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Bring on the twists because American Horror Story: 1984 came back last night (October 2) with a revelation that questioned who the real Nurse Rita was. The latest episode of the horror anthology series teased two more shocking mysteries, another gruesome death that may be coming back for vengeance, and oh-so-many serial killers. And with so much going on, you probably missed a couple of details. Spoilers ahead for American Horror Story: 1984, Episode 3.
Directed by Mary Wigmore and written by James Wong, “Slashdance” picked up right where last episode left off: with two killers pounding down the cabin doors. Thankfully almost all of our camp counselors managed to escape, but in the process some shocking truths came to light. Turns out that Nurse Rita (Angelica Ross) was never a nurse after all. In reality psychologist Donna Chambers stole the job from the real Nurse Rita (Dreama Walker) so she could watch Mr. Jingles destroy the camp. That’s how science works, right?
Oh, and if that’s not enough intrigue then there’s always Montana Duke (Billie Lourd). The horniest of our brat pack ended the episode violently kissing serial killer Richard Ramirez (Zach Villa) before asking him why “she” wasn’t dead yet. It doesn’t feel like a stretch to guess that the “she” in that sentence is referring to Emma Roberts’ Brooke, another person Montana has violently kissed. The only question is why does she want her dead?
All of that happened while Ray (DeRon Horton) confessed to murder, Chet (Gus Kentworthy) bled out on a trap straight from Rambo, and at least two Mr. Jingles impersonators were slaughtered. There’s a lot to unpack before we dive into Episode 4. But before we think to our horror-filled futures, let’s look at our pasts. Here’s what you may have missed in AHS: 1984 Episode 3.
All of the killers Rita, aka Donna Chambers mentioned in her 'Mindhunter' speech are real.
Really, it was only a matter of time before American Horror Story went full Mindhunter. In Episode 3 we finally learned why “Rita,” aka Donna Chamber (Angelica Ross) is such a terrible nurse. Turns out she wasn’t a nurse after all but a psychological researcher studying the behaviors of serial killers. She’s basically Holden Ford and Bill Tench but with better clothes.
Before John Carroll Lynch delivers a performance that’s full-on Ed Kemper, Donna proves she’s qualified to interview him by listing a handful of serial killers she’s interviewed in the past. Every one of those names refer to a real mass murderer. Obviously Ted Bundy and John Wayne Gacy are big enough names to be recognizable. Gacy is even the loose basis for Lynch’s other AHS killer, Twisty the Clown. But the Freeway Killer, the Trash Bag Killer, and the Butcher Baker were also all too real.
Between 1979 and 1980 William Bonin, aka the Freeway Killer, raped, tortured, and killed at least 21 boys and teenagers in southern California. The Trash Bag Killer, Patrick Kearney, claimed up to 43 victims from 1965 to 1977 and may be the most prolific serial killer in U.S. history. And the “Butcher Baker” Robert Hansen kidnapped, raped, and killed as many as 17 women in Alaska from 1971 to 1983. AHS did its research on this one.
Similarly Donna’s other little nugget of serial killer trivia checks out. At one point she says that Ted Bundy blamed his addiction to pornography for his killing sprees. As insane as that sounds, that actually happened.
The real Nurse Rita Dreama Walker was already part of this year's big slasher.
Maybe it’s because the revelation was such a shock, but real Rita was the breakout star of this episode. If you keep up with current movies there’s a good chance you’ve already seen Dreama Walker earlier this year. She played actress, director, singer, and general jill of all trades Connie Stevens in Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon A Time in Hollywood. The real Stevens was married to actor James Stacey at the time and lived near the Polanski-Tate home.
Prior to Once Upon a Time, Walker starred as one of the leads in Don’t Trust the B—- in Apartment 23. She also had a run on Gossip Girl as one of Blair Waldorf’s minions and was the lead in the 2012 thriller Compliance.
There was a secret shadow figure.
One of the creepiest parts of “Slashdance” had to do with a threat that never actually materializes. In the beginning of the episode, Chet (Gus Kentworthy) and Ray (DeRon Horton) push a dresser in front of the door to stop the Night Stalker, aka serial killer Richard Ramirez (Zach Villa) from breaking in. For several frames, you can see the shadow of a man in the reflection of that dresser. We know this isn’t just some tricky camerawork. In one of the scenes where the shadow appears every other character is visible. Spooky stuff.
Ray's hazing story was a blast from 'Scream Queens' past.
Sadly, Ray fell victim to the oldest horror trope in the book: the black guy dies first. But it feels like there’s a good chance he’ll come back as a ghost or simulation or something equally insane. His hazing backstory is too insane to be a one-and-done deal.
Though Ryan Murphy’s other short-lived horror series Scream Queens primarily focused on sorority life, Ray’s backstory is just begging to be part of a spinoff series for the Fox show. It also doesn’t hurt that Horton’s best known role Dear White People revolves around exclusive collegiate secret societies. A member of the fictional Omega Xi fraternity, Ray’s hell week had everything a over-the-top college horror tale could possibly want: too much drinking, short shorts, an elephant walk (if you don’t know what that is, don’t look it up), and an accidental murder. Ray thought he accidentally killed his pledge brother not once but twice: by letting him fall down a flight of stairs and then pushing his car off a cliff. It seems pretty clear that wannabe frat bro Chan (Mark Daugherty) didn’t actually die. He’ll be coming back.
This is the second time Hall & Oates has made an appearance this season.
Speaking of Donna, her big moment is accompanied by one of the most quintessentially ’80s songs of all time. In a flashback it’s revealed that Donna got her camp nurse job by stowing away in the real Rita’s car and stealing her identity. Why? It was all done in the name of science. Donna is determined to see Mr. Jingles in his natural habitat, meaning she really wants to see a psycho killer terrorize horny teens in a camp.
As she’s hiding in real Rita’s (Dreama Walker) car, Hall & Oates’ “Maneater” plays. That’s a clear reference to how duplicitous Donna is. But it has a couple of other connections to this new season. During Episode 2, “Mr. Jingles,” there’s a moment when Brooke (Emma Roberts) runs up to the group. Exasperated, Trevor (Matthew Morrison) says “Oh no, here she comes” in the exact cadence of the Hall & Oates’ song. And as is always the case there is a Glee connection.
The Season 3 episode “Mash Off” featured a mashup of two Hall & Oates songs, “I Can’t Go for That (No Can Do)” and “You Make My Dreams.” Shockingly the number wasn’t performed by Matthew Morrison and even more jaw-dropping Glee never tackled “Maneater.” But we like to think that Mr. Schue approved of this musical cue all the same.
