Orphans (American Horror Story)

"Orphans" is the tenth episode of the fourth season of the anthology television series American Horror Story, which premiered on December 17, 2014 on the cable network FX. It was written by James Wong and directed by Bradley Buecker.

Although American Horror Story is categorized as an anthology series, the episode is notable for being the first in the series to directly tie two seasons together, acknowledging that both plot lines and series of events exist within the same universe. In the episode's finale, Pepper (Naomi Grossman) is institutionalised in Briarcliff Manor, the main location of American Horror Story: Asylum (in which she also appears) and is shown meeting Sister Mary Eunice McKee (Lily Rabe) two years before the events of Asylum take place.

Plot[]

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Pepper awakens in the middle of the night and is horrified to find that her beloved husband, Salty, has died in his sleep. Although she tries, she cannot resuscitate him and remains inconsolable as Paul and Eve try to comfort her. At lunch the following day, Eve confronts Elsa about her concerns of the dead body, knowing that it will start to decompose quickly. Stanley offers to get rid of the body, but Elsa says no – stating that Pepper would want a proper burial. As Stanley gets more pushy, Elsa tells him to leave – both her tent and the circus. Before he does, he hands Elsa a slip of paper (supposedly a telegram from a Hollywood producer who wants to meet with her the following week) and asks her what he needs to do for her to trust him.

In Pepper's tent, Desiree reads to Pepper, ostensibly calming her. Desiree realizes that her time to perform is almost up, but as she gets ready to leave Pepper's tent, Pepper has a meltdown and tears her tent apart. The next day, Desiree talks with Elsa about what to do about Pepper. Elsa discloses the history of the freak show, starting with her days as a chorus girl in a carnival in Boston, Massachusetts, after she immigrated to America back in 1936. Noticing that freaks weren't treated as they should be, she decided to start a company of her own. She first recruited Pepper (then 18 years old), from an orphanage, and quickly befriended her. Pepper’s sister abandoned her because she did not want the responsibility of taking care of her.

Though Pepper was a hit with the circus, Elsa soon realized that Pepper had maternal instincts and needed both a child and a husband. One day, an Indian prince arrived with Ma Petite as his prized pet. As Elsa tries to buy Ma Petite, he declares payment is insulting since Ma Petite is a Dalit. Instead, Elsa hands him a Dr. Pepper, and he settles for three cases of Dr. Pepper as a fair trade. Over the next few months, Elsa contacted other orphanages for a male pinhead (microcephalic), and found Salty. Though he isn't as bright as Pepper, it is love at first sight for the two of them, and Elsa marries the both of them with the other freaks in attendance. Pepper is happy with her new family until the tragic deaths of both Ma Petite (who was murdered in a previous episode) and Salty.

Desiree suggests that now might be a good time to reunite the sisters, as Pepper is too distraught to carry on with the show. Elsa reluctantly agrees, and gives Stanley permission to get rid of Salty's body after he promises to have the body cremated. Instead, he chops off his head and sells it to the Museum of Morbid Curiosities.

Stanley visits Jimmy in jail. While Jimmy cannot remember what happened due to his drunken state, Stanley assures him he will be fine as long as he has a good lawyer. Stanley promises to get him a good lawyer, but Jimmy says he can't afford one, and Stanley nonchalantly suggests that Jimmy could sell his hands.

Back at the freak show, a drunk Maggie is confronted by Desiree (who wants to run off with Angus) to get a reading. Maggie engages them at first, but then coldly turns them away. Angry, Desiree confronts Maggie, who then confesses that she and Stanley are con artists. At first, Desiree refuses to believe her, but then realizes that several people have gone missing or died since they arrived. Desiree threatens to kill Maggie if she discovers that Maggie or Stanley hurt anyone.

The next day, after Dot and Bette attempt to convince Maggie to help Jimmy by getting him a lawyer with the money they saved up for the surgery, Maggie realizes that she must help the freaks. She finally confesses to Desiree of her and Stanley's true intentions, warning her that all the freaks will die soon if nothing is done. The two visit the Museum of Morbid Curiosities, where Desiree is shocked to find Ma Petite and Salty on display. The curator reveals their newest display: a pair of lobster hands, causing Maggie to faint in horror.

Elsa tracks down Pepper's alcoholic and malicious sister Rita and convinces her to take in Pepper. Pepper doesn't want her to leave, so Elsa kisses her hand and explains to Pepper that whenever she's lonely or in pain, to place her hand on her face knowing that Elsa was always with her. At first, life with her sister is tolerable, but things take a turn for the worse when nine years later (in 1962), Rita gives birth to a deformed baby and forces Pepper to wait on her hand and foot. Tired of both the screaming baby they didn't want and Pepper's mental incapacities, Rita's husband Larry convinces her to let him frame Pepper for the baby's murder. He brutally cuts off the baby's ears and drowns him as Pepper listens, horrified.

Pepper is then dragged away by the police, and her sister wrongly commits her to Briarcliff Manor. Sister Mary Eunice McKee, though convinced Pepper committed the murder, believes she sees remorse in Pepper's eyes when she sees her grieving for her dead nephew. Sister Mary Eunice gets her out of her straitjacket and declares that she will make Pepper her special project. She has Pepper assist her with sorting magazines in the library. While doing so, Pepper finds a Life Magazine from 1958 with Elsa on the cover, declaring her the Queen of Friday night TV. With tears in her eyes, Pepper puts her hand to her cheek.

Reception[]

Reviews[]

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the episode has an approval rating of 85% based on 13 reviews. The critical consensus reads: "A deeper look into the sad story of Pepper makes "Orphans" one of the more heartfelt episodes of Freak Show."

Emily L. Stephens of The A.V. Club praised Naomi Grossman's "almost wordless" performance as Pepper, opining that it "strikes a ringing note of feeling".^[1]

Ratings[]

The episode was watched by 2.99 million viewers during its original broadcast, making it the highest rated cable program of the day although a minor dip from the 3.07 million viewers the previous episode totalled.^[2]

External links[]