‘American Gods 1×03: Head Full of Snow’ Review
Stars: Ricky Whittle, Ian McShane, Emily Browning, Crispin Glover, Bruce Langley, Yetide Badaki, Orlando Jones, Pablo Schreiber, Peter Stormare, Kristin Chenoweth, Gillian Anderson, Cloris Leachman | Created by Neil Gaiman | Developed for TV by Bryan Fuller
We all know that Mondays suck, but at least in the UK it also means American Gods day. With Head Full of Snow, we get to see more gods, as well as another sex scene. This scene though is yet again something a little different.
When Mr. Wednesday (Ian McShane) enlists Shadow (Ricky Whittle) to rob a bank with him, he begins to question his decision about working for him. When Mad Sweeney (Pablo Schreiber) tracks them down looking for his lucky coin he gave to Shadow, an interesting revelation is discovered which results in an interesting discovery in Shadow’s motel room.
Similar to the previous episodes of American Gods, it is the encounters the audience has with other gods that tend to be even more interesting than the main story. This time we get to see Anubis (Chris Obi) and more of The Jinn (Mousa Kraish).
It is with The Jinn that we are treated to another sex scene, but this time with a difference. It seems Bilquis (Yetide Badaki) is taking a week off, and it is this god that gets his chance to shine. This takes place between him and a business man played by Omid Abtahi.
What makes this sex scene special is the way it is presented, and the imagery used to make it truly beautiful. The scene has a certain realism and sensuality to it that is often lacking from many scenes like this (from any sex scene). If anything, this will go down as one of the most beautiful sex scenes seen on television. It successfully manages to give that audience the feeling of the magic passing from The Jinn and the granting of “the wish” and is truly beautiful.
Back to the main story, it is nice to see the return of Mad Sweeney, especially as any confrontation between him and Shadow Moon makes for great television. It’ll be interesting to see what his reaction will be after his investigation as to where his coin is. We’ll also see Shadow have an interesting conversation in his motel room.
The end of the episode is good because you can tell that it is a cliff-hanger, and I’m sure that many people thought “oh don’t you dare end it there” just as I did. Of course, people who have read American Gods will know what is to come, but for those experiencing this based on the television show, it feels like an important moment where we’ll finally find out the truth behind one of the mysteries.
One thing I have to admit this week is how impressed I am with Ian McShane as Mr. Wednesday. He has some big competition when it comes to actors in the show, but he really is one of the highlights of the show, especially this week. Not only is he winning over Shadow, but he is winning over the audience too to his side of the battle.
American Gods has to be one of the best television shows at the moment, and feels like it is going to get even better when we meet more of the gods. Things are starting to fall into place, and I’m sure while some may still be a little confused about what is going on, they’ll still keep watching for what is to come.
***** 5/5
American Gods is available on Amazon Prime on Mondays in the UK
