"Rubber (Wo)man" (Parts 1 & 2)
Directed by: Loni Peristere
Written by: Ryan Murphy & Brad Falchuk
Troubled teen Scarlett (Sierra McCormick) and her two dads, Michael (Matt Bomer) and Troy (Gavin Creel), move into the infamous "Murder House" with the intention of renovating it into a tourist attraction.
"Rubber (Wo)man" contains examples of:
- Affirmative-Action Legacy: A dark example. Scarlett finds the rubber suit upon moving into the Murder House and takes on the identity of Rubber Woman, following in Tate's example. She eventually uses this persona to become a Vigilante Woman.
- Anti-Villain: Scarlett is a sympathetic figure, even after killing four of her classmates and nearly stabbing one of her dads to death in a "prank" gone wrong.
- Asshole Victim: Maya and her friends as well as Adam the contractor and Ruby's "uncle" Tony.
- Bittersweet Ending: Scarlett survives and leaves the Murder House before it's too late, but her dads are both dead and she's unable to be with Ruby. Luckily for them, the ghosts are able to form a new family unit, while the lack of financial pressure to renovate the house brings Michael and Troy back together, and Scarlett finds the time to return occasionally.
- Black Eyes of Evil: Scarlett's eyes turn pitch black the second time she puts on the rubber suit, and from that point forward are black whenever she wears the mask.
- Black Girl Dies First: Dr. Grant, the therapist working with Scarlett and her dads, is the first character to meet their demise.
- Bloodbath Villain Origin: The Rubber Woman's first evil action is to lure four bullies to her house and slaughter them all.
- The Bus Came Back: The twins, the Infantata, and the nurse from Murder House return in this episode as ghosts in the house.
- Call-Back: The scene in which Michael and Troy realize they're dead mirrors Violet coming to the same realization in Murder House, running into an endless loop when they try to exit the house.
- Clingy Jealous Girl: Ruby admits to being this, threatening Shanti because she thought she was a potential love rival for Scarlett. She even murders Scarlett’s fathers in order to get her to stay, though eventually lets her go anyway at the end.
- Composite Character: In many ways, Scarlett is a hybrid of Violet and Tate. She's a bullied girl who moves into the Murder House and then begins to go down a path similar to Tate's.
- Continuity Nod: Ben Harman is alluded to as the "other" therapist occupying the Murder House.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Scarlett was abducted for over a week when she was young, which her dads speculate could be the reason for her dark interests.
- Dead All Along: Michael and Troy are dead without realizing it until it's too late.
- Depraved Bisexual: Adam the murderous contractor doesn't self-identify as queer, but that doesn't stop him from coming onto both Michael and Troy and crudely requesting "ass and mouth privileges" from them.
- Distaff Counterpart: Scarlett becomes this to Tate. Both are troubled teens with a penchant for violence (and rubber suits) who live in the Murder House and terrorize innocents. In Scarlett's case, however, she manages to live long enough to leave the house before dying in it.
- Driven to Suicide: Scarlett threatens suicide to Maya and her friends after they humiliate her on the internet, but it's unclear if she actually intended to go through with it or merely used it to draw them over to the Murder House with the intention of killing them.
- Dressed All in Rubber: Scarlett is this when dressed as the Rubber Woman.
- Haunted House: The house is indeed the same from the very first season of the parent series.
- He Knows Too Much: After discovering the bodies of the four girls, Alex murders the foreman specifically because of this.
- Hereditary Homosexuality: Gay couple Michael and Troy and their lesbian daughter Scarlett althought it's not clear if she's biologically related to either of them.
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Ruby allows Scarlett to leave the Murder House so she can live a happy life on her own despite already having killed her dads to keep her there.
- Incompatible Orientation: Maya tricks Scarlett into thinking her attraction is mutual.
- Ironic Echo: The fate of the family is an inversion of the Harmons in Murder House. Whereas Violet unknowingly died in that season, here it's Michael and Troy, while Scarlett manages to leave the house where Ben failed to do so.
- Multi-Part Episode: Split into two episodes.
- Parental Neglect: Averted. Michael and Troy are even perhaps a bit too involved in Scarlett's life.
- Police Are Useless: Actually averted, unlike in Murder House. The police almost immediately trace the murders of Maya and her friends to Scarlett the morning after their murders through their smartphones.
- Remember the New Guy?: Ruby appears in the second episode without having been introduced before then, but Scarlett is already shown to be acquainted with her by that point.
- The Sociopath: Shanti, Scarlett’s friend, describes Scarlett as such, noting her lack of a conscience and empathy and using people as objects.
- Sole Survivor: Only Scarlett and her friend Shanti are the only major characters still alive at the conclusion (for a given definition of “alive” of course).
- The Symbiote: The rubber suit is implied to have this effect on whoever wears it, which was never said to be the case in Murder House. Scarlett's eyes can be seen going black for a brief moment when she's inside it.
- Vigilante Woman: After she moves out of the Murder House, Scarlett uses the rubber suit to exact revenge on people like Ruby's uncle.
