The 5th season of this show takes place in LA, at the Hotel Cortez, a rambling structure built in the 1920's my mogul Jimmy Darling, who was also a notorious serial killer. In the present, he's now one of the many ghosts inhabiting the building. The current owner is "The Countess" (Lady Gaga), a vampire. But she's run out of money and there's a new buyer of the hotel, fashion mogul Will Drake, who she eventually gets her talons into. The main crux of the story is that of a half-crazy detective who has lost his son years before (it turns out the boy was kidnapped by The Countess and transformed into a little vampire). He ends up staying at the hotel while he and his wife are going through a divorce. It's while he's there that a series of serial killings happen, serial killings that mimic those seen in the 1920's.
It honestly took me about six episodes before I started to like this season, because I wasn't attached to any of the characters and Gaga's performance as the ice-cold Countess wascold and seemingly one-dimensional. But once we get into her back story and her origin is revealed, you realize that Gaga can act. I'd love to see her in the next season. The most sympathetic character is "Liz Taylor", a trans-gender hotel manager whose only wish is to fall in love.
As far as visuals, this is the nastiest, bloodiest season There are victims raped and stuffed into old mattresses, a brood of vampire children-who infect other children-and a suitable twist ending (sort of along the lines of ANGEL HEART) that is not only satisfying but makes the entire season much more cohesive. Again, season 5 is not nearly as much "fun" as previous seasons but it is a good one.