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American Gothic: Difference between revisions
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* [[Good Is Impotent]] - No matter how hard Dr. Crower and Gail fight for Caleb's rights, and no matter how much Merlyn uses her angelic powers to protect him, Caleb is inexorably drawn into Buck's orbit and everyone seems helpless to prevent it, or even expose Buck's evil. It doesn't help that the sheriff is a [[Villain With Good Publicity]] and that both Matt and Gail are hardly immune to mind games or [[Evil Is Sexy|temptation]], but even Merlyn is made out to be decidedly weaker than her adversary--and gaining more power to face him [[Not So Different|almost pushes her too far]].
* [[Heel Face Revolving Door]] - [[Femme Fatale|Selena Coombs]] certainly seems to be riding one of these, or perhaps a seesaw. Aside from the moments when we see the weakening of her evil resolve and the good heart shining through (particularly the episode "Potato Boy"), the last several episodes of the series involve her repeatedly switching sides based on opportunism, a [[Gambit Roulette]], or acting out of character depending on your interpretation. It's hard to tell exactly who she's lying to at any given moment--Buck, Dr. Peele, or Caleb.
* [[Hey, It's That Voice!|Hey it's that tune]]: The first episode opens with a tune many may recognize from Twin Peaks... or something remarkably similar
* [[High Heel Face Turn]]: played with and then spectacularly avoided with {{spoiler|Billy and Selena}}.
* [[Hot for Student]] - Although never outright stated, the very fact that the [[Beware the Nice Ones|supposedly sweet]], [[The Ingenue|seemingly wholesome]] Selena Coombs is in fact a [[Femme Fatale]], [[Hot Librarian]], and [[Evil Teacher]] all rolled into one makes speculation about this trope inevitable. There are certainly more than a few moments where seeing this ravishing, suggestively dressed, beautiful woman speaking to her class of gradeschoolers in that sultry Southern drawl left this editor feeling...[[Squick|uncomfortable]]. It doesn't help that the actress in question almost seemed aware of this fact, since she almost always focused her attention on the young boys in her classroom. Somewhat justified in Caleb's case, since Buck wanted her to keep an eye on his 'son'...but even there, considering [[Sex Is Evil|what one of the best ways to corrupt Caleb would be]], scenes of closeness between the two [[Freud Was Right|appear to have a deeper meaning]]...
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* [[I Have You Now, My Pretty]] - A disturbing inversion. Not only is there no hero in sight to show up and save [[Plucky Girl|Gail]] from sexual ravishment by [[Magnificent Bastard]] Sheriff Buck -- since Dr. Crower a) is absolutely clueless about what is developing between them b) has his own problems and c) is never even implied to have any interest in Gail other than as a friend -- but Gail ''actually wants it.'' (Because, of course, [[Evil Is Sexy]] and [[Evil Feels Good]].) The fact she is willing, overcome by her desires, and unable to resist Buck, however, does not stop the scene in question from being depraved: it [[Double Entendre|takes place in a garden]] replete with unsettling statuary, and the [[Discretion Shot]] used throughout is downright surreal, with imagery that switched from [[What Do You Mean Its Not Symbolic]] to [[Mind Screw]] territory.
* [[In the Blood]] - One of the main sources of dramatic tension is the question of Caleb's parentage--not just whether he really is Buck's son, but whether he can actively resist becoming corrupt and evil just like his father. And it seems he and Merlyn are right to worry, since {{spoiler|the more time he spends with Buck, and the more he learns from him, the more cruel, amoral, callous, and sadistic he becomes}}. Of course this is likely helped along by his near-death experience, Buck's powers, and {{spoiler|being possessed by Buck}} but the simple fact is after ten or so years of showing no signs of evil, once he learns of his (possible) heritage, {{spoiler|Caleb's fall into darkness}} is somehow inevitable.
* [[Karma Houdini]] - Unsurprisingly, [[Satan|Sheriff Buck]] is a [[Karma Houdini]] for the entire run of the series. Among the most notable things he gets away with are: killing Merlyn Temple ''in the very first episode'' and blackmailing his failed [[Bastard Understudy]] Ben Healy to keep quiet about it; imprisoning, torturing, and eventually causing the death by neglect of an out-of-town reporter (complete with {{spoiler|removing from his belongings the evidence that might convict Buck of various crimes}}, [[Good Is Impotent|all while Dr. Matt and Gail look on helplessly]]); tormenting Dr. Matt about his alcoholism, nearly getting him expelled at the hospital due to his tragic past, and eventually {{spoiler|setting him up to look like an insane vigilante so he could be locked up in a mental ward}}; manipulating Gage Temple into {{spoiler|killing Gail's parents (from which he escapes only by [[Broken Pedestal|revealing to her how awful her parents really were]]}}); and summoning the spirit of the Boston Strangler to kill Merlyn ([[Idiot Ball|only to have him go after Gail as well]]). He even seems to win at the end of the series. This would be enough to constitute a [[Downer Ending]] and a reason to wash your hands of the show, if not for the suitably vague ending, [[The End
* [[Kudzu Plot]] - We never know in the end whether Buck will ever be stopped, whether Caleb {{spoiler|will go evil}}, whose side {{spoiler|Selena}} is really on, and so forth. But there a few genuine moments where an element was introduced, then never revisited again, leaving for some major head-scratchings. Examples: Was Sutpen of "Damned If You Don't" {{spoiler|really a ghost/spiritual summoning of Buck's, or not?}} Did Buck {{spoiler|[[Driven to Suicide|drive his girlfriend to suicide]], or not?}} Whatever happened to the fellow Merlyn was romancing when she came back to life? Will Dr. Matt ever {{spoiler|get free of the sanitarium?}} Whatever happened to Selena's father, and will he and she ever reconcile? (This last one is particularly distressing since, thanks to the episode in question [[Executive Meddling|never being aired]], very few people even know it exists.)
* [[Life or Limb Decision]] - Performed by (who else?) [[Magnificent Bastard|Buck]].
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[[Category:Horror Literature]]
[[Category:American Gothic]]
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