American Gods as a TV show

So I while ago I read American Gods and wrote a post about it, mostly praising it for the ingenious way it takes ancient gods and brings them into the modern era. In case you’ve been missing all the buzz, it’s now a tv show as well! Neil Gaiman, the author of the book, is the executive producer, so I had high hopes about this series.

There’s currently only 3 episodes out of this series (it’s 8 episodes total for this season so not even halfway), but so far I am a fan! They are sticking pretty strongly to the book which is lovely and really all that I wanted out of it. The cast is also very diverse with Shadow being cast as a black man. Which is great, it’s 2017 already, I am a fan of this choice. It also brings in more contemporary issues since Shadow just got out of prison and is now essentially Mr. Wednesday’s (a white man’s) assistant. Since I’ve read the book though, I know where his character goes, and I still think this is a great choice.

The first season apparently only includes about a third of the book, so hopefully there will be more to come. The show will also expand on the book itself, bringing in elements from Anansi Boys, which I haven’t personally read, but is a companion novel to American Gods.

To talk more definitively about the show itself, I really dig the music and the way that it is incorporated into what’s happening on screen. There’s almost always an undercurrent of sound, whether it’s an instrumental adding to tension, or an old love song during a montage. Some of the choices are ironic, such as the love song being played during Laura’s funeral, that add to the confusion and despair Shadow feels. It also adds another layer of contrast between the old and the new gods.

Right off the bat the old and new gods look different. The old gods are gritty and look weathered, while the new ones are sleek and shiny. The music is also different, the old gods are paired with rustic, older songs while the new gods are accompanied by sounds that are clearly synthesized and distorted. It’s great, tv show music always seems so under utilized.

Only the beginning of this show is currently out, but the set-up so far is marvelous. I look forward to the rest of it!