American Horror Story, an anthology (changing the plot every season or episode) series, is a horror gem. Every season has its own special theme, something that makes views coming back for more. Season 6 definitely included suspense, thrill, humor, and everybody’s favorite American Horror Story alumni – Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Lily Rabe, and FINALLY, after a couple of seasons of not being on the show, Taissa Farmiga.

In order to discuss how good season 6 was, we must first talk about how it was presented to its optimal audience. There were many things different about this season from the start, from hiding the theme from fans to starting the new season nearly a month earlier than normal. Ryan Murphy did a very good job with keeping the theme of the season hidden by releasing misleading promos and commercials and making the trademark of these mixed with a question mark.

The first episode aired on television on September 14, 2016. If you’re an American Horror Story fanatic like myself, you know that the season premiere of Season 5 was shocking, at the very least. It deterred a lot of people away from watching the rest of the season for fear of seeing images more graphic than the show has ever presented. This season did not have as much shock factor as the last one, which I think was good for the show. It was toned down and kept a lot of people who were skeptical of the appropriateness of the show.

The topic – Roanoke – was something (obviously) new for the show since they normally deal with certain topics such as ghosts or asylums and not actual events. I think that the shift from a broad idea to something a bit more specific was an unexpected but good change for the show. One of the many things that made me really happy about this season was the revival of Evan Peters playing an attractive character because his role in Season 5 was just not for him.

The return of one my favorite people on the show, Leslie Jordan (the short psychic dude), made fans excited since we haven’t seen him since season 3. I liked that they tackled problems that were currently happening like stigma towards interracial couples (Shelby and Matt) and the whole issue with the Confederate flag. Overall, the season did a good job mixing really quality television with legitimate problems and of course, the occasional death.

A common misconception is that since all of the seasons are different they don’t have connections whatsoever, but the history of the house implies that an older relative of Dandy Mott, the insane rich boy from Season 4, owned the house at one point. I happen to think that this could potentially explain why Dandy is so crazy. His entire family has just been possessed with bad spirits since they owned the house on Roanoke land. This random but slightly significant connection to past season makes me excited to see what the next seasons have to over. Maybe a continuation of a previous season, or something completely brand new.

No matter what it is, I trust the Ryan Murphy will keep the fans wondering, speculating, and on the edge of their seats for many more seasons to come.