Title: “American Gods Season 1 Episode 4 : Git Gone”
Genre: Fantasy, Drama
Platform: TV – Starz
Director: Craig Zobel
Writer: Michael Green & Bryan Fuller
Rating: TV-MA
Release: May 21 , 2017
Cast: Ian McShane, Ricky Whittle, Emily Browning
Feature image: Source
[SPOILERS]
It looks like we are in ancient Egypt, but we aren’t, we are actually in an Egyptian themed casino in modern day America. The lovely bored dealer is Laura (Emily Browning). She leaves the casino and goes home to her cat. She inherited the old house from her grandmother. She sprays a fly with Git Gone bug spray. Later she gets into a covered hot tub and sprays it with the same bug spray. She quickly gets out of the tub, obviously not committed to her suicide attempt. During her next shift at the casino, her soon to be husband Shadow Moon (Ricky Whittle) sits at her table. Unlike his present day self, he is very charming and talkative. He is trying to pull a con and palm some chips. Laura informs him about the casino security: “There’s a camera there, camera there, camera there. That old lady in the terrapin sweatshirt behind you is not a grandma.” He thanks her and leaves. When Laura leaves work, Shadow is waiting for her out at the parking lot. He is charming as he attempts to recruit her. Shadow: “You could be a world-class thief. No one suspects anybody who looks like you.” Laura: “And what do I look like?” Shadow: “That you get anything you want just by asking for it.” Laura doesn’t look impressed. He would like to take Laura out for a drink. She is tired and she just wants to go home. Therefore, they go back to her place and have hot sex (after she slaps him to let him know she means business). Later Shadow shows her a card trick, Laura shows him she can do card tricks too.
“I would be happy living in a cardboard box under a highway with you.” Shadow Moon —American Gods
Laura and Shadow are a couple now. They are over at their friends Robbie (Dane Cook) and Audrey’s (Betty Gilpin) house for a barbeque. Audrey remarks to Laura how Shadow looks at her, and Robbie hasn’t looked at her like that in years. Robbie offers Shadow a job at his gym. Back at home, Shadow and Laura discuss the afterlife. Shadow’s mother believed in it, but he isn’t sure. Laura is sure, she doesn’t believe in anything. She did as a child, but as she grew older and studied, she thinks when you die, you rot, and that’s it. She wishes she could get that magic back though. She looks at Shadow and tells him he looks lost, like a puppy. They get married, and for a while, Laura is happy. Shadow is ecstatic. While he remains happy, Laura remains disconnected from life. The song “Queen of the Bored” plays over a montage of Laura going through the motions. Finally, Laura tells Shadow she is ready to rob the casino. Shadow can’t understand where this is coming from. Shadow: “I would be happy living in a cardboard box under a highway with you.” Laura: “See, that would represent a failure to me.” She resents not being happy. Laura has worked at that casino for eight years, she lives in her grandmother’s old house, and she has lived in this town her whole life. She needs this. “I have a perfect plan, you will never get caught.” I guess a few days later, she asks him in the visiting room at jail; “How did you get caught?” If she confesses to her part in the robbery, she’ll get a year and a half, and it will shorten his sentence. Shadow won’t let her confess. He will get six years, three for good behavior. If she can wait for him, he can stay strong.
“You have to think of this like a sweet memory, like a naughty little secret. Laura Moon —American Gods
Shadow is in prison and he is constantly calling Laura. Her cat dies and her reaction, “Fuck you, Dummy.” Robbie cones by to bury the cat. He comforts her and they nearly kiss. He apologizes but she challenges him, they kiss and have sex. Her face is expressionless. He comes by the next day, Laura says it is the last time, she is waiting for Shadow, but she invites him into the house. During the first episode, Shadow called Laura a few days from his release date to tell her he had a weird feeling. She told him about his surprise welcome home party that Robbie was helping her put together. What we didn’t see in the first episode was Robbie laying in their bed as they spoke. Robbie and Laura leave for their fateful drive. He tells her he will leave Audrey and she can leave Shadow, they’ll be hurt but they’ll understand. She tells him she isn’t leaving Shadow. He rightly points out that she doesn’t love Shadow the way Shadow loves her. Laura tells Robbie he knew there was an expiration date on their fling. Her advice: “You have to think of this like a sweet memory, like a naughty little secret.” The song “The Weight” by The Band plays over the car radio when she decides to give him a goodbye blowjob. She asks him to sing the song while she blows him. He is too distracted from the blowjob and trying to stay in tune with the song to notice he’s drifted into the other lane. Laura’s spirit looks down at the scene of the accident.
“I lived my life, good and bad. Definitely not light as a feather.” Laura Moon —American Gods
Suddenly she is in the desert with Anubis (Chris Obi). The celestial desert looks ominous and darker than it did for Mrs. Fadil. He puts the feather on the scale, but Laura won’t let him take her heart. Laura: “I lived my life, good and bad. Definitely not light as a feather.” He isn’t pleased with her and gives her his judgment. Anubis: “In life, you believed in nothing. You will go to nothing. You will be done. There will be darkness.” Laura: “And peace?” Anubis: “There will be darkness.” She tries to argue with him but he tells her that death is not a debate. Anubis shows her the hot tub where she tried to commit suicide. She is to spend eternity in it. Suddenly a light appears, as she is saying “Fuck You!” to Anubis, she disappears. Her disappearance doesn’t look like a common experience for him.
It’s so much easier grieving someone when you’re glad they’re dead.” Audrey —American Gods
Laura climbs out of her grave and throws up. Everything around her looks dark. She sees a light from the distance and follows it. The light is Shadow’s lynching by Technical Boy’s faceless goons. I guess being a zombie gives you extra strength, because Laura tears the faceless goons to pieces. Blood gushes all around her in the rain, covering both her and Shadow. One of the goons hacks her arm off but they got the worst of this fight. Laura walks down the deserted road carrying her severed arm. She goes to her old home and washes the blood off. She hides when Shadow comes to clean up the house and box their items. She walks over to Audrey’s house, to use her craft room to try to sew her arm back on. Her stomach growls and Audrey walks in and completely freaks out. Laura has to take a dump, so while Audrey is screaming in the shower, Laura excretes embalming fluid. Audrey eventually calms down and they talk in the bathroom. Audrey: “It’s so much easier grieving someone when you’re glad they’re dead.” She describes how she buried Robbie. Audrey: “I had Robbie buried with his penis shoved up his ass. I’m a vulgar woman. Anger and grief have made me a vulgar woman.” Laura wonders if Shadow knows about her and Robbie’s affair. Audrey: “Yeah he knows. I tried to fuck him on the grave. Seemed only fair.” Laura: “Yeah, that does seem fair.” Audrey sews Laura’s arm back to her body. They discuss the affair some more. Laura told many little lies to cover up the affair but only one big lie. Audrey: “What was your big lie, Laura?” Laura: “I told Shadow I could wait for him.” She asks Audrey for a favor, Audrey gives Laura a ride; she wants to see Shadow. She loves him now. Anubis and another Egyptian god, Mr. Ibis (Demore Barnes) walk in front of the car. Anubis: “You, I remember.”
Anubis and Mr. Ibis take her to their funeral home. They have been operating it for over 200 years. They properly attach her arm to her body. Mr. Ibis thinks she still looks tacky. They put makeup on her skin to make her look presentable. She is an attractive zombie now. Anubis promises Laura that when this is over he will finish his task with her. Laura waits in Shadow’s motel room. When he opens the door she says, “Hi puppy.”
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Laura Moon has been a mystery. Before this episode, we only saw her from Shadow’s perspective. It didn’t add up to the women who died with his best friend’s dick in her mouth. This episode gave us our first good look at Laura Moon, warts and all. You wouldn’t be out of line to call her a bitch at first blush. She is the one who talked Shadow into the crime that placed him in prison. She slept with Robbie, and it wasn’t a situation, where he pursued her and wore her down. She was in control of that affair from the very beginning. She didn’t seem to care about anyone but herself. Except, it appears she didn’t really care for herself that much either. Laura was numb and disconnected from life. She enjoyed Shadow’s affection, but she didn’t love him as much as he loved her. She was bored and was willing to do anything to break the monotony of her life, even if it meant spraying buy spray in a closed hot tub. Shadow would have done her a favor if he let her go to prison too. At least she would have gotten out of her hometown. Laura is a sad figure who one can feel empathy. We all have drifted in life sometime or another. You just hope you don’t drift your entire life. She found the excitement and purpose she had wanted after she died. As a zombie she got to kill a bunch of faceless goons in a beautifully shot and choreographed fight. The blood and rain flowing in slow motion was fetching. She has a purpose, Shadow. Shadow might be her only purpose, but who knows, maybe zombies grow as people. I should watch more “I Zombie” to find out.
Emily Browning gave a great performance. The only thing I’ve seen her in is “Sucker Punch”, a movie that made me want to punch someone. It is good to know she can actually act. The episode was good enough not to make me miss the other gods. I really enjoy Betty Gilpin’s performance, she is quite funny but she is able to imbue Audrey with wounded humanity. It is also nice to see Shadow Moon be so talkative and happy. I’ve seen Ricky Whittle and he seems to be a happy and talkative person in real life, and he was able to bring this aspect of his personality to Shadow. The dude is British which surprised me, the same as Emily Browning. It must have been fun watching them try not to lose their American accents. Seeing some of the incidents we have already experienced on the show from Laura’s perspective gave me more insight on the show. Finding out it was Laura who killed the faceless goons was exciting. It was an enjoyable episode, and it was good that they made Laura a more three dimensional character moving forward.
Grade: A-
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