American Gods: Season 1, Episode 8 Recap and Review

Unfortunately, good things have to end.  They can never last forever.

Good meals, good vacations, good sex…

And good television shows end as well.  Well, at least for the season.

This weekend, I experienced one of these endings.  Actually, I experienced an ending to a few of the above mentioned things, although only one of them is a relevant blog topic.

In other words, I watched the last episode of the season for American Gods last night.

Yep, sniff, gulp.  The last episode.

Now, I may get to experience a *good meal* or two between now and next spring, but I am still trying to come to terms with the fact that I will probably not see a new episode of American Gods for almost another full year.

But, I feel an empty spot in my heart already.  There is now a free hour on Sundays that I will have to fill with something else.

Whatever that something else, it won’t be American Gods.  And that is a weird feeling, almost like I am missing a tooth or something, like my favorite technical douche…

But, even though it was the last episode, it was still a blast.  I mean, go big or go home, right?  Well, American Gods chose the former.  And it did the “going big” part really well.

The season finale, titled Come to Jesus, was everything a season finale should be:  it advanced the story arc, introduced potential future story arcs, introduced new characters and ended on a bit of a cliffhanger.

Perfect, in other words, just like most of the rest of the season.

So, come join me one last time (at least until next spring), as we review and dissect Come to Jesus.

And, as always:

American Gods: Episode 2 Recap and Review

The history of America is a complex one.

People came from all over the world.

And contrary to popular Ben Carson opinion, many of these people did not come to America on their own accord.

In fact, violence and bloodshed are a large part of our history, for better or for worse.

This country was also built on the backs of vulnerable people, including women, children and slaves from Africa who were kidnapped and brought over to this country, in the name of making this country wealthy and powerful.

And of course, elements of all of these different cultures are now part of American culture.

We eat pasta.  That is Italian.

Some of us listen to jazz music.  Jazz music is something that can be traced back to African culture, and was brought over to this country by the non-immigrant folks, aka slaves.

Even if you watch a movie such The Avengers, there are references to Norse mythology, as characters such as Thor, Loki and Odin are based on gods from Norse mythology. In other words, Hulk’s “friend from work” is actually an immortal Norse god.  That must make for some interesting office dynamics!

But, back to my point.

This country owes a large debt to immigrants, along with African American slaves.

Chances are, something that catches your fancy can be traced back to an immigrant or possibly an African slave.

In fact, someone wrote an entire book about this phenomenon.

The name of the book is American Gods.

At it’s core, American Gods is a dark fantasy that gives us an interpretation of religion along the lines of “it’s real if you believe.”

American Gods also serves us to remind us how important immigration and slavery are to this country, and the large debt that this country owes to both.

Now, American Gods has been translated to the screen, so these ideas have come to life.  And what a glorious trip it has been, even though only two episodes have aired, so far.

So, here is the recap and review of the second episode, titled The Secret of  Spoons.

And, as always: