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American Horror Story's 15 Scariest Scenes Ever
15. Tight Squeeze
Freak Show’s Dell wasn’t the only one left haunted after he hugged the life out of Elsa’s sweet companion, Ma Petite. Regardless of the fact that he was being blackmailed by Stanley, we still can’t believe that the closeted strongman really went through with the heartless murder.
14. Eye, Caramba!
Having discovered that visions were an unexpected upside to having been blinded with sulfuric acid, Coven sorceress Cordelia came to regret having had her sight restored — so much so that she gouged out her peepers with a pair of pruning shears!
13. Just Desserts
Upon being exposed as the murderous opportunist that he was, Freak Show con man Stanley was transformed by the carnies into a grotesque amalgam of the sideshow stars whose lives he was so willing to end in order to exploit.
12. Rubber-Made
Before Murder House’s Vivien could so much as ask, “Who was that masked man?” a spectral Tate had stolen into her bedroom and had his way with her while wearing the BDSM getup that had saved neither previous homeowners Chad and Patrick’s relationship nor their lives.
11. Bulls—!
We sure hope the sex was to die for, because Coven’s living voodoo doll Queenie damn near died from her ill-advised greenhouse tryst with the, er, “horny” Minotaur. Not AHS’ scariest moment ever, but definitely one of its tensest and WTF-iest!
10. Snuff Said
Freak Show dominatrix and would-be superstar Elsa would have done pretty much anything to get a leg up on rival Marlene Dietrich… with the obvious exception of becoming a double amputee in what was intended to be her last porn flick!
9. Spine-Kringling
Beware those on the naughty list! Before we reached the conclusion of Asylum inmate Leigh’s reign of terror in Santa Claus drag, we had been forced to reconsider whether Christmas wasn’t actually a far scarier holiday than Halloween ever was.
8. House of Whacks
Come to think of it, we really should have warned you not to peruse this gallery while eating — certainly not if we were going to include a mention and a photo of the chamber of horrors in which Coven’s merciless Delphine tortured her slaves.
7. Room Disservice
Ever since seeing Hotel’s Addiction Demon put its horrifying drill-bit dildo to use on ill-fated junkie Gabriel, we can’t walk past a hardware store without suffering from flashbacks.
6. ‘Stare’ Case
After being used as a lab rat and having her legs amputated by Asylum’s diabolical Dr. Arden, Briarcliff “nymphomaniac” Shelley taught some elementary-school kids an impromptu lesson in terror when she emerged from an underground stairwell during recess.
5. Bed on Arrival
Instead of finding a mint on their pillow, the unfortunate tourists who checked into the Cortez in Hotel’s premiere discovered in their mattress — eesh! — an abomination that appeared to be (or have once been) a man.
4. Baby Stalk
If you wanna feel better about the fact that your home has bats in its belfry or rats in its basement, just think back to Murder House and its unwelcome guest Thaddeus, the blood-thirsty creature that was “born” when Charles reassembled and reanimated his slaughtered infant.
3. Curdled Milk
As ghastly as Oliver’s Bloody Face mask was in Asylum, it didn’t give us as many nightmares as the harrowing incident in which the demented doctor attempted to deal with his mommy issues by (shudder) breastfeeding on his prisoner, Lana.
2. About Face
Does anyone not still wince at the mere thought of the moment that Freak Show’s Twisty the Clown removed his mask to reveal what was left of his mouth following his failed suicide attempt? Oh, who are you kidding? Put your hands down already!
1. Target Practice
Though over the years AHS has creeped us out with zombies, vampires, aliens and everything in between, the scene that shook us most deeply remains the — sadly, all-too-believable — one in Murder House that found future ghost Tate opening fire on Westfield High.
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
Image: Courtesy of FX
