From “Harry Potter” to the “Hunger Games,” adaptations of popular books have been able to bring iconic characters to life. These books benefitted from a cinematic setting with big budgets and big name actors at their disposal, but some books are better suited for the episodic format of television. “American Gods” by Neil Gaiman is one of these books.

“American Gods” will be developed by seasoned TV veterans Bryan Fuller and Michael Green. Fuller’s grim, yet beautiful aesthetic, which was seen in his other works like “Hannibal” and “Pushing Daisies,” is perfect for the supernatural elements of the story and Michael Green’s involvement with “Smallville’ shows that he has experience in working with characters that have God-like abilities.

In “American Gods,” Gaiman takes the audience on a road trip across America as both the Old Gods and New Gods prepare for war. In the middle of the conflict is the novel’s protagonist Shadow Moon (who will be portrayed by Ricky Whittle in the television series).

At the beginning of the book, Shadow is released from a three-year prison sentence ready to move forward with his life, only to find that his loving wife Laura has been killed in a car accident. Grieving and alone in the world, Shadow decides accepts a job offer from the mysterious Mr. Wednesday as his bodyguard. Shadow and Mr. Wednesday drive across the country and along the way Shadow meets some of Mr. Wednesday’s strange friends. As their road trip continues, Shadow realizes that Mr. Wednesday is the Norse God Odin, and that his friends are Gods of Slavic, African, Irish and Native American origin.

These Gods arrived to America as immigrants from across the world brought their beliefs with them as they migrated to the new world. As these immigrants died off and belief of their Gods diminished, these Old Gods, have had to live in modern America as regular people, getting by on any sliver of belief they can find.

Since the Old Gods are losing power, New Gods of Media and Technical Boy, who represents computers and the Internet are being worshiped every time a person logs on to their computer or turns on the news. As these New Gods gain more power, they realize it is time to get rid of the Old Gods.

During his interactions with both Gods, Shadow finds himself in the middle of a war where each side believes co-existence is impossible.

In his novel, Gaiman has crafted characters that practically pop out of the pages and has been able to humanize the most incredibly powerful Gods. Gaiman’s descriptions of Shadow help the readers visualize how lost and in over his head he actually is. Gaiman’s work with the Gods is equally magnificent, using words in a way that help the readers picture how tired and scared the Old Gods are, and see the arrogance and determination of the New Gods.

Through out the book, Gaiman has been able to portray America as a character as well. The Gods not only use America as a battleground, but also see certain aspects of it as sacred.

Gaiman’s status as an Englishman enhanced this mythical view of the nation in a way that would be difficult for someone who was American, born and raised. His descriptions of sleepy lakeside towns and bustling cities offer new perspectives of the country and add a dose of reality to the supernatural story.

With the adaptation, Gaiman has given his blessing to the show runners and has praised them on the work they have already completed.

At the 2016 San Diego Comic Con, a trailer for the series was presented to fans, and the anticipation for the show has grown exponentially.

The “American Gods” television series, will debut in early 2017 on the Starz network, and is bound to be must see TV for fans of the book and a new audience.