Dominion: Character Journeys

"Need any help just ask!"
"Okay can you get SyFy to Renew Dominion?"
"Uhhhhhh We have a sale on energy drinks..."

             I'm hoping SyFy is just waiting for the ratings of the season 2 finale episode before deciding on whether or not they should renew Dominion. Also I'm hoping we won't have to wait long and be tortured like last year. This season has out done season 1! It's been an unpredictable, emotional roller coaster with some pretty interesting character journeys. Some characters came out changed for the better while others... for the worst. 

I can still scheme & plot with one hand

      1. David Whele

              Season 1 saw David Whele as a cool, more composed ambitious politician who was ruthless in his pursuit of Vega. Yet he was also a bad father to William because of his resentment towards him; blaming William's crying for why the 8balls found them and murdered half their family. Yet by the end we see that David really did love William just never showed it until he saved his life (at least in David's eyes he believes he did). 

Thank god someone from Tech Support survived!

             Season 2, David seemed off mentally. He kept hallucinating William who acted as that negative voice in his head criticizing his lack of human empathy as well as just plain mocking him. David seemed less composed especially when criticizing Claire's politics. Then we saw David fall and watched as he tried to get back on top by blowing up half of Vega, dividing the city and starting a civil war. Zoe should have shot him in the head. Without William David was consumed with ambition because his love (twisted, complicated love) for his son wasn't "blinding" him as David put it. Yet as soon as David saw that William was alive he didn't want to abandon him again. He was even willing to leave Vega! David and Claire shared a moment in the War Room as the city was being attacked by Gabriel's new 8ball army. After facing his inner darkness David realized what a monster had been all those years and was willing to die to make up for it. David sacrificed William and it really hurt him to do so. "I've always loved you." "No... you didn't." David is at his lowest point right now and he wants to make up for the things he's done. He seems human again...

Dude, I INVENTED the poker face.
Lady GaGa ain't got nothing on me!

    2. Michael

             Season 1, Michael was driven by this desire to redeem himself as well as humanity believing this would bring God back. A noble gesture but it was a selfish desire that fueled his actions driving a wedge between him and his surrogate son, Alex. Michael had a crisis of faith by the end after murdering his lover after finding out she was performing some fringe science on innocent higher angels.

None of us have showered for the past few weeks...

            Season 2, Michael wandered the desert haunted by memories of killing his lover and hurting Alex. He felt as if he failed but his time in the mysterious town, Mallory with it's leader Laurel made him regain his faith in humanity and by extension in himself, his destiny. As a result he became determined to be a bit more humble and to follow Alex's lead. Michael's time in the Darkness was revealing in that while he started out only interested in the tattoos, he grew to love Alex like a son (something that Gabriel had experience with little David). Losing Alex is Michael's worst fear not because of the tattoos but because him dying would be like a piece of Michael dying as well. 

Gabriel wants that Alex Skin Coat!

      3. Gabriel

              Season 1, we saw Gabriel as the consummate evil villain out to destroy humanity all because Daddy left. Gabriel did love humanity at first but after a while he couldn't see past their mistakes. Cut and dry. Not really...

Daddy left on Christmas. Somehow that makes it more sad

              Season 2, Gabriel was much less composed at the start of season 2. He seemed more impulsive, no control of his anger and a bit unraveled. (Should we blame Alex's difficult attitude for testing the limits of the evil Archangel's patience? Ha ha! Just asking...) It got to the point where Gabriel wanted to skin Alex alive (though if Alex died the skin would be useless because either way the tattoos seem to be linked to Alex). We got to see more of Gabriel's past and discover that his hatred for mankind started to manifest when his foster son, David, was murdered by the jealous King Saul after saving the people from the terrifying giant, Goliath. It was a turning point that would make anyone question God, humanity, etc. Are humans even worth saving if all they ever do is ruin things with their self destructive tendencies? Maybe not... Out of revenge Gabriel slaughtered the new David and his whole family (first by kicking the impostor out a window, poetic justice!). Now we see Gabriel is an angel filled with pain and emotional suffering. His biggest fear revealed: being alone. Gabriel seemed sure of only one thing: Michael's love for him until Julian infested Gabriel with the Darkness, amplifying his agony, fear, and hatred. Gabriel let loose all the resentment he kept inside over the centuries releasing his fury on Michael but would he really kill him? If Gabriel kills Michael then he truly will be alone so perhaps not. If so then he's stuck with Lucifer and no way Gabriel can face him alone. 

I can't really read any of this math scale stuff but
I guess we're close to finding these rebels...

     4. Claire Riesen

               Season 1, Claire was a reluctant princess. She didn't want the responsibility but when faced with the choice she chose to give her heart to Vega and sacrifice her love for Alex. Claire is just full of surprises...

David's had more guns in his face than whiskey shots
this season...

               Season 2, Claire was left with the mess of Vega her father left. After 3 months, Vega faced civil unrest turning into an all out civil war that split the city in half, literally! In my opinion Claire proved worthy of the title Lady of the City. Very inspiring. She did face some inner demons in the face of personal tragedies. Claire impulsively killed Zoe after her miscarriage, believing she was responsible but turns out Zoe wasn't the one who ordered to have Claire shot during their summit. Claire deeply regrets what she did to Zoe and it's one of her most controversial moments. She should have killed David in the War Room but she didn't. I feel like Claire's rash murder of Zoe made her more wise in controlling her emotions or maybe after hearing David spout all of his human feelings how losing his family essentially left him a hollow shell Claire didn't want to become him by letting her personal tragedy consume her. That's how I choose to see it anyway. Claire has proven herself a strong person and like Alex, she can make people follow her wherever she goes. 

It's good to be the Queen

        5. Arika

                Season 1, Arika was very calculating. A cold hearted manipulating ice queen that you couldn't trust. The only side Arika was on was her own. We didn't know much about her to make any other judgements...

Put down the gun, girl. You're gonna hurt somebody

               Season 2, we saw a more vulnerable Arika. She showed some protectiveness of Claire and we saw glimpses of her past where she was an innocent girl who lost her parents and had to step up to lead (kind of like Claire! No wonder she liked her). Arika's traumatic experiences changed her in a way that forced her to be this cold hearted person who had to destroy someone else in order to survive. The veil was pulled back a little and we saw a more broken Arika and during the Darkness she was forced to face her sins and worst fears. Arika's first act after surviving the Darkness was to find Claire to make sure she was okay and you could see the change where Arika was weaker, more frightened. Arika was set to go home until she came across a little girl that survived the Darkness. In that moment, Arika changed. Her heart melted and we may see a less selfish Arika who may become more her father's daughter in the future.  

First corpse of the episode. Awesome

        6. Alex Lannon

                 Season 1, Alex was a very reluctant hero. He didn't want to be the Chosen One, to sacrifice his own desires but it's in Alex's nature to want to help others. So naturally Alex stepped up...

I think there are directions on here on how to close it...

                 Season 2, Alex's time with Gabriel was hard but it made him realize that he was very important. He came out of the bombing with more self worth at least in his tattoos and how valuable they are. It fueled his determination to save humanity. I feel like this new drive is what reactivated the tattoos and allowed Alex to perform more successful evictions. Michael says Alex is the last pure heart, which is why Alex didn't have any visions in the Darkness but the prophecy says that Alex also had the power to destroy mankind. It's not that Alex is a bad person. He seems to be the only real good guy in this world but after seeing him lead Michael into a trap to get to Gabriel I feel like Alex will do the wrong thing for the right reason. His desire to kill Gabriel may do more harm than good. Even if Gabriel dies that doesn't mean the higher angels on his side will quit. Someone much worse could always take his place. Hopefully Alex choses mercy which is always the hardest path.

So... are they dating again?

     7. Noma

                Season 1, there didn't seem much to Noma. She was just one of Alex's friends but after revealing that she was a higher angel we saw that she was more important than we realized.

Like tearing wings off a butterfly... Poor Butterfly...

                Season 2, I feel like we got to know Noma a little better and love her more. We see that she's extremely loyal. She tore off her wings to save Alex! That was very hard for her to do. It still hurts her but she manages to still put Alex first. Last episode we saw that in a flashback, Noma was actually a double agent working for Gabriel at the start of the Extermination War. But we know she changed her mind thankfully. She didn't expect to fall in love with Alex and I have no doubt about Noma's loyalty. She is unwavering, which makes me fear for her character. I hope she doesn't die! 

Usually family reunions are followed by some punching

       8. William Whele

                Season 1, William had huge daddy issues and a dark side that he kept hidden behind his stunning smile. I was always caught between wanting to give him a hug or just smacking him in the head. That feeling never stopped in season 2...

8balls love dressing up like bikers from an 80s heavy metal
music video

                Season 2, We first didn't know William's fate because David's hallucinations had us believing that maybe William killed himself or he was killed in the desert. But then we discover that William was actually captured and tortured by a pack of 8balls. They did horrible, sick things to him that twisted William who needed to justify those appalling things. He deluded himself into thinking that he was the Chosen One, convincing other people as well. After the Darkness, William just snapped. He was bent on killing everyone in Vega which led to David killing him. I could never really hate William because he was essentially a good guy who was abused and neglected as a child and in need of a father figure. Then he was used by Gabriel and David. He's more a victim really. To be honest I would have loved to see William do his false prophet thing and see how Alex handled that issue but feels like we're pointing to Mallory and Lucifer. Need a season 3 to expand on that!

Edward Riesen may out live ALL of us

     
       9. Edward Riesen

                  Season 1, the General seemed a calculating politician who only wanted the best for Vega. I respected him although I never agreed with his methods on running the city. Some shocking things we've discovered about Riesen: he was keeping an 8ball mistress, Clementine. Riesen may have been a pragmatist but we also realized that his love for his 8ball wife was his one major weakness. His love for Clementine eclipsed his love for Vega and even Claire! He just could never bring himself to put an end to Clementine. This drove a wedge between Riesen and his daughter. So much so that the General drove away from the city leaving it in his dust.

I respect him even though I don't like his methods

               Season 2, Edward looked very worn and tired this season. He did have a heart condition though but he was still going strong. He survived longer in the 8ball insane asylum/prison than anyone would have expected. He was also very helpful to Alex when they had to get an upper hand over on Julian. We looked into Riesen's past to see that he was really a civilian working for the military who just so happened to be very smart. His knowledge of military history and natural cleverness made him a great general and I have a whole new respect for him which faltered when Edward agreed to become a dyad and told Julian where Noma hid the amphora of Darkness. Damn it, Edward! Once Gabriel killed Clementine, Edward lost his grip succumbing to the higher angel Duma. Claire's truly an orphan now. 

Still waiting... COME ON, SYFY!

          I really want SyFy to renew Dominion because it has such potential to be great! It really stepped up this season with story lines and characters: new and old. The ratings have picked up considerably in the past weeks and Dominion just deserves another season. It's unique, dark, and hits me in all the right places in my heart. Please Renew Dominion, SyFy!