Old Gods and New Gods prepare for war in new trailer for American Gods S2

We’re less than two months away from the season 2 debut of American Gods, the TV adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s 2001 novel, and Starz has rewarded fans’ patience with a shiny new trailer.

(Spoilers for first season below.)

In season 1, Shadow Moon (Ricky Whittle), a recently released convict, falls in with the mysterious Mr. Wednesday (Ian McShane) as his bodyguard, after losing his wife, Laura (Emily Browning). But Mr. Wednesday is not who he seems. He’s actually the ancient Norse god Odin seeking to rally all the remaining Old Gods, who are slowly dying off from people’s lack of belief. Their mission: beat back the encroaching influence of all the New Gods so they can survive.

The first season covered roughly the first third of Gaiman’s novel, culminating in a gathering of the gods at the home of the goddess Easter (Kristin Chenoweth), who inflicted widespread drought on Earth as Mr. Wednesday revealed his true identity. So expect season 2 to cover much of the second third. Per the official season synopsis, “The battle between Old Gods and New Gods continues to brew as we join Mr. Wednesday just a few short hours after his declaration of war and the epic showdown that ensued at Easter’s party.” Gaiman confirmed last October at New York Comic Con that season 3 will cover the last third of the book.

We know there will be some new faces in the cast, most notably Kahyun Kim replacing Gillian Anderson as Media, as well as Mama-Ji (Sakina Jaffrey), the Hindu goddess of death (now working as a waitress at Motel America), Mr. Town (Dean Winters), a ruthless agent of the New Gods. and Sam Black Crow (Devery Jacobs(, a hitch-hiking college student.

The first trailer for the new season dropped in October, and it looked quite promising, even if was mostly tantalizing glimpses of the returning cast. We expressed hope that the rumors of production turmoil surrounding season 2—leading to the departure of original show runners Bryan Fuller and Michael Green, followed by their replacement, Jesse Alexander—would not, in the end, adversely affect the final product.  But we were less impressed by the sneak peek Starz posted on Twitter in December, showing the first three minutes of the new season.

It opens with a well-heeled man teeing off on the golf course when he is mowed down by a careening limo, driven by none other than Technical Boy (Bruce Langley). I guess this is meant to show the capriciousness of the gods, both Old and New, toward human life. Or maybe it was punishment for the golfer’s obnoxious vanity license plate, PAR-TEE. Anyway, Technical Boy drives to a dimly lit garage and a badly wounded Mr. World (Crispin Glover) emerges.

Then all we get is Glover muttering dark threats about taking out Mr. Wednesday once and for all, with overwrought lines like eradicating the “paternal stain from the geriatric tomes of every decrepit church, temple, and back alley apothecary.” He’s there to enlist an ally, and instructs Technical Boy to go find Media in the meantime. “This is a time for preparation,” he says. “I can’t sell war without my best salesman.”

This second trailer looks a bit more promising, with a ton of new footage. Mr. Wednesday is also preparing for war, and assures Shadow he has a big role to play. But there’s always a catch with Mr. Wednesday; there’s no assurance that role will be a pleasant one. It also looks like we’re going to get a few more flashbacks, as there are scenes clearly set in the Old West, Nazi Germany, and what looks to be an ancient tribal conflict of some kind. We’re most intrigued by the purpose of Mr Wednesday’s clearly magical carousel. Does it transport people in space as it spins faster and faster, or through space and time, as a means of visiting conflict in ages past? Or something else entirely? We’ll soon find out.

Season 2 of American Gods will debut on Starz on March 10, 2019.

Listing image by YouTube/Starz