REVIEW: American Gods, Episode 106
American Gods returns with episode 106, and looking back now, one may realize that this episode’s title is a bit heavy on spoilers: “A Murder of Gods”.
In another “Coming to America” chapter, we see Mexicans trying to illegally cross the border to get to the new land. To do so, they need to cross a river and, even though no one said anything, not everyone could swim. But in the end this didn’t turn out to be much of a problem: you don’t need to be able to to swim if you have a friend who can walk on water. The real problem appeared when they were all setting foot in America: border guards (at least I think they were border guards of some sort) started shooting everyone. Jesus tried to protect the man he had just saved from drowning and gets shot in the hands and then in the chest in the best Jesus-like way. We didn’t see what happened to the people he was trying to save, but it is likely that they died (I am an optimistic, but also realistic). But none of what I said some far fits the Most Interesting Things category, but here is something that does: the bullets the guards used to kill everyone had the name Vulcan on them. Yeah, that’s right, Vulcan, God of fire and the forge, the God we meet later in this episode. Maybe he wondered why he was a bit more powerful the day that happened, and maybe he didn’t know why, but we do: someone sacrificed a Jesus in his name. The irony in all this (and this also fits into the Most Interesting Things category) is that the guards were also religious, and probably believed in the same God the Mexicans did.
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“What came first: Gods or the people who believe in them?”. This is something Wednesday says early in the episode and definitely something that will allow everyone to think about until their head hurts. In the most “chicken and egg” scenario, this may be as impossible to prove (unless you ask the Gods themselves). If it is people’s belief that creates Gods, then maybe Humanity came first. But if that is so, Humanity got it wrong, because no God created the Universe, let alone Earth.
While we think about this (im)possible situation, Shadow and Wednesday make their way to Virginia, more specifically, a small town named Vulcan. When they arrive they witness a funeral, or, as Wednesday put it, the celebration of a sacrifice. In the lead there is Vulcan. Coincidence that the Mayor’s name is the same that the town’s? The residents might think so, but we know better. Unlike many of the Old Gods, Vulcan is going tremendously well. Every death by those Vulcan bullets (or by the forge itself) is a sacrifice in his name, every bullet shot to the air is a prayer. But of course Vulcan didn’t manage to do this on his own, he had the help of the New Gods. They probably made him a deal similar to the one they made Wednesday, the only difference is that Vulcan took it.
Wednesday definitely goes by many names and in this episode we find out one more: “Grimnir”. This is what Vulcan calls him before Wednesday asks him to join the upcoming war. Putting on a masquerade, Vulcan accepts and even forges Wednesday a blade, but that was the last thing he ever forged because Grimnir cuts his head off with it, after finding out where Vulcan’s loyalties lie.
In the meantime, we see that Laura and Mad Sweeney’s journey continues. They find each other again and also, while trying to steal his taxi, find Salim. With the promise of resurrecting Laura and point Salim towards a Jinn, they go on a road trip. We also saw that the connection between Shadow and Laura was bigger than we thought, because Shadow was able to actually see her in his mind. Maybe what Laura needs isn’t a resurrection from some Jesus, but to be with Shadow for a few minutes.
This was a great episode and a bit of a shocking one too (not as great and shocking as the last, though), and so I am giving it an 8.7/10.
Gods aren’t the only ones who need you, and in next episode we will also see “A Prayer for Mad Sweeney”, so stick around.