As many of you know by now, Wednesday night's AHS episode "Show Stoppers" further solidified Freak Show 's connection to Asylum by revealing that Hans Gruper aka Dr. Arthur Arden was responsible for cutting off Elsa's legs in that horrible snuff film back in the 1930s. And while that by itself is enough to jumpstart even more theories into high gear, there was an additional nod to Season 2 that night, which you might've missed. Before Stanley got his just rewards for his murderous con man antics, Elsa mentioned something about having a movie night — a statement which the rest of her troupe met with a resounding plea: “Not The Sign of the Cross again," clearly indicating that the film is one of Elsa's favorites.
There's nothing too freaky about that, right? I mean, it's a little more of a religious choice than I would expect to see from someone like Elsa, but hey, I'm not one to judge, especially when it concerns movie preferences. And yet, there's something about that title that sounds oh-so familiar. Why? Probably because that just so happened to be Sister Jude's movie of choice as well. You remember. When a huge storm was rolling into Briarcliff, Jude arranged for the 1932 classic to be shown during a movie night as a way to help keep the inmates calm.
So what should we, as fans, take away from this? Is this yet another Ryan Murphy tactic in messing with our minds or was this additional nod to Asylum supposed to indicate an even deeper connection? In the past, we've discussed the idea of whether or not Elsa Mars and Sister Jude are the same person, so this movie link is sure to add extra fuel to that fire. Although it should be noted that we've seen Jude's legs on multiple occasions — whether it be thanks to her red lingerie or eventual inmate ensemble — and they don't appear to be made of wood. So unless she pulled a Pinocchio and made some sort of deal with a Blue Fairy, I highly doubt this can possibly be the same person. But given that this is AHS we're talking about, it's not as if facts and logic make any sort of real difference here. Still, it can't all be chocked up as coincidences.
Not to mention that the whole Heaven and Hell parallels (Sister Jude being a nun and Elsa's Freak Show emblem being the face of the devil) makes for pretty fantastic symmetry…
This brings us, once again, to the Elsa and Jude twin theory. That's right, people. I have yet to give up on this idea. Ever since we saw that sad clown version of Jessica Lange watching Elsa perform David Bowie's "Life on Mars," I've been convinced that twins would prove to be a dominant theme throughout the season: first with Bette and Dot, and now with this. Plus, let's not forget how Elsa admitted to Ethel that she had a sister once who was two years older than her and supposedly died as an infant. But what if she didn't? What if, unknown to Elsa, the parents actually had twins, but were forced to give the other girl away — a girl who would one day grow up to run an insane asylum in Massachusetts.
I'm just saying… Elsa would be too young to remember and it would certainly help to explain their common interests, not just in movies, but in their love of singing…
And checkers…
And, of course, corporal punishment…
So if it truly is Jessica Lange's final season, you gotta admit this would make for one hell of a memorable exit. Because the only thing better than having one Lange on screen, is having two. Your move, Murphy.
Images: Sam Lothridge/FX; jessicalange (5); Giphy (4); holyshitballsjessicalange/Tumblr
