American Gods: My Ainsel #1

American Gods: My Ainsel

by Neil Gaiman, P. Craig Russell (Artist), Scott Hampton (Colorist)

Neil Gaiman! P. Craig Russell! The bizarre road trip across America continues as our heroes gather reinforcements for the imminent god war! Shadow and Wednesday leave the House on the Rock and continue their journey across the country where they set up aliases, meet new gods, and prepare for war. The Hugo, Bram Stoker, Locus, World Fantasy, and Nebula Award-winning novel and hit Starz television series by Neil Gaiman is adapted as a graphic novel! * The second arc begins here! ''This adaptation is sincerely long overdue.'' - Paste

Genres: Fantasy, Comics, Graphic Novels, Mythology, Graphic Novels Comics, Comic Book

27 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 14, 2018

Reviews

[Ariadne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read #1-9

[Katrine Austin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Intriguing start

Book 1 of a Gaiman graphic novel trilogy in the American Gods world. So far so good but it's just a primer of more to come. Into book 2!

[Storm · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second of 3 collected volumes of the graphic novel adaptation of American Gods. I've figured out why I hate the Art. Craig P. Russell only does the scripts and layouts with the Art being done primarily by Scott Hampton (not a fan of his style) and occasionally other artists when the stories within a story are involved. The secondary artists and Gaiman's strong writing are what persuaded me to try and overlook the art and give this its 5⭐ rating.

My Ainsel details Shadow's time as Mike Ainsel, hiding out in picturesque Laketown, full of interesting denizens you'll grow to know and love. A town, where every winter, one of their young people just disappears. There are several deep and recurring themes here:-

1. Shadow's dreams are important and have some yet to be discerned meaning. Part prophetic, part predictive.

2. Wednesday is fighting the good fight on behalf of others too scared or apathetic to do anything else but die. It is like herding cats and I wish the fence sitters would just wake up and start fighting for themselves because at some stage you run out of other people to do your fighting for you. This is very true, in real life.

3. American Gods: My Ainsel #5's depiction of slavery and the Gods of Africa, leave no doubt that slavery is evil.

4. The horrible typo in mis-spelling Iktomi's name in American Gods: My Ainsel #6 really ticked me off, because anyone who knows magic knows names have power, and that kind of typo was horribly disrespectful. I'm just hoping they fix this in later reprints.

5. In American Gods: My Ainsel #7 Laura asks Shadow if he's sure he's alive. This was profound. Many of us live, but we're not living in the moment, and not really "alive" the way she views it. Sort of a boring, waking death of boredom. This struck a nerve, big time, as I don't know when I stopped being alive, when I was younger things were so much more vibrant and colorful compared to now, when they're jaded and boring. When did optimism and joie de vivre disappear to be replaced by apathy, ennui and people going through life "Comfortably Numb"?

6. Sam's spiel on Beliefs in American Gods: My Ainsel #8is A+ Gold Star worthy. If she existed in real life I'd want her as my friend.

7. American Gods: My Ainsel #9 reminds us the America was first settled by Native Americans, who brought with them their own Gods, ending with the poignant story of Nunyunnini, the first forgotten American God.

[Kaitie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best start to a comic series I've read so far. I loathe reading issue's labeled #1, because they're usually boring and/or full of just historic facts of the character(s) to setup the story. This one actually captured my attention from the start and was quite clever. I have never read the original book or watched the TV series, so this whole universe is new to me, but I was intrigued just by having read this comic. The comic book reads more like a novel, or rather, graphic novel, because there is artwork in it. The art is not the greatest on the market. The young girls in the story turn out to look more like women in their 30's & 40's, but I could see the sketch work they were going for and for the most part it does work. The scenery actually looks really nice. The details in the scenery are a nice touch as well.

[Storm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wednesday "The really dangerous people believe that they are doing whatever they are doing solely and only because it is without question the right thing to do."

The graphic novel adaptation of American Gods. My Ainsel 1/9: Love the writing and exposition by Gaiman but am now resigned to the art being little flat. Wednesday tells Shadow of the Violin scam and the Bishop and the Cop, my ... I did not know much about the world of grifting until now! Shadow's next destination is Laketown, a picturesque place in the middle of nowhere. He dreams strange dreams and is told one of the best whopper stories by Mr. Hinzelmann. I can't decide if it's real or not but I sure do love me a good yarn pun!

[Stacy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read the book so the element of surprise is replaced by the interest in how this version will reveal the things I already know. Still, there's stories inside this story and some were delightful and just as many were discomforting. Do you want to feel things? Read this comic. Though know that you might not be feeling good by the end of this series.

(32.5/50)

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

To be quite honest reading American Gods is like putting together the worlds most difficult puzzle.Very frustrating at times to the point were you want to put it down but when things start to fit theres nothing you rather be doing.

[Donna TalentedReads · Rating 3 out of 5]

To be quite honest, the graphics were a little disappointing for me. Some of the characters looked a little flat while other scenes blew the whole page away. The story was classic Neil Gaiman, a little confusing but this is just the start, I'm hanging in there for you Neil!

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

The start of the 2nd story arc.

[Lisa Macklem · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bit of a slow start to this series...

[Dkolacinski · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent graphic novel adaptation of one of my most favorite Neil Gailman novels.