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Last night’s episode of American Horror Story: Hotel was a wild ride. I’ve seen a lot of mixed reactions to the different things that happened, but Queenie’s death seems to have garnered the same reaction from virtually all fans: anger and disbelief. It’s an example of bad writing that feels like a slap in the face, and I’m going to break down why that is.

1. AHS is supposed to be an anthology series

An anthology series is a television show that features a different story with different characters in each episode or series. With American Horror Story, each season is focused on the story of a specific place and the characters that live there. The seasons are self-contained: you can pick up and watch Coven without having seen Murder House and Asylum. Ryan Murphy has stated that all the seasons are connected, and this has been demonstrated several times in Freakshow and Hotel. Up until last night there were several small nods to season one of AHS: Marcy’s cameo and her making reference to Hallie and the Harmons, Elizabeth going to the Murder House for an abortion, and Billie Dean Howard’s appearance next week. These are fine because Marcy and Billie Dean had minor roles in Murder House and you don’t need to know who they are to accept their appearances in Hotel. You can even watch this season without knowing about the murder house because there’s enough context given within the episode to figure out that illegal abortions are performed there. This isn’t the case with Queenie. If you haven’t seen Coven, you’re going to be lost: What’s a supreme? How does Liz know who this is? What coven is she talking about? The public doesn’t seem to know about vampires, so why do they know about witches? Why can’t Ramona hurt Queenie? An anthology series needs to be able to stand on its own, and Queenie’s inclusion doesn’t fit with that.

2. It goes against previously established characterizations

Queenie says she’s staying at the hotel because she’s going to appear on The Price is Right and she’s guaranteed to win because her Supreme enchanted her ticket. That Supreme is Cordelia Foxx, who we know is extremely dedicated to the coven and her girls. She exposed witches to the public not only to give young witches a safe haven, but also to inform the public as to what witches are and are not in an effort to clear their name. Why, then, would she do something so blatantly dishonest? Not only that, but Queenie is also part of her council; it’s unlikely Cordelia would send her away to cheat on The Price is Right when she has responsibilities at Miss Robichaux’s Academy.

3. It undermines her achievements and role in Coven

Queenie wasn’t a minor character in season 3, she was one of the main girls. We watched her struggle with her identity, overcome death several times, grow as a person and a witch, and take her position on the council as one of Cordelia’s most trusted witches. Having her die so unceremoniously in a season she didn’t even star in feels like a betrayal to all that. She survived the whole of season three only to be killed in five minutes in season five. It’s extremely poor writing and a terrible disservice to both her character and AHS fans.

4. It opens up too many plot holes

As stated, Queenie was an important part of the coven. She wasn’t only close to Cordelia, she was part of the council. Her disappearance won’t go unnoticed. Is Cordelia going to look for her or send someone when she doesn’t return? She was able to find Misty when Madison trapped her in the crypt, so it’s very likely she’ll know that Queenie was killed. Will she take action against the hotel? Cordelia takes pride in protecting her girls, so I find it hard to believe she wouldn’t organize some sort of retaliation. For that matter, is Queenie now a ghost in the hotel? She’s contacted the underworld before, will that make a difference in her circumstance? Would she be able to be brought back from the dead since she was killed by a vampire? With only one episode of Hotel left, it’s unlikely that these questions will be answered.

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