AMERICAN HORROR STORY SEASON 1, EP. 10: PLEASE STAND BY

Well, the best of intentions and all that...

Simon Abrams and I are entering the final stretch of our extensive look at Season One of American Horror Story,  and the ball has been in my court to return Simon's initial volley on episode 10, "Birth," ever since it was posted here this past Thursday. Truth be told, I think I can speak for Simon as well as myself when I say that the series is wearing on us a little bit. I'd already seen all but two of the episodes at least  twice before, but Simon didn't need even that previous exposure to be driven to distraction by around episode six. And as I've only semi-facetiously mentioned before in our published exchanges here, I've come to believe that since we began this series in August we've probably put more thought into at least the artistic intent of the series than maybe even Mssrs. Murphy and Falchuk have themselves.

Truthfully, it's been an exhausting process, and I think both Simon and I are looking forward to wrapping it all up. But in order to do that, I need to hold up my end of the bargain and this week has not been a good one for obligations of bargain fulfillment. I've been scrambling to get ready for a much-needed Thanksgiving vacation, and the prep for that, not to mention the actual travel to get to the colder climes of Southeastern Oregon, from whence I'm currently posting, has taken up most every spare minute of the past few days. My only breathers have involved gnashing my teeth and mourning the Oregon Ducks' non-arrival at Autzen Stadium on Saturday for their contest against a victorious Stanford team and a little pre-Thanksgiving feast with the Los Angeles branch of the family on Sunday.

So I'm here to let you know, those few of you who are still with us at this point, that I'm going to cede to my surroundings, hang up the keyboard on American Horror Story for this week and enjoy the company of family and friends whom I haven't seen in far too long. I'll be back next week (around Wednesday time) with not only a response to Simon's characteristically articulate and agitated musings on "Birth" but also a recap of the season's final episode, "Afterbirth," which will initiate the closure of our time spent with this fascinating, maddening series and allow at least me to uncork the DVR on Season Two. (Simon is going to take a longer break from the Murphy-Falchuk madness, I suspect.)

I'll be back tomorrow with some random thoughts before the holiday. But as far as AHS goes, please stand by. We will resume our regularly scheduled programming after a short, tryptophan-laced break.

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