#deleted material

Here you will find all the unused material, deleted scenes and abandonned concepts I could find for the television series American Gods.

This masterpost will be updated as time goes by.

And here is a rare behind-the-scene video filmed of the fat prosthetics being applied to Bruce Langley for playing a previous (and obese) version of Technical Boy in season 2. You can also see how the wig was put on, and if you are attentive enough you will see Bruce mocks the wig by showing a picture of the camera of a potato with a very similar haircut. 

I previously mentionned on my blogs that for the role of New Media Kahyun Kim tried several looks, wigs, makeups and costumes - and that many, while considered for the series (and maybe even filmed in scenes) were cut from the final product.

Here are two other posts I made about these looks:

https://americangodstalk.tumblr.com/post/617757961135308800/here-are-pictures-of-one-of-the-deleted-looks

https://americangodstalk.tumblr.com/post/617758950876692480/here-is-another-one-of-the-unused-looks-of-new

Now this is a very important piece of “deleted material” for season 2 of American Gods. 

You see, season 2 established that the god of technology that is Technical Boy actually evolved through a series of different incarnations and avatars. During the World War eras, Technical Boy used to be Telephone Boy, god of telephones - you guessed it - while at the end of season 2, the Technical Boy we currently know evolves into a new identity and shape - Quantum Boy, god of quantum computing and technology. 

A scene was shot of another ancient incarnation of Technical Boy, but this scene was cut from the episode, and given the legal chaos around season 2 we may never see this scene being ever released. This scene depicted Technical Boy as he appeared in the novel, an obese and arrogant young man/teenager based on the technology of the 1990s. 

This picture was taken and shared by Colin Penman, the big name in charge of prosthetic, makeup and other physical special effects. His post is now deleted, unfortunately (probably due to said legal troubles mentionned above) but he expressed in them a deep regret at letting this scene disappear, because he was quite proud of the fat makeup created for Bruce Langley by Allan Cooke. 

Given that I am not aware of this incarnation supposed name, I can only emit theories. My biggest theory right now is “Game Boy”, that I explain here: 

https://americangodstalk.tumblr.com/post/618209026373828608/now-for-a-deeper-analysis-of-this-deleted

Now, for a deeper analysis of this deleted segment! Well, it won’t be that deep, after all I only have a few seconds of behind-the-scenes material, but the look at the set of the scene is really revealing. 

(Again, all the links towards the deleted material can be found here: https://americangodstalk.tumblr.com/post/618207026487738368/here-are-screenshots-i-took-of-this-video )

Clearly, the theme of this set is “video games”. “Fat Technical Boy” is supposed to sit on this chair, inside a grey cubic structure that looks strongly like a television set… Or the CEO’s computer in “The Greatest Story Ever Told”, the one on which he composes a new Bach… or his Game Boy… But I will come back to this detail later. 

Fat Tech Boy’s seat is surrounded by game consoles and all sorts of bottles, snacks and candy. Behind him a huge screen is playing a video game in real life (again, reinforcing the “Game Boy” parallel). 

Now, a closer look at said video games reveal a distinct 1980s and 1990s vibe. The game that plays behind the chair? It is Space Invaders, considered to be one of the most influential video games of history, released in 1978. The consoles near the chair? NES (Nintendo Entertainment System, released in the USA in 1985), Super NES (released in the USA in 1991), Playstation One (released in 1995)… And I can tell you, I checked at the screenshots, I cleared the pictures and also asked the opinion of true kids of the 80s Xp Now, I am not sure of this one, but I think there are Atari consoles also present.

On the top of the pile to the right of the picture, it seems to me that there is an Atari 2600 playing stick (the console being released in the USA in 1977), and at the feet of the chair, there is something that looks strongly like an Atari 5200 (released in 1982). But I am not sure, they are a bit too blurry… I’ll need to get a higher quality version of this video. 

And my conclusion? I strongly, strongly believe this previous Tech Boy was supposed to be named “Game Boy”. I don’t have any real proof here, just a very strong theory. Hear me out: the previous incarnations of Technical Boy, according to an interview done with Neil Gaiman, are all named after the main invention that allowed them to exist. Telegraph Boy, then Telephone Boy, then Television Boy. This incarnation seems to fight right between Television Boy and our current Technical Boy. He is obviously an incarnation of the god of technology centered around video games, and it ties very well with the flashbacks to the CEO’s past in “The Greatest Story Ever Told” - he started playing video games, and then moved on to computers.

In fact the revelation came to me while watching these flashbacks. After Pong, what game is the young Mr. Xie playing? A Game Boy. The camera doesn’t hide at all the name of the console, and this is where it struck me. Game Boy. Wouldn’t that be an hilarious and clever pun? Of course he may also have been “Video Game Boy”, again, I have absolutely no proof of it - I sent asks to Neil Gaiman about this deleted sequence, to know if he recalled anything, but I don’t know if he will ever answer me (being answered by Neil Gaiman is a once in a lifetime chance, especially on Tumblr). 

As I mentionned before here: https://americangodstalk.tumblr.com/post/618344395900616704/these-are-the-four-screenshots-used-for-the

I only used four screenshots for the American Gods Wiki. But of course I made more of these screenshots.

If you’re out of the loop, here is a quick re-explain.

These screenshots come from this rare behind-the-scenes video montage for season 2 of American Gods: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuaz3lAdYGI

In this video we get a brief sequence of Bruce Langley trying to get up on the stage, in his fat suit, for the deleted scene that included “Fat Technical Boy” or the “Fat Kid” or “Game Boy” (choose your name, we still don’t know which was the official one, even though as I keep explaining my headcanon is Game Boy). 

This set is particularly fascinating because its shape can be reminiscent of many things, ranging from a Game Boy the console, to a computer screen or television screen. But most obviously, it seems to be the same shape and color as the “box” in which was located tiny-Technical Boy in this cut scene we saw in the trailer of season 2, when giant New Media was looming over him.

A close observation of the set also reveals that clearly this previous incarnation of Technical Boy was all about video games, with a strong 1980s and 1990s influence. On the huge screen background you can see the game “Space Invader” being played, one of the classic and most influental video games history alongside others like Pac Man. On each side of the chair in which Game Boy was supposed to sit, under all the wrappers of snacks and candies and the bottles of energy drink, you can see several game consoles. The two piles on each side of the chair are actually symmetrical, made of NES, Super NES and Playstation Ones. On top of that, you can also see on top of one pile what looks like an Atari 2600, and at the foot of the chair an Atari 5200.