TV (112)
I can’t get over how fantastically talented Phoebe Waller-Bridge is. Not only is she the writer, creator, and star of the Emmy-nominated Fleabag, she’s also the showrunner for the spy thriller, Killing Eve – a completely different show in both style and tone, but still excellent and fun to watch. Additionally, she’s the creator/star of a 2016 BBC show called Crashing and was the voice of L3-37 in Solo: A Star Wars Story last year, among many other things. Still, her crowning achievement, in my opinion, is Fleabag. It’s a very simple, very understated show, but it blew me away. Twice.
The second season of American Gods has come to a close with the episode, “Moon Shadow.”
The latest episode of American Gods, “Treasure of the Sun,” tells the history of Mad Sweeney through a series of flashbacks, and it only seems fitting to depict story of such an unconventional leprechaun backwards. Starting with a prophecy of his death, his journey traces back to the beginning of his descent.
The Second Golden Age of Television has brought us great serialized entertainment, but there will always be a special place for fantastic standalone episodes. This week's episode of American Gods, “Donar the Great,” demonstrates their importance. Adapting American Gods into a TV show allows for the source material's mythology to expand and develop concepts that are only touched on in the book. Thor's story is briefly mentioned in the book, but what was originally a few passing lines now takes on a whole new meaning. I expect nothing less from an episode directed by Rachel Talalay.
As season 2 of American Gods continues, the show has diverged more and more from the book. The creators have introduced more characters and made a point to focus on some of the darker atrocities in American culture. I am not quite sure where they are going with the story this season. That is not necessarily a bad thing, but I do hope that we'll start to see how some of these tangential threads will be woven together.
The great thing about adapting American Gods into a show is that the medium allows the showrunners to spend time and further develop the story. Episode 4, “The Greatest Story Ever Told,” had the freedom to explore the previously untold story of the Technical Boy's origin.
In the latest episode of American Gods, New Media has emerged from her digital chrysalis. She shed her pop culture icon identity and now speaks in emojis. Media and how we consume it has changed in the time since the book of American Gods was released, so it makes sense that the character would evolve to reflect the times.
I am a bit behind on my American Gods reviews, so I am going to combine my reviews of the first (“House on the Rock”) and second (“The Beguiling Man”) episodes of Season 2, as well as celebrate that the show has already been renewed for a third season!
In today’s tumultuous political climate, the job of providing the world with clarity and perspective, once reserved for news anchors, has somehow fallen to late night talk show hosts. One of the people at the forefront of that movement is Stephen Colbert. This role he’s taken on, and the climate that led to it, were core themes throughout his panel at PaleyFest on Saturday night, March 16, 2019.
I’m fully aware that fans of something can inflate their initial experience with their fandom, turning it into a perfect achievement that nothing can ever touch. After binging season one of The Umbrella Academy over two days, on the third day I went back to read the first two volumes of the Dark Horse comic book series by Gerard Way and Gabriel Bá, and I’m glad I did, because it freed me to write a review unfettered from my initial experience with the comics.
