Laura–I mean Essie–helps tell Mad Sweeney’s story.

Season 1, Episode 7

Air Date: Sunday June 11, 2017, 9PM ET/PT on STARZ

“Good and ill, we blow both ways.” – Mad Sweeney

Beware the Fair Folk

By Erin Richards-Kunkel

If your only reference to a leprechaun is from a box of Lucky Charms, American Gods is here to fix that. Until now, Mad Sweeney (Pablo Schreiber) has played several roles, some humorous, some angry, but all of them support the somewhat desperate and downtrodden henchmen to Wednesday (Ian McShane). His biggest motivation has been to retrieve his lucky coin, which is currently lodged deep within Laura Moon (Emily Browning) and is the presumed cause of her reanimation.

Other than his thinly veiled hatred toward the powerful gods who have used him for their own ends, we have only seen glimpses of Mad Sweeney’s underlying character. In “A Prayer for Mad Sweeney,” American Gods takes a long look at who he was, as well as the journey he’s been on.

Mad Sweeney’s story is told through the troubled life of Essie MacGowan (also played by Emily Browning), a spirited Irish girl who, above everything else, keeps her faith and belief in the Irish stories of the leprechauns and the fair folk. It is through Essie that Mad Sweeney is brought to America, traveling with her unyielding devotion and faith as she settles in the New World.

Essie’s life is full of joy and tribulations as she ends up in jail (yet escapes hanging) several times, and is twice transported to the American colonies. As a maid, she is accused of stealing and sentenced to indentured servitude in America, but seduces the ship’s captain to take her back to London. They marry and when the captain departs for America, Essie leaves to set out as a free woman, but not before relieving the captain of all his valuables. Essie makes her way as a full-time thief, always making sure to leave offerings for the leprechauns. She is once again caught for theft and sent to the colonies where she makes a new life for herself and Mad Sweeney the leprechaun.

“In the Americas, anyone can be anything they insist upon,” says Essie. “New name, new life, that’s a place anybody can be happy.”

Mad Sweeney can’t catch a break.

In the present, Mad Sweeney continues his winding road trip with Laura and Salim (Omid Abtahi). After Laura reveals the location of where the gods are congregating, Salim leaves them to find The Jinn (Mousa Kraish). Meanwhile, Mad Sweeney and Laura steal an ice cream truck and continue on their way to Kentucky, searching for the one who can resurrect her.

As Browning plays both Laura and Essie in this episode, the juxtaposition of each of her characters’ relationships with Mad Sweeney is shown, providing a greater depth of understanding and sympathy for him. His fickle, yet tender relationship with Essie sharply contradicts his acerbic attitude towards Laura, but the longer they spend together, the more of his true self is revealed.

Mad Sweeney reveals to Laura he once was a king who ran from battle because he had a vision of his death on the battlefield. He has lived with this regret ever since, which is part of the reason why he sided with Wednesday to wage war against the New Gods. As Mad Sweeney says, “I owe a battle.

Running from battle isn’t the only thing he regrets. As “A Prayer for Mad Sweeney” unfolds, he reveals another big regret – being responsible for causing the accident that killed Laura. Still driving, Laura swerves and tips the ice cream truck, not only destroying her freshly resurrected body but dislodging Sweeney’s lucky coin. Mad Sweeney only has to take it to be free of her and on his way, but this accident reminds him of the one who killed Laura in the first place. Although tempted, his conscience keeps him from abandoning Laura. He returns the coin to her, and they continue their journey to Kentucky. Mad Sweeney’s story adds an undeniable appeal to his character, providing the audience a chance to empathize with his present situation; however, with his debt to Laura now repaid, it will be interesting to see where he sides if she confronts Wednesday and what his part will be in the war to come.

By the Book: Time After Time

By: Connie Allen

Wow, just wow; the last thing I expected to feel after watching “A Prayer for Mad Sweeney” is sentimental. Thus far, the first season of American Gods has been a wild ride that showcases Neil Gaiman’s stunning world of gods and monsters. My first impression of Mad Sweeney wasn’t entirely good—he’s too arrogant for his own good. Yet, over the course of “A Prayer for Mad Sweeney,” I found myself having a slight change of heart. Yes, Mad Sweeney is certainly one antagonizing leprechaun and until this, I felt little sympathy for him. What the episode accomplishes so well is conveying the complex nature of his origin story. Unlike the other gods’ introductions, like Mr. Nancy (Orland Jones), viewers see Mad Sweeney’s powers are not derived from death or blood sacrifice, but faith itself. Only through Essie’s offerings of food, as well as passing on the stories of the wee folk and fairies does Mad Sweeney maintain his powers in a way. That said, American Gods is mainly an ensemble series; apart from Laura, Mad Sweeney is the only other character to have the privilege of being in the spotlight. This suggests to me that he will be pivotal in the war to come in the season finale. As the penultimate episode, “A Prayer for Mad Sweeney” serves as a major turning point for Mad Sweeney and Laura as they get closer to the House on the Rock in Wisconsin where all the gods will face off.

The Good

Laura and Mad Sweeney, unlikely partners, have a talent for trouble.

What I absolutely love the most about this episode is the narrative structure for Laura and Mad Sweeney. Like many episodes in American Gods, “A Prayer for Mad Sweeney” starts off as an immigrant story with Essie (Laura’s lookalike), who travels from Ireland to America, taking with her the faith and devotion she has for fairies and leprechauns like Mad Sweeney.

What remains compelling are the many ways Essie and Laura resemble one another, in spirit and not just appearance. Essie’s story is in the book, but as far as I can recall, she isn’t Laura’s ancestor. Therefore, I can’t help but think that Laura serves as a reminder for Mad Sweeney of who he is and how he ended up in America. As much as I despise some the things she has put Shadow (Ricky Whittle) through, I am starting to like her, more so after she helps Salim find The Jinn.

As far as Mad Sweeney, I always knew that behind the bravado, he is a man (or leprechaun) on a mission. After a shocking revelation of the lengths he is willing to go to in order to fulfill his personal mission regarding Mr. Wednesday, I have some mixed feelings. Schreiber does a brilliant job of exuding enough charm through his portrayal of Mad Sweeney, it’s almost challenging to outright despise him. That said, episodic writer Maria Melnik and director Adam Kane pull off a fantastic job pairing side by side Sweeney’s past and present through the representation of Laura. It’s enough to make me wonder if Laura has more of a future with Mad Sweeney than with Shadow. Speaking of Laura, Browning delivers a memorable performance working double duty as Laura and Essie. In very subtle ways, I saw how Essie and Laura share similar demons. What’s fascinating is Essie’s relationships with men remind me a little of how Laura treats the guys in her life.

 Overall

Although I love the ensemble cast of characters on American Gods, I prefer stand-alone episodes like “Git Gone” and “A Prayer for Mad Sweeney.” Although the major story line centers on Essie, the events going on in Laura’s situation with Mad Sweeney represent a key plot point. Laura doesn’t sugarcoat anything with Sweeney and, in a way, you can see by the look in his eyes he is starting to grow fond of her. Although, I have to wonder if that’s partly because of how she resembles Essie.

“A Prayer for Mad Sweeney” is another outstanding episode that pulls out all the stops and makes you beg for more. The production value is eye-catching with beautiful costumes and cinematography. The story lines and plot developments are spot on, and I can’t find anything about this episode I don’t like. If I have any issue at all, it’s that the season isn’t long enough and I can’t wait to watch more!

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