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“American Horror Story: 13” reached the end of a high-stakes battle between witches and the devil with a heartbreaking finale that still threw in some weird twists.
The long-awaited season, which reunited beloved characters from the FX anthology’s history, including all of Jessica Lange’s roles from seasons 1-4, followed Satan (Paul Anthony Kelly) and his allies to end a bet with God, who ruled the world through his son Benry (Joey). It’s up to the Coven witches, led by Cordelia Goode (Sarah Paulson) and emerging Supreme Mallory (Billie Lorde), to stop his rise. But the finale, titled “The Devil of a Good Time,” revealed that the only real obstacle was the devil himself.
Check out the biggest moments from the “AHS: 13” finale below.
Change of plans
After the last episode ended with Mr. Phibbs (John Waters) and the Rubber Man killing Cordelia and Quinn, it seemed like all hope of stopping Satan’s rise was lost. The finale opened with the thugs gathering at the Devil’s New York penthouse, where Phoebus gathered them to make one last sacrifice for the fate of Earth.
After giving the criminals cookies covered in meth to kill them, Mr. Phibbs is surprised that Satan interfered. He revealed that he had saved one of the humans from death – preventing the devil’s human form from fulfilling the bet and leaving only one kill. Phibbs was disappointed by the turn of events, but the Devil assured his servant that he would get what he always wanted in Hell before killing him.
The action then moved to Hell, where Cordelia suffered endless shifts in a murder asylum with assistant Nan (Jamie Brewer). Before he could take the life of another beloved puppy, Satan intervened and offered a helping hand. He said he’d rather spend eternity in misery than bow down to the dark lord. Excited, Satan took them from Hell and back to New York for a seemingly friendly discussion in a park.
Satan told Cordelia that the idea of winning the bet meant giving up what she loved about her job—being the little voice in people’s minds that tempts them. After all, it’s no fun being evil unless it’s clear to be rotten.
“You can keep your precious earth. I don’t want it anymore,” he said.
Light, dark and baby
Although he gave up his claim on Earth, Satan was happy to tell Cordelia that he had essentially won the game—attributing his latest resurrection to his own favor. Supreme refused to give up and promised to find a way to end his life, which he rejected as it would be like a metaphorical murder.
It turned out that Cordelia was Satan’s granddaughter, so she said she enjoyed watching her own evil nature from afar. He also offered her the key to his penthouse at the Apollyon, where most of the horror of the season took place. “Call it your piece of heritage,” he said before warning her to be on the lookout as it would appear at any moment.
Cordelia then reunites with Quinn, who Ben also saves from Hell (again). Cordelia shared the battle’s no-win decision and tried to calm the student’s nerves with the fact that at least the immediate threat was over. However, back at the penthouse, Mallory cast a time travel spell to stop the devil once and for all – and disappeared before Cordelia could stop her.
Back in New Orleans, Ben and Madison (Emma Roberts) spend some time together amid the chaos – before panicking after Ben realizes the condom is broken. Almost immediately, Madison began to experience severe pain and her belly began to expand: she was pregnant and about to give birth.
The child was born unconscious and Satan appeared and revived him. He praised his son and the witch for giving birth to a beautiful girl. “This kid has star power,” he said.
final showdown (?)
Some time passed and Cordelia revealed in a letter from Mallory that the coven had expanded to New York, with the Penthouse as their main base. Twins Fiona (Lange) and Constance (Lange) remained in New Orleans, teaching witches and helping the next generation of witches, while others helped merge the forces of light and dark into a new magical order – allowing new witches to appear all over the world.
“Every day I pray for you to come home,” Paulson wrote to the younger Supreme. Almost like clockwork, Cordelia cast a spell to summon Mallory, and she arrived with the good news.
He spent his time during the era of the Salem Witch Trials, stopping the massacre and helping the witches get justice. He also learns of an ancient spell that could stop the devil forever – one that aristocrat Dorian Gray infamously used to transfer his soul into a painting so he wouldn’t age. But the spell required a huge sacrifice for a job he didn’t want.
The wizards then summoned Ben, who was still glowing from being a new father. They informed him that the key to trapping his father required Ben’s self-sacrifice. They revealed that there were 12 other Antichrists before him – including some historical figures like Napoleon Bonaparte, Hitler and Mussolini whose bodies were desecrated and stolen earlier in the season. But as the 13th Antichrist, Ben was the most powerful and his death sealed his father’s fate.
Heartbroken, Ben tried to tell things to be different, but eventually accepted his fate – after Cordelia assured him that Madison would be proud of his decision. Just in time, Satan would appear and wonder what his descendants were up to. Almost too easily, Cordelia and Mallory corner him on the couch in the penthouse’s great hall – in a decidedly real-life version of Da Vinci’s The Last Supper.
Ben stabbed himself with the terrifying-looking dagger and immediately turned to dust, summoning enough power for the two Supremes to join forces and release the devil’s soul into the historical painting. They replaced him with Judas at the “Last Supper”, forcing him to remain the 13th guest at the table forever. Mallory then seemed to accept the fact that the Covenant would have to observe the painting for the rest of the time now, but Cordelia said that would not be necessary. Evil can simply be defeated forever.
It’s not that easy. In the Penthouse’s final moments, dust can be seen rising from Ben’s body and entering a nearby chimney. After all, evil is definitely not gone! Then the season ended back in hell, with Mr. Phibbs reveling in his own personal hell – directing a scene from a cakewalk movie that would never come out right.
“I could do this forever,” he says with a laugh as the credits roll. See you next season, I guess!
“American Horror Story: 13” is streaming now on Hulu.
