Hello from #TIRealm.  I’m going back to fill in some of the episodes from Season 1 I have not reviewed as i’m all caught up on American Gods.

This episode opens with Ibis telling another story of the arrival of a group of people to America. In this story it seems to be the first American migration perhaps. They mention the land bridge from Siberia and I assume this is the Bering Strait. This reminds me of Game of Thrones and the first men and the arm of Dorne.

This group makes an arduous journey and lose many during the travels.   As they arrived there was no food and they prayed. They pray to their God called Nunyunnini who gives them the answers.  The buffalo with the fire eyes from episode one comes and sacrifices the woman with his horn. Another group, native to the land, gives them food and it is initially refused and their group was attacked.  The children of the group accept the offering and are spared.  Nunyunnini was forgotten over time.

The next scene we see Laura and flies, awaiting Shadow’s return.  Shadow is confused by Laura’s dead but alive body being in his hotel. Laura tries to brush away her affair but Shadow is not really hearing it. Laura gives a synopsis of death and the nothingness.  Shadow is pretty upset with her affair. Laura asks Shadow to get her a cigarette and he leaves she sees this immense light around him.   While he is out there is someone watching him from a car, but we do not see who.

Laura gets in the bath to warm up in hopes that Shadow will want to kiss her. Shadow talks about when he called Laura from prison and he had a suspicion something was wrong and he believes that he knew she would die.  She kisses him and the room illuminates and her heart beats. Meanwhile a crow, one of Mr. Wednesday’s messengers, knocks on Mr. Wednesday’s door to deliver a message (again with the Game of Thrones symbolism). I assume the message is about Laura because he goes to get Shadow right away. As they’re talking the police pull up and arrest them for the bank robbery from episode 3.

Technology Boy is meeting with his boss Media. I Love Lucy is Media, who is now in the form David Bowie. Media is telling him that he is trouble with Mr. World who is both of their boss. Technology Boy should not have hung Shadow from a tree and Media is encouraging him to apologize to Mr. World. Technology Boy doesn’t appear to be taking her advice.  The two discuss mass delusions and it seems as though Media mentions a martian attack in history or perhaps she was alluding to the fear of a martian attack and the public obsession with extraterrestrials in American history.

While that is happening, Mr. Wednesday and Shadow are still at the police station being interrogated. Shadow is quiet and does not give up any information. Mr. Wednesday is taking the opposite approach by telling the police all the intricate details of deities and the pending wars to come between the old gods and the new gods, which come off as insanity.  Shadow changes his tune as he’s told that the police was given pretty specific tips about his location in a fax tip.

Laura is still at the motel when Mad Sweeney breaks the door in and grabs her by the throat.  Laura simply flicks him with a finger and her massive strength sends him flying across the room.  Sweeney is begging for his coin, explaining that he gave Shadow the wrong coin and it’s the type of coin you save for royalty.  Laura responds by breaking his finger and beating him up some more for answers.  In pain, he tells her Mr. Wednesday is not to be trusted and offers to replace her coin with a hat full of replacements.  Laura rejects his offer saying that those coins don’t look as good, realizing that she has to give up the coin willingly.  Sweeney reminds her that being undead won’t last that long so he will get his coin back eventually.  In anger, he throws her into the tub strangling her.  The police come in at that instant interpreting the situation as a murder, as Laura plays dead…for real.

Back at the policy station, Anansi in spider form, opens Mr. Wednesday and Shadow’s handcuffs.  There is a lot of noises and Media glides into the room in the form of Marilyn Monroe and Shadow recognizes I Love Lucy from the episode when he was in the store.  Media goes on about the true cause of Marilyn’s death.  Shadow is completely confused by the entire situation.  The surveillance goes out and in walks Mr. World, who is played by Crispin Glover, who I loved as George McFly in Back to the Future.

Mr. World knows a significant amount of information about Shadow’s history, giving a complete run down of his story, including the face he makes when he masturbates.  Mr. World whistles for Technical Boy, who apologizes for lynching Shadow.  As the wheels turn, Shadow looks extremely taken aback by the amazement of it all.

Technical Boy makes an offer to Mr. Wednesday to use technology to help the Old Gods to make them a place as the world evolves.  Media frames it as an upgraded lemon scented you.  Mr. World explains that individualism doesn’t work anymore.  He promotes globalization and consumerism.  Media shows an image of a satellite named Odin that would some how re-brand Mr. Wednesday’s image.  I’m not entirely sure but it seems that the satellite would be some sort of mind control device.  Mr. Wednesday declines the offer in anger.

Technical Boy, like a teenager, does not understand why the New Gods don’t simply annihilate the Old Gods.  Mr. World reminds him that he owes Mr. Wednesday respect and slaps the teeth from his mouth.  Mr. World leaves after telling Mr. Wednesday that he is not his enemy.  Mr. Wednesday and Shadow sneak out of the interrogation room to find the entire police department had been decimated by the New Gods.  Shadow asks Mr. Wednesday, what story would be told about the current state of the police department, Mr. Wednesday responds, any story they want to tell.  There is an eye that opens, I assume the new gods watching Shadow and Mr. Wednesday.  As they are trying to leave a police car pulls up with Mad Sweeney and they double back through the police department.  Shadow enters a room and there is a large tree growing that cuts Shadow and grabs hold of him.  The two escape through the back in smoke or mist that looks like clouds.  As the police leave Sweeney to see what is going on, Sweeney escapes the police car, but not before his luck  wanes some more and he injures himself on the car window.

The final scene is a guy in the morgue and one of the lockers opens up and Laura pops out.  She had been brought there after playing dead in the tub earlier.  She contemplates her dead-ness and appears saddened.  She collects her belongings and leaves the morgue.

Another great episode, I’ll be back soon with my review of Season 1 Episode 6; however, since Season 2 Episode 5 comes on today, I will probably review it first.