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mdwatchestv · 7 years

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American Gods 1x01: The Bone Orchard (That’s What She Said)

Welcome mortals to the “American Gods” recap/snarkfest/gif party/ramblings/whatever this blog is! This Sunday was the first of the 8 episode first season of “American Gods” based on the novel penned by Neil Gaiman, and brought to roaring blood-soaked life by Bryan Fuller and Michael Green. I have mourned daily at the alter of my “Hannibal” shrine ever since its cancellation and have been counting down the days until my eyeballs would be blessed by his unique weirdness once more. And blessed they were oh lord! Hallelujah! BLESSED.

The original novel of “American Gods” is a beloved genre classic and a seemingly insurmountable work to be adapted to a visual medium. The nearly 500 page tome is filled with hundreds of characters, tangental subplots, fantasy dream sequences, thousand year flashbacks, and all topped off with a healthy serving of general weirdness. However the massive scope of the “American God”s story actually lends itself quite well to television (in the right hands of course). The world and vision of Gaiman's novel is large and many of it's rich characters merely cameo in the story’s main action. This creates a magical sandbox rife with gaps to fill in, and character's to play with. For the right creatives who understand the tone and nature of this world, the possibilities for storytelling are nearly endless. Yes there is a through line plot to the novel, but as a road trip story at heart, it's more about the journey than the destination.

But that being said, manifesting complex fantasy worlds in the space of a television hour can be a daunting task. Not so however for Mr. Fuller and Mr. Green who spaketh: "Order me one thousand gallons of your finest, maple syrupiest blood and once thou hath poured that blood upon our earthly vessels bring unto us the finest character actors in all the land, set the scenery in their mouths and implore them to feast upon it." I mean, I'm 99% sure that's how those concept meetings went. Because while there is a lot to praise in the first episode, the crowning achievement is it's cast.

After a blood slinging fiesta flashback of vikings bringing their mythology to the shores of America, we are introduced to our hero, ex-con and fresh widower Shadow Moon (Ricky Whittle). A role like Shadow is a deceptively challenging one. As the audience's way into the story the character lacks the obvious flash of some of the other characters, and must also remain grounded while being barraged by gargantuan performances from some of the best acting talent in the world. Shadow's humanity is the very core of the show, and he must hold balloon strings of believability for the audience. He must be a rock in a rushing river of- okay you get it. No shade to Ricky Whittle’s body of work, but it was unclear if he would be up to the task. But trust and believe if he didn't rise to the occasion. While Shadow doesn't get any super powers, or even any of the snappiest one liners, Whittle keeps him just as compelling and sympathetic as any of the supporting cast. Also have you seen the ARMS on that guy? GOOD NIGHT!

I feel like it's pretty worthless of me at this point to expound further on how Ian McShane is one of our greatest television actors. How his performance is an effortless joy, and every second of his screen time is a masterclass in performing. It would be insulting to even bring up what a difficult and make-or-break character Mr. Wednesday is because Ian McShane has never felt a lick of anxiety in his life. He has already rolled up, gotten it in one, and blazed off into the sunset. Praise be. Hallelujah.

But the greatness doesn't stop there oh no. This is a show that has BETH GRANT in essentially a costar role. This is the base layer we are building from. BETH GRANT is the base coat, Ian McShane is the rich color, Ricky Whittle is the smooth preserving top coat, and Jonathan Tucker, Betty Gilpin and Pablo Schreiber are the textured glitter you sprinkled on top because you DESERVE GOOD THINGS.

Real quick though, let's break down what actually happened in the first episode. Shadow Moon has just gotten out of prison to find his wife has not only died but spent her last earthly moments cheating on him. With no where else to go he agrees to work for the mysterious Mr. Wednesday and thats when things START to get weird. First Shadow gets into a fistfight with a seven foot tall leprechaun and wins a gold coin which he then throws onto his wife's grave (for plot reasons I promise). Then he gets kidnapped by millennial Draco Malfoy who lives in a VR headset, beaten up by Droogs, and finally lynched.

The aim of the “American Gods” novel is to explore what culture, in a culture defined by it's composition of other cultures, is distinctly American. For example the way the very nature of the road trip story is American, or the exportation of media and technology is American, or in this case, the way lynching is American. Although on its surface a fantasy story, the book delves deeply into the mystery of the American experience and the elements that make it up. Our country's history is both inspiring and grotesque, full of soaring achievements and unconscionable failure and the novel grapples with this duality. The TV incarnation of the saga seems every bit up to the challenge, and I think more than ever we need art that is unafraid to investigate and pull apart our culture. This scene is as much about our biracial lead pulling the noose from his own neck as it is seeing him brutally strung up.

That was all very serious I know, but I also want to assure you that above all this show is FUN and it's FUNNY. Seriously. Bryan Fuller has long proved himself to be master of complex tonality and this show is no different. Like how “Hannibal” was about horrifying cannibalism but also never failed to make you a little bit hungry. Or like “Pushing Daisies” was about the most precious and pure hearted romance between a boy and a girl that he was in danger of murdering at any second. Fuller is a master of the sublime, and with the help of Michael Green, American Gods is shaping up to fit into is oeuvre (film school word) nicely.

So that's “American Gods”! A bold, expansive, extremely promising new show of consummate insanity and weirdness. Let's meet back here in a week to talk about episode two!

XO MD

Hahahaha just kidding, did you REALLY I wasn't going to talk about it???? Did you think I was going to ever, even for a second, skip over THE scene to END ALL SCENES? Did you think I was just not going to address this MAN EATING QUEEN.

FUCK. I went to a preview screening of this episode and during this scene there were a few nervous titters and bursts of shocked laughter that petered out into a slack jawed silence. If you have read the book this scene is seared permanently into your brain. Upon learning of the intention to make a show this image is likely the one your mind immediately and graphically supplied. "Are they going to do it? How are they going to do it? What will it look like? What will SHE look like?" Relative newcomer Yetide Badaki is completely enthralling and totally fearless in this career making role. It would be so easy to make this scene exploitative, but Bilquis is a complex and poignant character and Badaki captured both her strength and desperation.

Sorry I'll calm down. Something else I admire about Bryan Fuller's work is his willingness to alter works to be more inclusive. For example “Hannibal” was cast largely color-blind, and several characters who were male in the original books were made female for the small screen. Despite boasting one of the most memorable scenes ever put to the page, Bilquis' story line in the books is tragic, short, and somewhat unsatisfying. Fuller and Green have promised to expand upon the storylines of several female characters and I for one am ready to see this old god truly let loose.

Ok XO for real this time.

;)

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