American Horror Story: The End

"The End" is the first episode of season eight of the anthology series American Horror Story and the eighty-fifth episode of the series overall. It was directed by Bradley Buecker with a teleplay written by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. It first aired on the FX Network on Wednesday, September 12th, 2018 at 10:00 pm.

Synopsis
In Los Angeles, California, an internet/social media celebrity named Coco St. Pierre Vanderbilt is sitting in a salon with her stylist, Mister Gallant, and her personal assistant, Mallory. Everyone simultaneously receives a text alert indicating that nuclear ICBM missiles have targeted major cities across the globe, including Hong Kong, Moscow, and now Los Angeles. Initially, people think that it is just a prank, but quickly realize that the threat is real. Coco's parents call her and tell her to get out of the city by way of a personal plane at the Santa Monica Airport. The three of them scramble to leave, and Coco tries to get a hold of her boyfriend, Brock.

Panic erupts in the street. People jump out of buildings, preferring suicide rather than death by nuclear blast. Coco, Gallant, and Mallory get to the airport, where her chauffeur has to fight off employees so that she can get to the plane. She contacts Brock, but he cannot make it in time. Mister Gallant manages to get his grandmother - the aging starlet, Evie Gallant, and brings her along.

The plane ascends into the sky, and as they leave, they see a mushroom cloud erupt over L.A., indicating that the city has been destroyed. Mallory checks on the cockpit only to find that there are no crew. The plane is being piloted automatically.

Elsewhere, a young boy named Timothy Campbell learns that he just got accepted into UCLA. He celebrates with his family, when suddenly, a team of armored military personnel come into their home to take Timothy away. One man states that Campbell is genetically fit for survival. He is taken away from his family, who are forced to stay behind.

Timothy later awakens inside of a mysterious dark chamber with a dark-skinned girl named Emily. Emily doesn't know why she's there, and says that she was brought to this place after being arrested at a protest rally.

The others arrive at a location called Outpost Three, which is where Timothy and Emily have already been detained. As they land, they see two people wearing HAZMAT suits executing a man and a woman outside by shooting them in the head.

They are brought inside where they find Timothy and Emily, as well as a homosexual couple named Andre Stevens and Stu. A haughty woman comes out and introduces herself as Ms. Wilhelmina Venable. She tells them that Outpost Three was created by a group called The Cooperative in the event of nuclear Armageddon. There are strict rules that govern this facility, not the least of which, is the fact that everyone is forbidden from going outside.

There is a class structure at Outpost Three that is broken down into three factions: The leadership, which operates outside the class system, the Purples, who are the elite, and the Greys, who are the working class. Everyone who has been rescued is part of the elite except for Mallory, who is a Grey.

Among the other rules governing Outpost Three, there is a prompt dinner time schedule that is to be strictly adhered to. Though it is a formal function, those in attendance are only eating nutrient rich gelatin cubes. Another rule forbids fraternization.

This practice continues for several weeks, but by then, the survivors are becoming frustrated and bored. Ms. Venable addresses the group at one point, indicating that she has received word that somebody has violated the rule about going outside. She has her second-in-command, Miriam Mead, scan each of them with a Geiger counter. Mister Gallant and Stu demonstrate high levels of radiation and are subsequently quarantined.

They are stripped down and endure a painful decontamination process. Stu is still showing signs of high rad levels, so Ms. Miriam puts him down with a gunshot to the head. She later confesses to Ms. Venable in private that Stu was actually clean, and that she adjusted the sensitivity on the Geiger counter.

That night at dinner, Ms. Venable surprises the survivors by telling them that they will have a special meal - which is something of a rarity given the short supply of resources. The meal consists of stew... or rather, Stu, which Andre Stevens is the first to take note of. Venable of course, denies the allegation of having his lover diced up for food. The others are sickened by the notion except for Evie Gallant, who seems perfectly fine eating the human stew.

A short while later, a visitor comes to Outpost Three. He is taken there by a team of horses, which have now developed mutations due to the nuclear winter and are subsequently put down. The young man enters the facility and introduces himself as Michael Landon - a high-ranking member of The Cooperative.

Body Count
The following list is presented in alphabetical order. This includes on-screen deaths, as well as characters who are presumed dead.
 * 1) Brock - Presumably killed in L.A. blast.
 * 2) Coco's driver - Shot in the head by panicking airport staff.
 * 3) Edward Campbell Presumably killed in L.A. blast.
 * 4) Esmeralda - Presumably killed in L.A. blast.
 * 5) Female Grey - Shot in the head
 * 6) Horses - Dragged away and killed
 * 7) Jumper - Suicide off building onto Coco's car.
 * 8) Male Grey - Shot in the head
 * 9) Mister Campbell - Presumably killed in L.A. blast.
 * 10) Mister St. Pierre Vanderbilt - Presumably killed in Hong Kong blast.
 * 11) Mrs. St. Pierre Vanderbilt - Presumably killed in Hong Kong blast.
 * 12) Nora Campbell - Presumably killed in L.A. blast.
 * 13) Stu - Shot in the head, then chopped up for stew.

Quotes

 * Wilhemina Venable: I am the strong right arm of the Cooperative.

....
 * Coco St. Pierre Vanderbilt: Are you trying to fucking poison me, this tastes like turtle shit!