American Horror Story: Double Feature Review: Winter Kills (Season 10 Episode 6)

Ursula and Alma enact their final plan on American Horror Story: Double Feature Season 10 Episode 6, “Winter Kills.”

American Horror Story: Double Feature delivers an anticlimactic season finale for Red Tide, leaving more questions and plot holes than conclusions. 

“Winter Kills” has exciting moments, such as having the flesh phantoms help attack Belle and Austin. But, other than that, there isn’t enough substance to make it feel like an ending that isn’t forced.

Why is the season finale to Red Tide one of the shortest episodes in series history after just receiving an hour-long penultimate episode? Make it make sense! 

“Gaslight” would be a better fit for the finale because all it’s missing is Austin and Belle’s confrontation.   

The chief’s missing body is dealt with head-on but is immediately thrown to the side the second it begins to be investigated, never being touched upon again. What is the point in acknowledging a plot hole, only to form another? 

There’s a three-month time jump to showcase how Ursula, Alma, and The Chemist are racking up in Los Angeles, but there’s no indication as to how they got away from Provincetown unscathed. 

Does the Massachusetts State Police pin the murders of Belle, Austin, and the flesh phantoms all on Harry? If so, how does Ursula spin him as the killer when he also has his throat ripped out? There needs to be more consistency and showing rather than telling.

Showing Ursula, Alma, and The Chemist living it up in Hollywood is unnecessary and could be removed entirely because it adds no real depth to the story. Red Tide should end at Harry’s death and Alma surpassing him in power. The fight between Belle and Austin vs Harry and Alma is the main point of conflict that everything has been leading up to, so it makes no sense that it’s over in a matter of 5 minutes. 

With the announcement of only six episodes for Red Tide, it’s known then that consistency could be an issue. Having a limited number of episodes to tell a story is detrimental to the storyline progression and makes it feel unnatural, and ultimately that’s what happens here. 

If Red Tide is any indication, Death Valley will more than likely be full of plot holes as well, leaving viewers unsatisfied. Unless the two parts are linked together, and Death Valley can reveal ties to Red Tide, possibly touching on its inconsistencies. 

The town’s grisly truth of putting up with the writers and flesh phantoms is a detail that should be revealed earlier in the season, not the finale. 

The town dynamic should have been interwoven throughout the story and played a more significant part. Red Tide would have a more sinister feel if the town’s occupants were in the spotlight because their involvement in running the city is a central part. 

The townspeople’s ulterior motive to keep the murders hidden is sadistic and would fit better in the storyline if it had been revealed early on. 

The theme around Red Tide has been horror, suspense, and mystery, and using the townspeople as plot devices would not have taken away from that. It could have added an extra layer to the horror aspect, but instead is only revealed to be revealed. There’s no actual reasoning behind it. If there were, the reveal would provide more answers than questions. 

Ursula getting what she wants is a change to what was initially predicted, purely based on The Chemist’s off-putting behavior. The Chemist helping Ursula kill Belle, Austin, and Harry doesn’t seem like a plausible occurrence, but money has a way of changing people’s minds. 

Alma outliving the rest of her family isn’t a shocking detail. Since the first episode, there’s a presence surrounding her that almost guarantee’s she’ll make it to the end. There’s Eli, but in reality, he probably won’t make it to adulthood if Alma has anything to do with it. 

Ursula and Alma are the perfect fit for one another; they’ll do whatever it takes to avoid mediocrity. However, neither of them has a conscience telling them to watch their actions, which eventually will lead to their downfall. 

Red Tide‘s potential was sky-high but fell short and ultimately does not deliver what it’s supposed to. 

Other thoughts:

• There is never any explanation for the meaning behind the red porch lights, we never get to see Karen’s painting, and there’s never a reason given for why Lyme disease is mentioned so much. We also never get to see Doris again and that’s unfortunate. Doris should have been allowed to get some revenge on her “family.” 
• Billie Lourd only being in one episode should be a crime. Her character is one of the more intriguing ones of the season, yet she’s given no natural substance or storyline. 
• Why does The Chemist run off with Eli, leaving Ursula and Alma in Hollywood? We never get to see a real backstory on The Chemist, all we know is that she was paid by the military to create the pills and that’s why she moved to Provincetown. But what is her ulterior motive? 
• The best things about Red Tide are Sarah Paulson and Frances Conroy, hands down. 
• Harry thinking that he could get Alma off the pills and back to being her version of an average child is downright laughable. 

Favorite Quotes:

• “Do you mind? I don’t like people watching me while I eat.” – Alma
• “Chicken-shit little bitch.” – Alma
• “You know, I stopped Burger King from opening in this town. I can stop you too.” – Holden
• “The gays might stop coming.” – Martha 

 

What did you think of this episode of American Horror Story: Double Feature? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Critic Rating:

User Rating:

 

American Horror Story: Double Feature airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on FX.

 Follow us on Twitter and on Instagram!

Want more from Tell-Tale TV? Subscribe to our newsletter here!

15 of TV’s Most Memorable First Kisses