Why 'American Crime Story' is so much better than 'American Horror Story'

The premiere of "Impeachment: American Crime Story" juxtaposed with latest edition of "American Horror Story" provides a stark demonstration of why the first of Ryan Murphy's anthology series formats is so much better than the second -- namely, because planting a foot in real-life events, however salacious, helps curb the producer's more distasteful excesses.

The requirements of presenting material based on a true story imposes a degree of discipline that "Horror Story" has lacked from the get-go. And while the show doesn't hide its gruesome marching orders -- "horror" is in the title, after all -- the fact we're up to a 10th season might explain why Murphy and his collaborators keep trying to outdo themselves, in occasionally hard-to-stomach ways.