WiC Watches: American Gods season 2
By Ariba Bhuvad
EPISODE 202: “THE BEGUILING MAN”
Picking up from the violent, turbulent ending of last week’s American Gods episode, this week wastes no time getting into the thick of it. For those who may have forgotten, Shadow Moon has a “Beam me up, Scotty” moment against his will after handling the massacre at the diner. Hooked up to a bunch of wires with his arms in some sort of apparatus, Shadow is being electrocuted and held captive.
Maybe it’s because I haven’t read the books or because this show is so convoluted and intricate that I miss things, but has there been any explanation as to who Mr. Town (Dean Winters) is? I’m so confused why this person has Shadow, but I guess it becomes a bit clearer as the episode goes on. It’s even a question that Mr. Town poses to Shadow, so I guess we’re all confused.
Following the diner massacre and Shadow’s abduction, the rest of the gang is trying to sort through all that has happened. Laura can see Shadow’s light from a distance, but Czernoborg is more concerned about how to handle Zorya’s death. He’s not sure there will be another Zorya since not many worship her anymore.
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Mama-Ji promises to join Wednesday to exact revenge as long she can get her shift covered. God problems, am I right? Meanwhile, Laura is trying to figure out how she is going to save Shadow, but everyone else couldn’t care less. Mama-Ji wants someone to retrieve Wednesday’s spear Gungnir, so everyone splits up. The Jinn and Salim will retrieve the spear, Sweeney will join Laura to look for Shadow, and Mr. Wednesday and Mr. Nancy have other plans in mind.
There is so much to love about this Laura/Sweeney collaboration. Honestly, it’s my favorite part of the series so far. It’s such a hilarious, unexpected pairing but it works and I’m here for it every step of the way.
And then there’s poor Shadow, who has no way of getting out of the restraints but looks damn good shirtless so it’s fine for now. Mr. Town is curious to learn more about Shadow’s connection with Wednesday, but Shadow maintains that he’s just his bodyguard. As the electrocution continues, we get to the interesting part of the episode: flashbacks.
A young Shadow and his mother are seen traveling to New York City from France, but things don’t go well for the young Shadow. The neighborhood kids aren’t exactly friendly, and Shadow finds himself getting beaten up and arrested fairly soon after arriving in town. As time jumps forward, we see that Shadow’s mother is diagnosed with and later dies from cancer.
While it doesn’t feel like an integral part of this particular episode, I did enjoy seeing Shadow’s past. We don’t really know anything about him and humanizing him made him more relatable in this crazy, crazy world.
Laura and Sweeney’s road trip continues to be entertaining as they follow Shadow’s light but run into some speed bumps along the way, including a flat tire and some cows. Sweeney is curious to learn that Laura is an atheist, which is ironic considering all the gods she’s met. It’s becoming obvious that Laura is losing her strength, which isn’t going to bode well as more conflicts arise.
After the Old Gods vs. New Gods meeting gone wrong, Bilquis sits down with Mr. World to discuss what happens from here. But she’s pretty certain that anyone that didn’t want to go against Mr. Wednesday before will certainly do so after what happened at the diner. Mr. World is eager to have Bilquis on team New Gods, but how would love and war mix together?
Bilquis is treading down a dangerous path because she’s sort of playing both teams at this point and it won’t end well if team Old Gods finds out what she’s up to. I can only imagine the wrath that will come upon her, but time will tell.
We all miss Media (Gillian Anderson) in her human form this season, but at least Tech Boy is looking for her. In this episode, he heads to Times Square, which makes for some pretty epic scenes. It can’t be that long until we see her in some shape or form.
While running after Shadow’s light, Sweeney and Laura run into a literal dead end and are left with only one option: go into Sweeney’s horde. If you’re wondering what that is, don’t worry, I didn’t understand either until it happened. He pulls some sort of magic trick and it seems like they travel through a portal onto the edge of a bridge where a train is running below them. It turns out Shadow was on the train, hence why his light was traveling so fast.
Catching up with Mr. Nancy and Mr. Wednesday, there is some sort of symbolism to pick up on between Mr. Wednesday and his car. He intends on letting the train run into it thereby allowing it to go to Valhalla. In what is a very intriguing moment, Mr. Wednesday reassures his car that he will unite with it once again upon its reincarnation. This show is truly something, isn’t it?
Sweeney and Laura hop onto the train in hopes of saving Shadow but run into some men. One intense and bloody beatdown later, they find Shadow restrained in wires. Laura knocks Mr. Town unconscious and then goes all Game of Thrones on a guy, squishing him with her Mountain-like strength.
And while Shadow may now be saved, the final moments of the episode take us to a reflection in Wednesday’s eye: did his car just turn into…a horse?
I am the first to admit I can’t always follow what is happening on American Gods because it’s a complex, rich story with lots of characters and hidden meanings. But there’s something to enjoy about all the complexity, especially when it looks this darn good. There’s a haunting beauty in every episode, and this week that came through with Shadow’s scenes as well as Sweeney and Laura’s scenes.
Where is this New Gods and Old Gods war taking us? And who will end up on what side? Honestly, I couldn’t tell you, but I’m excited to find out.