American Horror Stories (TV Series) Lake (2022) User Reviews

I burst out laughing when the zombies got out of the lake

[armanmartirosyan · 4/10 · 8 September 2022]

The concept overall was smart and could have been strong had the acting and dialogues not been so terrible... The whole episode had a slow pace (which I don't mind) but suddenly the ending was rushed, and for what? I thought the acting was the most embarrassing thing until those zombies came out of the lake and I just could no longer keep a straight face on at the cringe.

I was expecting the zombies to take the daughter with them or at least for the mother to throw her daughter into the lake at the end for a final twist (the running theme this season) but it just ended with some cringy smartass monologue at the end...

Ending with a whimper

[Reviewer48358 · 4/10 · 8 September 2022]

For being a fairly short episode it is surprising how bored I found myself for the vast majority of the 40 minute runtime. The family dynamic struggles to hold any substance with the very little information we ever learn about them. It would be generous to call the acting in this episode subpar, notably the daughter seemed especially disconnected from everything happening around her. The big "payoff" scene at the end lasts no more than 2 minutes, failing to make anything feel worth while. The plot had potential, but every tagline issue that's found in AHstories is present here. Unrealistic dialogue, rushed plot, questionable acting, and an unsatisfying ending. Season two of AHstories showed overall improvement over the first, but the bar is still set very low. If this show manages to gets a third season I hope it is clear they need to put more thought into their work.

Nobody ever wants to blame Manny Coto

[MsHoneyBee · 4/10 · 11 September 2022]

Even though the worst episode of the season was not written by him (Milkmaid), I'm always so mad at Manny Coto when I see these lazy, stinker episodes like Lake.

Someone whose written for the series, has executive producer producer credits and has been stuck like glue to the creators for so long should REALLY know how to deliver an episode worth the shows name.

Lake started out good for me. Honestly. I enjoyed Alicia Silverstone as a mom, crows feet and all. The daughter was a little flat emotionally but I think that's what they were going for, traumatized survivor, sent to a mental health facility, however, that LAZY explanation for the issues at the Lake was just pathetic. Manny should be ashamed of himself.

This series deserves more.

Hilarious

[jessicaburns_05 · 2/10 · 9 September 2022]

The last ten minutes or so had me cracking up. It was so cliche and awful and cheesy. I literally expected another scene of people watching it as a bad movie or SOMETHING. For having a somewhat star with Alicia Silverstone she was the worst in it! Her acting was laughable and so overdramatic. Worth watching just for a laugh but don't expect it to be good or interesting.

"It ALL makes sense now" (all = one bad thing) "What are we going to tell everyone?" Yes that would also be my first question after my father gets dragged under water by zombies. For sure.

"It's the lake. It wants revenge." With the most dramatic voice ever.

"It all makes sense now!" For the hundredth time and still DOESN'T make sense to say ALL for ONE EVENT.

Amateur

[kings_of_metal · 3/10 · 8 September 2022]

By far the worst episode. The whole tone feels off. It feels cheap, like a lifetime family movie. The acting, the constant cheesy background music, the awful writing. This one should have been cut. I don't know that I've ever seen a performance as bad as silverstones here from a big name actress. I have to wonder if they were making it bad on purpose as a joke or something, but even then it's not funny type of bad. This second season has been a big improvement over the first and they chose to end it with this? At least the first few minutes were interesting, but man did they drop the ball after the first 3 minutes.

Cmon... zero creativity

[evanconet · 2/10 · 8 September 2022]

I write super long reviews but for this...i dont even have much to say except this episode was just boring an uneventful. Nothing really actually happens in the 40 minutes and the twist is anticlimactic. This is the first review but im wondering what anyone would like about this episode? Some ghosts wanna kill a guy because of his ancestors wow and the first time we see them they drag him away and its over. This show was on a run of good episodes and this one was a huge let down. How am i supposed to be interested in this episode? Am i supposed to feel like the husband deserves death because his ancestors were bad people...side note the sons acting was rough please pick actors instead of just muscular attractive dudes- glad he was barely in the ep.

Sterile

[ivanbusuiok-65238 · 6/10 · 8 September 2022]

I'm sad to say it, but for me it was too simple and nothing special. It lacked a tiny bit of everything in every aspect: the acting was good, but the way the mother reacted to what happened in the end was very weird and off-putting; the visuals and intro were nothing special; basic cinematography; the story was too basic for this genre and overall this ep left me with like literally zero emotions or thoughts. But it still was not as bad as the worst episodes of S1. At the end I'm glad how the season turned out. It just needed to end on a more memorable story to not leave the viewer with disappointment.

Poor choice for the season finale.

[ExoticLikeRanchDressing · 2/10 · 9 September 2022]

Overall this season has been much better than the first. 'Lake' was a horrible end to a decent season. Bad acting, boring story line, and just plain bad writing. It was hard to get through.

They could have done so much more with this concept. Delved deeper into the back story of the lake/dam and the husbands involvement/ link but just as soon as everything is revealed it's just over. There's no build up. They spend more time filming the actors resurfacing for air than they actually show of what could have been an interesting storyline.

Opening scene is rushed, the actors had absolutely no chemistry throughout, and Alicia Silverstone really was a poor choice. Overall the entire episode just fell flat and felt bland and dull and extremely rushed. Save yourself the 40 mins and just leave off on Necro. Would have been a more fitting final episode.

Not that bad

[bangel3322 · 6/10 · 19 September 2022]

A 4 is very harsh!!!!

It wasn't a bad episode, however this should have been like episode 1 or 2. The season should always end with the best episode, and this wasn't it. Episode 1 with the dolls should have been the last episode really. It was probably the most interesting episode with a nice tie-in to the American Horror Story season Coven.

My favourite episodes were Facelift and Necro. Two amazingly acted episodes.

This story was interesting, and the little twist was good but needed a bit more of an oomph. That's what it missing. Not sure Alicia Silverstone was well cast in this role. But anyways... Season 2 has been far superior to season 1. No doubt it will be renewed.

The Acting in Season 2's episode Lake was Atrocious

[astralxromance · 1/10 · 8 September 2022]

What on earth made them think it was a good idea to put this mess with the rest of the series? The acting was the worse I've seen in ages especially from the woman playing the Mother. It was as if she had no idea how to act at all and could greatly benefit from acting lessons as it was embarrassingly awful. That was equally as bad as the writing.

There was sadly nothing interesting about the entire episode from start to finish which was really disappointing. I hate being critical but I think it's important to write reviews like this with honest feedback so the show can continue on and improve.

8 stars for Silverstone .. bad writing

[collins-62077 · 8/10 · 24 September 2022]

I watch a lot of bad horror movies.. dabbled at sleepaway camp... thankskilling.. this episode was lazily written.. worst one of the series? Definitely not.. but for what it was, it wasn't horrible .. I would give the story a 4 but Alicia Silverstone bumps it to 8. I love seeing her in horror lately . Toward the end when it was like oh it's your family who happens to be the husband.. who is the exact lawyer handling the case to keep the lake open.. I can see what they were trying to do , but , for me it was just to ... perfect, didn't flow well. Yes I know I'm not a writer by profession I just have a strange addiction to bad horror movies and shows.. not the worst I have seen from this series, hit the "well that's just silly horror" I don't think that was the goal for them here. Alicia keep doing what your doing girl!

Lake - 208

[bobcobb301 · 6/10 · 15 September 2022]

This has been a pretty good season of American Horror Stories. I'm a big fan of anthology shows, whether it is Twilight Zone, Tales From the Crypt, Inside No. 9, anything.

This had a good and natural horror premise to it: there was a cursed lake and we had to figure out just why this was happening.

But then it took a predictably bad turn and we had a daughter and wife not that upset that the father was getting carried off by zombies from the water. That actually gave me a good flashback to the water demons episode of Are You Afraid of the Dark.

Still an enjoyable episode and a good finale to wrap up the season, but the mother and daughter were incredibly awkward here.

I feel bad for Alicia

[matthewwweaver · 3/10 · 9 September 2022]

I honestly do not know how they got anyone who saw the script to sign up for this much less Alicia Silverstone. She did her best but the script is awful. I was initially excited because I'm from Georgia, and the Initial premise of a lake build on a town felt reminiscent of Lake Lanier. That is really where the interest stopped. It revolves around a curse that I won't spoil, but it didn't make sense. The editing was poor and we kept noticing obvious mistakes. This feels worse than any low budget hallmark movie or Syfy film I've ever seen. Extremely disappointed, and I love Alicia Silverstone so I am sad her name got attached to such a crappy production.

What in the Twilight Zone

[xjjmhnb · 1/10 · 8 September 2022]

This episode features Cher from Clueless as the mom and I'm terribly confused about this. She is clearly a comedic actor and seeing her in something like this was a lot like seeing your English teacher get slammers at a night club

The acting in this is bad, even for AHSs, and this plot is something out of a college version of Scooby Doo. It also feels like an episode of the original twilight zone series.

My entire body recoiled harder and harder as the episode went on and by the time you realize how lame the "main twist" is the ending credits are already rolling because you couldn't possibly think that THAT would be the main point driving the story.

This season is pretty bad, but this episode is ESPECIALLY bad.

Old EC Comics plot with crap acting/direction

[darmal5-1 · 1/10 · 12 September 2022]

Yeah I get it: it's just like those old supernatural revenge stories from "Tales from the Crypt", but any director worth their salt must realize that to succeed there must be an element of camp! It doesn't necessarily need an animatronic crypt keeper, but it does require pacing and above all some degree of acting!

The biggest mistake here is that they tried to treat it as an after school special on grief with some horror thrown in. Nope. Not going to cut it. It needed a better set up on the location, a more horrifying first kill, some true research (rather than a lucky find), and above all suspense! When the carted off the Prescott relative, he just laid there. Where was the final but where the mother and daughter turn around to find another group of ghouls to abduct the daughter? That is true EC style!

One only has to look at the success of the old "Tales from the Crypt" tv show and that Stephen King anthology to see how to do it right. Perhaps not the over the top lighting, but the story beats. So is it the actor's fault or the director's?

Please American Horror Stories: learn from your mistakes!!!!

Awful

[ryancanuel · 3/10 · 8 September 2022]

A glacially slow story after the opening scene ends with clunky exposition delivered by generic spooky older local lady. Tied up at the end with a plot twist that was so dumb I needed to physically unroll my eyes from the back of my skull to write this review. The acting was okay, but honestly they had very little to work with here, so I can't blame them. This season was hit or miss (mostly miss,) similar to it's first season. I had higher hopes after 2 fairly decent stories at the beginning of this season but it was a quick decent downhill after that, and this episode ended this season on a very low note. I'd be quite surprised if this gets a third season, though if it did I'd probably keep watching, mostly too see how they could top this and the equally awful "Milkmaids" episode.

Good episode

[roaryw · 7/10 · 12 September 2022]

American horror stories always have a great premise but kind of rush to a fall flat end .. this one is no exception .. this time I think they were going on a cursed lake .. much like lake Lanier in Georgia .. Alicia silverstone did great ... the story was great until the end .. all in all .. I give it a 7 for the general story .. excellent cinematography and editing.

Overall the premise was great .. they even did a flash back showing the origins of the story .. so much went into this episode in terms of planning and shots for the ending to be a dud.

I generally enjoyed it but rewatch value is near zero.

About par for the season, awful!

[cadkev89 · 1/10 · 14 September 2022]

I don't know why I keep giving this series chance after chance. This episode is so incredibly lame. The story is like something a 10 year old would come up with. The way the mom and daughter are just like " oh well, I guess he deserved it" when the dad is carried off by the skeletons, so stupid! The actual writing is abominable, the dialog is almost comedic. I think the mom says "sweetie" 100 times. And the acting! I've seen better acting in a 6th grade play. What has happened to Alicia Silverstone? She didn't look well and her acting was terrible.

Even the special effects are awful. When the mom finds the dead kid in the water his hair is perfect. The lake skeletons look like cheap dime store Halloween costumes.

In case you aren't sure, I didn't care for this episode and will not bother watching any future seasons. AHS is over.

Not bad

[trismamone83 · 7/10 · 10 September 2022]

This season of American Horror Stories has been a mixed bag. Some episodes were great, while others totally sucked. (Seriously, what the hell happened with "Milkmaids?" Was the writer, Our Lady J, on such a tight deadline that she wrote down the first thing that popped into her head with no editing?) It's only fitting that this season ends with "Lake," a story that started off strong, but was just okay by the end.

Finn and her brother Jake are on a boat with some friends when they decide to dive underwater to find a lost town. Suddenly something grabs Jake's leg and pulls him down while Finn watches in horror. Four months later, Finn comes home to her parents after a stay in a psych ward and the family tries to move on...until the mother, Erin, starts having strange visions. Now Erin and Finn must find out what happened to Jake, which means returning to the lake.

Overall it's a good episode, but like I said, the end isn't as strong as the beginning. It doesn't ruin the episode, though. Just feels like it could use more umph.

Why did they wait so long?

[austingirl-59179 · 4/10 · 19 September 2022]

Why did the dead townfolk from the lake wait this long to take Jeffrey? It was the family's lake house. Erin's flashback shows them all there as a family, from not too long ago by their ages. So why didn't the dead townies kill any of them before? That didn't make sense. The acting was subpar. Pretty silly how Erin just believes this and is not freaking out. Hey, a bunch of dead guys from the lake came out and grabbed my husband and took him away with them back into the lake. But that's what they wanted, so oh well!

This wasn't a great end to the season by any means. I stopped watching AHS a couple of Seasons ago. I thought Stories would be better. Eh, I guess they are both sucking. Boo :(

AHS stories, Twilight Zone ancestor?

[gingerly1000 · 8/10 · 25 September 2022]

With all the negative remarks and low reviews, perhaps this is what I have come to expect of the AHS stories, because I liked this episode!

I will admit that not all the episodes from season one or two have been good. I did like a few this season better then season one (most were awful). And this season had a few very disturbing scenes and episodes (Milkmaids).

Lake hsd a well rounded story, actual plot, not bad acting with a bit of Sci-Fi. Very reminiscent of past Twilight Zone episodes from the 60's. I enjoyed seeing Silverstone in an offbeat drama and as a caring Mom. Loved the jump scares and the twist at the end.

A Doomed Lake

[ZegMaarJus · 6/10 · 27 April 2023]

This Episode begins with Finn and her friends, they are on a boat in the lake. Jake is drowning during diving, Finn tried to save him. Jake disappeared into the lake. Finn got out of the mental health clinic. Erin sees Jake his ghost in the night. Erin thinks thay Jake is still alive. Finn tells to Erin that she thinks that Jake is still alive. Erin and Finn leave the house to find Jake back. Erin found Jake his body in the lake. There are coming zombies out of the lake. Jeffrey, Erin and Finn got surrounded by the zombies. Jeffrey got drowned in the lake. An Okay Final Episode of American Horror Stories Season 2, this was just okay. Not good and not bad. Curious to see if there will be a thirth Season this year!

Hot garbage

[dragongirlall · 1/10 · 8 October 2022]

This is easily the worst episode in the history of American story and stories. The acting was absolutely awful. I mean the worst I've ever seen in terms of a very popular show. The story was so weird. It's also weird to me that Ryan Murphy who wrote Glee, who stared Naya Rivera makes an episode about someone drowning in a lake. Like what? Maybe I'm looking way to deep but... It's so strange and I hated it I wanted to turn it off the first 10 minutes. But I powered though I wouldn't recommend anyone do that same. It's hard for me to even give this review a 1. Absolute HOT GARBAGE, DO NOT WATCH!

Waste of time

[fqmqgsn · 1/10 · 9 September 2022]

Usually with most of the episodes theres a chance the horrible acting will pay off with a twist or a satisfying/shocking ending for a mysterious and intriguing storyline but this was not that. With a runtime of 38 minutes and an underwhelming ending that had no build up, I feel like the production crew saw there was nothing they could do to save this mess and gave up. I was praying they'd go for the predictable formula of most of these episodes where there's a traitor and they have to go against them so it at least has something going for it but they just let this one go lol. Atrocious. Horrendous. Offensively abominable.

THE DRIEST episode yet, even with the water

[backwoodsgnar · 1/10 · 11 September 2022]

Let me preface by saying Lake Lanier trauma is not for YT PPL to appropriate, cause it sure seems like that what this was trying to portray.

BUT WHAT THE FK WAS THIS ACTING. Alicia Silverstone, I love you and I think you did a good classic mom......but the daughter?

This acting was toast without butter.

Beans, soaked over night, without being cooked and eaten.

Watching it was like trying to consume a freshly sundried brick.

Imagine just plucking handfulls of wheat and eating it without milling.

RAW.....IN ALL OF THE WORST WAYS.

I expected some sort of plot twist because it was so bad.......but there was NO plot twist.

THIS EPISODE WAS INDEED JUST THAT BAD. Lake Lanier cursed it, as it should.