American Horror Stories: Clone delivers a darkly humorous twist ending

What could be better than one Victor Garber? How about two? That's the conceit behind one of the newest episodes of American Horror Stories, the American Horror Story spinoff streaming on Hulu.

The second episode of season 3B is titled "Clone," and as you might expect, it's about someone who clones themselves. In this story, Garber plays wealthy tech mogul David Randolph, who is struggling with poor health and falls into a coma. His partner, John (Guy Burnet), is stunned to find out that David created an elaborate contingency plan in case something like that were to occur.

His plan involves an identical-looking David android that will provide John with companionship until he wakes up. This way, John won't be alone and David's company can test out their AI technology. "Clone" mostly plays out the way one might expect until you get to the end. You might think you know what direction the story is headed toward, but the final minutes pivot hard into total camp.

David's chilling realization

While John is apprehensive about the David clone at first, he soon warms up to the idea, especially when he learns that David killed and disposed of his would-be rapist, a former friend named Jordan (Casey Thomas Brown).

Overcome by emotion, John kisses David and realizes that with the android, he can have the kind of relationship he always wanted to have with the real David, who has a tendency to make John feel more like a live-in housewife than a genuine romantic partner. Clone!David and John really hit it off and have a great time together, going out to clubs, dancing, drinking, etc.

John is just beginning to think that a future with an android could be surprisingly bright when he gets a call from David's company. The real David is awake. No more android lover. Clone!David is packed up and returned to the facility. But John is still heavily influenced by their relationship. He confronts the real David and confesses that he wants things to change between them.

You might think that, somehow, the story will end with John and Clone!David colluding to kill the real guy so they can be together, but no, things take a sharp turn. Instead, David has John murdered. He's realized that the only person who can match him on every level is, well, himself. He wants to be with the android.

The episode ends with David and Clone!David in bed together, having just had sex. The clone notices a strip of photos that he'd taken with John in a photo booth and asks David if they know that man. David says no and asks for the android to blow him again instead. The end.

All five new episodes of American Horror Stories are now available on Hulu as part of season 3B.