Wynonna Earp Review [1×13]: “I Walk the Line” [FINALE]

As Wynonna Earp closes its first blistering chapter, we get a glimpse into Peacemaker’s mind: “will the real heir please stand up, please stand up…”

As the Bubblyfied townsfolk turned against Wynonna (Melanie Scrofano), Doc (Tim Rozon) and Dolls (Shamier Anderson) unceremoniously dumped her out of the window as an escape. Meanwhile, a revitalised Willa (Natalie Krill) advanced with Bobo (Michael Eklund) as they figured they couldn’t cross the Ghost River Triangle without Peacemaker. Which Waverly (Dominique Provost-Chalkley) had stolen and was promptly chloroformed—by the sheriff’s daughter, no less!

And it was about time a certain Officer Nicole Haught (Katherine Barrell) got an introduction to the Black Badge Division:

Hey—this is classified. – Dolls

Purgatory’s overrun by demon Revenants aka Wyatt Earp’s resurrected outlaws, Bobo del Rey’s their leader, I am Doc Holliday—yes, that Doc Holliday—and Dolls here is just a dick. – Doc

Finally! Thank you! It actually makes perfect sense—except—for the…last…part. – Nicole

Whilst the boys and Nicole hunted for the sisters, it wasn’t long before Willa discovered Waverly’s theft. Therefore, she shot Nicole to bide herself some time, blowing her facade. Doc and Dolls shot up Shorty’s. And Waverly single-handedly chased down Bobo at the Swan Reservoir for answers. But the only answer she got? Was that she wasn’t an Earp at all.

Doc and Wynonna pursued Willa and Bobo (with “things that go boom”), concluding in a frightening, tense confrontation between the two Earp sisters. It was then Peacemaker made its choice. That in Willa’s hands, it wouldn’t work. In Wynonna’s hands, it did. And heartbreakingly, as Wynonna shot her own sister, Dolls was taken from her grasp by Agent Lucado (Kate Drummond). Ultimately, Wynonna killed Bobo, with Dolls’ fate at the hands of Lucado unknown. And in the cliff-hangers to fritz all cliff-hangers, Waverly turned a gun on her own sister—possessed by something—we don’t know what.

We probably need a season two for that.

Amidst the messy tangle of relationships, the relationship that always persevered was the Earp sisterhood…until now.

Something that had been constant was the close sisterhood the Earps had cultivated. Except as Willa’s true intentions were revealed and Waverly ultimately turned, one would cautiously ponder if the beautiful craft of this heart-rending sisterly bond was always destined to fall.

For Wynonna and Willa, they were truly two sides of a coin. Both intended to do the right thing, with drastically different actions. Wynonna took a personal, sometimes vulnerable blow with every action she took. However, Willa looked only to the future, without care for the consequence of her actions—so long as the end justified the means.

Sometimes being an Earp means making tough decisions to survive. For the greater good. – Willa

Yeah, well if there’s one thing I’ve learned here is that ‘good’ is a moving target. – Wynonna

For Willa, it would’ve been so easy to paint her as a caricature villain. But she wasn’t, and Krill shone in that aspect. She was, as per Nicole, “a dickhead”. Alas, Willa truly believed what she was doing was right, only she could not falter upon action. And Wynonna could. Within every layer of Wynonna was reason and empathy, and for the social pariah encasing she shrouded herself in—Wynonna had heart. Therefore Peacemaker picked that.

It could’ve been too much, ushering a third Earp. But it proved otherwise. It was the perfect juxtaposition of Willa’s utilitarian approach to Purgatory and the curse, and Wynonna’s ultimate humanity and soul. As for Peacemaker, it has left room to ponder the true sentience of the weapon. As it glowed that beautiful blue as Wynonna shot her own sister, it left open the question of what else would Peacemaker be capable of shooting down? And how many colours does Peacemaker glow?

Bobo del Rey may have held young Willa entirely at his mercy all those years, but the roles were definitely reversed this time round.

Bobo del Rey had always been the terrifying villain and in every episode, wonderfully played by Mr. Michael Eklund. In this episode—he was astonishing. As per this show’s wonderfully fresh approach to dealing with three-dimensional characters, Bobo was not the all-powerful villain we’d seen all season. Even with Willa under his custody and their strange captor-captive bond, it would be hasty to label it the Stockholm Syndrome. Purely because Willa dramatically flipped the tables on their relationship so Bobo was utterly at her mercy.

To add to Bobo’s character, Eklund’s departure paved way for a lot of unanswered questions. In the Swan Reservoir confrontation with Waverly, he admitted:

I never laid a finger on [Willa]. – Bobo

You were her captor. – Waverly

I was her saviour! Those other Revenants wanted to do horrible things to her. I told them I killed her. I hid her away. – Bobo

Bobo unravelled further, as he confessed to his true intentions in digging up Constance Clootie’s (Rayisa Kondracki) ‘boys’. Willa. It was a sequence that was equal parts frightening and emotional. And it was admirable, the flawless way Eklund and Provost-Chalkley played off each other. Eventually, Bobo further confessed:

I used to watch you girls. And I’d wonder—how did a man like Ward Earp end up with so much goodness? – Bobo

A lot of things could be said for Bobo. A lot more could be argued that he was irredeemable. Irregardless, Eklund and the writers made sure that he was a compelling villain. As for the scene in the Swan Reservoir, not enough can be said for Eklund and Provost-Chalkley’s acting chops in their terse stand-off. In a broad cast of immensely talented actors, it can only be said that each and every one of them elevate each other. And it was a spectacle.

Waverly: always an Earp to me, always an Earp to the #Earpers.

Perhaps the most sizzling chemistry came from the impeccable duo of Melanie Scrofano and Dominique Provost-Chalkley in their outstanding portrayal of Wynonna and Waverly’s relationship.

Peacemaker is just a gun. Waverly is Waverly. – Wynonna

Yet as this episode strongly reaffirmed the close bond between the sisters—with Wynonna immediately accepting Waverly’s profession of love for Nicole, too—destiny reared its ugly head. Bobo revealed to Waverly that she wasn’t an Earp after all. The aftershocks of that weren’t shown to rock the boat in terms of the sisterly relationship. But Waverly’s breakdown in the Swan Reservoir (acted to perfection by Provost-Chalkley) was devastating. What would it mean, now, as Waverly had confessed to her jealousy before that she wasn’t the heir—now it was revealed she wasn’t an Earp at all?

If that wasn’t enough on Waverly’s plate, upon touching the residue at the gate, something possessed her. And she turned on her own sister. Was it purely Revenant-driven? Or something beyond? Did it prey on any insecurities Waverly had about not being an Earp? What does this mean for Waverly? For Wynonna? For Nicole?

Final Verdict: A blast of a season wrapped up in a fun, thrilling, tear-jerking present with a punch-through-your-heart bow on top: Wynonna Earp has been on solid fire all season, and bowed out with a boom with ‘I Walk the Line’.

There is every morsel of appreciation for the cast and crew of Wynonna Earp, for wrapping up a bold, fun season with some delicious icing on top. If you lean in closely, the icing is screaming “renew me for a second season!”

With reservations held cautiously for the build-up episodes and even episode twelve, episode thirteen brought the two-part finale full-circle. And particularly the character of Willa to justice. Natalie Krill’s depiction of the wayward sister has been nothing but a joy to watch. Furthermore, Melanie Scrofano’s season-long bolstering lead role as Wynonna has been a privilege. To complete the trio is Dominique Provost-Chalkley, a bright and sunny face we’ll hope to see many more times in the future.

The writing has been consistently sharp and snappy, thanks to the likes of Caitlyn D. Fryers and Alex Zarowny. The direction by Ron Murphy, Brett Sullivan & co has been intensely enchanting. But most of all, ‘I Walk the Line’ wrapped up what is a monstrously fun series. The key-word being fun. Enjoyable. Re-watchable. Bingeable. That, on top of the magnetism of the cast and crew, has to be deeply owed to the fun and enjoyable show-runner Ms. Emily Andras herself. What a blast and surprising pleasure this show has been. And let’s hope episode thirteen isn’t the last we see of Wynonna Earp!

Questions and comments:

• Now Bobo’s out-of-commission is there room for Constance Clootie’s return?
• “Stupid Carl.”
• Who exactly is Juan Carlos? Why did he have Wyatt’s badge? And how much does he know about the Revenants, Willa and the Curse?
• If Waverly isn’t an Earp—and I highly doubt Bobo was lying at this point—who’s the father?!
  • I’m calling Doc. Just on a nonsensical whim (let’s say someone lowered a fertile Mama Earp down the well). This is why we need season two. I’m going nuts.
  • Speaking of Mama Earp—what is her history? We know of Ward Earp’s drunken, awful behaviour—but where was Mrs. Earp in all of this?
• I do sort of love the featured image: Willa shrouded in darkness, and Wynonna basked in light.
• Tim Rozon and Shamier Anderson cannot be praised enough for their portrayals as Doc and Dolls. In such a jam-packed episode, it was hard to cover all bases, but they were phenomenal.
• As we celebrate the end of a blistering season: what has been your favourite quote so far? From anyone?
  • I think mine still remains Waverly’s introduction. “Something comfier? Like a coma?”
• It has truly been a pleasure and honour to review this firecracker of a show. Thank you, Syfy, Ms. Andras-and all associated-for a whomping, eye-opening experience.