American Horror Story: 1984 - Slashdance

Welcome to Camp Crystal Lake Redwood. This season of American Horror Story takes a page from classic 80's slasher films and goes to summer camp.

Here is your official spoiler warning before we dive into the events of episode three - Slashdance.

We start this week's episode pretty much where we left off. We learn that Richard is in fact the one pounding on the door to the nurse's cabin (which is where Brooke, Chet, Ray, and Rita are). He's demanding to be let in. He eventually gives up on the door and just smashes a window. They attempt to block him from coming in by putting a shelf in front of the window. Rita takes a moment to be very confused and demands to know who this guy is because it's not Mr Jingles. Brooke's reply is to protest that she's been trying to tell everyone that some guy is trying to kill her. They keep searching for the keys and Rita finally finds them. They debate the best way of getting out. Brooke wants to uses strength in numbers. There are four of them and they can help protect each other. Ray, however, has other plans. He figures that there are four of them so he just has to be faster than the others. Survival of the fittest. He figures he can run faster than at least two of them and takes off saying that the lucky three to make it should meet in the parking lot. He immediately runs into Richard who has gone around to come in another way. Ray falls and the others decide to return the favour and take off running leaving him there .... until Chet thinks better of it. Ray gets slashed by a knife but Chet saves the day by hitting Richard over the head with something which knocks him out. He and Ray take off running.

The other group (Xavier, Montana and Trevor) is dealing with their own issues at the boys cabin. The person knocking on their door at first seems to be Mr Jingles, but turns out it is just some guys playing a prank (which is discovered because they break the windows and throw a flaming bag of poop into the room). Apparently they are taking part in Jingles Day which means they dress up as Mr Jingles and go running around the campgrounds. The pranksters are really proud of themselves, but Trevor is pissed. He isn't having any of it. Neither is Montana who calls them 'townie assholes'. The other person not a fan? The real Mr Jingles. He shows up and quickly murders the two pranksters taking their ears as trophies. Our group uses this distraction to take off running.

Chet and Ray get separated from Brooke and Rita. They end up running into a trap - a pit that is filled with wooden spikes so that you get impaled when you fall. This is exactly what happens to Chet.

Meanwhile, the real Mr Jingles runs across another Jingles prankster. He wasn't with his other friends because he had to pee and was having some issues (a twisted urethra). He doesn't recognize that the person in front of him is the real Mr Jingles so he starts blabbing. He apologizes because the others never wanted him to come (they were paid to bring him) but he is there and ready to take part. He wants to be a bad ass for one night. The real Mr Jingles may have a kinship with this guy or feel sorry for him because he lets him walk away without killing him.

Ray tried to remove the spike from Chet but he is afraid that if they pull it out that Chet will bleed out. Ray wants to find a way out but Chet says that there isn't one. He knows that this type of trap was used in the war and that Mr Jingles probably adapted it from his time in the military. Chet is all of us  when he tearfully exclaims "what the hell kind of camp is this?" when Ray points it that the trap could easily be the work of the other serial killer who is trying to kill them.

Brooke and Rita have made it safely to the parking lot. Brooke is worried. She thinks that the other should be there by now. Rita is less concerned. Brooke wants to take the car and go get help by calling the police. Rita isn't thrilled with this plan but eventually relents and offers a compromise - she'll stay while Brooke goes to get help. This way someone will be there to explain to the others that Brooke didn't just bail on them.  Brooke takes the keys and goes to get into the car when Rita comes up behind her and injects her with something! What is even happening?!

We get a flashback that explains what is going on with Rita. Turns out she's not actually a nurse or even named Rita. She's actually a psychologist named Donna Chambers. Donna speaks with Dr Hopple and is trying to interview Mr Jingles. She lists a long list of her credentials claiming that she's interviewed a ton of serial killers (Ted Bundy among them) and has gotten them to open up to her. She wants to do a study on them and find out what makes them tick. I don't believe for a minute that she's interviewed any of the people she claims to have. She's granted the interview with Mr Jingles. She quickly lays out her theory to him which she takes from Ted Bundy. She thinks that serial killers are made because of easy access to porn which objectives women. She believes that people are not born evil, but outside circumstances make them so. Mr Jingles thinks it is the corn syrup that he is ingesting which he claims is in everything. She lets him in on her plan which involves him breaking out of the asylum and going back to Camp Redwood (she shows him the newspaper clip showing that the camp is reopening). She wants to be able to see him in his 'natural habitat'. Mr Jingles is at first against this plan. He knows that he is going to kill again if he goes back there. Donna believers some sacrifices are needed in the name of science. She feels it is the same as animal testing. She wants Mr Jingles to be the last serial killer. Mr Jingles likes the idea of that being his redemption. Donna lays out the escape plan that Mr Jingles actually follows (kill the guard, flip the switch to let out all the patients, and find the bag she left for him). She wants him to meet her at the camp and she promises that she'll have a new job and a new name when he does.

We see that the real Rita was headed towards Camp Redwood. She notices a car following her and gets spooked. She pulls into the same rest stop that our heroes previously stopped at and the car pulls in behind it.  It is, unsurprisingly, Donna in the other car. They have a chat in which Donna puts the real Rita at ease by explaining that they are both heading up to the camp. Rita asks if she can watch her car for a second while she runs to use the restroom and Donna agrees. When Rita comes back out though Donna and her car are gone. Rita gets back into her car and drives away. She doesn't get far before Donna pops up in the backseat and creepily smiles at Rita in the mirror. I am assuming that nothing good happened to poor Rita.

Brooke is having issues using her legs and arms. She demands to know what Donna gave her. It's a horse tranquilizer and when Brooke fully passes out Donna drags her body into the woods.

Things are not looking so good for Chet who Ray thinks has passed out. Ray, thinking they are going to die in this pit, decides to get something off his chest. He confesses that during pledge week at his fraternity they pushed things too far and a drunk pledge fell down some stairs. Ray, thinking the pledge was dead, decides that he wants to save his own ass. He takes the dead body and puts it in the pledge's car. He figures he can make it look like a different kind of accident and nobody needs to be the wiser. He sets the car up to go off a cliff and just when he sets the car up to drive forward the pledge wakes up. Turns out he wasn't dead, at least not yet. It's too late to stop the car and it goes over the cliff. The poor pledge grabs Ray's watch in the scramble. Ray dropped out of school after these events. The car was just recently found and he is sure that they are going to find his watch. He came to Camp Redwood this summer because he is running away from the problem. Chet reveals that he has be conscious this whole time. Chet doesn't react the way Ray wants him to as he insinuates that Ray killed the pledge. Ray decides to save himself and leave Chet to die in the pit. He climbs out and runs off even though Chet is begging to not be left down there. We noticing a patter of behaviour from Ray yet? He sure likes to save his own ass.

Our other group is heading to the parking lot (finally) and Xavier wants to go get Margaret and Bertie. He feels that it is his fault that someone has died and if he can save anyone else he wants to do that. Xavier is too pure. I hope he lives. Trevor agrees that nobody gets left behind. Montana is not into it. They hear a noise and hide in the closest shed. Inside the shed they discover the bound and gagged real Rita. She is, understandably, scared and upset. She doesn't trust them and while Xavier tries to calm her down she immediately runs off as soon as she is free making a whole bunch of noise. She's immediately killed by Mr Jingles for her trouble much to the horror of Xavier. They sneak out once Mr Jingles has left and discover that the newly dead Rita has a nurses uniform on with her name sewn on it.

Ray is running through the woods when he meets up with Xavier, Montana, and Trevor. They immediately ask where everyone else is. Ray adds lying to his list of bad deeds and continues to save his own ass by telling them that they were attacked at the cabin and everyone got separated. He lost Chet and Brooke went with Rita last he saw (which is obviously not good as the rest of the group knows). They fill Ray in on that fact that the Rita they know is not the real Rita. They discuss what they should do next. Ray wants to head to the parking lot. Trevor still wants to go get Margaret and Bertie. Ray refuses proving once again that he only thinks about himself. Trevor agrees that Ray should take his motorcycle and go down the road to all the police and sends Montana off with him. He and Xavier head off to go find the others.

Mr Jingles hears Chet screaming in the pit but Xavier and Trevor get there first which results in this hilarious exchange when Xavier asks Chet what he is doing down in the pit.

Chet is pretty sassy this episode and I like it. Xaiver proves, once again, that he is the best by jumping down into the pit. Chet is relieved that someone is going to help him. Chet fills Xavier in on him and Ray falling into the pit and Ray taking off. Xavier is confused because Ray told them that he got separated from everyone. Chet's just shakes his head and offers up "He's got issues, man. He's got serious fucking issues"

Trevor tells them to hurry up because someone is coming so Xavier realizes he has to yank Chet off the spike but he apologizes first:

Being pulled off a spike obviously hurts so Chet is screaming his head off which isn't good with a killer in close proximity. They hide behind a tree and Xavier tries to calm Chet down. Trevor realizes that they can fight back since Mr Jingles has his back turned looking into the pit (thanks to Chet's screaming). There are three of them. Xavier points out that Chet can barely move and Mr Jingles has a knife. This doesn't phase Trevor. He has a plan of his own:

That's right he is going to push Mr Jingles into his own trap. He takes off charging at the person ready to push them in. Xavier's reaction to this is my favourite:

It works! Trevor manages to push the person into the pit which is cause for a celebration between my new favourite brotp. 

Sadly, it wasn't Mr Jingles that they killed. It was the poor prankster who just wanted to be a bad ass and had to take a piss. The one that Mr Jingles let walk away earlier. Celebration over, obviously.

Ray and Montana make it to the parking lot and discover that Donna and Brooke are not there. Montana notices the drag pattern left behind from when Donna dragged Brooke into the woods. She wants to go investigate but Ray isn't having it. He wants to go to call the police. Richard Ramirez appears with a creepy laugh before they can really decide on anything. Ray freaks out and takes off on the bike WITHOUT MONTANA! Again, showing that he only cares about himself and is a coward. He doesn't get very far though. Mr Jingles is waiting by the camp entrance and hits him so hard he is beheaded as he drives by.

Montana is left unarmed with a very lethal serial killer. Richard stalks up towards her and runs the knife down her face and body. Montana pushes him away but it's more of a 'cut it out' type of push than anything else. She grabs him by his shirt and smirks as she pulls him closer to her and they start MAKING OUT! What is with all these girls being super into serial killers on this show?

I initially thought this was some kind of distraction that Montana was trying. Shock him by kissing him and knee him or something. Nope. she pushes him away after biting his lip hard enough to draw blood and angrily demands to know something:

It is obvious now that the woman Richard was referring to as the person who brought him there is Montana and not Brooke. I am also guessing that the 'her' she is referring to is Brooke. It explains why Richard went after Brooke in the first place and how he knew that she was at Camp Redwood. My theory is that Montana is related to the Best Man from when Brooke was going to marry Joey. She's maybe a sister or something. She probably blames Brooke for the death (even though it is entirely Joey's fault). It seemed like Montana did believe that Brooke cheated on Joey with the best friend so I could imagine her holding some resentment for what she would view as getting her brother killed (if she is his sister) and setting up this whole plan to kill Brooke. She just didn't bank on ANOTHER serial killer also being around. This changes so much and I need to know how Montana and Richard met.

At this point I basically want Chet, Xavier, Trevor and Brooke to survive because they are the only ones who do not appear to be involved in murder. Oh, Bertie can live too. I do not trust Margaret  at all.

I hope we get back into the ghost dude of it all next week and find out exactly what Margaret was doing while all of this was going on.

Until next week .... maybe don't make out with serial killers (even if they are as cute as Zach Villa).