American Gods S2 E6: All The World’s a Stage

After the clouds there comes bright sunshine. And with the previous hit and miss episode here we finally have a breath of fresh air. And it surprises me to say it but I loved Ian’s performance of Wednesday this episode…. ‘ playing dead convincingly is an underrated skill’. How true. He’s been snoozing through the last few episodes and now comes electrically alive, taking complete control and delivering a rousing performance. From belting out tunes and holding a note like a true pro as Cabaret singer and Vaudevillian wonder, to waxing lyrical as he enters the mall with Shadow, I was stunned at this performance. Shadow and Wednesday performing a perfect con also gives Rickey a chance to play the straight man and be a little smoother and more confident than he’s been seen to portray of late and he rises to the occasion.

I wasn’t so enamoured with Derek Theler’s Donar/Thor. While he looked fit to burst and….mildly inoffensive to look at, he didn’t really make me feel any sense of empathy for his character. Which given his misanthropic fate was very much needed. His final exit scene aside the gratification of the Nazis only served to alienate me from him and made me almost wish for his downfall. But thankfully there was also bubbly Laura Bell Bundy as Columbia who gave the story a much needed sympathetic and humanising element. And the chalk and cheese pairing of Crispin Glover and Kahyun Kim delivers some serious contrasting style that makes me want to be a fly on the wall when they are filming together.
The writers also gave a welcome nod to both McShane’s past Deadwood role and one of Odin’s many aliases with his stage name of Al Grimnir. And the hints begin to play out that things are problematic and the scene where Shadow asks Wednesday about Thor is touching as it reveals not only the bittersweet tragedy, but forewarns Shadow of his own future if he would but listen. The script also gave some much needed lift to the follow on story from last week. Without the continuation of the story of Sweeney and Laura there needed to be a little intrigue and Columbia did just that. Though she is the Brave New World adaptation of Britannia and the personification of the burgeoning nation, she was written and portrayed perfectly. At face value it seems the story of Donar and Columbia is mere distraction. A sleight of hand to keep us and Shadow entertained while they deal with the repair of his all important spear. But it actually is a harbinger of fate for someone. There is warning in the telling here and Shadow best take heed.

There was yet more decidedly uncomfortable racist intonation with the inclusion of the Nazi patrons. And Donar/Thor openly accepts them as he toadies up to for the sake of a little adulation and personal gain. Though he was clearly gullible enough to fall for Wednesday’s plans, and so easy prey to machinations of others, we could hardly beg for realism here as there is no context for a Norse God to be part of their heinous ideology. But it did still feel a little uncomfortable he would do this. Although the Aryan race theme is something they and the Neo Nazis pick up on. And also disturbingly they are now laying claim to the Viking legend as their own. Which is in error as the Vikings were actually more made up of several interracial groups from around the world due to their very roving nature. Though this was a decidedly icky subject the saving grace is the main story and Wednesday’s skilful manipulation of Donar and Columbia. In this we can almost see the foreboding origins of his contentious attitude toward Laura Moon. It seems he isn’t keen on perceptive women being around his pet stooges.

The use of of the Flight of the Valkyries however was at least apt as the Nazis were particularly fond of that. And the whole ensemble cast gave me welcome memories of great Music Hall hit shows such as Annie, Chicago, The Entertainer and even Cabaret itself with the attire and likeable sing song of it all. Not only did Ian steal the show but Laura’s Columbia channelled Marilyn and a sweet play on Jessica Rabbit herself, in her sultry bubbly persona. And she shone like the brightest star in her performance of Don’t Fence Me In. The supporting cast also made it a fun romp in a distracting way that lulled me into a false sense of security until the real story kicked in. As for the songs themselves, we opened with sheer Gypsy Rose Lee fun and I felt myself wanting to revisit the bubbly movie that is Bugsy Malone as well, the themes were that reminiscent of the soft-shoe era. I even hoped Bruce Langley would have a bigger part to play in the proceedings as he showed wonderful range being so completely diverse and opposed to his updated persona in the modern world. He fit right in perfectly and gave a slick sense of the age in look and feel.

The shift in theme was mostly brought to life by the actors, but here the production value was also important. The exterior scenes set in the present in the mall were integral, to offset the dimly lit stage setting, the stars of yesteryear treading the boards and the shady goings on in Mr Worlds Dr Strangelove bunker. Thus it gave the feeling of returning us to earth with a hard bump of reality and mortality, as the extras mill about in the cold light of day. And this is something some shows miss. On a set we don’t have anyone day to day to identify with, especially in the presence of Gods going about making ready for war. So it was a good grounding emotion that was conveyed from just the location, let alone the background action of old people playing games and crowds in the dining hall.