#god of unity

[imaginethatneathuh]

I should be writing. Instead, I’m doing this.

In my rewatch of American Gods, I noticed something in Season 1 Episode 8 in the confrontation between Mr Wednesday and the New Gods.

When Technical Boy appears, he comes from one of the Children and seems to produce another.

Mr World, on the other hand, takes over one of the Children.

I think how they pop in is interesting.

Technical Boy spawns another of the Children as he pops in. It’s smooth and he doesn’t glitch. He’s not overtaking anything, he’s simply popping in from his tech.

Mr World, as stated before, takes over. He glitches and shakes heavily. The transition is shaky and Mr World isn’t fully there. It looks like he’s still fighting to fully take over the Child with the Child’s physical form glitching in and out before Mr World takes full control.

I didn’t really have a point, I just wanted to point it out.

[fantomfox]

Crispin Glover as Mr. World in the American Gods season 3 teaser [x]

Hello, humans. You come here to worship at our shrine and thought the New Gods would abandon you. You should know us better than that. We’ve still got a trick or two up our sleeves.

[imaginethatneathuh]

Ms World:

Technical Boy:

[imaginethatneathuh]

World: Try not to Technical Boy this job.

Technical Boy: Hol up, did you just use my name as a verb?

[imaginethatneathuh]

Media: Technical Boy hasn't stopped staring through the window since the storm started.

Media, to Mr World: Do you think we should let him in?

[imaginethatneathuh]

When I watch AG, I really wanna be on the Old Gods' side. They're the underdog; everybody loves an underdog. But, when I actually think about what is going to happen (all the potentials and whatnot) I can't help but laugh at Odin.

The Old Gods aren't irrelevant; they're just not as prevalent. When Odin talks about why he wants this war, I feel like I'm listening to an old man try to convince people to fight for something that doesn't matter anymore.

The New Gods offered him and other Old Gods a place in the modern world. They should take that (even if World's proposal for Odin is inherently flawed when you actually look at what he promises, but I digress). The Old Gods need to adapt; that's how humans have stayed alive for so long, by adaptation. Too many Old Gods are stuck in the past and that's their problem. They need to grow and adapt like the New Gods have and are offering. Yes, these adaptations may one day be obsolete, but that isn't the point; you can adapt again, but you can't come back from the dead.

I understand the Old Gods are old and, much like many older generations, are stuck in their ways. Here's the thing, many older and old people do adapt to the modern-day and all the things it comes with. Take the Old Gods, Easter and Vulcan, with help from the New Gods, they were reinvented and relevant again.

Isn't that the purpose of all gods? To be relevant. To be worshipped.

The New Gods may be assholes, annoying, and sometimes promise things that can't happen the way they say it will (I am looking at you, World), but they're right.

The Old Gods in the US can be stamped out. The New Gods can't without a complete destruction of life in the US as we know it. A massive, catastrophic event would be needed to shut everything down. The Old Gods aren't capable of that. Not anymore.

As World said in S1 Ep8: "We fight, we win. We don't fight, we win." and Technical Boy says: "You die out either way." This isn't just them being cocky assholes, this is them being factual.

The Old Gods aren't as worshipped the US as the New Gods; they aren't as relevant. Even their worshippers still use technology and media and are a part of globalization. The New Gods are unavoidable. Even the Old Gods can't avoid worshipping them in some way.

When you actually look at what each side is, has, and is offering, the New Gods make the most sense. They have more power, more influence, and the more logical stance. The Old Gods don't stand much of a chance, especially in the state they are in now.

Like I said in the beginning, I really wanna be on the side of the Old Gods,  but logic is pointing in the direction of the New Gods.

[imaginethatneathuh]

Wouldn’t it be awesome if there was a New God that didn’t act like a New God?

Like, most New Gods are arrogant to some degree or another. A lot act like they’re better than everyone else, especially the Old Gods.

But what if one wasn’t like that?

Say, someone like us, maybe even like the Old Gods. Someone who has a regular 9-5 or 5-9 or something like that. A New God, at the height of their power, who stays level. Like, someone who works in the fast food industry or retail. Yeah, they’re powerful, but they don’t need to act like the rest. They don’t want to. They have better things to do with their life. Sure, they’re a part of World’s system. Yeah, okay, they’re a slave to Money and constantly influenced by Media and Tech. But, they’re also just like us. Someone who goes home every day and takes off their shoes. Someone who probably takes a shower after work and tries to relax (sometimes failing, sometimes not). A god who gets angry and jealous and gets really happy (especially when they get to get off work early). A god who’s like the Old Gods but who’s also a New God. A god who is 100% willing to lay the beat down on someone but won’t cause they don’t want to lose their job. Someone that World probably wants on the New Gods’ side, but they probably won’t. After all, why would they care about war? It does nothing for them.

Just think: A god who isn’t a god, but a god who’s like us. A god of the everyday.

Edit: Just in case I wasn’t clear (I probably wasn’t), I’m not talking about the Spooks. The Spooks are New Gods who think they’re human, that what they’re doing is just a job and the people they serve aren’t gods but aliens. What I’m talking about isn't a New God who thinks they're human, like the Spooks, but a New God who is a God but chooses to be human. To connect with their worshippers. I want a god who is keenly aware of their "divinity" but doesn't care. The Spooks are awesome, but they don't really know what they are. I want a god who does.

[imaginethatneathuh]

What’s the difference between a New God and an Old God in the American Gods TV Series?

Well, that’s easy; New Gods are new and Old Gods are old. Old Gods are of the gods of the past while New Gods are the gods of the future.

But are they? Are they really?

In the TV series, we see three main New Gods: World, Media, and Technical Boy. We see them at various stages. With Media evolving into New Media, Technical Boy having several incarnations (Telephone Boy, Quantum Boy, etc), and World being the most recent to upgrade into a different Mr World and a Ms World.

But the Old Gods aren’t like that. They aren’t upgraded versions of the Old Gods. There are different versions but each of them coexist in different parts of the world because they are shaped for that part of the world.

The American versions of the Old Gods are all weaker than the other versions of themselves, especially in their native country, if not forgotten all together.

With the New Gods, it isn’t. As far as we know, the New Gods evolve or upgrade. They’re the most recent version of the Media, Globalization, and Technology. They are New, Improved Gods.

So, maybe, that’s the difference.

The New Gods are new because they never stay the same. They are probably older than any other god but because they are constantly upgrading, they’re seen as the newest gods. The newest pantheon.

Because technology, globalization, and the media weren’t as prevalent in the past as they are now (and even in the past 100-200 years), they weren’t necessarily powerful gods. They were weaker, but because of how things are now and how things have grown over the last 100+ years, they have become powerhouses that are dependent on one another. Which is another post all together.

Tl;dr, the New Gods are only new because they never stay the same long enough to be considered old.