So those first three episodes of American Horror Story season 13…how about that? Yes, I’m sure that if you’re here, you are probably just as confused as we were when we watched the newly-released episodes, but thankfully we have an guide that will (hopefully) help.
According to the official American Horror Story Instagram page, there are 13 previous episodes in the series (one two-parter) that fans should watch before checking out the new season. These include:
Episode Name | Season # | Episode # |
|---|---|---|
"Pilot" | 1 | 1 |
"Spooky Little Girl" | 1 | 9 |
"Afterbirth" | 1 | 12 |
"Bitchcraft" | 3 | 1 |
"Go To Hell" | 3 | 12 |
"The Seven Wonders" | 3 | 13 |
"Edward Mordrake: Part 1" | 4 | 3 |
"Edward Mordrake: Part 2" | 4 | 4 |
"Devil's Night" | 5 | 4 |
"Charles (Manson) In Charge" | 7 | 10 |
"The End" | 8 | 1 |
"Return The Murder House" | 8 | 6 |
"Fire and Reign" | 8 | 9 |
"Apocalypse Then" | 8 | 10 |
How season 13 connects to past seasons
We don't really know what this means for the rest of the series, but there are already connections between these episodes and the first three episodes of season 13. For example, watching the premiere episode will obviously connect fans back to Murder House in general, which many argue is one of the better seasons, though not the best.
We’ve already met a few established characters returning this season, including Constance (Jessica Lange), Tate (Evan Peters), and Adelaide (Jamie Brewer). We’ve also met the Black Dahlia again, Elizabeth Short (Mena Suvari), who appeared in “Spooky Little Girl” in the first season and is also in one of the episodes to watch.
Another episode that we’ve seen a connection to (at least for three minutes) is “Bitchcraft,” as we see the girls of the Coven House in New Orleans shortly season 13: Madison (Emma Roberts) and Cordelia (Sarah Paulson). But it feels like… we don’t see them nearly enough, as they were marketed.
If we’re being honest, a lot of season 13 looked like it was going to be kind of close to a Coven part 3 (since Apocalypse, another great AHS season, was sort of the second part of that story). However, three episodes in, we haven’t seen these characters much. I thought they'd tie in a lot more at first.
But there are also several other characters we haven’t seen yet who line up with other episodes on the list. For example, we have not seen anyone from season 4, otherwise known as Freak Show, or anyone from season 5, Hotel. We did see someone who looked to be Wilhemina Venable at the very end of the third episode (also played by Sarah Paulson), so that could be a connection to Apocalypse.
So far, though, there really hasn’t been a fully connected story. And many fans are wondering what the heck is going on.
What season 13 has been about so far
If you’re curious about what has been happening in American Horror Story season 13, you can read our full recap of the first three episodes. However, if you want a speed-run, here it is.
So far, we have mainly focused on Ben (Joey Pollari), a hospice care worker who lost his girlfriend and several of her friends in a plane crash. He has a debilitating fear of the number 13 and starts seeing signs of this number over and over again in an apartment where he is residing to take care of an elderly man named Mr. Nas.
The daytime caretaker is Constance, who has a very peculiar way of taking care of the man and always seems to have some excuse to Ben about what’s going on in the house, even though he’s been seeing strange instances and having weird dreams — one of is was a premonition of sorts with Twisty the Clown, who kills 13 clown school students.
This builds over three episodes until we see Constance hold a twisted holiday celebration where she somehow invites Tate and Adelaide, along with several other characters, including Kai (Peters) from Cult, his sister Winter (Billie Lourd), and Elizabeth Short. Ben sees Constance throwing a party with them, but she sedates him before he can ask questions.
Constance sends her guests down to a nightclub called Club Hell in the basement of the apartment building. But when they get there, Veneble greets them and says it’s a portal to hell.
And yeah, that’s where we are. Who knows what’s next?
Watching these 13 previous episodes will at least help people better understand the characters before we really dig into the season. As for understanding where this season is going… we might need to wait a few weeks to get a better grasp.
New episodes of American Horror Story season 13 premiere on Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on FX and Hulu.
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