‘American Horror Story – Cult 7×05: Holes’ Review
Everything is fake news, it is all a lie. What else could we expect from a show that is based around the election of somebody like Donald Trump? This week’s episode of American Horror Story: Cult is called Holes, and while Trypophobia may play a part, this week is more about revealing everything.
Ally (Sarah Paulson) is now alone as Ivy (Alison Pill) has left her and taken her son with her. When Meadow (Leslie Grossman) makes a shocking reappearance though, it seems that everything that Ally thought was real in her life was all a sham.
So, if you were waiting for some of the mystery of American Horror Story: Cult to be solved, this is the episode to do it. It is surprising in a way that so many of the secrets were actually given up to the audience, it makes you wonder what is left. For me, one of the biggest questions has to be what use is Ally to the story now?
Ally actually annoyed me even more this week, and it isn’t the character’s fault. Last week we saw her showing strength, and moving in a direction that would have made her more interesting. I am seeing her as the hypocrite of the show. While she blames everybody else for her problems (even in her choice of vote) much of it is caused by her herself. Maybe it is something to be thankful for that she didn’t play a big part this week, though the seeds of making her the “hero” were laid in her brief reunion with Meadow.
In regards to the Cult, we now know the members and what their aim is. They are spreading the fear, which I already assumed, and the people who showed hints of being a part of it…are a part. To mention names would be a spoiler, but we saw last week who the people were, and who were hinted to have connections. The answer is yes, they are a part of it.
What we also saw this week was a continuation of the fear campaign, which also revealed a new theme in the “cult”. Kai himself is not the main strength in the group, and he is playing a constant battle for dominance. There is a mixture of players in the cult, some which revel in the ability to murder, and those who question the need and find it hard. Beverly Hope (Adina Porter) is by far the more dominant killer, and this fact may lead to Kai’s downfall.
Kai isn’t stupid though, and in his interactions with her, he does stroke her ego to some extent. Their truth game where he reveals what happened to his parents (and the meaning of the rose on the door you may have notices). We know Kai is very adept at manipulation though, so is this the truth about his parents? One important fact that was revealed though which we can rely on was the revelation that Kai and Winter (Billie Lourd) has a brother. This brother again confirms something I picked up on last week. Look back to that review for spoilers on that one.
American Horror Story: Cult has trodden a fine line this season, and this is one episode where it finds itself on the wrong side of it. Ally is losing her importance of a character, and the cult is already showing weakness. The big question has to be, now we know who the cult are and what their end game is, where is the mystery?
While I do feel this is the weakest episode of American Horror Story: Cult so far, it still has enough interest to keep the audience watching. One thing we’ve not seen yet is the promised flashbacks to past cults, so it will be interesting to see when that starts. Maybe that is the way they will keep the season going?
**** 4/5
American Horror Story: Cult airs in American at 10pm on FX and in the UK on Fridays 10pm on Fox.
