“American Horror Story: Asylum” premiered on November 17 of this year and appears to  lack the focus that the first season possessed.  Briarcliff Mental Institution – the insane asylum where this year’s story takes place – is the singular location, but the set of characters established as the focal point seem to be built on the thin side.  With the announcement earlier this year that the show was to be continued as an anthology, excitement and momentum built around the fact that many of the actors from Season 1 were to be cast in entirely different roles.