What’s GO Season 2 Really About?
In the post below, Neil (I believe) gives us a veiled hint about the true meaning and goals of Season 2. Notes to follow.
The cockroach references Kafka’s Metamorphosis,
which explores and connects themes of “alienation, identity, compassion, and the absurd.” In the story, the protagonist (Gregor Samsa - or Aziraphale in Good Omens) “...conforms into his new body and status in his family and in society. It depicts how an individual comes to act in accordance with his treatment.” [source] Considering the way Aziraphale has been treated by Heaven in the past, perhaps we should expect his choice in Episode 6?
The Land Of Oz references the book The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz.
There are several theories on this book ranging from political to feminist to Jungian. Here are a couple that might be relevant:
1. Religious/Atheist Allegory:
“The Wizard of Oz has been seen by many Christians (and used often in sermons) as an allegory of faith. Consider: The Yellow Brick Road is the path to enlightenment, with the characters encountering a variety of emblems of sin and temptation along the way toward the Emerald City, which is a kind of a heaven. (In another reading, Oz itself can be heaven.)” And yet it can also be interpreted from an atheist view - that “God, a.k.a. the Wizard, isn’t real, there’s a mortal behind the curtain, and all that spiritual mumbo jumbo is illusory. This theory corresponds better with the book, where Oz is more about duplicity and illusion, than the movie. (For example, in the novel, the Emerald City is only emerald because the Wizard makes everybody wear green glasses there.) In fact, early in the book’s publishing career, Christian Fundamentalists tried to get it banned for suggesting that humanity’s gifts came from within and were not God-given.” [source] I think this theory meshes quite well with the worldview of Good Omens - not that God isn’t real per se, but that She is no longer “in charge,” Metatron/Heaven is pulling the strings, and they, like the Wizard, are as fallible as any human... and perhaps may put their own interests above the good of humanity.
2. A Power-Hungry Villain in Disguise:
“Many Oz fans have circulated... theories suggesting that Glinda the Good Witch might actually be the true villain of Oz. Glinda, though she knows the ruby slippers will send Dorothy home, hides this fact from Dorothy and sends the unwitting girl off to do her dirty work for her, all so she herself can finally rule over the land of Oz.” [source] Again, I’m looking at you, Metatron!
No matter which theory we look at, all the craziness - the munchkins, the wild cast of characters (the zombies, the magic act) are only there to entertain distract us (and the protagonist) from the true motives of the villain and the purpose of the story.