Editorial: Reasons Why Starz’s American Gods Will Be Worth Watching

American Gods book cover

**UPDATE Thurs 1/28/16 – CASTING FOR AMERICAN GODS ANNOUNCED. Click here.***

After over a decade, author Neil Gaiman’s highly acclaimed book “American Gods” will finally see the light of day onscreen. In a recent press release, Starz Network announced, “…a script to series development of FremantleMedia North America’s (FMNA) adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s acclaimed urban fantasy novel ‘American Gods.’ The pilot script will be penned by Bryan Fuller (‘Hannibal,’ ‘Pushing Daisies,’ ‘Heroes’) and Michael Green (‘The River,’ ‘Kings,’ ‘Heroes’), who will also showrun the series. They will executive produce along with Gaiman. FremantleMedia North America will produce the series.”

This marks another brilliant book-to-screen project Starz has undertaken; the TV series based on the extremely popular series “Outlander” by Diana Gabaldon is due to premiere this summer.

But what makes American Gods a contender for one of the best upcoming series on television? Here are a few reasons, along with more insight from Starz’s press release.

The Story: Unlike Anything on Television

There are plenty of shows illustrating the highs and lows of life as a vampire, werewolf, and sometimes both. With a few exceptions, like Supernatural, the subject of mythological gods and other various deities isn’t explored on television. Not to be mistaken for a fairy tale, American Gods doesn’t have a damsel to rescue or a prince with a gallant steed. Instead, “the plot posits a war brewing between old and new gods: the traditional gods of biblical and mythological roots from around the world steadily losing believers to an upstart pantheon of gods reflecting society’s modern love of money, technology, media, celebrity and drugs. Its protagonist, Shadow Moon, is an ex-con who becomes bodyguard and traveling partner to Mr. Wednesday, a con man but in reality one of the older gods, on a cross-country mission to gather his forces in preparation to battle the new deities.”

With such a unique and creative concept, it’s hard to imagine this show will be anything but innovative.

The Team: It’s the Company You Keep

It’s a good sign for American Gods, the TV series, when the ensemble of people working with it includes Gaiman, Fuller, and Green. There is no short supply of excitement as Fuller expressed his feelings about the project. “Neil Gaiman has created the holiest of holy toy boxes with ‘American Gods’ and filled it with all manner of magical thing, born of new gods and old. Michael Green and I are thrilled to crack this toy box wide open and unleash the fantastical titans of heaven and earth and Neil’s vividly prolific imagination.”

Most notably, Fuller, whose skills in creating very strong and consistent story lines for a large ensemble of characters, will be a major asset for American Gods.

Fuller’s current work with NBC’s Hannibal, a television version of Thomas Harris’ books based on the infamous Hannibal Lector, is a prime example of how to effectively remake a classic without ruining the legacy. Fuller’s resume is impressive, to say the least, and whether he is questioning the topic of death and the stages of grief in Dead Like Me, a story about grim reapers, or exploring the age old question of what it means to be human in the series Heroes, there is no doubt in my mind that the show will be in good hands.

The Network: It’s All About Location, Location, Location

While premium networks like HBO and Showtime have a longstanding history of bringing iconic and memorable shows to the small screen, Starz is quickly becoming a leading contender by providing an eclectic array of series that stands apart from what’s currently on television for a wide variety of viewers. Shows like Power offer suspense and drama in a violent modern day world of high stakes crime and drug lords; Black Sails takes viewers deep into the unglamorous lives of pirates; and upcoming series Outlander meshes together historical fiction with science fiction. The one constant theme that threads these shows together is the quality Starz allows its producers and creative teams to mold its brand. There is nothing gimmicky with how most of its series present themselves; there’s an attention to details and a pride behind the product it offers its viewers.

Starz aims high and thinks big with its shows, which makes it the perfect spot for American Gods. Describing the network’s feelings on the matter, Starz Managing Director Carmi Zlotnik commented, “‘American Gods’ is a project that deserves to be made. With our partners at FremantleMedia and with Bryan, Michael and Neil, we believe we can create a series that honors the book and does right by the fans and viewers.”

So what do you think? Are you a fan of the book series? Will you tune into American Gods when it airs? <We will update once Starz announces a premiere date>

Let me know in the comments below or at Twitter @conallen.