FX’s popular series American Horror Story is back with Season 4, Freak Show. This season has all of your favorite characters returning for an all-new adventure. Season 4 is set in the 1950s with a bunch of misfits under the big top in Florida.

Jessica Lange is back and she stars as Elsa Mars, owner of Elsa’s Cabinet of Curiosities. You can find performances from Lobster Boy (Evan Peters), Seal Man, the Bearded Lady (Kathy Bates), conjoined twins (Sarah Paulson), the strongman, and his wife, the 3-breasted lady (Angela Bassett). The group also includes Ma Petite, touted as the smallest woman in the world.

Although Elsa is the leader of the group, she is also the star performer. Elsa longs to be a star and often dreams about leaving the freak show to pursuit a career as a star.

In addition to the day-to-day tribulations that come with being a sideshow attraction, the troupe has to contend with a serial killing clown that’s on the loose. There are also two con artists who infiltrate the group under false pretenses. They seek to take certain body parts and sell them to the highest bidder. The strongman kills Ma Petite (because he was being blackmailed). The con artists then steal her body so it can be put on display at a twisted museum.

The killer clown is killed and a character named Dandy picks up where he lefts off. Dandy lived with his wealthy mother who purchased the conjoined twins for Dandy’s pleasure. Dandy fell in love but the twins decide to leave Dandy. He kills the maid, a prostitute and eventually his mother.

Elsa quits the freak show business and sells the group to Dandy. The freaks try to work with Dandy but they end up revolting against him, which causes him to snap and go on a full-fledged killing spree. He is eventually killed.

Right in the middle of Elsa’s new and successful career, word gets out about the murders of the freak show performers. Elsa’s career is threatened and she is eventually killed and sent to a reincarnation of her freak show, where she can be with the other freak show members forever.

This installment of the American Horror Story series was intriguing and interesting. The show does a good job of keeping the audience engaged and the various misfits easily gain your sympathy.

You can catch previous episodes of American Horror Story season 4 on Netflix. (Netflix offers the first month for free). You can also get all four seasons at Amazon.