Dominion: Top 10 Favorite Scenes From Season 2

1 Last Warrior Pose Bitches!

                   Couple of days since the announcement of cancelation of Dominion. It's really sad because I feel that the show did more than earn a third season. I was going to do a Favorite Scenes of each episode of the season if Dominion was coming back but I'll settle for the top 10 out of all of season 2. There were so many incredible scenes but these stuck out the most for me. 

Good Morning Vietnam!!!!!!!

     1. 2 Archangels 1 Homemade Toaster ("Lay Thee Before Kings"): Opening scene of this episode is perhaps my favorite. So full of tension but at the same time very entertaining. Julian had the 2 infamous Archangels Michael and Gabriel and he couldn't wait to use his new toy on them but neither of the Archangel twins showed any hint of fear. Acting wise Simon, Carl, and Tom were flawless. Julian's character reminds me of Gabriel from season 1: confident, maniacal and sadistic with an endless supply of snark and some hidden Daddy issues to go with it. Showing no fear, Michael and Gabriel traded Julian's ridicule and boasting with equally mocking comments at the Dyad's sly character. The dialogue alone made this scene memorable. I could listen to Julian and Gabriel trade sarcastic comments all day! Setting wise everything was on point. Fluorescent lights in a dusky garage with dark brooding colors and an endless cast of shadows was very horror movie. All 3 characters were wearing dark clothing. No sign of innocence there as all of them had blood on their hands so on that level they were all equal despite the fact that Julian was the one in control at the moment. Everything fits perfectly with a serial killer's basement type of feeling to give you a bit of chills. 

Time to fly this crazy coop... Oh...

     2. Wings on Display ("Reap the Whirlwind"): Noma tearing her wings off was my favorite WTF?! moment. It was so shocking my heart stopped for a few seconds. In terms of character and dialogue this was an ultimate test of Noma's loyalty (and love) to Alex. Even Gabriel was surprised at Noma's ultimate sacrifice. Interesting how Gabriel was covered with heavy shadows while Alex and Noma were more or less more light. It could mean that even though they were all in the same boat but out of all 3 Gabriel was still an enemy. Or it could have been Gabriel's own darkness that he continued to wallow in. He remained bitter. He told Alex to find Michael and make a run for it. Gabriel may have been drenched in his own darkness but his love for his brother Michael remained a constant.  

Hm 3 beautiful women, an archangel & a big bed...
I like where this is going ;)

    3. Gabriel and the Sirens ("The Longest Mile Home"): I like the sirens scene before the orgy scene. It showed Gabriel at his most vulnerable. Why have "Claire", "Arika", and "Noma" seduce the dark Archangel? Could be because Julian mentioned them before Gabriel went under. Or it could be because these 3 specific women opposed him, they represented the enemy in life as well as in Gabriel's mind. If Gabriel wouldn't surrender to his enemy Julian then why not to the 3 beautiful women that continued to spite him? It was only 1% attraction in my opinion. The scene revealed that deep down Gabriel feared being alone, he felt unloved and abandoned by his Father and his family and here were 3 people who "wanted" him. Add in fatigue from Julian's torture of electro-shock therapy and Gabriel gave up without any more fight. 

They took our show AND my cookies

    4. This Too Shall Pass ("The Narrow Gate"): Some of the best flashbacks happened in season 2. My favorite was when Michael and Gabriel were attacking Sodom & Gomorrah. After Gabriel killed a human for the first time and Michael demoted Lyrae for his sadistic love of torture, Michael finally realized enough was enough. This was a huge turning point for Michael who for an eternity was God's instrument of wrath. He wanted Gabriel to punish him but he refused. Gabriel's own fire of compassion would go out soon enough but in that moment Michael took comfort in that flame. Gabriel gave Michael confidence that he could one day be redeemed. There was a moment where Gabriel was almost mesmerized by the blood that stained his hands. This wasn't a turning point for Gabriel but it was a dark foreboding about the future. I loved the heavy shadows (in fact the whole season was draped in heavy shadows half the time) and the prominent color of red (there was a rouge kind of tint mixed with the candle light and other soft lighting). Red capes and of course the blood. Red means a great many things in this case it describes an angel's nature: violent, passionate, and deeply troubled. 

That dagger wasn't empyrean steel. Michael...

     5. Michael's "Swan Song" ("The Narrow Gate"): Michael and Gabriel had such a strong bond and my favorite part of this scene was when Michael stabbed himself in the heart and Gabriel felt it. Their bond was so enduring that no matter the distance they could feel each other in a very emotional moment. My own heart skipped for a moment. Michael was a man of deep regrets. Haunted by his past he would go to extremes to protect others and in this case he protected his new lover, Laurel as well as an innocent town that helped to redeem his faith in humanity. Of course only empyrean steel could kill an Archangel so Michael came out with only dust on his wings. Dialogue wise I was mesmerized by Michael's confession. Setting wise there weren't that many shadows except when we went to Gabriel on that cliff outside of New Delphi. Michael was in the light of the church, a sign of his redemption while Gabriel stayed in the darkness, a sign of his continued bitterness. A yin yang kind of scene. Loved every minute of it!     

The moment my heart broke for Gabriel... again

     6. Gabriel's Ultimate Grief ("Lay Thee Before Kings"): Seeing Gabriel weeping over his foster son David's body broke my heart. No joke I cried! Carl Beukes really brought it this season as we delved deeper behind Gabriel's anger against mankind. Gabriel was once so happy and compassionate. He was even charged with raising David, God's chosen king of Jerusalem. Gabriel was as proud as any father and showed the same amount of grief that any father would have shown if their child died. The look on Gabriel's face when he saw David's broken and bloody body was devastating. He just shattered into a million pieces. That compassion quickly turned into resentment and bitterness. Carl delivered his lines perfectly as he sat in front of David's humble grave. It gave us a better understanding of Gabriel's hatred for mankind. It wasn't just God leaving that triggered a war but Gabriel's heartbreak that caused him to believe that humanity wasn't worth saving anymore. Setting wise as I've said before, very heavy shadowing in the scene in the hut to give us a sense of dread as we watched Gabriel break down. The tears were flowing for me. 

Alex has a guardian angel looking out for him. Literally!

     7. Smile the Worst is Yet to Come ("Heirs of Salvation"): It's sad we won't be able to see Alex and Gabriel working together in a season 3. Would have been interesting as we've seen before in the first episode of season 2, Alex and Gabriel did more than butt heads. Starting with dialogue it was very acidic and heated. In season 1 Gabriel was very cool and confident but 3 months with Alex and he'd become unhinged. Gabriel was more impulsive as he made threats and ordered Noma's wings to be pinned. Yet despite the heat Alex remained cool. His tattoos began to move again but instead of cooperating Alex decided to continue to test the Archangel's patience by drawing a smiley face. 

Those bitches blew up my evil club house

       It was hilarious actually. After so much tension Alex's blatant mock of authority became like a stress reliever until Gabriel ordered for Noma's wings to be pinned. Then came the boom! Alex had a chance to kill Gabriel (though a nail even made of empyrean steal wouldn't have been enough) but Noma got him out before any of Gabriel's surviving henchmen could get to them first. Setting wise the many candles they had to light! Very phantom of the opera in my opinion but gone were the pillows, the velvet curtains. Gabriel's lair went from the Playboy Mansion from Babylon to a place of serious work with tables and bulletin boards covered with symbols. It showed that Gabriel was done playing games and was ready for the other part of his plan but he didn't count on Alex being so stubborn. If Alex wasn't going to take crap from Michael then he wasn't taking any from Gabriel. Gabriel learned that the hard way.

Some liquid courage? What are they looking at?

    8. A Conflict of Philosophies ("A Bitter Truth"): Michael and Gabriel scenes were the highlights of the series. Carl and Tom had such a chemistry that it brought a wave of emotions to every scene they did together. Even though they were on opposite sides Michael and Gabriel still managed not to kill each other. I guess you can say that they had little cease fires over the course of the war (though in this scene is started out violent). This was one where they mourned the loss of their sister, Uriel and debated about on their Father's Will. It happened in little pieces but I'm stringing them together as a whole. It's minor but I loved that they shared a flask between them. Nothing brings two people together better than alcohol. Loved that in the end Michael asked Gabriel to join forces with him. They had a very complicated relationship. I wouldn't call this alliance a marriage of convenience. For both brothers I think they hoped the other would change their minds or join the other after this rescue mission.  Dialogue was down right spot on in this scene. As I've said Carl Beukes and Tom Wisdom had a strong chemistry. Setting felt ideal out in the open air. The Archangels let themselves vent where nothing could get damaged except each other of course. 

This guy was way too trusting or I suppose more optimistic

    9. A Hard Lesson Learned ("The Seed of Evil"): Shivani's character Arika was someone who was calm, calculating and in control but thankfully we got to expand on that character in season 2. Specifically to the last moment where Arika lost her father. She went from a sweet somewhat frightened girl to a fierce pragmatist. Arika seemed so timid but then when her heart was broken she changed completely. Very similar to when Gabriel completely changed after losing David. The most interesting aspect of the scene was when we zoomed out to see the name of the plane was Helena. Arika named the city after the plane in memory of her father; in short to remind her about the perils of trusting others and that survival was more important though Arika kept a slight compassionate view only for her own people. The emotion stood out most for me more than the setting.

Goodnight sweet Princess

   10. The Last Goodnight ("Sine Deo Nihil"): Claire's death scene had me choking up. I didn't expect Claire to die but she went down fighting. It was a very emotional scene between Alex and Claire. They had been through a lot together being driven a part by fate and losing a child. This loss hit Alex pretty hard. Enough to keep him on his knees until Noma got him to his feet. Alex realized before that he was really in love with Noma but Claire held a special place in his heart. I really can't think about it without coming to tears myself. Though a dark scene there weren't that many shadows instead Claire was in full light. Probably a sign of her "heading towards that bright light" so to speak. Her end was near but she wasn't going to leave Alex in shambles but instead gave him more comforting words to soothe him in her passing. Claire was always a selfless person especially when it came to people she loved. I think Claire's exit was perfect though very tragic. 


   Honorable Mention:

Hello new Black Sheep! Let me be your guide!

       I Believe... ("The Longest Mile Home"): Luke Allen-Gale's performance can't be forgotten. My favorite scene of him was when he was giving a sermon in the V1 bar. William came out of the desert a changed man; a crazier man that is. But there was a reason Gabriel chose him to be his spy and lead his Black Acolytes: William was a fantastic orator. When he talked people listened and the patrons of the bar were rapt by his eloquence and intensity of character. After you hear about how William was tortured by 8balls in the desert you kind of understand why he was willing to believe that he was the Chosen One. He experienced something horrible and wanted to find meaning in it like anyone who suffers a trauma such as that. Interesting how we were given clips to Gates and Riesen as William gave his speech. Gates coughs up blood and Riesen becomes a Dyad. William may have been sending a message of hope but in reality we knew things were going to get worse before they got better. Lighting was spot on (so to speak) with William in the light metaphorically and literally and everyone else at the edge of the light, waiting to be illuminated. Luke gave a fabulous performance. A shame William died in the end. 

No more Dominion... The saddest 3 words I've ever heard

           Never has a show inspired me this much or given me this much pleasure to watch or write about. Dominion was certainly a treasure and it'll remain one of my favorites forever. The writing was on point, the actors brought their A-Game (both new and familiar), and the music by Bill Brown helped tie the whole thing together to weave a fantastical story full of drama and emotion. As someone who loves story telling I wish we didn't end on a cliff hanger but the TV industry is a business first. Maybe Vaun can at least finish the story one day in a graphic novel. I would definitely read that! For now I'm content that at least we have 2 seasons (21 episodes in all) to enjoy. Thank you everyone who worked on this show! Your hard work paid off in my opinion.