Uncategorized
http://nerdist.com/orlando-jones-american-gods-mr-wednesday-queen-bilquis/
The growth of America as a country has moments of inspiration, brilliance, and ingenuity; it’s often glorified with stories of miraculous opportunities. Those stories have played out. They one hundred percent exist. But for some, the evolution of America is also a tale of being pushed aside and silenced. It’s a narrative playing out in American Gods, from a certain point of view. Mr. Nancy, a.k.a. Anansi, put the spotlight on Bilquis–a character who has stood proudly back up after being beat down by the world–in the season one finale of the show. Bilquis, Orlando Jones told Nerdist, shouldn’t be overlooked.
Anansi tapped into his storytelling roots and tried to teach a lesson to Mr. Wednesday. In talking about his performance in presenting Bilquis‘ journey, Jones said, “It was important for me to remember, and I think for Nancy, to impart that there has never been a war in human history that has ever been won without the support of women.”
And Bilquis, their Queen, has survived and evolved after being let down again and again. The Old Gods didn’t protect their queen; they haven’t looked out for their own and allowed her to fall. It’s not an issue Wednesday necessarily recognizes as he recruits allies. With his story, Nancy told Wednesday there needs to be compromise but also that Wednesday should open his damn eyes. “He’s pointing out to Wednesday that there is compromise, but there’s also this role of these people who are often diminished, and that’s as important as these other people that we celebrate,” Jones said about Nancy’s tale.
Nancy is using his stories to speak up. “He’s attempting to always be the voice of the disenfranchised, because frankly, you meet him on a slave ship amongst the other disenfranchised,” Jones said, “When you’re talking about American history you talk about gender roles, and ageism, and race, and sex–all of these things come together to create a truly powerful force of people and individuals who have a lot of information to impart, but we consistently say that isn’t important as we watch bodies of men make decisions on behalf of everyone, as if they don’t have an opinion or that they don’t have anything to bring to the table because they couldn’t possibly understand how intricate things are. I think he’s saying that, really, to Wednesday.”
Jones pointed out how Wednesday’s not been looking outside his own narrow view. Wednesday’s been trying to stack his deck with as many Old Gods as possible, but he hasn’t gone to likes of Bilquis. “He didn’t go to Bilquis that way. He’s actively been trying to put Laura Moon back into her grave. He’s consistently seeing the world in a very specific way that is quite male-centric,” Jones explained, “Nancy’s trying to point out, ‘That’s not the way we’re gonna win this war, and also that there has to be some level of compromise in what we do moving forward.’ For him, if that doesn’t exist for those parties then it’s not going to exist for him either.”
Nancy appears to be on Wednesday’s side for now, but the Old God looks out for himself, too. As a keeper of tales, words are his gift. He wields them the way he must to keep going. He needs worship; he has to have believers in order to exist. That drives his agenda and keeps him playing the game. “I think Nancy’s always playing both ends against the middle a bit, but he often uses the truth of his words to make his point and to get people on his side,” Jones said.
More of Nancy and his stories will be ahead in the second season of American Gods. Jones shared the character will have a bigger role to play: “I’m super excited about season two where Nancy will be very, very heavy.”
Images: Starz
The growth of America as a country has moments of inspiration, brilliance, and ingenuity; it’s often glorified with stories of miraculous opportunities. Those stories have played out. They one hundred percent exist. But for some, the evolution of America is also a tale of being pushed aside and silenced. It’s a narrative playing out in American Gods, from a certain point of view. Mr. Nancy, a.k.a. Anansi, put the spotlight on Bilquis–a character who has stood proudly back up after being beat down by the world–in the season one finale of the show. Bilquis, Orlando Jones told Nerdist, shouldn’t be overlooked.
Anansi tapped into his storytelling roots and tried to teach a lesson to Mr. Wednesday. In talking about his performance in presenting Bilquis‘ journey, Jones said, “It was important for me to remember, and I think for Nancy, to impart that there has never been a war in human history that has ever been won without the support of women.”
And Bilquis, their Queen, has survived and evolved after being let down again and again. The Old Gods didn’t protect their queen; they haven’t looked out for their own and allowed her to fall. It’s not an issue Wednesday necessarily recognizes as he recruits allies. With his story, Nancy told Wednesday there needs to be compromise but also that Wednesday should open his damn eyes. “He’s pointing out to Wednesday that there is compromise, but there’s also this role of these people who are often diminished, and that’s as important as these other people that we celebrate,” Jones said about Nancy’s tale.
Nancy is using his stories to speak up. “He’s attempting to always be the voice of the disenfranchised, because frankly, you meet him on a slave ship amongst the other disenfranchised,” Jones said, “When you’re talking about American history you talk about gender roles, and ageism, and race, and sex–all of these things come together to create a truly powerful force of people and individuals who have a lot of information to impart, but we consistently say that isn’t important as we watch bodies of men make decisions on behalf of everyone, as if they don’t have an opinion or that they don’t have anything to bring to the table because they couldn’t possibly understand how intricate things are. I think he’s saying that, really, to Wednesday.”
Jones pointed out how Wednesday’s not been looking outside his own narrow view. Wednesday’s been trying to stack his deck with as many Old Gods as possible, but he hasn’t gone to likes of Bilquis. “He didn’t go to Bilquis that way. He’s actively been trying to put Laura Moon back into her grave. He’s consistently seeing the world in a very specific way that is quite male-centric,” Jones explained, “Nancy’s trying to point out, ‘That’s not the way we’re gonna win this war, and also that there has to be some level of compromise in what we do moving forward.’ For him, if that doesn’t exist for those parties then it’s not going to exist for him either.”
Nancy appears to be on Wednesday’s side for now, but the Old God looks out for himself, too. As a keeper of tales, words are his gift. He wields them the way he must to keep going. He needs worship; he has to have believers in order to exist. That drives his agenda and keeps him playing the game. “I think Nancy’s always playing both ends against the middle a bit, but he often uses the truth of his words to make his point and to get people on his side,” Jones said.
More of Nancy and his stories will be ahead in the second season of American Gods. Jones shared the character will have a bigger role to play: “I’m super excited about season two where Nancy will be very, very heavy.”
Images: Starz
Writer: Brian Wood / Artist: Mack Chater / Dark Horse Comics
Briggs Land has been a sleeper hit from the get-go. It’s the quietly tense crime drama comic that not nearly enough people are talking about despite it being well on its way to television and rightfully so. Every thirty pages feels as taut and thrilling as it would if translated to an hour of Sunday night airtime. And Brian Wood’s latest chapter, “Lone Wolves”, is no different.
The first issue of this new story arc in the Briggs Land saga centers around Isaac Briggs, a veteran home from the battlefield figuring out how to adjust. A simple walk in the woods, exploring old family forest trails turns into a tense situation really fast. Isaac could potentially be one of the most intriguing characters that has yet to be explored until now. Even in this first issue, you can already see Wood slowly pulling back this character’s layers through the eyes of his nephew, James. Wood’s trademark political elements are a bit heavy handed and possibly not for everybody, but still manages to add to the flavor of this tale, making it uniquely American.
Visually, Mack Chater’s artwork has not missed a single beat. The slightly muted color palette brings about an art house quality to the narrative that makes it easy to see why this would have gotten optioned for television so quickly. In fact, AMC would be completely out of their minds to not maintain this same style of color, an opportunity they missed out on with The Walking Dead.
Bottom Line: Briggs Land is back, hitting the ground running as if it never left. Granted, given the current sociopolitical climate, the politics of the story may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but the tense setup for things to come and the spotlight on Isaac Briggs makes the book worth the read.
9.5 Worst Nature Hike Evers out of 10
Reading Briggs Land? Find BNP’s other reviews of the series here.
Are you following Black Nerd Problems on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr or Google+?
Writer: Jason Aaron / Artist: Salvador Larroca / Marvel Comics
So, as much as I like Jason Aaron’s Star Wars book, this reviewer regrets to inform you that The Screaming Citadel mini series is still happening. For some reason. Don’t get me wrong… Dr. Aphra is a pretty fun character, but honestly, this story has exceeded its usefulness.
Issue #32 marks part 4 of this bizarre crossover event that doesn’t do a good job of easing in readers that haven’t picked up the other title this book is working in conjunction with. All of the things that Aaron does well are still there. The interactions between Aphra’s droids and Team Skywalker are hilarious. The action beats are all quick and witty with characters that keep everything fun. The problem is that this whole adventure doesn’t really strike me as epic enough to justify a five issue run. Honestly, Vader Down the whole story arc a while back about Princess Leia trapped in Rebel Jail was more compelling than this creepy queen and her mutant parasites.
Salvador Larroca’s artwork has definitely improved in places since the last issue. There’s more attention to detail and Edgar Delgado’s inks definitely gel well with Larroca’s art style. There’s a great scene of Han Solo looking particularly creepy that should be a sort of Easter egg delight if you’ve ever seen Harrison Ford in Temple of Doom.
Bottom Line: Aaron has been very good to a storyline that really doesn’t deserve the fanfare that Marvel tried to sell. All the things that make a good Aaron book are all there so it’s not bad, per se. It’s just…why?
7.5 Dark Beast Chewbaccas out of 10
Reading Star Wars? Find BNP’s other reviews of the series here.
Are you following Black Nerd Problems on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr or Google+?