coven20th Century Fox, out now

When a young girl shows powers she shouldn’t possess, it’s time for her to go to the Robicheaux Academy – but all is not well there. To put it mildly.

There’s a heck of a lot to take in during this third season of American Horror Story, but unlike its predecessors, there’s something of a lighter tone – lighter, as in humorous, that is. The shocks and terror remain at the same intensity, with Kathy Bates in particular delivering a well-deserved award-winning performance as a woman out of time.

As with all incarnations of this show, knowing what’s coming up removes a lot of its power, so this review won’t go into a lot of detail, but suffice it to say that the characters are as twisted and full of surprises as any created in the first two years. There are gang-rapes and revenge, acid attacks, mutilations, resurrections and gruesome deaths, all of which are strung together with a torturous logic (in both senses of the word) as witches battle zombies and serial killers go to Hell!

The 13 episodes on the set are accompanied by some brief extras: a 10 minute look at the Halloween episode; a 16 minute behind-the-scenes look (which barely scratches the surface); and a 12 minute guide to New Orleans.

Verdict: An insanely convoluted but enticingly manic season, undeniably aided in its atmosphere by its location. 8/10

Paul Simpson

 
Click here to order American Horror Story – Coven from Amazon.co.uk

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