In the latest ‘American Horror Story: Roanoke’ recap, Matt and Shelby face new horrors both from the real world and the ghosts who want them dead…
By Damon Martin — Editor/Lead Writer
The history of “The Big Shaker House” stretches all the way back to 1792 and that’s where this episode of ‘American Horror Story: Roanoke’ starts.
As a historian explains, the house was originally built by Edward Phillippe Mott (played by Evan Peters) — a man of inherited wealth who loved to spend his family’s money on extravagant paintings that would soon decorate his new home in North Carolina. It seems Edward suffered from social anxiety so being around a lot of people didn’t sit well with him so he built the house in a remote area of North Carolina to stay secluded away from the rest of the world.
Of course, Edward did manage to keep a number of servants around as well as Guinness — his man servant and lover, who shared the bed with him inside the lavish house. Edward thought this place would be the perfect home to share with his lover, far away from the judgmental and prying eyes of the outside world.
Sadly, Edward’s bliss was short lived because just days after moving into the house, he heard a disturbance. When Edward went downstairs he found that all of his paintings had been ripped up and torn to shreds. Edward blamed the staff and ended up putting them all into cellar below the house to suffer until one of them finally came clean and admitted to the heinous act of destroying his paintings.
Of course no one ever confessed because it was the ghosts of Roanoke who tore apart Edward’s precious collection and once the blood moon rose, he was also dealt with. The Butcher and her people arrived at the house, dragged Edward from his bed and plunged a stake through his body before lifting and putting into a bonfire where he burned alive.
The Mott family continued a twisty, turvy history after Edward’s death until being snuffed out once and for all in Florida in 1952. That of course was the death of Dandy Mott — who we all remember from ‘American Horror Story: Freak Show’ and with that the Mott family name died forever.
But the legacy of the house Edward Phillippe Mott built lives on to terrorize inhabitants to this day. The latest — Matt and Shelby Miller.
With that said, let’s recap the latest episode of ‘American Horror Story: Roanoke’ titled ‘Chapter 5’….
Out of the Frying Pan
As last week’s episode of ‘American Horror Story’ came to an end, Matt and Shelby were locked inside their home as they watched poor Cricket Marlowe being disemboweled by the Butcher and her clan of Roanoke ghosts. After Cricket was dead, Matt, Shelby and their niece Flora knew that they were next.
Matt decided the best course of action was to sacrifice himself to the Butcher while Shelby and Flora made a run for the truck to getaway. Shelby reluctantly agreed but before she could escape, a spider like creature came out of the walls and snatched Flora before dragging her all around the house. Matt and Shelby gave chase but after retrieving Flora, they soon ran into all manner of creatures who were inside the home. Outside, the Butcher set fire to the Miller’s car and truck, rendering them helpless to get away.
Inside, everything from the Pig Man to the three hunters who killed themselves, Matt and Shelby soon realized there was nowhere left to turn and these creatures were corralling them to a point in the house where they could have no escape except into the Butcher’s waiting arms.
Thankfully out of nowhere, Edward Phillippe Mott showed up and helped the family escape through a series of underground tunnels he had built into the house in case he ever needed to make a quick getaway with his precious paintings. While Matt and Shelby were gracious towards Edward for his help, it turns out the ghostly builder of the house mostly just wanted them gone so he could have the place to himself again.
After a mile walk through the dark, dank tunnel, the group popped out on the other side, far away from the house and the Butcher’s waiting cleaver. Edward left them in the woods to fend for themselves after helping them escape.
Sadly freedom was short lived after bags were placed over Matt and Shelby’s head and the butt of a gun came crashing down, knocking all of them out.
Pigs in a Polk
When Matt and Shelby awoke along with Flora, they found that the Polk family — the redneck inbred clan that tried to buy the house during the auction at the beginning of the season — had kidnapped them and brought the group back to the farmhouse where those two boys were found alone, suckling on a dead cow’s teat a few episodes back.
The Polk family not only kidnapped the Miller’s and Flora but they also rescued Elias from the woods after he had been struck by the arrows and left for dead. It turns out he didn’t die, but instead the Polk family brought him back to life before amputating his arms and legs for some human beef jerky.
Matt and Shelby are horrified by what they are witnessing and things only get worse when Mama Polk arrives and tells one of her boys to kill Elias after she tastes the tainted jerky meat she made out of his arms and legs.
Mama Polk then tells the Miller family the awful truth — they made a pact with the Butcher 200 years ago that they would keep supplying them with sacrifices during every blood moon so the land could stay consecrated and the Roanoke ghosts would leave them alone. It’s an agreement that’s worked for two centuries and the Polk family tried to buy the house so it would stay empty but Matt and Shelby ultimately out bid them for the property.
Now there’s no other choice but the offer Matt and Shelby back to the Butcher so she can sacrifice them and the Polk family stays safe.
Into the Fire
Bouncing in the back of a pickup truck, Matt, Shelby and Flora were riding towards their impending doom while the Polk family took them back to the house where they would be sacrificed by the Butcher.
With Lot Polk (played by Chaz Bono) distracted for a just a moment, Matt made his move and grabbed the gun away before pulling the trigger and blowing the driver’s head off. Shelby kicked Lot out of the moving truck and they soon came to a stop. Matt and Shelby quickly grabbed Flora and made a run for it. Why they didn’t take the truck is beyond me.
Needless to say hiding in the woods failed and the Polk family soon caught up to them and Mama Polk was not very happy that one of her sons died thanks to them. To ensure that they didn’t run away again, Mama Polk smashed Shelby’s ankle with a sledgehammer before dragging them all back to the house where the Butcher was prepared for a slaughter.
Meanwhile back at the police station, Lee was finishing up her questioning with the cops after Shelby turned her in for possibly murdering her ex-husband Mason. After 48-hours the police still hadn’t charged Lee with anything so she was free to go.
When Lee finally got to her phone, she saw messages from Matt saying they got Flora back but when she called, the phone went straight to voicemail. Lee knew that meant Matt was in trouble so she hitched a ride with a cop back to the house.
With the Miller family back in their clutches, the Butcher prepared to make her sacrifice starting with Flora — despite her promise to Priscilla to kill the little girl last — and she got ready burn her alive. Before she could commit the deed, the Butcher’s son Ambrose finally saw enough and told his mother that she would never take another innocent soul from this Earth. He grabbed his mother and dragged her into the fire pit with him as they both started to burn alive.
Matt attempted to drag Shelby to safety but the Pig Man decided to finish the Butcher’s work as he picked up the hatchet and came towards Flora. Out of nowhere, Lee comes driving in with one of the cars that was supposed to be totaled and she ran down the Pig Man before telling Matt and Shelby to get in.
Matt, Shelby and Flora jumped in the car before driving away from that house like a bat out of hell while the Butcher emerged from the fire, engulfed in flames still trying to exact her revenge.
Later that night as a two-bit motel, Matt, Shelby, Lee and Flora celebrated their freedom with a hot shower and some takeout pizza. It cost them very little but they felt like the richest people in the world because after this horrendous ordeal, the family was still alive and they were still together.
Of course, Shelby still has nightmares almost every night that the Butcher is still out there, coming to get them but she knows deep down that she’s finally safe.
Or so it seems…
Next week, ‘American Horror Story: Roanoke’ takes a dramatic shift in episode six and the brief teaser showed Cheyenne Jackson for the first time this season and it certainly looked like he was a director. Perhaps the director behind this true crime series that’s been following the Miller family through this entire ordeal? Something tells me, the Miller’s may be through with Roanoke but Roanoke isn’t through with them.
‘American Horror Story: Roanoke’ returns next Wednesday night at 10pm ET on FX.
