Shadow Moon is doing well in his new job, keeping a low profile and staying on the straight and narrow. But some aspects of his past will never leave him alone.

After a wild second season that seemed to be as dramatic behind the scenes as on screen, Starz/Amazon Prime Video’s adaptation of the beloved 2001 Neil Gaiman novel returns for a third outing, this time with showrunner Charles H Eglee (The Shield, Dexter). With Starz and Amazon Prime Video already having confirmed a fourth season, all eyes are hopefully on completing the lengthy tale.

After a detailed ‘Previously on…’ to bring us up to date, and as a jumping on point for new viewers, the show enters the ‘My Ainsel’ section of the novel. This is good news, because it features the book’s strongest chapters. Immediately we are introduced to Marilyn Manson’s Johan Wengren, one of the many new gods joining this season – a great bit of casting.

Mr Wednesday (Ian McShane) and Shadow’s relationship has always been one of the strongest elements of the show, and wisely it’s not long before the former has manoeuvred his henchman into meeting him. This serves a useful role of re-establishing what the odds are, and to warn about the upcoming war between gods old and new. But while the heat is still on, Shadow needs to relocate to the quiet Wisconsin town of Lakeside, where surely nothing can happen…

Verdict: Welcome to Lakeside, home of America’s best pasty! A confident season opener that successfully juggles bringing viewers up to speed with the show and the introduction of new characters and locales.  8/10

American Gods Season 3 launches on Prime Video on Monday 11th January.