The Reason Everyone Hates Laura Moon On American Gods
The unfortunate news that the Starz series American Gods was canceled had fans shook when the announcement came from the network in March 2021. The fantasy drama, based on the novel by Neil Gaiman, finished its third season in December 2020. Although there were hints that a TV movie may be in the works, fans of the show mourned the fact that the strange adventures of Shadow Moon would not be getting a satisfying conclusion anytime soon.
The appeal of American Gods is not only the show's unique premise but its cast of stellar characters. There's Mr. Wednesday (Ian McShane), later revealed to be the legendary Odin, king of the Norse gods; Mad Sweeney (Pablo Schreiber), a self-proclaimed "leprechaun" of Irish folklore; and Bilquis (Yetide Badaki), the seductive and mysterious goddess of love and lust.
Though most fans of the show likely have their own favorites among the diverse cast, one character has earned the ire and dislike of many viewers — Laura Moon, the unfaithful wife of Shadow who died and was brought back to life. Emily Browning plays Laura, and though Shadow's ex isn't completely unsympathetic, that doesn't mean that fans can forgive some of her more despicable actions.
What people are saying about Laura Moon
On the surface, Laura Moon is not the most likable character. It was Laura's scheme that landed Shadow in jail and, to add insult to injury, she ended up having an affair with his best friend. Laura seems to know she did wrong and even helps Shadow along his journey. So why is it that fans still despise her so much? Take a look at one of the many Reddit posts, and you'll see just what American Gods fans have to say about Shadow's "dead wife."
DnD-NewGuy opened a Reddit discussion with the question, "Are we supposed to care about Laura Moon? Like why are we supposed to want her to succeed? She's not a nice or good person. I find myself annoyed that she's getting anywhere."
Many Redditors seemed to agree. Ben70 responded, "YES, she's terrible. She treated Shadow badly when they were together. Her dumb robbery plan landed his ass in jail. Then she was [having sex with] his friend. She never cared for him as a human – always referred to him as 'puppy'. By all objective standards, she's not a good person, nor a nice one." Another Reddit thread comment from betrayedof52z reads, "I can't believe how much screen time this insufferable character gets. I can't find one enjoyable thing about her."
A different argument against Laura has little to do with her actions, and more with how the character was written by the screenwriters. "She is entirely unlikable," says Redditor AdrianBlack. "And it doesn't mean she is a good actress because I don't like her, it's because she's boring, flat and 2 dimensional. Her character is poorly fleshed out and only given annoyance, anger or impatience as emotions. I don't care about her because there is absolutely nothing there to invest in. I don't find it interesting or enjoyable to see a static character with a flat arc."
Laura Moon is a character that some fans love to hate
While many avid American Gods watchers find Laura Moon just plain detestable, some are arguing that hating the character is, well, kind of the point. In the thread begun by DnD-NewGuy, Reddit user shatterhearts writes, "She's a terrible person. I would absolutely loathe her in real life. But as a character, I adore her. She's dynamic, creates conflict, and comes across as a real person instead of a stereotype."
In yet another Reddit post on the subject, user CatrionaShadowleaf said, "I love Laura because she's selfish and unlikeable. She takes no s***, she destroys unmercifully, and she sees through things like a viewer when all of the other characters around her buy in."
For some, having a character be so imperfect is what makes them so relatable. "I love her character because she was written like a human person, with layers, flaws, motivation. The flaws part is important, I feel like there aren't enough realistically flawed characters like her, especially female characters. It's so compelling to watch her because she feels solid," wrote lurk3rthrowaway.
One thing that all American Gods fans can agree on is that Laura Moon is not someone to be admired — however, there seems to be a disagreement about whether her flawed traits deserve to be loathed or pitied. Even though the future of the show is uncertain, it's clear that discussions centered around this complex character likely won't ever see a resolution.