Gods Amongst Men

In Book 8, we see the ways in which the gods are directly involved in and concerned with the specific actions and interactions of human beings. In class on Friday I suggested that the gods operate somewhat like the television audience that watches and votes on America's Got Talent, Dancing with the Stars or American Idol.  While that might be a helpful pop culture reference to understand the Ancient Greek gods, there are certainly more levels and complexities to them. So, what would you say are those levels and complexities? What do you notice about the different personalities of the gods? Are there particular power dynamics that you are aware of? Do the gods seem to operate on the same interpersonal rules that humans do or do they have their own set of rules? Please cite specific lines from Book 8 to support your assertions about the gods.