Wynonna Earp – War Paint

By starrymag | October 5, 2018

By: Maggie Stankiewicz

 

 

Unaware of the severity of the storm headed her way, Wynonna (Melanie Scrofano) delivers a rousing speech to her new Revenant friends about the joy she used to revel in when she put them in the ground. They can’t blame her as they too enjoy the thrill of the hunt and just for tonight they’ll have to come together to hunt a common foe. Wynonna buries the totem and invites the Revenants onto the Homestead – surely the first in the curse’s history. Wynonna Earp will be the most successful Earp Heir in history, if not for her hair then for her refusal to listen to the rules set in place by men of generation’s past.

 

Wynonna’s got the Revenants, but Bulshar (Jean Marchand) has Peacemaker. He holds the buntline special in his evil little hands and whispers wicked nothings to the weapon until it transforms from a firearm to a sword. He then turns and inserts the sword into one of the mysterious staircase’s lower steps. The sword’s insertion unlocks a door that materializes at the top of the stone spiral. A lone Beekeeper minion passes through the threshold and pieces of him are immediately spit out of the other side. “He wasn’t mortal,” Bulshar tells his other soldiers. “Neither am I,” he explains before reminding them that he isn’t mortal or righteous either…not yet.

 

Bulshar orders his minions, including Bobo (Michael Eklund) – to have fun tying up loose ends so he can marinate in his own malice. They dispatch and break off into pods, each targeting Wynonna Earp’s small army. The minions find Nicole (Katherine Barrell) and Kate (Chantel Riley) first and interrupt the Sheriff and the vampire’s discussion on the power and grace that comes from loving someone. Kate reads the cards to find Waverly (Dominique Provost-Chalkley), and reveals that Waverly isn’t with Charlie (Sebastian Pigott), but of him. Kin. They have no time to process this information when the hell spawn enter. The two women work in tandem to fight the humanoid creatures, but they’re out numbered. Nicole takes a heavily swung blade to the abdomen before they manage to kill the remaining Beekeeper. Mercedes (Dani Kind) enters just in time to avoid the violence, at last meeting the vampire living in her home. Nicole is bleeding, her essence wafting into Kate’s nose, reminiscent of vanilla dipped donuts. Nicole leaves, allowing Kate and Mercedes to discuss rent.

 

Back at the Homestead, Waverly reunites with Wynonna. They embrace on the front porch, just the two of them. The Chosen Two. Two women beaten down by the world, and the only ones with the power to save it. Wynonna fills Waverly in on her alliance with the Revenants, and Waverly decides to drop one angelic bomb on her sister. While Charlie stares out into the distance a few yards away, Waverly explains that Charlie is Julian, her father. Wynonna is stunned, looking on as his spreads his wings for all to see. They retreat to the barn to finish their conversation, and decide that if the world is going to end – they’ll need to see their honeys. Wynonna decides to find Doc (Tim Rozon), her Doc; while Waverly leaves to find Nicole. Little does she know that Nicole is looking for her, nursing a gnarly flesh wound.

 

Jeremy (Varun Saranga) and Robin (Justin Kelly) work to find a way to use Bulshar’s disembodied arm against him when Jeremy’s groin begins to tingle. He senses Doc’s injuries, but he must truck on to help his family. Jeremy hypothesizes that he may be able to synthesize a camouflage characteristic of a snake’s skin when the demons infiltrate the station. They circle the men, who are completely unarmed. All hope is lost until vacation Nedley (Greg Lawson) enters the premises with two big shotguns and aim that would make Doc Holliday himself quiver.  Back across town, the effects of the assaults are coming to fruition. Nicole doesn’t make it too far before her injuries bring her to the ground. As she falls, a man approaches her limp form.

 

Nedley saves the young men and makes pop culture references that inspire the creation of the century. By reciting a simple line from Mambo No. 5, Nedley inspires Jeremy to combine Bulshar’s hand with a vial of Robin’s blood, which is immune to the minion’s sonar – to perfect the serum of “invisibility”.

 

The Homestead remains untouched…for now. Wynonna approaches who she now knows as Julian. Julian tells Wynonna that though he’s never even seen the Garden of Eden, he’s been told that it’s Paradise. The Garden had a security system, a flaming sword that was given a Champion worthy of wielding it. The sword – Peacemaker. The Champion – Wyatt Earp. And so it began. The history lesson comes to an adjournment when Julian spots Doc carrying an unconscious Nicole. They bring her into the shed to tend to her wounds, but they’re deep. Wynonna tells Doc to get Waverly. Nicole’s condition is worsening. Her breathing is labored. Wynonna asks Julian to save Nicole’s life, for Waverly, no matter the cost.

 

Waverly is in her room making frantic calls to Nicole, who is unable to answer on account of bleeding out in the shed. Waverly turns around to find Bobo sitting there perusing an old photo album. He asks Waverly if she met her father, then reveals to her his decision to follow Bulshar. He moves to sit beside her, and asks Waverly to kill him when the time comes – allowing him to choose his own end would be the last kindness he’d ever experience.

 

Julian tells Wynonna that saving Nicole’s life will come at a cost, but he does it anyway, just like a good father. As soon as Nicole stabilizes, Julian exits the barn to get Waverly. On his way out, Doc hands Julian the sword he found in the Gibson Greenhouse. Julian recognizes the sword as his own, and tells Doc that his ability to hold it means that his soul is still intact. Julian takes his ring off before entering Waverly’s room. He and Bobo sling insults at one another, and Julian offers to end Bobo’s pain. Bobo declines, wanting Waverly to be the one to kill him. Bobo leaves, and Julian approaches Waverly. He tells her that Nicole is okay, but that he used what was left of his power to save Nicole. He slides the ring back onto Waverly’s finger, telling her that she’ll need it more than him. Bulshar has come.

 

The Revenants, Wynonna, Doc, Julian, and Waverly move outside to face Bulshar, Bobo, and the rest of his army. Bulshar’s men are more abundant and more organized, but Wynonna’s fighting for humanity. The titan’s teams clash. Grenades fly. Bullets cut through flesh. Machine gun shells spray the front of Wynonna’s home. Wynonna runs to the house to get more fire power, Doc enters the barn to protect Nicole, who is still weak. Doc threatens not to harm Nicole, and they begin to mend their friendship by shooting the bad guys. Unfortunately, Wynonna’s left to cover herself. Bobo captures her and drags her outside. Minions hold her down while Bulshar cuts her palm, collecting her blood. The elixir of mortal life – his mortal life.

 

Julian runs outside to slay the minions and save Wynonna’s life, but Bobo kills him with his own sword after Bulshar brings him to his knees. Waverly cries out from inside and storms her way out, blasting minions with her shotgun. As she does so, Doc exits the barn and picks the rest of them off. Waverly steps in between Doc and Bobo, grabbing the demon’s face. With nothing more than her two hands, Waverly grants Bobo’s last wish – and puts him down for good. Free at last. Bulshar disappears once again to pay a visit to the stairway to Eden. The battle’s done, but the war is far from over.

 

Wynonna finds him, but she’s unable to take him down. He blinks away. Waverly finds Wynonna laying in the snow, nose trickling out of one nostril. Something is…different. The curse is over. Bulshar ended it. An act of cruelty, breaking the Earp curse after Wynonna dedicated her life to ending it, only to use it to his advantage. The sisters return home to regroup with their family, their loved ones, and to see what’s next. The fight is far from over. Waverly is forced to mourn her father’s death, Robin mourns the loss of Bobo, and Jeremy…knows something about Doc that nobody else does. Wynonna needs to reconcile sleeping with her mother’s epic love, while processing the fact that the curse is over. For her. For Doc. For Alice.

 

Wynonna knows what she must do. Her blood turned Bulshar mortal – his only ticket into the Garden. As she explains this to Doc, he promises that he’ll fight by her side. They kiss, but it’s only a distraction, one that she uses to bind him with rope soaked in holy water. After all he’s done, how can she trust him? Is it that…or is he the only one who can stop her?

 

Waverly finds Nicole snacking on some baby carrots after her near-death experience and sits down beside the love of her angelic little life. Nicole sets her root vegetables down to embrace Waverly, resting her forehead on her girlfriend’s. It’s time. Waverly stumbles through her words and slides Julian’s ring off her finger. “I do, Nicole Rayleigh Haught. I really, really love you,” she tells her – then slides Julian’s ring onto her finger. Nicole comments on the ring, to which Waverly replies, “Is that a yes?” – but the pseudo proposal is cut short by Wynonna. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

 

The gang sits around the table to plan their next attack. Jeremy and Robin share their concoction. Nicole and Waverly hold hands. Wynonna pours everyone a shot of drugged whiskey, knocking everyone except for Waverly out. As they fall into dream land against their will, she tells them that she’s most afraid of losing them – and seeing the look on their faces if she fails to save them. Wynonna leaves, seemingly lacking remorse. Waverly follows her into the woods calling her sister some choice names…but this is exactly how it was supposed to be. Two sisters. An angel. An heir. They dab themselves in Jeremy’s camouflage elixir and make their way to the Garden of Eden.

 

Bulshar has begun molting, his true form now manifesting in his vulnerability. Wynonna attempts to fight him, but the serpent is still too quick. He strikes quickly, but Wynonna can be quicker. Wynonna evades his blows long enough for Waverly to pull Swordy-Peacemaker from the stone. Bulshar tells her that Peacemaker will be useless in the hands of Wynonna. Only a hero can wield Peacemaker…but he doesn’t know Wynonna like we do. He doesn’t know that a heroine is just as good as a hero. As only an angel can name a heroine, Waverly declares Wynonna The Chosen One, and throws Peacemaker to her. In that moment, Wynonna is able to see the stairs to Eden – and Peacemaker’s blue flame. What was once bound to a narrow barrel, now free to burn.

 

Wynonna uses Peacemaker, and some Princess Bride reenactments to best Bulshar – but something’s wrong. Bulshar tells Wynonna that the Garden will have Waverly…and it wants to make good on that. Waverly finds herself trapped behind a force field that will not allow her to descend the stairs. As she fights and bangs against the invisible wall, she is forced to watch her sister kill the demon who plagued their family. He manages to bite Wynonna before he burns away. Wynonna falls to the ground. Waverly begs from behind the Garden’s wall. Once again, all hope seems lost until Doc arrives and sucks the venom from Wynonna’s neck. One sister saved.

 

The doors to the Garden of Eden open. Waverly’s jaw sets, and she knows what must happen. Vines creep down the stairs like the very serpent Wynonna just killed, snaking themselves around her. Waverly tries to fight it, but it’s too strong. “I am tired,” she mumbles. It’s too much. Waverly asks Wynonna to tell Nicole all the things she wouldn’t get to say – but Wynonna isn’t ready to accept what’s happening. She begs. The Garden reaps. Wynonna runs towards the stairs, but they won’t let her ascend. The Garden takes Waverly into its depths, screaming as it does so. Doc and Wynonna look at one another. The gunslinger removes his holster. “You’re not mortal,” Wynonna tells him as he eyes the stairs.

 

Doc doesn’t care. He looks down at the mother of his child, and ascends the staircase. The Guardian, The Heir, is unable to ascend for she must protect the Garden without entering. But Doc…he’s a weapon. He’s going to find Babygirl, and he’s going to bring her home.

 

Wynonna awakens some time later and collects Doc’s holster. She brings it home to break the news to Nicole, Jeremy, and Robin…but they’re nowhere to be found. The Homestead appears untouched, with the exception of a single name carved into the wall: VALDEZ.

 

Wynonna heads to Shorty’s for a drink and finds Nedley behind the bar. She tells him that her friends are gone. He informs her that Chrissy is gone too. They look at each other, the years they spent at odds melting away. It’s just them. Wynonna tells Nedley about the Garden, and he asks her what to do. The tired, small town Sheriff looks to his former number one suspect, and asks her what to do.

 

The answer is simple. Get them back.