Alice Rush reviews the season finale of American Horror Story: Coven…
It’s that time again where we must say goodbye to the latest series of American Horror Story. It’s fair to say that ‘Coven’ has been a bit of a mix up from the previous two seasons, prising relationships and the theme of female power over the pure terror and gore that characterised the previous seasons. But as the season comes to a close with ‘The Seven Wonders’ it ends unlike any other season has: on a note of positivity.
The build up to the reveal of the next Supreme has been hanging over the entire season though it has mainly been in the last few episodes that the importance of this has been emphasised. Well, we finally find out who it is in this episode as Cordelia was finally crowned the and she ascended to her title elegantly and beautifully, but not before we were put through our paces with the Seven Wonders.
Opening up with a sequence of a singing Stevie Nicks wishing the witches luck, ‘The Seven Wonders’ set about resolving all of the left over story points. The episode was extremely fast paced and choppy, unlike most of the season, and left almost no stone unturned with its ruthless finality. We were warned the Seven Wonders could be fatal to whoever performs it so naturally a few possible Supremes dropped off. First we had Misty, who failed at escaping her own private Hell where she constantly had to kill a live frog in a school setting. It was quite shocking to see such a popular character be killed off in this way, but as I said, the episode’s swiftness left no time for grief. On then to transmutation, which the remaining three girls performed well until Zoe got a bit carried away and impaled herself on a spike. With Queenie unable to bring her back and Madison refusing to it looked like all was lost for the Coven, but then stepped in Cordelia, who with a few words of encouragement from Myrtle ascended to her rightful place as Supreme. For all of her frailty that we had seen in previous episodes she actually makes a convincing and beautiful Supreme, especially when her eyes were healed after she brought Zoe back to life.
Her first act as Supreme was a rather surprising one as she opened up the doors of the Academy to all possible witches and even news reporters, giving an interview about the Coven and expressing her desire to give all witches a home. It was refreshing to see the end of a storyline that wasn’t negative and depressing, but instead positive about the future. With the “evil” characters punished (including Madison who was strangled by an angry Kyle and taken by the ever creepy Spaulding) and the “good” characters reigning supreme (sorry, couldn’t help myself) it seemed that Coven had a happy ending after all. Nearly.
Ever the thorn in Delia’s backside, Fiona made one last appearance, not dead after all but merely waiting for the reveal of the next Supreme after implanting a fake memory of her demise in the Axe Man’s head. The scene between the two was extremely touching, if not a little tense as I nearly expected the withered Fiona to suddenly regain her powers and strike Delia down. This was not the case however, as the glowing and powerful Delia held her former Supreme mother in her arms as she passed on to the next world, arguably the most touching moment they’ve had throughout the season. Seeing Fiona awake in her own Hell (or could it be Heaven?) with the Axe Man in the cabin she promised to go to was a nice touch, as was one last glimpse of a taunting Papa Legba. Finally all of the strands are being solved.
‘Coven’ has not been a perfect season. It has had its faults, namely it’s slow pace, emphasis on unnecessarily convoluted narratives and its tendency to circle around the resolution for a little too long, but I felt that this episode was a fitting finale. This season was never going to be like the previous two, so it had to find its own way and its own conclusion. There were some ridiculous moments, (Myrtle being burned at the stake again?? Kyle just getting away with killing Madison??) but I did actually felt a sense of sadness as the doors to the Academy closed. The performances from the actresses this series were entertaining and brilliant each week, even if the script was a little questionable, and the art direction/cinematography was always superb. It seems as if most of the cast will be back for season four, so I guess until then the speculation as to what lies in wait begins!
Alice Rush
Originally published January 30, 2014. Updated April 11, 2018.
