Remembering The Time ‘American Horror Story’ Paid Tribute To David Bowie

The fourth installment of Ryan Murphy’s horror anthology, American Horror Story: Freak Show — aside from being all over the place in terms of plot and character development — was probably most well known for its musical numbers. These musical numbers were polarizing among fans, who either loved or reviled them, and overall they worked to varying degrees of success — from the eyebrow-raising Fiona Apple’s “Criminal” performed by Sarah Paulson’s characters to the even more eyebrow-raising cover of Nirvana’s “Come As You Are” by Evan Peters.

But easily the most outstanding of all the season’s performances came at the end of the season finale, when Jessica Lange’s Elsa Mars performed David Bowie’s excellent “Heroes” as a final curtain call, knowing that the ghost of Edward Mordrake and his merry band of ghost freaks was coming for her. It also brought the season full circle, as Lange had likewise performed Bowie’s “Life on Mars” in the season premiere.

The performance may not have made up for a spotty season and even spottier finale, but it was extremely well done and Lange knocked it out of the park. And on a day like today when we’re all mourning the passing of David Bowie, it’s a nice moment for American Horror Story fans to revisit.

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