Before we start digging into the current season, let’s get the definitive order of seasons straight. Season 1, “Murder House,” is the best season of American Horror Story (AHS) thus far. Then it’s season 2, “Asylum,” regardless of all the arbitrary and extra plot lines. Then Season 3, “Coven,” because it was so campy. And to be honest, I sometimes forget that Season 4, “Freak Show,” even happened.

So if you are frustrated by my order, that’s okay, but now you know what frame of mind I’m in before we continue.

Season 5, “Hotel,” started gathering interest with hints about the theme, which were primarily generated by fan theories, and surprises that Ryan Murphy, the creative mind and director of “Scream Queens” and “Glee,” had in store for viewers.

And then, BAM, enter Lady Gaga.

I won’t lie to you, reader. I was skeptical about her acting in general and acting in one of my favorite shows, specifically. But after watching the first episode, I was drinking the Koolaid. “Checking In,” the first episode of Season 5, felt like a long Lady Gaga music video, and I was more than okay with that.

Right now, I’m not as invested in the plot as I am in the return of my favorite AHS actors. I love Kathy Bates’s character, but we’ve seen her play the overly doting mother before. We are familiar with the disintegration of a family that is primarily blamed on the father. We’ve seen angsty teenagers in Season 1, a trope that is now embodied in the male model character and addict played by Finn Witrock, whose performance in “Freak Show” was impressive and unsettling. However, Witrock’s character this season seems to have the simple purpose of adding angst to the show.

Sarah Paulson, playing an addict named Sally, has added so much depth already to a character that had plenty of opportunities to fall flat. Even though Evan Peters didn’t show up until the second episode, his debut was phenomenal; and with his ’20s inspired character and accent, there were some pretty high odds that he wouldn’t be able to deliver.

Many see a connection between the movie “Se7en“ and this season of AHS. The strongest claim for this is the title sequence of the show, which flashes the Ten Commandments in between images and clips of gore and horror. For the viewers who haven’t seen the movie, this connection may go unnoticed, but if anything, you now have a great rationale for watching “Se7en.”

I may not be overly impressed with the plot or sure of where this season will fit into my ranking, but that doesn’t mean that I won’t still watch every single episode with a level of fascination that I just don’t get with other shows.

WARNING: This season contains sexual assault that could be triggering.

Courtesy of Fox “Scream Queens” was right for all of the wrong reasons. With main characters played by actors like Emma Roberts, Jamie Lee Curtis and Keke Palmer, this show definitely had some potential.

With a new semester starting, the Kappa House is hit with a string of murders. This sorority is the most sought-after house for the new women, but Dean Cathy Munsch (Jamie Lee Curtis) rules that everyone can a pledge. This makes everyone question whether the queen of the sorority, Chanel (Emma Roberts), who is trying to get even, is really still in charge. Not only is Chanel trying to stay on top, but a killer dressed in a devil costume is killing off the Kappas one-by-one.

I assumed that this was going to be a constant guessing game of “who’s the killer?” which it was, but not in the way I assumed. It was actually pretty funny and just clever enough that sometimes I was questioning motives, but other times I just knew who the killer was. Now what may have made this show for me is the fact that there was a whole scene in which Nick Jonas worked out shirtless. So, Fox, the ladies of the world would like to thank you.

There were a few things that made the show a little questionable for me, mainly, the fact that there were musicians in it such as Lea Michele, Ariana Grande and Nick Jonas, but there was zero singing. You can’t put the three singers that always sound flawless in a show and not let them sing. Also, sitting through multiple people dying for an hour and a half just to find out in the last five seconds that they might not be dead? Talk about a cliffhanger.

Overall, I would give this show 3.5 stars. The death scenes were a little too gory and there were one too many jokes about having sex with a corpse for my liking. The things that compensated for this were the over-dramatized relationships and the stupid one-liners that weren’t that funny but for some reason made me crack up. It was surprisingly well-written for a modern horror show. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that it wasn’t as serious as “American Horror Story.”

Though time and time again this turns out to be true the difference for this season is that Terminus seems to have been handled quickly in the first episode of this season by Carol’s ability (Melissa McBride) to turn fireworks into weapons. In contrast, the conflict with the governor dragged on for way too long, but we got back story about his character enough that I remained interested.

The terminus of Terminus was too quick and not fulfilling. I want to know more about the people, what turned them to their unique depravity and to be honest, I have forgotten all of their names except for one. Gareth, played by Andrew J. West, is one sick son of a bitch and always has been (the way he treated Ashley in “Greek” was appalling; she deserved better). The ring leader of Terminus is best characterized as a less intelligent but weirdly more attractive Hannibal Lecter. Our first introduction to the character in season four begins well enough, but again, we all end up trapped in a railroad car at the beginning of season five.

However, Gareth is not the shining star of this season so far. Carol has gradually become more and more powerful. Her explosive start to this season is an amazing example of her transformation from abused wife to gun-toting, ass-kicking motherfucker. Rick has really transformed as well. Any semblance of his days as a sheriff have completely disappeared in favor of a rugged man who understands that the days of “good” people and “bad” people no longer exist. Rick is consistent throughout all the seasons in one aspect: his focus on his family. One of the most touching moments of this season thus far is the reuniting of Judith with Rick and Carl, played by Chandler Riggs.

I’m excited to see the direction of this season. The dark turns the show took at the end of season four have definitely continued into the newest season. To paraphrase the ever-charming Daryl, the walkers of “The Walking Dead” have nothing on the depravity and cruelty of the humans.

The freakshow takes place out the outskirts of Jupiter, Florida in 1952. There are “freaks” from different walks of life trying to find a place that accepts them, while allowing them to show their unique talents. Everyone is hiding a secret and there are very good reasons that each of them ended up in Elsa’s circus. Elsa uses the monsters as a way to make her way back into show business after becoming a “has-been” cabaret singer after World War II. Jimmy Darling, played by Evan Peters, is lobster boy; his main attraction are his large, deformed hands, which resemble lobster claws. Then we have Kathy Bates, Ethel Darling, Jimmy’s mother, the bearded lady. She is Elsa’s right hand woman and the brains behind the circus. Sarah Paulson plays the Siamese twins, Bette and Dot Tattler, who are the new girls at the Freakshow. They hide a pretty big secret that develops as the season progresses. Emma Roberts plays Maggie Esmeralda, the mysterious gypsy.

This show is completely different from anything on TV with its writing, cast and plot. If you are searching for something new, refreshing and completely addicting, I would definitely recommend AHS. You can even binge-watch the other three seasons on Netflix. The only disclaimer I would give is about the clown. I’m not even afraid of clowns, but this clown has to be the creepiest thing I’ve ever seen. He’s the mass murderer running around Jupiter doing some really messed up things like abducting children and dismembering adults. I’m all for gore and guts, but he takes it to an unspeakable level. John Carroll Lynch plays Twisty the Clown and he does an over-the-top, unbelievable job of it. I’m anxious to find out what he is hiding behind that creepy masked smile.

Photo courtesy of moviepilot.com