Alan gives you a beat-by-beat analysis of “American Gods” by Neil Gaiman, off the top of his head. This is part of a larger separate podcasting project called “I Read.”

Anya and Alan resurrect our podcast to talk through our feelings about the scandals surrounding Neil Gaiman. Is there a split between Art and Artist? We compare the unbalanced lives of commercial artists to academics. How is our society calibrated to reward and punish abusive but talented people? What should we do about it?

We have a new podcast! Come listen to us talk about “His Dark Materials” with our friend Caitlin. For all the details visit the Measures of Truth homepage, then subscribe to the podcast in your favorite player!

Alan reviews the physical media releases of American Gods Season 2 and Season 1. Alan rounds up all the extras and complains about the features that aren’t available. There isn’t very much here for collector’s, but its always nice to have the discs on hand if you can’t stream.

Sarah pulled a stool up at The Gem to talk Deadwood with Alan. HBO released a movie to wrap-up Deadwood, and that gave us an excuse to fan-out about the whole show. We talk about Sarah’s ships, Alan’s politics, and the vulgar poetry that is Deadwood’s dialogue.

Anya and Alan talk about Fake News, Metronomes, Retcons, and the meaning of snails. Can you use boot-contaminated blood in a potion? Anya lays out why this finale is just like a Buffy finale. We wrap up Season 2, thank all of you for listening, and speculate about what comes next.

Anya and Alan run down Season 2 of American Gods by going through all the feedback that has come in. We talk about what we got right, what we got wrong, and how impossible Gaelic is for Alan.

Anya and Alan talk Three Beats that are Five Beats, Adaptation, and Chekhov’s shotgun. “The Treasure of the Sun” is a rich multi-layered episode that we dive into. Learn about Banshees, the origin of The Eye of Sauron, and how things went down in the book.

Anya and Alan talk about “Donar the Great” and how it is more than it seems. Anya loves how Mr. Wednesday’s backstory is a commentary on the inefficiencies of Capitalism, Alan loves how this episode adapts the book, and no one quite understands Lou Reed. But we all worship him.

Anya and Alan talk about Racism, Voodoo, and how Tolkien ripped off Thor in this week’s episode “The Ways of the Dead”. We take a deep dive on Alan’s opinions on Religious Theory, and Anya’s take on how this episode successfully marries historical violence to modern day problems. And the sex was weird!

Anya and Alan discuss classical music and spirituality thanks to The Greatest Story Ever Told. What is the best music to write code to? Why does the god of Money live in St Louis? Why does Technical Boy fail to sway his worshiper? We don’t have answers, but we sure do talk about it all.

Anya and Alan dissect “Muninn” but not the raven- just the episode. We are excited about New Media, Sam Black Crow, and Christian Rock. Less excited about tentacle porn and a fake corn palace. Learn about “Two Spirit” and how Iktomi became a trickster, while we ride down to Cairo in our dirty truck.

Anya and Alan talk about Shadow’s inner light, flashbacks, and Loki being the first mpreg. Listen to us try to decide who is “The Beguiling Man” and what does all of it mean?

Anya and Alan talk about the second season premier “The House on the Rock”. Alan will tell you why you should go to jail. Anya comes out as a rabbit racist. Everyone agrees that Leprechauns should not be allowed on carousels.

Anya and Alan talk about guns with Jonita Davis, from Black Girl Nerds. We discussed Episode 6 "A Murder of Gods" in light of recent school shootings. We talk about social bias against black students, the marketing syndrome of the NRA, and the feeling of power that comes from a gun.

Anya and Alan wrap up the first season of American Gods. We debate who the protagonist of this season is, talk about Native representation on the show, and read your feedback! We loved the first season, but there were a lot of problems and surprises.

Anya and Alan discuss the adaptation of Laura Moon in the first season of American Gods. We look at her white privilege, the intentions of the show-runners, and how she measures up to the character in the novel.

Anya and Alan talk to Stephen Philipson, the editor of "Lemon Scented You" and "A Murder of Gods". He tells us his editing secrets, all about singin' in the rain, and what it takes to be a successful professional editor.

Anya and Alan debate the role of race in Shadow's characterization, the proper name for a group of Jesuses, and if this finale did its job. Open a bag of jellybeans and listen to us discuss 'Come to Jesus'.

Anya and Alan discuss Episode 7 of American Gods. We ship Ibis and Jaquel, miss Salim's prayer rug, and gush about the music. The many-layered stories don't stop in 'A Prayer for Mad Sweeney', our favorite episode yet!