Genre: Sci-Fi | Horror | Thriller

Air Date/Time: December 14 at 10/9c

Network: FX Network

Creators: Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk

Director: Alfonso Gomez-Rejon

Writer: Tim Minear

American Horror Story revolves around The Harmons, a family of three who moved from Boston to Los Angeles as a means to reconcile past anguish. The all-star cast features Dylan McDermott (Dark Blue, The Practice) as Ben Harmon, a psychiatrist; Connie Britton (Friday Night Lights) as Vivien Harmon, Ben’s wife; newcomer Taissa Farmiga as Violet, the Harmons’ teenage daughter; Jessica Lange (Grey Gardens, Big Fish) in her first-ever regular series TV role as Constance, the Harmons’ neighbor; Evan Peters (Kick-Ass, Invasion) plays Tate Langdon, one of Ben’s patients; and Denis O’Hare (J. Edgar,True Blood) as Larry Harvey. Guest stars for the series include Frances Conroy (Six Feet Under, Happy Town) as the Harmons’ housekeeper; Alexandra Breckenridge (True Blood,Ticket Out) as the Harmons’ housekeeper; and newcomer Jamie Brewer as Constance’s daughter.

Well, it has come to this. This is the penultimate episode of the season, and could easily be called the season finale part one. We are careening towards next week’s 90-minute finale. This is a great installment of my favorite this-show-at-its-best-is-like-the-scariest-amusement-park-ride-ever show. The opening segment is, as always, illuminating. Don’t miss it. As if you would. That the episode title is an indicator should come as no surprise; they’ve been fairly straightforward with that throughout the season. Oh by the way, that means you’ll likely want to have your volume control at hand.

Let’s see, what else can I tell you? Zachary Quinto is back! So is, well so are… nope, not gonna tell you. Our favorite dysfunctional family (you know, the dead people) are at it again in this episode, which was written by the writer of “Halloween Part 2” (episode 6) and the director of “Home Invasion” (episode 2). Nicely, this is not one of those series that feels the need to trot out the entire extended cast as a season is drawing to a close. The people you see are absolutely necessary to the story.

Taissa Farmiga does a great job this week, as does Connie Britton, Dylan McDermott, Jessica Lange of course… well, really,everyone. No lines seemed uncomfortable, no direction or editing seemed odd (except when it was meant to be, which was done quite well).

Structurally this is beautifully drawn, one of the more poetic episodes. It’s really quite lovely; you’ll see. But that doesn’t mean you won’t be yelling at the screen “NO YOU CAN’T STOP THERE” at the end, just as you always should at the end of an episode of a suspenseful show, particularly at this point in the season. The one thing I didn’t like about this episode? I WANTED MORE.

You know how sometimes you have a feeling about what’s going to happen in a series? Sometimes it’s just a question of logic, sometimes it’s inferred; sometimes a show will follow a familiar formula, and sometimes you see a scrap of a spoiler somewhere or even a theory on Twitter that gets you thinking. I can honestly say that I have no idea what’s going to happen next week. That, my friends, is a rare gift. There are so many ways that this roller coaster can turn, and the way ahead is pitch black. I don’t know about you, but I’ve got my hands up in the air, my eyes wide open, and I am ready to scream. I CAN’T WAIT.

I give American Horror Story: Episode 11 “Birth,” Five Out of Five Stars.