The third episode of American Horror Stories' Season 3, entitled "Tapeworm," delves into the shadowy abyss of the fashion and film industries, baring the ghastly underbelly of the relentless chase for beauty and celebrity. This chilling tale follows Vivian Lee Finch, a country girl harboring grand aspirations of superstardom, who finds herself immersed in the ruthless heart of New York City, where the harsh realities of the industry unveil their toxic embrace.
Vivian's narrative unfurls with her arrival in the metropolis, her heart brimming with optimism and a relentless fire to grace the pages of Vogue. Yet, her dreamscape swiftly transmutes into a nightmare as she confronts the unyielding standards and frosty realities of the modeling world. Sheila Klein, the formidable head of a prestigious agency, acknowledges Vivian's unblemished beauty but delivers a brutal verdict: she's too heavy to succeed as a model. This rejection, a byproduct of the industry's shallow ideals, spurs Vivian into a desperate plunge towards conformity.
Desperate to shed her unwanted pounds, Vivian embarks on a dangerous path, seeking the aid of Dr. Thaddeus Lau, a shadowy figure who prescribes Mondify, an illicit diabetes drug. The drug works wonders in slimming her figure, but its sinister becomes evident in relentless blackouts and the ever-present specter of death. Transformed by her sudden weight loss, Vivian earns a second chance with Sheila, who is awestruck by her metamorphosis and swiftly signs her on. However, this fleeting triumph comes at the expense of Vivian's health, as Mondify slowly drains her of life, mirroring the fashion industry's obsession with empty husks over vibrant souls.
As her condition spirals, Dr. Lau introduces Vivian to Taenia Asiatica, an Asian tapeworm, promising it as a macabre solution to maintain her weight. Blinded by ambition and defying the doctor's dire warnings, Vivian indulges the parasite, unleashing a perilous crescendo of its powers. The tapeworm insinuates itself into her psyche, transforming her into a jealous, monstrous creature, driven to trample over all who stand in her path to the pinnacle of fame.
As the episode crescendos, Vivian, now a haunting vision of a living skeleton, is offered a glimmer of hope by Dr. Lau—a means to expel the monstrous tapeworm from her ravaged form. In a scene both grotesque and nightmarish, Vivian extracts a colossal, anaconda-esque parasite, only to be subsequently devoured by her own insatiable greed and the very beast she unwittingly harbored.
The tapeworm, relentless in its quest, seeks refuge within Heather Billings, Vivian's confidante since the episode's inception. Heather's metamorphosis, both corporal and psychological, eerily echoes Vivian's plight, as she too succumbs to the parasite's insatiable hunger for human avarice. The episode concludes on a chilling note, foreshadowing Heather's inevitable demise, trapped in an unending cycle of consumption, where she too will succumb to the tapeworm's voracious embrace.
"'Tapeworm'" stands as a stark beacon, illuminating the perils of the fashion industry's unrealistic beauty ideals and the desperate lengths individuals traverse to attain them. It serves as a chilling testament to how the relentless pursuit of fame and success often precipitates one's downfall, revealing that the true horrors do not reside within parasitic infestations, but within the unbounded greed and vanity that prompt us to strike Faustian bargains.
In essence, Vivian's narrative serves as a poignant cautionary tale, resonating deeply with its audience. It urges us to reflect on the significance we attach to appearance and the sacrifices we are prepared to endure in the name of beauty, challenging us to reevaluate our priorities and the values that truly matter.
