March Makeovers: What ‘American Horror Story’ season 6 needs to do

Throughout the month of March, what we’re going to be doing through our March Makeovers series is fairly simple: Focus on shows that need a little bit of retooling, and then explain in one form or another what they need to do in order to make that happen. No show is perfect, but in some ways now it feels clear that there are series that need help a little bit more than some others do.

We feel like a fitting place to start off this season is “American Horror Story,” and for two different reasons: This is a show that probably has more work to do than many others in reinventing itself for season 6, but at the same exact time, it can do some of this work easier than others. The anthology nature of the show allows for this to be possible.

What went wrong – For “American Horror Story: Hotel,” the show struggled to establish one cohesive narrative. We never quite understood if this was the journey of the Countess, a look at John Lowe a.k.a. the Ten Commandments Killer, or seeing how Iris and Liz Taylor could come into power owning the Hotel Cortez. There were far too many cast members, way too many things going on, and there was no real flow to the show. Also, it felt like it was catering more to shock value than it was to telling a story that viewers would remember.

How to make it over – First things first, go back to basics. Bring back Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, Denis O’Hare, and Finn Wittrock. Keep this the core of the show, and don’t focus too much on anyone else until you’ve got a great story that utilizes all of them perfectly. From here, simplify! What made “Murder House” sensational was that it was just a few characters and a very simple story that revolved around insecurity, lust, and the darkness inside. Don’t be afraid to make season 6 only ten or eleven episodes if condensing the story helps to keep things from spiraling out of control.

We wish that we could also add “give the show more time,” but we know that is not going to happen. What the series really does need at this point is a breather to think about what it wants to do next rather than rushing into a new concept. In looking back at “Hotel” in retrospect, it did have this feel to it.

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