3. Find a balance between now and then

The first season of AHS was set in modern times, with flashbacks. This season of AHS was set in the past, with a parallel, secondary storyline set in modern times. I enjoyed Bloody Face Jr. quite a bit (more on that later), but he felt like an afterthought for the bulk of the season. I could have been very happy with more Bloody Face in modern times, or I could have been happy with less of him. I understand why they did what they did, but the show felt off-balance. There were flashbacks, flash-forwards, time-skips, and enough jumps and hops and slides to make Doc Brown lose track of the time stream.

4. Bring back more Murder House cast

There’s one reason I liked Bloody Face Jr., and that’s because I got to see Dylan McDermott do crazy things. From drinking lactating hookers dry to smoking meth in a parked car, Dylan McDermott got to do some out-there stuff, and his particular brand of intensity really makes the craziness of AHS work. He’s over the top, the show’s over the top, and they all go over the top together. He was great during the first season, and even better this season. Ditto returning favorites like Frances Conroy, Evan Peters, Lily Rabe, and Jessica Lange. If you could somehow get Conroy, McDermott, Peters, Rabe, et al to play alongside Ian McShane and James Cromwell, I’d be a very happy camper. Also, bring back Kate Mara in some capacity. She’s a great yang to Taissa Farmiga’s yin. I like the introductions, and I greatly enjoyed the new cast, but I think the show needs Dylan McDermott’s crazy.

5. History’s mysteries

One of the things that worked best about this season was the setting. A creepy old insane asylum during the tumultuous sixties? Great setting and a good look for the show. The jumping about in time was also fun, if only from a wardrobe setting. I’d like to see more of it. I’d love to see the third season of AHS be a straight-up period piece. Some of the rumored settings, like the lost colony of Roanoke referenced in the first season or a Southern Gothic voodoo tale set in the nineteenth century would be incredible. The Salem Witch Trials is always a popular answer to where to take the show next, and since it comes with the ability to write such strong female characters, it seems like a natural answer. Just get Lily Rabe, Sarah Paulson, Jessica Lange, Frances Conroy, Kate Mara, and Taissa Farmiga fitted for Goody Whatshername outfits already!

6. More horror meta

One of the biggest treats of the first season was getting the chance to play “What’s that reference?” in pretty much every episode. From stealing camera shots to whole musical moments, there was a lot of horror eating itself during Murder House, and I loved it. That was such a great deal of fun for me, yet for Asylum, most of that seemed to drop away. They did have a few references, and they did use the music from Candyman, but it wasn’t as prevalent this season as it was during Murder House, and I missed it. There were ample opportunities to reference, say, Psycho or Session 9, yet the show—for the most part—refrained from going there. That needs to change.

7. A little more allegory

The first season of AHS seemed to synch in really well with the modern zeitgeist. There were references to the housing crisis, school shootings, and all that other stuff, but at its core it was about not being able to run. You can’t run from your debts. You can’t run from your past, Ben Harmon. You certainly cannot run from death, no matter how hard you may try to flee. At the end, everyone associated with Murder House, Constance aside, is dead, if not buried. There was happiness in death for some, misery in death for others, but the key point is everyone died and no one got a clean getaway; even Constance is stuck with a murdering toddler.