Spoilers might show up alive at your door.
It’s a bit unfair to compare American Gods to the newly minted Twin Peaks: The Return. In a sense, David Lynch would be like an Old God going against the more sleek and sexy New Gods of Bryan Fuller and Michael Green. Then again, they have Neil Gaiman on their corner with a fully written and well tested novel. David Lynch and Mark Frost are trying to recapture the magic from another show, which can be a bit constricted.
But I have to commit the ultimate blasphemy here and say that American Gods is hitting the mark on the raw, gut-wrenching visuals as well as using the music for a darker atmosphere. Lynch might come back with a vengeance and then I’d have to revisit this statement, but I’ve opted to stay clear of David Lynch’s creation for now. I have to go with the most engaging and entertaining product. Time constraints would mean nothing when I’m hooked, and Fuller and Green have me in almost every scene.
That goes double for Lemon Scented You, where Shadow’s and Laura’s encounter is cut short by Mr. Wednesday and eventually the police. Seems someone has leaked satellite pictures to the cops of Wednesday’s and Shadow’s bank robbery. The New Gods are behind this, and are making sure Mr. Wednesday recruitment campaign ends.
That is confirmed by Media, dressed very much like David Bowie, and debriefing the Technical Kid using his own technology. That was a trippy yet alluring scene. It’s none other than the amazing Gillian Anderson in the role of Media, that is lighting up the screen.
Mad Sweeney finally tracks down his coin to Laura. Yes, she has it and apparently she’s keeping it for a long while. Laura can literally flick Sweeney away, something that has not been quite explained so far. She kicks his ass all over the room. Sweeney opts for choking her into the bathtub, but all Laura needs to do is be very still as the cops appear behind him to put him in cuffs.
After getting nowhere interrogating them separately, the detective team opts to leave Mr. Wednesday and Shadow chained to the table in the same room. Enter Media, the Technical Kid and… Mr. World. Crispin Glover’s Mr. World comes in chewing the scenery, but I found it fitting and what the role called for. This is the Uber God of the New Gods, the one moving every string. It seems fitting he has nothing but respect for the old god of war.
But what exactly is the offer that he’s putting on the table? The Technical Kid says what we’re all thinking: Mr. World has Mr. Wednesday right where he wants him and lets him go. But these are the ways of the Gods, and chances the reason is more than just mere protocol. After all, Gods love tradition and ceremony.
Highs/Lows/Crows:
- Yes, there are crows who tell Mr. Wednesday (Odin) things. They also talk fast.
- The local police department never had a chance, did they? What is that tree-like thing that tried to grab Shadow?
- Gillian Anderson as Media and impersonating David Bowie and Marilyn Monroe. Extremely well I might add, she’s a chameleon. It’s not that she looks like Bowie or Monroe. It’s just that she’s got quite a decent impersonation here.
- We get to see the death of an old God in the intro. The reason was neither a confrontation nor was it age. Gods die when they are forgotten. It’s a bit like legend or mythos that are never said or revered again.
- I know it looks like I’m putting Fuller and Green on a pedestal for this show, when David Lynch has got the track record for the surreal and the weird. However, I’m just approaching it from an entertaining standpoint. It’s engaging and I want to keep watching.
- That being said, David Lynch still has time to make me regret the comparison. I really hope he does. I might have to return to Peaks when the series ends.
That will do for now.
Never Think Impossible 