Warning: SPOILERS for American Horror Story season 10, episodes 1 & 2!
American Horror Story season 10 kicked off by airing two episodes, introducing little black pills at the center of Red Tide. While Red Tide will take up the first half of Double Feature, Part 2 will shift the setting "by the sand" with a subtitle of Death Valley. For now, season 10 follows the Gardner family, specifically Harry Gardner (Finn Wittrock), who moves his family to Provincetown, Massachusetts, for the winter in the hopes of finding some creative inspiration. What he finds instead is a pill that unlocks his greatest potential.
Red Tide's first episode, "Cape Fear," presents Harry's struggle in writing a TV pilot as a last-ditch effort to save his career. The change of scenery quickly takes a grim turn when phantom-like humans stalk Harry's wife, Doris (Lily Rabe), and daughter, Alma (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), before one of them attacks Harry inside their home. Despite making plans to leave, Harry's encounter with writer Belle Noir (Frances Conroy) and playwright Austin Sommers (Evan Peters) leads to a burst of inspiration. Harry soon understands why so many people find success when staying in the New England area, forcing his family to stay as he writes non-stop in episode 2's "Pale." Unfortunately, Harry also experiences the downside of his newfound creativity.
Belle and Austin make it quite clear that there's something special about Provincetown. The magic, however, doesn't reside in the town itself. Instead, the power comes from little black pills accidentally created by the mysterious "Chemist." Austin offers Harry a pill, which he calls his "muse,"explaining how it inspires the user, drawing out extraordinary potential while resulting in one's best work. After rejecting the offer, Harry takes a pill, which gives him the push to develop an idea instantly greenlit by Netflix. Though Harry's experience with the black pill leads to success, his actions also had serious side effects, essentially transforming him into a vampire.
While there was much speculation American Horror Story's Red Tide would involve sirens, it was a surprise to see the theme of Part 1 take the vampire route. Vampires were first introduced in AHS: Hotel, but season 10's blood-suckers are drastically different. When someone takes a black pill, it depletes the minerals in their blood, forcing them to feed on the living for new blood. Harry finds this out after feasting on the blood from red meat and the cut on his wife's finger before Belle and Austin teach him how to pick out human targets. Harry even visits local dentist turned tattoo artist, Leslie "Lark" Feldman (Billie Lourd), to get his teeth sharpened into fangs to make for easier feedings.
Though the black pills greatly inspire characters like Belle, Austin, and Harry, others aren't so lucky. Sarah Paulson's Tuberculosis Karen constantly warns against abusing the little black pills, ranting about its side effects. She might be a bit unhinged, but the character has clearly seen first-hand what the drugs can do. For those who don't have a greatness to unlock, dire consequences are waiting. Failed use of the drug results in the humans transforming into phantom-like creatures like those seen stalking the Gardner family. The creatures are pale and resemble traditional vampires, but their addiction is focused on blood, not the creativity that sometimes comes along the black pills. The remaining episodes of American Horror Story's Red Tide will surely show the cost of the black pills and how it will affects individuals differently, including young Alma Gardner, who takes a pill in episode 2 to enhance her skills as a violinist.