AHS: Roanoke, Chapter 1 discussion

[bionic 50,107]

1 minute ago, Azor Ahai said:

This was like the basic 90 minutes horror movie recipe.

Something happens to couple. They decide to move ina new house. Husband is off to work. Wife all alone. Weird stuff happens.  "I swear it my husband its true! . "Maybe youre just seeing things  " . "Oh no its actually really happening!!!". 

But this was done in 40 minutes and doesnt feel right.

I got the impression that it was continuing next week so maybe things will be changed up then

 

The craziest moment was when Sarah Poulson decided to go for an outside hot tub after all the things that had happened to her

[swakby 4,100]

I really liked the episode. However, it reminds me a lil too much of The Blair Witch project. 

[Jay.P 2,336]

I like this idea.

[Harry 26,836]

I honestly loved it! Far better than Hotel's opening imo. Ep 1 of Hotel feels kind of iconic to me because of Gaga's very memorable Tear You Apart entrance scene. But I do feel that the whole thing was completely style over substance and the story wasn't so clear.

This, however, has laid a very good foundation for the story. I can't wait to see where they take this now. I thought it had a clearly defined tone and I also found it far scarier than probably any other AHS episode just because of those big jumps. I was legitimately scared!

I'm still kinda on the fence with the whole documentary thing. I think it's a cool and fresh device to use and the show should be given credit for changing their format in that way. If it remains as them just telling the story the whole way throughout the series, it might get kinda stale. But they could use it creatively. It makes me think of The Office US (very different show I know) where the fact that it is a documentary becomes part of the story towards the end... I think they might do something like that.

Overall I'm very happy!

[Miker 5,683]

I've only watched the second last season and part of last season of AHS. I lost interest in last season and it didn't matter to me if Gaga was there or not. It didn't capture my attention or interest.

This first episode was good and if it's like this going forward , I'm interested. I like Cuba Gooding, Jr. as an actor and I hope he is a mainstay throughout the series. The piggy man I understand was in Murder House, the initial series. There is rumors circulating that this will bring bring AHS full circle. Now I have to watch the first series..... 

[DXPE 924]

I still don't know how I feel about it

PROS 

-The set is beautiful. Possibly my favorite AHS location ever. It's kind of spooky and just so fun to look at.

-The direction/camera work is absolutely amazing. There were a couple shots on there that looked so pretty. 

-Sarah Paulson. She is great in it. Her character is like able and pretty realistic.

-The story is good. I think they are on to something with it. It's not over the top clever but there's something interesting.

CONS

- No title credits? It seemed so odd how they completely ditched them this season. they were perhaps one of the most iconic parts of this show. 

-No subtitle? I'm sorry but it felt so weird. now when the seasons are looked as a collection it will look out of place when it doesn't have a subtitle (and if it's Roanoke, I'm not thrilled about it either. Colony would've been ideal)

-The documentary style is a total miss in my opinion. There will be no suspense in whether the characters live at the end of the season or anything. It would've been better if they just told it in the regular way they used to.

-All the actors who narrate it. I love Lily Rabe but I found her performance to totally be lacking. Also the woman who played the "real life" version of Lee wasn't doing anything for me either.

 

Overall, I'll give it a 6/10. I need to watch more to see if it gets better.

[Jenniferella 2,774]

I loved it ! It took me a few minutes to get into the format but once I did I was perched. It's true that many elements feel common to horror movies in general but you know there will be something more behind it. It felt very Murder House (the lost baby,the couple buying a house etc) with something fresh that I can't put my finger on. 

I like it more than Hotel's first episode, as someone else said it was too focused on visuals and shock value, this one feels more humble and raw. Finally, I love the fact that we only get to know 3 characters for now. AHS had become a full packed show with too many characters to digest at once.

can't wait !!

[Bebe 17,094]

Great episode, I was ready to give up on AHS but now I have high hopes for this season.

The style is interesting, at the start I realised what was happening and thought "Umm, okay, but that kinda spoils that these characters live" but I'm digging it. It gives it a sort of authenticity, and it really becomes more about what they have endured. It doesn't really matter that we know they won't die, I want to know how they escape. I want to know how they survive this situation.

I hope the cast remains quite small, this was the perfect formula. 2-3 people isolated from the world being haunted and attacked and having to fend for themselves. The audience should be invested in these 3 characters and their experience. The last thing we need is a branching, complicated story with multiple 'main characters'. They just need to keep it simple. Spend time making us invest in the story of these three people, not in the story of 10 characters who all have different and complicated motives, which often clash.

[mister max 18,480]

holy shit that car scene  didnt see that coming and screamed  

[Noir 17,388]

i loved it, about time the format changed slightly - the tone was becoming stale.

[freebit 6,240]

On 9/15/2016 at 10:10 AM, Azor Ahai said:

This was like the basic 90 minutes horror movie recipe.

Something happens to couple. They decide to move ina new house. Husband is off to work. Wife all alone. Weird stuff happens.  "I swear it my husband its true! . "Maybe youre just seeing things  " . "Oh no its actually really happening!!!". 

But this was done in 40 minutes and doesnt feel right.

This was my main problem with it. Everything about this episode was SO incredibly predictable. I was like just move out of the damn house already , go rent a hotel room, live with relatives, whatever...

People may complain about the crazyness of Coven, Freakshow or Hotel, but at least those threw their audiences for a loop in their insanity. Maybe I've seen too many horror movies and am too jaded at this point, but I really would just like to see something new and/or interesting as a horror fan. 

[PaperIz 7,346]

I thibk they'll do something really meta with the documentary within the show. Like maybe they're unreliable narrators (like with the Shinning. Plus those 2 women walking the house was VERY the shinning so it could be some foreshadowing) or even maybe thr "real" versions are possessed 

[PaperIz 7,346]

Also the show within a show aspect is just too distracting imo. I can't get into it or even scared with knowing it's a fake reality show 

[juju 18,907]

OK, I can say this was actually pretty creepy. Nothing about Hotel screamed true "horror" for me, and as much as I adore Freakshow's aesthetic (It remains to be my favorite season too), I feel like AHS is returning to the types of horrors that made the first three seasons spectacular. It's a little too early to tell, but hopefully we will see different styles of storytelling in episodes to come. The Investigation Discovery-vibe felt really fresh and fun, tbh it was a nice change stylistically for the show!

[PabloPablo 6]

I thought it was brilliant. Im so excited about the new season.