it to last forever. I could watch Jessica Lange sing the name game for eternity.
- Apocolypse
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This was the season crossover my middle school self had been waiting for. This season’s theme was pulled off flawlessly, though I do think they should have waited to make it the final season. It gave me the satisfaction of getting flashbacks of my favorite seasons and allowed the fans to see Evan Peters as Tate for one last time.
Let’s see where the upcoming American Horror Story season will be placed on this list! Happy watching, collegiettes.