
Wynonna Earp (Season One), Not What I Expected
In 2016, the Canadian Neo-Western/supernatural show Wynonna Earp debuted on the Syfy channel. Based on a little-known comic series from the 90s, Wynonna Earp told the story of a descendant of Wyatt Earp, who battles reincarnated outlaws that her great-great-great grandfather killed. Easily described as part Buffy the Vampire Slayer, part Supernatural, this low-budget series never went mainstream, but developed a small army of dedicated fans.
I remember Wynonna Earp debuted on Syfy with little to no marketing. I heard about it at the last moment and decided to watch it, because I’m a huge Wyatt Earp fan, love supernatural series, and am a sucker for anything Western. I didn’t make it through the pilot. It truly was a terrible first episode that did not inspire me to want to watch more. I was surprised to see the series lasted four seasons and then got both an Audible book and a follow-up film on Tubi last year.
Fandom online can be extremely off-putting, and sadly the Wynonna Earp fans that I encountered were exactly that. They championed the feminist direction of the show and the LGBT characters, and sometimes when that is the singular focus on what the fans discuss, it creates an even more difficult entry for new fans. Having just heard about the show from the fans, Wynonna Earp was made out to be something that would not interest me in any way and I was smart in choosing not to stick with the series.
But a few weeks ago, Revival debuted on Syfy, an undead murder mystery show based on the comic by Tim Seely and starring Melanie Scrofano who is best known for her portrayal of Wynonna Earp. I’ve really enjoyed Revival, and Ms. Scrofano’s portrayal of Dana Cypress, and it led me to become curious about Wynonna Earp. So, I did a quick search and learned that the pilot is universally disliked and widely considered the worst episode of the series. That was good to know, so I decided to start with the second episode which was better but still failed to capture my attention. However, by the time I finished the third, I was hooked, and I pretty much binged the rest of the first season that day, which is extremely unlike me.
While you can tell the showrunner faced an uphill battle creating a supernatural universe with a small budget, I feel they did an amazing job with what they had to work with and instead of worrying about special effects, they focused on telling great stories with engaging characters. Each character, no matter how small, feels important and the relationships Wynonna has with Doc, her sister, and the villain Bobo, creates for some riveting TV.
I could see where the Buffy the Vampire Slayer comparisons come in. There is a bit of camp, and the dialogue is quirky and quick at times, and of course you have a powerful female lead. I guess, if you want to try politicizing it and call it a feminist show you can, but not once does the show beat that drum. Same thing goes with the LGBT characters. They don’t feel forced or tacked on to meet a demographic, instead the characters are well rounded, authentic and work well in creating a realistic universe. I’m honestly surprised at how bad the fandom represents the show, but the more I thought about it, the same could be say for Supernatural fans and even The X-Files fans with all the weird SHIPPING. Fandom at times becomes a life of its own and maybe misrepresents the show it loves. I feel like Wynonna Earp suffered from this.
Similar to Supernatural, Grimm, or Buffy, some episodes have a monster of the week vibe, while pushing along the overall narrative, while other episodes just push along the season long narrative. It’s a simple formula that works well when you have great characters and an actual story to tell. The show is setup for Wynonna to seek out the seven men who killed Wyatt and to get answers regarding the death of her father and her older sister. This could have easily stretched the entire series, but the showrunner explores this storyline before the end of the first season, and it feels like just a bump in the road to a much larger story. I can’t tell you how refreshing that was, and interesting, being that Wynonna Earp only has ten episodes per season. That is not nearly the same amount of time Buffy, Grimm, or Supernatural had, when they were averaging 20-24 episodes per season.
I mentioned Melanie Scrofano, but it’s impossible to talk about the show without mentioning the other incredible actors and actresses.
Shamier Anderson plays Deputy Marshall Dolls. He’s stiff and unbearable at times, and it works well against Wynonna care-free demeanor. You may recognize Mr. Anderson from John Wick 4, where he played the Tracker.
Tim Rozon steals almost every scene as Doc Holliday. There’s a bit of Val Kilmer’s performance in his interpretation, but it’s a lot more carefree and fun. The character starts off so one-dimensional (not unlike most of the characters) and quickly becomes something so much more.
Dominique Provost-Chalkley is another character I actually wasn’t sure I liked at first. They portray Waverly Earp, Wynonna’s little sister but by episode five, I was in love with the character. She’s sweet, smart, and is someone you don’t want to see any harm come to. Her character could have been the generic tech/research person, but they actually gave her a reason for being so knowledgeable and allowed her character to develop in ways I wasn’t expecting. And this is all within the first season!
Katherine Barrell, who plays Office Haught is another great character that could have been just a love interest, or a quirky cop who sticks her nose in places it doesn’t belong, but she’s so likeable its hard not to root for her in every scene.
I can’t vouch for the entire series yet, but the first season of Wynonna Earp is a winner once you get past the first couple of episodes. I guess, like Buffy and Evil, both of which had some rough episodes when they started off, Wynonna Earp just takes a bit to find its footing, but once it does, you are in for a heck of a ride. I hope to follow this up in a few weeks/months with my impressions of the rest of the series.