As with episodes two and three of
American Gods, the fourth
installment, Git Gone,
expands the scope of the show's world outward, rather than following
a conventional television arc of pushing the main narrative directly
forward. This storytelling method continues to be a fascinating one:
an emphasis on world-building within which the plot can grow
organically, rather than a plot-driven approach that gradually builds
a world along the way. Particularly fascinating is how each of these
three episodes has focused on a particular important facet of the
show, and dove into it. As episode two focused on expanding the
show's pantheon of old gods, and episode three focused on developing
the show's philosophy, part four elaborates on the history and
present role of a character who hasn't exactly been present in the
series so far, but whose importance has hung over almost everything.
Told largely in flashback, and in events that run parallel to some
that we have already seen so far, this is the story of the late Laura
Moon (Emily Browning).
Laura
has been an important emotional presence throughout all of Shadow's
journey so far, but she has mostly been encountered through the
perspective of Shadow's grief, and his struggle to reconcile his love
for her with his feelings about her affair. Now, we see it all from
her perspective, and fill in the gaps in Shadow's experiences. Laura
is a wonderfully complex character, and the way that this episode
dedicates a full hour to exploring who she is is an excellent move.
Given the nature of her introduction in the first episode, there is a
lot that we need to know to understand how she got to that point, and
the truth of how she felt about it, and about Shadow. Both Fuller and
Green's script and Browning's excellent performance rise to the
occasion, and also give the show its first really major chance to
expand beyond the source material. In a significantly expanded
personal history we see her genuine love for Shadow and her longing
for an unknown better future juxtaposed with her depression and
dissatisfaction with her present. Browning plays both sides of this
duality very well, with the emphasis thoroughly on her depression and
emotional distance. Her characterization is sometimes quite painful
to experience, and sometimes frustrating, but while you can't always
agree with or like her decisions, it certainly makes it easy to
understand and sympathize with her. Browning carries the episode
completely, and it showcases her as a very strong actress.
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| She may look frightening, but don't worry, she's unarmed. |
The
ways in which the episode expands beyond the source material also
showcase the strength of Fuller and Green's writing on its own
merits separate from Gaiman's novel. Quite a bit more is added to
Laura's journey, including some really strong sequences and subplots,
and not only are they just as strong as the sequences drawn directly
from the book, they are actually some of the episode's best
scenes. Some of the interactions between Laura and the
other supporting characters are especially excellent. I am so glad
not only that the series is fleshing out the world of Gaiman's story
even further using the possibilities of this new medium, but that it
is doing it so well.
As the
pieces continue to fall into place, I am quite looking forward to
seeing how the show tackles the novel's main narrative, but I
certainly have not felt any hurry to get there, as its world-building
is so excellent. Browning is great as Laura, and this complex female lead makes a very welcome addition to the show's
ever-growing ensemble. I look forward to seeing how her further
elaborated arc plays out as the season goes on. And knowing how well
Fuller and Green seem to be running with the material in their new
additions, I am very excited to see what other surprises they have in
store.
Score:
-
Christopher S. Jordan
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