American Horror Story Season 8: Apocalypse has arrived and the premiere was mind-blowing. Here is a review of the episode along with some notable moments that you may have missed through the chaos. 

Pre-Apocalypse

We are introduced to heiress billionaire, Coco St. Pierre Vanderbilt (Leslie Grossman) who is getting her hair done by hairstylist, Mr. Gallant (Evan Peters). When an Amber Alert goes off of a missile heading to Southern, California, Coco plays off the alert as a hoax alluding back to the real-life false alarm that happened in Hawaii last year. However, in the series, the alert is not a hoax as Coco receives a facetime call from her father about instructions to head to the family jet to flee the city. The phone call is cut short as she loses connection. This forces her into panic as she flees the salon with her assistant, Mallory (Billie Lourd).

Coco makes a last-minute pleading call to her husband, Brock (Billy Eichner) to join her. However, Brock doesn’t take her panic seriously and is aloof to the end of the world. This is until he sees a news reporter talking about other ICBM missiles which hit London, Hong Kong, and Moscow. In the reporter’s final words, he bids farewell to his family and says this statement “I cant believe we actually did it.” The reporter sounds dumbfounded and somewhat pleased by his own words. What could he have meant? Was it just a statement caught up in the moment, or perhaps there is more context behind his final words?

Meanwhile, after overhearing the facetime conversation between Coco and her father, Mr. Gallant grabs his Granny, Evie Gallant (Joan Collins) and rushes to meet Coco at her private jet. Mr. Gallant weasels his way onto the jet by using her own superficial insecurities against her. Together, Coco, Mr. Gallant, Evie Gallant, and Mallory are self-piloted to the mysterious destination as they watch the nuclear plume from the windows of the jet.  They leave behind Coco’s husband, Brock, on the grounds of Santa Monica.

Next, we are introduced to Timothy Campbell (Kyle Allen), a newly accepted UCLA prospective student. His joy over getting accepted to UCLA is short-lived as his frantic father interrupts his celebration of the news with terrible news of his own of the destruction of the world.  Shortly after Timothy’s father tells them the horrible news, a mysterious man and woman dressed in all black appear at their house. They inform Timothy that he was selected by The Cooperative because his DNA will help with survival. He is briskly taken by the mysterious government agency and is forced to leave his family behind. He is then brought to an old prison bunker where he meets Emily (Ash Santos). It is assumed that these two were selected because they share the same DNA makeup that will be the key to survival.

Post-Apocalypse 

Two weeks after the blast, Timothy and Emily are transported to another bunker. The government agency explains that where they are being taken to is where others like them and the wealthy are kept for survival. The two are greeted by Ms. Miriam Mead (Kathy Bates) in a hazmat suit. As they are being escorted, Timothy and Emily witness an assassination of a couple. They later learn that the couple broke one of the rules.

After they are decontaminated, they are welcomed by Ms. Wilhemia Venable to Outpost 3.  Outpost 3 is a reformed all boys school facility that serves now as a fallout shelter by the coordination of The Cooperative. Ms. Venable gives the two a tour of their new home, explaining that The Cooperative is the collection of the dozen greatest minds man has to offer. She proclaims that The Cooperative are visionaries.

She further explains The Cooperative’s orders and social classes of Outpost 3. There are two predominate social classes: The Purples which represent the elite and The Grays that are the worker hands. When Emily questions Ms. Venable’s lack of color status she is quick to say that she is “the strong right arm of The Cooperative.”

We learn just who The Purples are as Timothy and Emily join Coco, Mr. Gallant, Evie Gallant, Andre (Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman), Stu (Chad James Buchanan) and television personality, Dinah Stevens (Adina Porter) for dinner. The Purples find themselves frustrated by the lack of food as they are only given a cube to eat for meals and the constant repetitive song playing for entertainment.

Ms. Venable and Ms. Mead decide to have their own form of entertainment as they make up a possible contamination search order of The Purples. They pull Mr. Gallant and Stu out of the group and bring them to the decontamination room. Later we learn that Ms. Mead made the selection of who she would save, clearing Mr. Gallant and point-blank shooting Stu in the head.

We then see both Ms. Venable and Ms. Mead wearing one of The Purple’s gowns. Coldly Ms. Venable states to Ms. Mead, “We are the only ones that matter.”  Ms. Venable informs Ms. Mead that they are making their own rules outside The Cooperative’s orders. Ms. Venable is creating her own social class of elites in this new world. Showing just how twisted Ms. Venable and Ms. Mead could be, the two ladies serve The Purples meat stew of recently offed “Stu”(Andre’s boyfriend). 

18 months later the group is starting to feel the hunger as the group jokes about cannibalism after past supers. During one of their meals, Ms. Venable informs The Purples that breakfast is rationed out of their daily meals due to low supply. The Purples are quick to show their selfish nature as they turn on another and just as things heat up the alert system goes off of a breech. Enter mysterious horse buggy and Michael Langdon (Cody Fern). His arrival seems almost hopeful to Outpost 3 as he informs Ms. Venable of another sanctuary with endless supplies. However, Michael mentions that there is a selection process where he will choose who is “saved” and those who aren’t will “die.”

Notable Moments

• Remembering the rules will be important as the series moves forward. Those being 1. Never leave the building due to contamination. 2. No unauthorized copulation of any kind.
• There is a mysterious 666 written on the mirror of the bathroom after Timothy finishes his shower. When he looks around he hears a faint whisper of the word “demon.”
• Timothy and Emily are a couple despite the rule of no unauthorized copulation. The two have been sneaking around the bunker to kiss another and even blatantly held hands at the dining table. We all know Ryan Murphy has a twisted way with love stories so don’t get your hopes up if these two don’t get a happy ending.