American Gods Season One Review

Warning: all the spoilers for American Gods season one.

I had no idea what American Gods was until it became a television series. I don't read Neil Gaiman, so I didn't know this bestseller even existed before it hit the screen. Yes, I know, that makes me fail at geek. It's the same reason I don't read Stephen King. But while I might not be able to stand Gaiman's writing style, I love the stories. Coraline is one of my favorite kids' movies, so I knew American Gods was going to be good. And weird. Very, very weird. 

​These are the questions:

What's the deal with Bilquis?

The ancient goddess of love is my one criticism of this show. She seems like a rather useless character. All we've seen her do this season is have sex and suck people up in her vagina, and while her backstory in the finale is intriguing, it doesn't do much if the character herself isn't...well, useful. And the only useful thing she's done this whole season was show how low gods can get if they're forgotten. But we already knew that: the sisters live in poverty, and the ancient god in the Ice Age was wiped out completely. If we really needed to know that a god could be homeless and sick, then we got that in the one opener. Every other scene she's been in with her pants off is completely unnecessary. 

Granted, this is only the first season. This season is just the opener, a long variation of "Once upon a time." It's supposed to ask far more questions than it answers. And that's fine. But still, why is Bilquis there? The other characters that dart in and out of the show that Odin tries to recruit--Vulcan, the three sisters and their jerk flatmate Czernobog, Mr. World--they have a fraction of Bilquis's screen time but their purpose is clear. The sisters give Shadow a disturbing prophecy and a coin that's "the daughter, not the father." Mr. World is clearly the new gods' boss and scary AF. Vulcan gives Odin a sword and an excuse for war. Bilquis...eats more people with her "vagina nebula." 

Why Shadow?

Laura and Robbie were killed (excuse me, "sacrificed") on Odin's orders to insure Shadow Moon had nowhere to go and nothing to lose, guaranteeing that he would go into Odin's service. The god has been manipulating Shadow's life for years, at least as far back as the wayward robbery. And he probably had his old friend Loki (re: Low-Key Lyesmith, Shadow's fellow prisoner helping him with the weights in the pilot) make sure he was hale and healthy during those three years.

The question is why. What's so special about Shadow? He made it snow one episode, but is that an innate magical ability or something anyone can do with a little effort? 

And how is Shadow going to react when he finds out? ​

How many Jesus Christs does it take to celebrate Easter?

All of them. 

Odin dismissed the Jesuses (Jesi?) as sons of a god. But if a leprechaun can play such a major role, why not a demigod?

Would Jesus be considered an old deity or a new one? He's certainly younger than Ostara and Odin, but much older than Media and Technical Boy, and probably Mr. World, too. And does it matter? Jesus is a pacifist. We saw how he reacted to the soldiers shooting at the Mexicans: he didn't smite, he shielded. He never wanted to take over Ostara's holiday and feels terrible when he realizes that's exactly what he's done. So now that the war has started, Jesus may not choose a side. He may decide that the humans are more important than the gods and focus on protecting them rather than trying to win them over. Although that's a pretty easy decision for him to make. He doesn't have to win anyone over; he's already one of the most popular and celebrated deities in the world.


Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go back to binge-watching Game of Thrones before season seven starts. Then American Horror Story. And all those Marvel movies. That should be enough to hold me over for a year before American Gods ​season two comes out. ​

What were your thoughts on American Gods?
(If you've read the book, NO SPOILERS! Please and thank you.)