‘American Gods’ Recap: ‘The Unseen’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 304 of ‘American Gods’.
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The word ‘God’ evokes some powerful imagery in our collective minds. In that, we picture an all-powerful and all-knowing being. One that could easily wipe out all of mankind with a simple thought or gesture, but opts not to, because they are also somewhat benevolent and passive beings. The kind that would prefer to keep out of our affairs and observe our world from afar with bemusement, since they tend to revel in the wonder of the chaotic nature of our kind. If anything, that longstanding view is relevant to our discussion today, simply because it is obvious that Neil Gaiman and STARZ are eager to update this ancient view by way of American Gods, since this series continues to find new ways to humanize these enigmatic beings, as evidenced by this week’s tale.
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For ‘The Unseen’ was eager to explore a new angle in regard to the age-old notion that we are forged in their image by posing the theory that our chaotic nature extends to these beings as well. For if we are truly reflections of these omnipotent creatures, then our flaws and our fears and our negative nature… has to be shared in kind. And it explored this fascinating notion by putting the ‘human side’ of several Gods in this story, such as Wednesday, Technical Boy and Bilquis, on full display. Wherein the latter two helped the story to ponder upon how our fears and our stubborn nature could exist in Gods as well, as part of our collective survival instincts. And they are ‘active’ and functional in this tale, because the both of them were dealing with situations that left them concerned about their continued existence. 

Because Technical Boy was desperate to figure out what was causing the strange glitching that he was experiencing and the fear that was generated from that, prompted him to do something unthinkable, and forge an alliance with Shadow to find Bilquis, since she was the only one that could save him. And as it turns out, she was locked away in a secret facility because of the fact that Bill Sanders’ lackeys knew she was somehow involved in his disappearance, and her time in this dark place… allowed for her to dig deep and fight hard in the most stubborn nature imaginable, in order to not let her captors get the better of her and to not let fear or despair set in. And what made this segment so fascinating and so powerful… was the sheer fact that Technical Boy and Bilquis were indeed at their most human here and their actions truly did make it clear that we share every trait imaginable, and there is some inherent danger that comes with that.

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After all, the Gods technically answer to no one in this story, and that can provide them with horrific freedoms if they choose to indulge in the evils we resist because of consequences, and that was explored by way of Mr. Wednesday in this tale. Because shortly after Shadow declined to help his dad free Demeter from the mental health facility she was residing within, Wednesday opted to handle this the long way round and he managed to harm people in the process. All by using Johan to blow up some of his followers, so he could ‘survive’ the attack and act as though the blast had damaged his mind, giving him the opportunity to join his beloved on the inside as part of a long con to break her out and well… this was an eerie segment of the story for certain. Since it spoke to the fact that the Gods in this tale have no problem with coming down to our lowest level if it suits their needs.

But while that makes it seem as though this episode relished in spotlighting the darker side of the human condition, the story also took a little time to examine the wonder of something quite positive; the second chance. Something that was handled by way of Laura Moon’s journey in this story. Because a strange set of circumstances allowed for Samedi’s potion and Sweeney’s blood to mix together with her dust and that brought Laura back to life and gave her a grand second chance, one that she was eager to embrace. Because her voyage to Purgatory helped to realize that she did indeed waste precious years on Earth, and that the time had come to do things different this second time around and perhaps listen and learn for a change before acting. A decision that is bringing her back to Cairo, so she can find some answers and take a little time to plan her next steps toward redemption and fulfillment. 

In the end however, this was simply a unique episode through and through. One that went to some supremely meta and philosophical places over the course of the hour, and it really did do a fine job of removing the mythos surrounding the Gods by exposing their outright humanity and what’s wild… is that the plot really didn’t advance all that much during this tale, but that doesn’t matter in the slightest. Because we were treated to a compelling and raw analysis of the human condition, one that put some of our worst traits on display without offering up any kinds of answers or solutions on how we fix them. Which makes this episode nothing more than a fine reminder that we are indeed flawed creatures striving for better and that all-important second chance, and the show deserves serious credit for going this route and entertaining us in the process. And it should be interesting to see what kinds of unique stories await us down the line… now that Laura has returned to the land of the living and Mr. Wednesday is in the hands of mental health professionals. Until next time.

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